Sports Motivation and Mental Toughness

Sports Motivation and Maintaining that Mental Toughness.

This was an article that I wrote for my local Dragon Boat Club but I believe in the message and it can be applied to any sport.

After a lifetime of always searching for that ultimate high you get from training and competition, I have tried many different sports.
Some sports I excelled in which lead me to School, State and National representative teams and some sports I truly sucked at so I quickly moved on to the next activity that captured my imagination.

Now, I hold no formal qualifications in Sports Psychology or Motivational techniques
I would simply like to pass on a few things that I have learnt along the way and maybe something will ring true for you.

The one thing that I have always noticed in athletes at all levels is that if they trust and respect their coach most workout how to improve their fitness, strength and physical skills but most are unsure how to motivate themselves to become mentally tough. To be able to quickly adapt to a changing situation when the game plan goes out the window. To be able to be able to block out all that goes on around them, focus and be successful when it counts.

I have spoken to and trained with many successful athletes and coaches and all would agree that 50% of being successful is mental, yet only 5% of athletes think they are any good at refining their mental skills. (Aust Sport Comm Report 2002)
Why, Well most think it is too complex, too confusing and maybe a little too out there for them.

Now I’m not going to go into a lot of “If you dream and believe you will succeed” type of stuff but there is some merit to that sort of mantra so if that works for you then stick with it.

When you talk to successful athletes they will say they often found themselves during competition in what can only be described as” In the moment” where they experience a sense of calm, there was no tension and during those moments things seemed to move in slow motion and they have total control.
You can only achieve that moment when:
~ You have done the work and trained to the best of your ability and beyond.
~ You have total belief in your own ability (A little self promotion never hurts)
~ You believe you deserve to be there and take ownership of that race, that serve or that basket how many times have we heard our Olympic swimmers say,
“The moment I hit the water I felt I owned the pool”
That’s when they find themselves “In the moment” and anyone can achieve their own moment and when it comes you need to savor it, feel it and enjoy it because once you have experienced that awesome feeling, then that becomes the benchmark you will try to achieve in every final you find yourself in for the rest of your life and you will continue to be successful.

Ok, I can hear you all saying, “So how do we achieve this ?”
Well, we need to firstly understand a few fundamental points for success.

“Success is peace of mind, which is as of a direct result of self satisfaction in knowing that you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming”

Success requires,

Self Discipline – Everything worthwhile begins with this.
It simply means doing whatever you have to do to get the job done the best way you know how.

Self Control.- As you discipline yourself you will become more self controlled in what you do, what you think, and how you react.

Self Confidence- Self Control leads to self confidence. It’s that unbreakable belief in yourself in what you can and will achieve.

Self Realisation- Once you have self confidence you will come to the realization that when you feel good about yourself you have the potential to open up the doors to your fullest potential.

Another point that I must make clear is that Mental Toughness is “Learned”
It is not something that you inherit. Just look at what some of the characteristics of
Mentally Tough Athletes and you will see they are all learnt characteristics.

~ Self motivated and Self Directed
You are there doing it because you want to.

~ Highly Motivated
Trains to the best of his/her ability gives 100% in spite of
personal problems or fatigue.

~ Determined
Will overcome obstacles to reach for a set goal.

Mentally Alert
Able to tune out what is not in your control and tune in to what is and maintain concentration during the entire race.

~ Positive and realistic
Concentrates on success what is possible and not on what might happen.

~ Takes ownership of his/her own actions.
No excuses .You either gave it your all or you didn’t
Often only you will know and you have to live with that no none else.
You are the pilot of your own destiny.

Often the line that is drawn between a athlete who succeeds and one who does not make it to the top is the INNER STRENGTH.

If you would like to learn more just let me know but if you think it’s all too hard then your probably right. Only you can judge that.

PART 2- Gaining That Inner Strength

“ INNER STRENGTH.”
But how do you get this inner strength ?.

Many of our team members have made the jump across from “Social Member “ to “Athlete” in the last 12 months without even realizing what they have achieved.
I firmly believe that one of the major differences between a “Social Paddler” and a successful “Athlete”(apart from fitness) is a thing called Pressure and how you handle it.

It doesn’t matter if it is at work or at Sport understand that
“ Pressure is something we put on ourselves.”

I have thought about some of the negative thoughts that some of you experience from time to time when making your way to the start or sitting on that start line.
.(Some of these I have actually heard in the boat in past seasons)

You are up against teams that seem to always be successful and your mind starts to wander !
~ They are just too good we’ll never beat them!
~ What if we don’t do well all the other teams will think we are useless! .
~ What If I get out of time I will be letting everyone down!
~ I can’t stand the pressure put upon me!
~ I don’t like this seat I just can’t get comfortable!
~ Oh God I forgot to put wax on my paddle after the last race!
“ARE YOU READY !!!” (Comes the starters call)
“ATTENTION”)
“GO”
~ “AAARGH! What am I doing here!”
You would have to agree not a mind set for success but a total disaster !!!

When we have Negative Thoughts we prevent ourselves from performing at our best.
Your heart begins to pound. Your breathing quickens. Your muscles tighten.
We immediately begin to become confused and lose sight of our purpose.
“You are no longer in control.!!!”

