If you are a gymnast, you have probably experienced a mental block first-hand or have watched your teammate experience one. Mental blocks are simply the result of inaccurate thinking. Although gymnastics is a physical sport, it is also an extremely mental sport and requires that athletes have a rare mental toughness.
Your mind is a powerful thing, and when you feed your mind with negative thoughts and images, they will eventually become your reality. While the process to overcoming a mental block is different for every individual, here are a few things you can try to master the skill that fear is holding you back from.
Visualization
•When you close your eyes and picture the skill in your mind, what do you see? If you picture yourself unable to release your grip from the bar on a release move or crashing on your head every time you go for that tumbling pass, you are filling your mind with negative results.
•Visualizing is just like learning a new skill in the gym; it is something that must be practiced every day until it becomes second nature to you.
•Some gymnasts are unable to see anything when they close their eyes and must practice visualizing throughout the day until they can picture themselves throwing the skill and landing it perfectly.
•Even if you picture yourself doing a skill and crashing at first, continue to practice with positive thinking until you can effortlessly do the skill in your mind. If you THINK you can do it, you can!
(Dr. Alison Arnold has CDs, DVDs, and books that focus on mental training for gymnasts) Check out her website.
Go Back to the Basics
•Sometimes all it takes to overcome a mental block is to go back to the basics. If you are suddenly afraid to do your double full on floor, it may help to start at the beginning. Do a layout first, then a half twist, then do a full, then a full ½. Break the skill apart into little steps until you feel comfortable twisting again.
•Practice drills! Another way to break a mental block is to practice drills for that skill. Doing different drills can help you remember what it felt like to do the skill and can help you feel more comfortable going for that skill again.
Lastly, don’t beat yourself up over it. Remember, even the best athletes have days when they are unable to do a skill they once could do. Instead of dwelling on the skill you are unable to do, take a break and clear your mind. Go to a different event and give that skill a rest until your next workout. It’s better to take a day off from a skill than to keep trying to go for it and training your mind to believe you can no longer do it.