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UNC ATHLETICS MENTAL PERFORMANCE & LIFE SKILLS TRAINING PROGRAM. Brett Manning Lyndsie Coleman, M.S. 15 Seconds of Focus. Session 3. Mental Performance Skills: Focus Enhancement Power of Routines Life Skills: Relaxation Identity Control. Focus Enhancement.
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UNC ATHLETICS MENTAL PERFORMANCE & LIFE SKILLS TRAINING PROGRAM Brett Manning Lyndsie Coleman, M.S.
Session 3 • Mental Performance Skills: • Focus Enhancement • Power of Routines • Life Skills: • Relaxation • Identity Control
Focus Enhancement • Goal: Create clear lines of communication in your mind
Focus Enhancement • What does being focused actually mean? • In the present moment • Not thinking about the future or the past • “Be Here,Now” • High awareness… • Of the game/competition • Of your own emotions • Of small details • Of competitor’s and teammates’ movement
Focus Enhancement • Ways to raise your focus level: • Become in tune with your breath • Determine the exact task at hand (simplify the process) • Integrate all of your senses • Pay more attention to sounds, touch, smells, seeing small details • Train your mind to have a high level of focus outside of sport PROCESS FOCUS details
Focus Enhancement • What things can hinder your focus level? • Fans • Teammates/Competitor’s play • Coach • Officials • General Life • Pain • Failure • Success • Level of tiredness
Focus Enhancement • Focus Breaks • Cannot focus 100% of the time • Develop a “Focus Tool” to help you get into high focus mode • Examples: • Que word(s)- “Be Here Now”; “Go Time” • Circle of focus • Quirks- Clap hands, etc,
Focus Enhancement 4 Questions From the Athletic Coping Skills Inventory (ACSI) (Smith et al., 1994). Scale: 0- Almost Never 1- Sometimes 2- Often 3- Almost Always I handle unexpected situations in my sport very well. When I am playing sports, I can focus my attention and block out distractions. It is easy for me to keep distracting thoughts form interfering with something I am watching or listening to. It is easy for me to direct my attention and focus on a single object or person.
Focus Enhancement • Application Activity: • 100 Numbers
Focus Enhancement • Simple • Clear • Task at Hand • Aware of surroundings • Able to Predict • In Control • Attention to detail
Routines • Why are routines important? • Improve consistency • Increase comfort • Ease anxiety • Types: • Daily • Pre-Practice/Competition • Pre-Shot/Pitch/Serve, etc. • Post-Shot/Pitch/Serve, etc. • Post-Practice/Competition
Routines • Application Activity • Partner up and discuss your physical & mental routines: • Pre-game/competition • Pre-shot/pitch/serve • Post-shot/pitch/serve • Post-game/competition
Relaxation • Ways to relax yourself: • Slow, deliberate breath focus (meditation) • Body scanning • Progressive muscle relaxation • Stretching/Yoga • Exercise • Listen to soothing music
Relaxation • Benefits of relaxation techniques: • Increased chance of playing in flow • Slows heart rate and blood pressure • Lowers stress/anxiety level • Increases present moment focus (clarity of mind) • Increases blood flow to major muscle groups • Reduces anger/frustration • Sleep: Easier to fall asleep and stay asleep • Increases grey matter in brain and improves overall brain performance
Relaxation • When to use it? • How to practice it? • How do you relax?
Relaxation • Application Relaxation Activity
Identity Control • Who are you? • Private Identity- How we see ourselves • Public Identity- How we think others see us • Identity Foreclosure- I’m only an athlete! • Multi-Dimensional Self- I’m a lot of different things!
Identity Control • Problems associated with identity foreclosure: • Over-commitment • Over training (can lead to physical exhaustion, burnout and anxiety when not training) • Use of performance-enhancing drugs • Social isolation • Post-injury depression • Post-athletic career transition identity crisis/depression
Identity Control • Application Exercise: • Defining your multi-dimensional self. • List all parts of your life (including sport) that you engage in on a yearly basis. • Rate the different parts of your life on importance to you 1-10 • 1= Little Importance 10= Extremely High Importance • Write down: “I know that I am not an athlete only and that my performance as an athlete doesn’t define me as a person. It is only a reflection of part of my life.” • Partner share
Next Session • Date: Tuesday, December 3 (2 Weeks From Today) • Mental Performance Skills: • Dealing With Anxiety & Pressure • Peak performances • Life Skills: • Time Management (revisited)
Stay Connected • Resources to Keep Learning About The Mental Game: • Website: www.unc-mental-training.weebly.com • Facebook Page • Twitter • Mass Texts • Email: uncmentaltraining@gmail.com • 1:1 Consultation Questions?