A Simple Definition that Explains Why Athletes Choke
One of the most misunderstood mental failures in sports is the act of choking. There is nothing more pitiful than an athlete who is a superstar 99% of the time, but then chokes under pressure 1% of the time. Unfortunately, that 1% represents those critical moments that will define the athlete’s legacy.
From the outside looking in, it’s impossible to understand an athlete’s mental state when they choke. However, the late sports psychologist and bestselling author of the classic book Mind Gym, Gary Mack, provides a simple definition of choking that explains perfectly why some athlete’s choke.
Mack writes:
Choking is nothing more than paying attention to your physiology when you should be focusing on your opponent and the task.
In other words, as Mack explains, “Athletes who choke start to become nervous about being nervous. Anxious about being anxious.” Therefore, to prevent the act of choking athletes must practice acceptance.
This requires an athlete to first accept that it’s just fine to be nervous and anxious. These are normal emotional responses to threats and challenges. Secondly, athletes must have a premeditated routine to deal with these emotions. This starts with a rhythmic breathing and self-talk routine. Finally, athletes must learn to practice thought stopping so they can redirect their focus from emotions to tasks. This will tame the ego by turning the athlete’s mental energy to the process of executing the next step in the process.
In short, choking is an indication that an athlete is focusing on the right thing at the wrong time. It’s good for athletes to have self-awareness about their emotions, just not when they are competing. Instead, athletes must use this emotional self-awareness to develop a game time routine to manage their emotions.