Positive thoughts that will reduce pressure!.
~ We have done the work and we can beat them!
~ Even if we don’t win the other teams will know we are there!
~ No one can make me feel inferior without my consent!.
~ I’m going to simply focus on doing my best!
~ Pressure is something that I put on myself!
~ I am relaxed and ready to perform!
~ Bring it on!
“ARE YOU READY !!!”
“ATTENTION”
“GO”
~ “YEEHAA ! What a rush!”
As you can plainly see a huge difference in mindset.


When I say you are relaxed I don’t mean to the point of falling asleep “ZZZZZZ”
You are relaxed and ready, to use an analogy. “Like a coiled spring”
You are quietly confident because you know you have done all the work at training
and this is your moment to shine.

Rituals:
This subject has many opinions. Some are for them and some are against them.

In my personal opinion, every good athlete has a ritual.
I have some, couple of little things I do just before a race to make me ready.

If you were to observe the start line of any race you will see them, some teams even have a team ritual of a grunt, simultaneous raising of the paddle or audible exhale.
.(If you don’t believe me just have a look / listen)

Rituals help you become relaxed, deepen you focus whilst still being aware of your immediate surroundings putting you in what is called the” Ideal Performance State.”

When the Starter says “Are you ready” for next few seconds.
You should be so focused that,
You should hear nothing but the start signal or the word “Go”
Your focus will be on a controlled explosion of energy not a frenzied effort.
You should be totally focused with the self belief that you are a successful athlete surrounded by successful athletes who are there for you and who know you are there for them.
As you race down the race course your focus should only be broken by calls from the Sweep, Coach or Drummer and then instantly refocus to respond to their calls.

The reason I am telling you all this is because to,
Be that focused
Overcome the pressure
Find that inner strength
Become self motivated
Be successful
And
Be able to find yourself in the moment
Requires practice, practice, practice.

Every time you train you need to practice not only the physical side of training but the mental side as well.
Every time you practice our race starts or time trials treat it as if it “IS” the FINAL.

So, when you sit on that start line at a regatta you should be so practiced at all the physical and mental training that you have nothing but positive thoughts and be so relaxed yet so focused that it now feels apart of you.

PART 3- Building Team Harmony

In part 2 of my articles I spoke of “The Ideal Performance State” when relaxing but focusing on the start line.

Just as every athlete has an Ideal Performance State, so does every team.
This subject is extremely complex and a forum like this does not allow for the book I would have to write to cover all of the complexities so in this article I will attempt to cover the essentials.

The “Teams” Ideal Performance State is directly related to the quality of interaction between it’s members.
In the lead up to the 2000 Olympics I was privileged to be in a position where I was able to observe coaching of the Ladies K4 Kayak Team (4 person Kayak) in training where certain members of the team did not get along with other members of their team and it took away any chance of an I P S.
(The ongoing disputes are on public record)
It soon became obvious from the outset that from a coaches point of view this was going to be a challenge. Here you had Australia’s 4 best female athletes who individually were physically and mentally tough but there was no team harmony, no positive energy in the boat and in what should have been the opportunity of their life time to together to represent their country in the biggest sporting event in the world and possibly win GOLD but their was no ”Team” spirit so consequently failed to qualify for the final.

The presence of team spirit draws people out and makes them feel a part of something much bigger than themselves.
It encourages team members to extend themselves beyond their normal limits.
It creates inspiration, confidence and makes the” Ideal Performance State” so easy to achieve.

Some of the basic ingredients of Team Spirit are:
~ Mutual Respect
~ Good Communication
~ Trust
~ Acceptance
~ Mutual Encouragement
~ A Good Support System
Without these vital ingredients it simply won’t happen.

As well as the ingredients to team spirit that I have listed here, there are some strategies in building Team Harmony. Here are a couple.

~ Try to get to know your team mates.
The more you understand a person the easier it is to accept their individual personality.

~ Always give 100% at training.
Once people get to know you and see you are putting in maximum effort it can be a powerful unifier and they to will often lift their effort levels accordingly.

~ Try to practice giving positive feedback to team members whenever possible
Simple statements such as –Great technique – Good on you – Great Power – Good Job- Give the person in front of you a pat on the back.
This not only helps build strong positive relationships but will make the recipient feel validated for working hard.


~ Try to have your attitude right before going to training or competition
Turning up with a negative attitude can be very contagious and can spread through a team like an epidemic. If you want to create an epidemic be positive and optimistic.

~ Be a self starter. Don’t rely on others to ignite the fire within.
Self starters are one of the most valuable team members as they often remind others to lift their own game.

~ MOST IMPORTANTLY - Don’t forget to have fun !
Being able to laugh and loosen up a little on breaks often will break down barriers and help the entire team to relax and feel closer.
“If you enjoy it you can perform it”.

Anyone who has been around sport long enough knows if we do not have that Team Spirit in times of adversity team members will withdraw into themselves or splinter off into groups of two or three and become emotionally negative and critical of other team members and as a result the entire team quickly becomes uninspired.

When the Team Spirit is strong players instinctively pull together in times of adversity
and move closer together as a team. Support and encouragement for each other becomes spontaneous and negative comments or criticism becomes unacceptable amongst team members at anytime.

Greg Bell