Smart Coaches Don’t Ignore this Process at the Start of Practice

Smart Coaches Don’t Ignore this Process at the Start of Practice

At every level of sports coaches have the same problem to overcome at the start of each practice. Nearly all athletes bring mental baggage with them to practice.

This mental baggage in youth sports can be as trivial as the events of a video game or as serious as stress from family trauma. For a high school athlete this mental baggage could be as trivial as a social media post to as serious as drugs. College athletes deal with all the above and more both trivial and traumatic. While professional athletes deal with all their own baggage plus the trivial and traumatic baggage of others who depend on them.

So, when a coach kicks-off practice it’s 100% a fact that every athlete who is there physically is not there mentally. Smart coaches not only realize this fact, but they do something about it. They teach their athlete’s the lesson of mind and body harmony.

The Lesson of Mind and Body Harmony

While the idea of teaching mind and body harmony sounds fancy and complex, it’s really a very basic concept. Simply stated, when an athlete learns to focus their mind on what their body needs to do for success, the two are in harmony. When the mind and body are in harmony, peak performance is possible.

On the other hand, when the mind focuses on things other than what the body must do for success, the two are out of harmony. When the mind and body are not in harmony, not only is peak performance not possible but the risk of injury increases.

As Susan Jackson and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi suggest in their groundbreaking book Flow in Sports, teaching athletes the lesson of mind and body harmony is the foundation for teaching all other mental skills. Moreover, this harmony between the mind and body is not automatic. Instead, it requires an intentional process.

Therefore, if coaches want all their athletes to be present mentally, then they must have a process to bring their minds and bodies in harmony at the start of practice. This process includes spending 5 to 10 minutes at the start of each practice on activities such as:

  • Mental games such as sport related trivia or technique quizzes with consequential prizes.
  • Guest speakers to drive home team values, motivation, or mental techniques.
  • Highlight videos or review of recent game or practice video.
  • Voice guided mindfulness and breathing sessions.
  • Voice guided imagery or visualization sessions.
  • Small group sessions to discuss goals and future aspirations.
  • Reciting team mantra or motto. Reciting affirmations.
  • Metaphorical routines using note cards, props, or memorabilia.

To get the most out of using one or more of these processes, start with why. Explain the “why” of mind body harmony and then relate that “why” to the technique.

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