In the first part of the article we explained the meaning and purpose of mental training. With the help of a questionnaire, you were able to create a personal performance profile to find out where your strengths and weaknesses lie in this area. With the help of examples we want to show you this time how you can work on your weaknesses.
Christine Grammer, the author of the article, took a close look at her own questionnaire and analyzed it together with professional triathlete Sonja Tajsich. Sonja Tajsich has been working in her own training with methods of mental training for a long time and works as a relaxation trainer herself - so she can report from her own experience and has tips from and for practice.
" In the beginning I had a lack of self-confidence, which has gotten much better through success. I worked hard on that. Otherwise I'm pretty strong mentally. I'm never lacking in motivation. I deal well with emotions and tend to think positively. I'm still working on maintaining my concentration for as long as possible," was Sonja Tajsich's conclusion at the beginning of her professional triathlon career.
In this little explanation, some important terms such as motivation, confidence, excitement, focus and emotions appear, which will now be discussed in turn.
- motivation
The basis of mental training is your own motivation. At the end of the season or at the beginning of the new training period, each of us should set realistic and achievable goals . Goals help us to know what we are training for and can provide additional motivation during difficult training phases.
Simple things like lack of time, stress in everyday life, injuries or training monotony can become motivation killers. Positive thoughts , short-term and long-term goals, and individually tailored training can help overcome obstacles to motivation . Get social support from loved ones who support your commitment to the sport.
- confidence
"When my training plan was 200 km cycling, I never asked myself whether I could do it, only how long it would take me to do it. Swimming was different for me. It was hard work to realize that I can do it if I approach things in a positive way. I learned to believe in my swimming abilities and not to start with the attitude "I can't swim anyway"," says Sonja Tajsich from her own experience.
Our thoughts have a huge impact on our performance. Positive thoughts can motivate us, build our confidence, and help us learn new movements. If we think positively, we can also act more concentrated .
Negative thoughts settle in our subconscious and also have a negative effect on self-esteem. That's why the motto is always to persuade: That means, for example, talking positively to oneself in competition and in training.
- excitement
Almost every athlete has experienced a drop in performance in training or in competition. The question arises as to how best to deal with such situations. In order to achieve optimal performance, it is important to influence one's emotions in such a way that one achieves the ideal "excitement level".
Certain situations such as an important competition, a critical situation in the competition or a negative assessment from the social environment can lead to failure. Stress or anxiety can have different effects on our body.
These can include: physical changes (e.g. increasing muscle tension), changes in alertness (e.g. too narrow focus) and declines in performance (e.g. breakdown in timing and concentration).
The following tactics can help us specifically:
- too high arousal? use of relaxation techniques
- too low arousal? Use of an activating warm-up program supported by fast, motivating music
- Develop a pre-launch routine
- concentration
It's difficult to stay focused all the time, especially over long distances. Everyone has their own concentration style. Some concentrate entirely on themselves during training and competition. Others try to relax by specifically "opening their attention" and not thinking about the upcoming competition.
Learn to focus on the controllable things.
You cannot influence competitors, weather conditions or the route profile. Concentrating on these factors only wastes energy unnecessarily.
Think positive and avoid negative thoughts.
Concentrate on what is relevant to the competition and what you are doing and focus on improving yourself and not constantly comparing yourself to others.
- 5 . emotions
Everyone experiences highs and lows, especially during long-lasting races. The race becomes a mental battle against yourself. You should always be aware that if one discipline has not worked as desired, there are always two more in which you can achieve top performance, but only if you allow positive emotions and consciously experienced.
Try to control your emotions. Try to pay attention to the situations that evoke negative emotions in you. Assessing new behavioral patterns with emotions such as enthusiasm, pride, joy and happiness are emotional goals that need to be achieved.
- pain
Pain is part of training and competition when you push your limits. Everyone should therefore learn to tolerate pain and reach new personal limits. Above all, we can influence our perception of pain through positive emotions. When things are going well, we feel less pain. Generally speaking, pain is an ally and is quickly forgotten once you have crossed the finish line.
However, it is important to be able to distinguish between performance pain and injury pain. If the pain is localized to a specific part of the body and persists beyond the exertion, listen to your body and not doggedly continue.
