Benefits Of Positive Self-Talk In Sports: Find Out How It Can Improve Your Athletic Performance
The most simple yet vital concept of sports psychology involves developing positive self-talk. It is an essential psychological skill that is quite difficult to master.
Most of us engage in a running dialogue with ourselves almost all day long. If you pause for a while and try to focus on these messages, you may ponder upon how you achieve anything at all. How often do you catch yourself mentally preparing for the worst-case scenario, or encouraging yourself to do something difficult? Let us now discuss the role of positive self-talk in improving athletic performance.
Improved focus
If you are looking for effective ways to maximize your athletic performance, up your focus game to keep distractions at bay. But how can your inner voice help increase focus? Our thoughts and attention are correlated. Focus can be disturbed by distractions. These distractions will keep reoccurring if your thoughts get fixed on them. Hence, take greater control of your thoughts to improve focus. You may use a particular mantra or a couple of phrases and repeat them during your sports practice or any competition. For instance, you may chant, “Focus on your breath.”
Helps boost confidence
It goes without saying, higher confidence leads to superior performance. It may sound odd at first, but you can engage in a positive dialogue with yourself and gain more confidence. Similarly, if you speak negatively to yourself or doubt your skills and abilities, your confidence can instantly plummet. Use a kind voice and pleasant language to boost your confidence before or during a match or practice.
Helps during practice or training
Self-talk can serve athletes with guidance while they are training. If you are practicing or training all by yourself, self-talk will help you cue some mechanical aspects associated with your game. When you begin using a specific phrase during practice, it gets associated with a mechanical movement you desire. Later, when you go for a match and repeatedly chant the same phrase, your mind will know what it has to do, and will further activate your muscle memory.
Reduces anxiety and stress
Anxiety and stress adversely impacts athletic performance. If you catch yourself overly concerned and worried about your future, your mind slowly drifts away from the moment. This type of stress can be harmful to athletes because it manifests as nervousness and wreaks havoc on performance. As an athlete, you should focus more on positive self-talk in a calming and comforting manner to eliminate anxiety and improve athletic performance. If you come across a statement or phrase that boosts your morale, stick to them and keep chanting it in your head whenever you feel anxious.
Try to acquire greater control over your mind by engaging in positive self-talk to improve concentration and performance.
