The Super Mental Training Book (57 page)

That many professional sports teams currently use the services of sports psychologists can be considered a fairly recent development; it's something which was really not in evidence prior to the mid-1980s. This is why one can comfortably claim that more athletes than ever regularly practice mental training strategies, though the exact percentage (no doubt still small) will perhaps forever remain a mystery.

* CONCLUSION *

The six words to riches are: "Find a need and fill it." Similarly, the six words to athletic success are: "Find your weakness and correct it!" You are only as good as your weakest point, and the weakest point for most athletes is their mental conditioning. They either do not know how to or will not make an effort to properly prepare themselves mentally. As a result, many athletes regularly lose their confidence and concentration during competition; their mental lapses, which lead to poor performances, make the days, weeks, months, and years spent on physical conditioning and sports technique a big waste of time.

In this book I have described at length various mental training strategies which can improve your attitude, self-confidence, and concentration for both competition and workouts. These strategies, most of which cost you little or nothing to practice, are generally easy to learn and implement, and are something you can do on your own to maximize your full athletic potential. Many effective mental rehearsal techniques have been presented for you to try, from the uncomplicated method of visualization used by Jack Nicklaus to the more involved art of zen, as mastered by

Eugen Herrigel. We have seen how self-hypnosis, visualization, meditation, and other methods of "relaxation" have worked wonders for numerous sports champions and regular athletes alike. It is up to you, now, to make these techniques work for you; and, as a quick glance at the Mental Training Strategies Time Lines reveals, you will join excellent company when you proceed.

The old veteran athlete's advice to the rookie, which can be summed up by this phrase— Half way, half ass —applies here. If you make only a half-hearted effort to master a particular mental discipline, or end up becoming only an infrequent practitioner of the discipline, an annoying inconsistency will probably characterize your subsequent athletic performances; and, achieving your full athletic potential will likely remain beyond your grasp. Disappointment, the usual reward for timidity and lack of resolve, shortly appears, as the natural by-product.

Two major things are required for you to act upon the information unfurled throughout these pages— Knowledge and Will. One does not will to do something about which he is ignorant, and so knowledge is necessary for action. One also does not do something even if he knows about it unless he possesses the will to do it. So, will or intention is also necessary for action to occur. First knowledge, then will, and finally action follow one after another:

Knowledge + Will ==> Action

The contents of this book, if you have absorbed them, constitute the knowledge element. But, you yourself have to supply the will. The athletes appearing in this book found the will to try out and incorporate mental disciplines into their training regimens, and many of them soon found themselves winning championships, setting PRs, breaking records, and gaining a lot of satisfaction as a result. You, too, by summoning up your will, can do the same. Should you hesitate in pursuing your investigation of mental training strategies, keep in mind the observation of Benjamin Disraeli, the great 19th-century British Prime Minister: "The youth who does not look up will look down; and the spirit that does not soar is destined perhaps to grovel."

FOOTNOTES

1. "Mental Attitude Is Athlete's Equalizer," Los Angeles Times, June 15, 1979, Part III, p. 7.

2. Stan Hochman, "Baseball Teams Consider Hiring Psychologists," Santa Ana Register, April 20, 1983, Part D, p. 9.

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid.

5. Ibid.

6. "Thrift 'Sees' a Sure Thing for Pirates' Hitters," The Sporting News, February 3, 1986, p. 7.

7. Reliever Doug Corbett discussed how imagery, as taught to him by Dr. Ravizza, helped him attain a superb 1.59 earned run average early in the '86 season (see "Corbett Wins by Waiting Out the Fates," Los Angeles Times, May 9, 1986). Stated Corbett in part: "In the past, I've pitched five minutes on the side every day to stay sharp. Now, I can do the pitching in my mind and save a lot of physical wear and tear... I've developed this sort of tunnel vision when I'm out there. Everything is blocked out, all my energy is focused on my job."

