Chs. 6, 7, 8, 10

“Relaxation to enhance visualization is analogous to fine-tuning your VCR or DVD when you have interference and static...” (48)

This helps explain why most visualization and imagery instructions include deep relaxation exercises to start. With so many thoughts floating around our brains the so-called “monkey-mind” it’s difficult to zero in on what we want to focus on. There’s too much “static”. But if we can learn to calm that static and disassociate from the extraneous thoughts, then the imagery that we want to imprint can be experienced much more forcefully.

“(VMBR) This is the process of creating a mental video before an event and then using it to analyze and correct errors that may have occurred in both real and imagined events.” (62)

“This variation of the VMBR technique was to ”thought stop“... thought stopping led to a changed belief system...”

While VMBR is well understood and logical for skill sports where small errors can be identified and changed through mental practice, its usefulness for endurance sports seemed limited. The main challenge in endurance sports is persevering through difficulty. The “thought stopping” technique makes a lot of sense for athletes who must face all different kinds of fatigue. How do we keep going at a pace that makes our brain scream, “STOP!“ and send us to the nearest hammock? By rehearsing that feeling and practice ”stopping“ that thought and replacing it with another. Not being surprised by the difficulty and being ready to ”thought stop“ should increase endurance.

Lastly:

”By having a ritual, a superstition, or an idiosyncratic warmup routine, athletes take control of their environments and filter out any negative distractions...“ (81)

I’ve always wondered about these funny little rituals that athletes have. They seem superfluous, yet surprisingly potent for so many. It’s the ”take control“ element that makes sense. SInce a competition is by nature completely out of one’s control, then doing these little things could give one some confidence that crosses over to the other skills needed for a good performance.