Olympic Mindset
It’s Olympic time and I am always thrilled to watch the
sheer athleticism, focus, and determination of these Olympic competitors. Imagine the time each athlete has given to
make it to this level. Imagine all the
many obstacles and hurdles these individuals have overcome to get to where they
are now. To compete at this level, it is
not merely due to physical skill, but to a complete perseverance of mind and
emotions as well….truly impressive on every level.
But what is it that makes some of these athletes rise above
the rest? What is it that makes the
underdog (even at this level) suddenly perform their all time best and surpass
the others? What is it that makes the
top athletes waiver and suddenly perform far under par? Of course, some of these instances could be
due to a physical cause: slept bad, slept good…energized, drained…healthy,
sick.
But what about the mental aspect?
There have been multiple instances in these Olympic Games
that an athlete “getting in their head” has been the topic of discussion. At one point, I even heard the commenter’s
talking of how an athlete had been pointing to her head as if
saying….something’s not right…and it’s all up here (in her mind). Basically, if an athlete thinks they are
going to win, they perform better, and if that athlete’s confidence is down,
they perform worse. This line of thought
has been called many things…”The Power of Positive Thinking” and “The Law of
Attraction” to name just a few. The idea
being that we must conquer what we think…train our mind to work for us, not
just constantly chatter.
I have used this concept time and time again in my life with
great success. As an example, two weeks
before I was supposed to test for my 2nd degree black belt I became sick; one
week before I was supposed to test I came down with pneumonia and
bronchitis. My doctor told me to rest
and not test….I said no way, I absolutely was going to test, period. The entire day before my test I relaxed and
meditated with the entire goal being to restore and rejuvenate my body. Test day came, and I conquered each step one
at a time. And you better believe that during
the ENTIRE test I was doing positive self talk: “come on, Janell, you can do
this…come on, another thing down…just breathe…come one, you can do this…” After the test, I was tired, yes, but so
proud of myself and what I had just accomplished. And my illness, I think I kicked it to the
curb with each strike on that test and each positive affirmation I said to
myself.
This is the very same technique that I use every day, while
exercising and my muscles burn (!), going out to market for our business,
getting up with our son when I am so tired, and going in for an exam at
school….all times for a little positive self-talk and cheerleading. Any time my confidence or drive begins to
waiver, I do this. And, any time I feel
confident but I’m going in to do something important, I do this. This ‘Olympic Mindset’ is a way of life.
Here are some tips
to help you conquer your ‘Olympic Mindset’
1.Develop your mantra!
(This is a powerful, concise, statement about what you want to
be/achieve such as “I am powerful”, “I am healthy”, and “I can do this!”)
2.Practice giving yourself compliments
3.Practice walking tall with your chest lifted high,
shoulders back, neck long, and head high
4.Practice looking people in the eye. If you have a tendency to waiver, here is a
good time to practice some positive self-talk (such as “I am strong”)
5.Work on active meditation.
(A favorite one of mine is to get into a squat position (horse stance
for all your Kempo martial art lovers).
Focus on your breathing, full, deep, long breaths. As your legs start to burn, bring your
attention to various other parts of your body: is your chest lifted high, your
neck relaxed, your belly in strong, your thighs pressing out, your strong
glutes supporting you, etc. Finally,
throw in some positive self talk as well.
Time yourself doing the lowest squat you can do without any of these
techniques. Rest. Now, time yourself again alternating between
focusing your mind on your breathing, your body, and your positive
self-talk….it will take practice but I think you’ll be surprised to see how
much more you can do with these techniques implemented.)
6.When you have a failure, argh (!), acknowledge it, and
then move right on back to step #1.
As you can see during these Olympic Games, even Olympic
athletes can let their mind get the best of them, so be easy on yourself. As with any new skill, it is going to take
time to develop. Just keep repeating the
steps and the ‘Active Meditation’ where ever you can. And with time, you too can achieve an
‘Olympic Mindset’! Go get that gold!
Some websites to visit on ‘mindfulness’
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Start on the ground on all fours, with your hands under your
shoulders and your knees under your hips.
Keep your hands starfished out and light on the ground, weight evenly
distributed. Working through the body,
pull up out of the ground, elbows bent slightly, chest open, neck long and
relaxed. Now pull your belly in towards
to spine and feel your lower-back long and supported by your core muscles. Maintain this positioning throughout the
entire exercise..JPG)
To start the exercise, bring your right knee up to your
chest, keeping your weight even between your hands and left knee. Next, kick your leg out behind you, feeling
as though you are pushing something back with your heel. Keep your knee and toes pointed down toward
the ground (this will target your hamstrings (back of the leg) and glutes
(gluteus maximus – “buns”). Lift your
leg as high as you can go before letting your lower back arch (you want your
lower back to remain straight). With
your leg straight, feel your glutes tight and your thighs strong; extend
through the heel. Remember to support
your position with your core, pulling your belly in toward your spine.
