Mental skills when it counts

When game day comes around, it’s completely normal to feel pressure. This can show up mentally in your attention narrowing, panicking, mental fatigue, feeling as if time is running out, etc. Physically, this could be with your breathing beginning to pick up, tightness in the shoulders, back, neck, sweating, a headache, shaking, etc. Pressure is not something that will ever completely go away. Using sport psychology and mental skills can help you build a routine that works specifically for you on game day so that you are prepared in the moments that matter most.

The best thing to do is start small with one pre-performance routine you can incorporate. Pre-performance routines have been shown to have a positive link to performance and could lower anxiety and increase self-efficacy. The pre-performance routine should be tied to something that you can control. This can be choosing music that calms you down or hypes you up, doing physical activity to get your heart rate up, or journaling before your performance. One way to start small can be through something as simple as breathing. Using box breathing (inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4) or belly breathing (engaging your diaphragm rather than your chest) can slow heart rate and help calm the nervous system. Executing a mental skill such as this for thirty seconds can have a big impact on performance.

Something important to remember is that utilizing mental skills takes practice. The same way you do physical conditioning, you also need to do mental conditioning. Rehearse your mental skills in training environments that mimic what game day will be like!

Hazell, J., Cotterill, S. T., & Hill, D. M. (2014). An exploration of pre-performance routines, self-efficacy, anxiety and performance in semi-professional soccer. European Journal of Sport Science, 14(6), 603–610. https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2014.888484