8. Richard Hoffer, "House Calls," Los Angeles Times, July 5, 1989, Part III, p. 1.

9. Mark Teich and Pamela Weintraub, "Ultra Sports," Omni, August, 1985, p. 100.

10. Ibid.

11. Ibid.

12. The reader may refer to Eldon Taylor's Subliminal Consciousness: Emperor's Clothes or Panacea? (published in 1986 by: Just Another Reality, Box 7116, Salt Lake City, Utah 84107) for a listing of companies engaged in supplying subliminal tapes and related products. Taylor's discussion of the effectiveness of subliminal tapes is also instructive.

13. Psychodynamics Research Institute presents in its catalog the testimonial of an unnamed NFL training coach, who stated, "I gave your Athletic Abilities tape to our quarterback... (and) he played the best game of his career the next week." With both the coach and quarterback remaining unidentified, such a vague story carries little impact, though it does possess some value as filler.

14. For more information on the subliminal sports tapes described, contact: Psychodynamics Research Institute, P.O. Box 875, Zephyr Cove, Nevada 89448; Mind Communication, Inc., P.O. Box 9347, Grand Rapids, MI 49509.

15. An informative catalog featuring self-help/New Age audio and videotapes, books, etc. is available from: Valley of the Sun Publishing, Box 3004, Agoura Hills, California 91301.

16. Dick Sutphen, "The Shortcut to Skill in the Martial Arts," Black Belt, March, 1979, pp. 30-35. This article also contains pictures of hypnotized martial arts students, among other unique items of interest.

17. Ibid.

18. Yogi Wassan, Secrets of the Himalaya Mountain Masters, (Mokelumne Hill, California: Health Research, 1973; originally published in 1927, Punjab, India), p. 72.

19. For a catalog describing their Holographic Music offerings, contact: Conscious Living Foundation, P.O. Box 9, Drain, Oregon 97435.

20. For additional information on SyberVision's videotapes contact: SyberVision Systems, Inc., Fountain Square, 6066 Civic Terrace Avenue, Newark, California 94560.

21. One thing I once did while viewing the Stan Smith videotape is worth considering. I turned off the videotape's sound, and then played on my stereo system PRI's Tennis subliminal tape. So, I was both watching Smith hit perfect shots and hearing a subliminal message; the music on the subliminal tape fit in well with the action on the videotape. Trying such a combination never hurts because even if only one of the two mental training strategies works, the athlete still comes out ahead.

22. Steven DeVore and Greggory R. DeVore, Muscle Memory Programming for Every Sport, (1981, publisher not listed, but the book is obtainable from SyberVision Systems, Inc.—see footnote #19), p. 9.

23. Ibid., p. 11.

24. Ibid.

25. For a catalog on this company's self-help products, write to: Institute of Human Development, P.O. Box 1616, Ojai, California 93023.

26. Robin Finn, "Resistance to Sports Psychologists Is Shrinking," Orange County Register, June 21, 1989, p. D13. An interesting example of this "no big deal" attitude about discussing one's use of mental disciplines can be seen in the experience of Michelle Finn, who won the women's 100 meters in the 1990 TAC National Track & Field Championships. Shortly after her victorious race, Finn informed the press, "I've been on my own for awhile with no coach, so I really appreciate this win because I did it myself with no help. . . I visualized this race 20 times in my head since yesterday" (see "Lewis Breezes to 100-meter Victory," Orange County Register, June 16, 1990, p. D17). One also notices in this case that the athlete (Finn) performed a heavy dose of visualization in the 24-hour period leading up to the race, a good thing for one to do no matter what his sport.

27. Ibid.

28. Ibid.

APPENDIX I

A COACH'S PERSPECTIVE ON MENTAL TRAINING

Dick Wolfe, 4-time national gymnastics Coach of the Year, has been head coach of the men's gymnastic team at California State University, Fullerton since 1968. His teams have won three national collegiate championships. Coach Wolfe incorporates mental training into his gymnastics program, utilizing the expertise of Dr. Ken Ravizza, whose mental training work with athletes is detailed in the Recent Developments in Sports Psychology and Mental Training chapter.

How a coach views a mental training program will probably differ from how the involved athlete or sports psychologist views it. It is instructive, therefore, to study the viewpoint of a veteran coach such as Dick Wolfe who, with all his success in the gymnastics world, would not initiate and retain a mental training program unless he was certain of the benefits such training confers upon his athletes. I interviewed Coach Wolfe on April 23, 1986. After the interview, which follows, I offer some general observations.

