You’re now well settled into the season. The shock of the first few months are gone, the clocks have gone back , and the body is getting established with the routine of training, racing and now selection.
The summer seems like a lifetime ago. As the season’s momentum picks up, paying attention to how simple you’re keeping things is essential especially into the tougher winter months and over the holidays.
Performing at your best is tough, and we all know teammates who the machine has churned up.
Stephen Feeney
I recently caught up with one of my athletes, and they mentioned that things were beginning to feel a lot more complex than they needed to be with the onset of racing, which includes the selection. One of the essential ingredients of performance is the ability to train your attention. When you are under pressure, your attention can easily be pulled in thousands of different directions.
Athletes spend a lot of time training their bodies and sharpening their techniques. How much of it do you spend preparing your attention?
How much of your performance depends on the mental aspect when the physical and technical have been firmly established?
When I’ve asked this to athletes or teams, they’ve said it’s the limiting factor when the physical and technical have been exhausted.
Sometimes it’s good to remind ourselves of how we did and can keep things simple. I had to take the athlete back to the summertime when they were doing their preseason training. There were no worries or stresses about selection/results, and the only thing they had to be attentive to was the day’s session.
However, when the attention is left unattended, as we mentioned before, it will get pulled off course, especially when there is pressure. This happens to the best athletes and teams, irrespective of track record.
Athletes spend a lot of time training their bodies and sharpening their techniques. How much of it do you spend preparing your attention?
Stephen Feeney
It’s more than just looking to replicate the simplicity of the summer; you have to understand the basics of what the attention was on. Things within the athlete’s control give them reassurance, trust and confidence. That’s easier to do when there is no pressure. The same ingredients are essential and must be developed as the season progresses. Focusing on the elements within your control will see the physical and technical get put to full use. Without it, even the strongest will falter.
It’s unrealistic to be void of distraction; you must notice when your attention wanders. You then can give yourself a choice of what to be attentive to. As I said before, easier to do without the pressure.
Being ignorant, passive or missing this is like building a house on sand, it might look great for a while, but it’s a matter of time until it falls short.
– So keep your attention on the present.
– Be aware when the attention wanders.
Athletes or teams distracted by the future or relying on the past will slowly undo themselves. Robbing themselves of what they are capable of delivering. I’ve seen this happen with every team and athlete I’ve worked with, from the best on the Senior International circuit to School level.
Performing at your best is tough, and we all know teammates who the machine has churned up.
It would be worthwhile every few days to stop, check in with yourself and ask if you are present and where your feet are. Ultimately the best version of ourselves is the one who is fully present—making this a habit will impact the depth of what you build this season.
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