Saturday, December 1, 2012

Mental Toughness Training As A Suitable Strategy In Sports

By Alicia Hunter


For people who are often exposed to intense situations like the battlefield, or even the sports arena, it is true that it takes more than physical strength to survive. More than anything else, psychological interventions are crucial in maintaining over all fitness. The concept of a mental toughness training is now fully embraced by society, given its relevance to your actions.

If you are not familiar with the concept, it simply means that your mind is fully capable of psyching yourself to do things that you set your mind into. Usually, it entails a mentality in which you should overpower the opponent, whatever it may be. If you ever go through a situation like this, most likely, you will come out stronger than before.

In the face of adversity, indeed, they say that your resilience building trainings will pay off. Psychologists even back up the claim that it is a beneficial mechanism for people who would like to gain dominance and maintain power over the opponent. This is both applicable for men in the military and men who fight for a title.

However, an interesting twist to this is that some people who have gone through this phase of emphasizing mental toughness during sports say that it is counterproductive. Although several techniques may work for you, given the different mindsets that people have, it is quite natural for some to treat it as a hindrance. They liken the experience to being subjected to a pressure cooker that brings out tense reactions.

To cite examples, think of runners who are gunning for top speed. Apparently, if they dwell on the thought of staying mentally tough, there is a tendency that this will slow them down instead. They waste their time on this when they should be focusing on being quicker on their pace. Meanwhile, when some skaters are told to tune out everything else, they tend to find this ineffective because they prefer to feel their surroundings.

Another scenario to think about would be that of a golfer in a game. To facilitate a good shot, he or she has to be relaxed and precise with the swing. Deep inside, there is the task of safely estimating how much force should be put into the swing to make the ball fall into the hole with the given distance. If mental toughness is to overrule the golfer, tenseness would lead to a greatly disappointing swing that may be short of concentration, or too much of it.

Again, for some people, they have learned to use several coping mechanisms which may differ from others. There are those who prefer to be left alone from the immediate environment, as if to mimic isolation amidst the preying eyes of the audience. However, in team sports, it is always better to internalize the game and be in touch with the action.

The trick is simply to go with something that you have no trouble putting up with. It also depends on how well you use it to your advantage. Mental toughness is still a proven method, but it is only effective when used in the right situation and with the right person embodying it.

Whether you go for the stubborn, rigid approach or the light and fun one, it is crucial to master one that suits your personality. A mental toughness training may or may not work for you, but nonetheless, it has its benefits. It is your decision to decide which strategy brings out your strength and drives you to success.




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