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Stevenson: How many years has Dr. Ken Ravizza helped your gymnasts with their mental training?

Coach Wolfe: For six years. When I first talked to Ken in 1980, I had already watched him work with the women's gymnastics team for two years. He was very suspect to me. It wasn't that I didn't believe in mental training, but I was a typical coach: I didn t want anyone coming into "my domain" and messing with my success. So, I met with him two days a week, about an hour each time, for several weeks. I questioned him, challenged him— I'm sure I was very hard on him. I would question his integrity, what his motivation was, what his actual reasons for working with young people were: was it his ego? He wasn't threatened by my questioning, and I was very impressed with him. I discovered that philosophically and humanistically, Ken and I are on track, and I wanted to make sure of that at first.

The next step then was approaching the team. I told them how much time I had personally spent with Ken Ravizza, and I let them know that I trusted him. I wanted them to take some time to hear his spiel, and then behind Ken's back we would discuss whether or not we wanted him to become involved in the gymnastics program.

Stevenson: What was his presentation about?

Wolfe: He talked about the mental aspect of competition, that it was something which could be taught, learned, and practiced, just like the basic skills we practice. He also found out that a lot of my more successful guys were already doing imagery, applying relaxation techniques. So, almost without realizing it, we were already carrying out a mental training program, but not in a formal way.

Stevenson: What was the team's verdict after hearing Dr. Ravizza's presentation?

Wolfe: They wanted to try it (the mental training program). In the beginning they felt strange. Nowadays, I think if you introduce such a program, it's acceptable. It's an accepted part of sports. Pros do it, and everybody knows it. Mental training is in the media. Six years ago, in 1980, that was not true. So, the guys openly admitted later that they felt real uncomfortable lying on their back in a dark room, with Ken walking around in his socks trying to put them in a relaxed state. There was a lot of nervous giggling at first, guys lifting their heads to see what was going on with other people. A couple of kids never really trusted the approach and did not give of themselves to the approach. The second season, because we were successful gymnastically, we had a lot of kids

return; the new kids came in and they were a little cautious when they started. But, now we are at a point when new people come in, they are ready to go and they accept the mental training program because it has been successful.

Stevenson: Obviously, Dr. Ravizza conducts group sessions. Does he also work with individual gymnasts?

Wolfe: Yes.

Stevenson: I assume this is a voluntary type of thing. If someone feels they need help, or additional help, they can give Ken a call and meet with him.

Wolfe: Yes. As a matter of fact, he probably spends too many hours in terms of what is fair on an individual basis.

As a coach, I don't see what Ken does and what I do as being in two different areas. This is just my philosophy. I sit in on all the meetings that he has with the team—not with the individuals, because sometimes that is none of my business—but I sit in when he has a session, when he shows slides. I don't assume that I already know what Ken is talking about. I take notes, think about what he says, and continue to challenge what he is doing. This is because I am very opposed to a canned mental training program. I feel it should be very dynamic.

Stevenson: Does a situation ever arise where you see an athlete not performing up to his ability, and you suggest to the athlete, "Why don't you visit Ken Ravizza?" Or is it something that the athlete figures out on his own?

Wolfe: It's both.

Stevenson: I assume you do not strong arm the athlete and really insist that he see Dr. Ravizza. You may prod him, though. You can see the gray area I'm getting into.

Wolfe: Oh yes. In fact, sometimes Ken and I have a problem that way. It's like you make a kid work on his basics. Yeah, I might make a kid go see Ken. You can't really make anybody do anything, but there can be consequences if the athlete doesn't do what you ask him to do. So, you do have a degree of control over him. The philosophy is that it's a voluntary type of program. But, in reality, I get mad if the athlete is late and does not give Ken his full attention. A lot of times Ken's attitude is that "if they want to do mental training, they'll do it, and if they don't, they won't." But, as a coach, I have a responsibility to help my athletes behave in ways that will make them successful. The basic assumption is that they want to succeed. So, if they do not listen to Ken, come late, or miss a mental training session, then I'm going to be upset.