Mind Gym
Mind Gym
An Athlete's Guide to Inner Excellence
An Athlete's Guide to Inner Excellence
By Gary Mack with David Casstevens
By Gary Mack with David Casstevens
A few quick comments from A-Rod help prepare the reader for what he/she is about to get into. He says, "I wouldn't be where I am now if I hadn't seen myself wearing a big-league uniform long before it happened. I believe in the power of dreams... The way I use my mind is the biggest reason I've been able to enjoy success... I try to attain goals mentally first... I believe in the power of positive reinforcement and visualization... I believe a champion wins in the mind first, then he plays the game... I don't judge my performance by results. Most important is my physical and mental preparation... Mind Gym takes you into the hearts and minds of many of the world's greatest athletes and coaches and illustrates the importance of the inner game" (p.ix-xi).
"Ninety percent of the game is half mental." - Yogi Berra
Mack says, "In working with elite athletes and professional sports teams, I often begin my counseling sessions and presentations by quoting Yogi's wit and wisdom... But let me ask a question. Have you ever thought seriously about that famous Yogi-ism? How much of the game - your game - is mental?" (p.3-4).
Mack introduces his premise in these words, "once you reach a certain level of competency, the mental skills become as important to performance as the physical skills, if not more so" (p.4). He then takes you through an exercise to prove his point. He takes you on a walk down memory lane to the time of your best performance and the time of your worst performance. Recall everything you can. He then says, "What percentage of the difference in those performances had to do with your physical skills? What percentage was mental?" (p.5).
The challenge is then, "If you believe the difference between your best and worst performance was, as Yogi said, at least 50 percent mental, then how much time do you spend on the mental game?... Studies have proven that mental training will not only enhance performance and improve productivity but also add to your enjoyment... Achieving inner excellence is a process. Building mental muscle, like building physical muscle, requires time and effort... Think of the book in your hands as your mind gym... What you think affects how you feel and perform. Training your brain is as important as training your body" (p.6-7).
"The mind messes up more shots that the body" - Tommy Bolt
"The mind is a powerful thing and most people don't use it properly" - Mark McGwire
One key to achieving success in sports is learning how to focus on the task and not let negative thoughts intrude.
The mind can concentrate on only one thing at a time.
Rather than suppress what you don't want to happen, you must focus on what you do want to happen...
Mack shares the story of a field goal kicker... "Mack, I'm a great field goal kicker," the player said with conviction. Then he thought of his coach and his glacial stare. He shook his head. "But I just can't kick when Gene's watching me"... The kicker had plenty of leg, and distance was no problem. But he had allowed himself to become self-conscious and coach-conscious rather than task-conscious. His mind was his boss. If the player expected better results, he had to change his thought patterns.
There are techniques for lowering heart rate and blood pressure.
The brain is like a computer, and you can run the wrong "program" at the wrong time.
The Law of Dominant Thought - "What we've learned in psychology is that actions follow our thoughts and images... The law of dominant thought ways your mind is going to remember the most dominant thought... The mind works most effectively when you're telling it what to do rather than what not to do."
Mack will often give his athletes a 3x5 card where they are instructed to write their personal keys to success on one side and their performance keys to success on the other side. "All I want you to do before the game is focus on those three things."
Learn to use your mind of your mind will use you. Actions follow our thoughts and images. Don't look where you don't want to go (p.12).
"The whole idea is to get an edge. Sometimes it takes just a little extra something to get that edge, but you have to have it." - Don Shula
"The most important part of a player's body is above his shoulders." - Ty Cobb
"Sports psychology has been called the science of success because it studies what successful people do. What we have found - and what...great athletes validate - is the value of mental rehearsal and imagery" (p.14).
"This is what we call the head edge" (p.14).
Studies show that imagery training always improves performance and increases the rate at which athletes improve.
The more detailed your mental rehearsal and imagery training are, the better. "Make your images as vivid and as clear as you can" (p.17).
Design your own "imagery retreat", a place where your mind can go before every performance.
"Confidence come from knowing you are mentally AND physically prepared" (p.17).
Sports psychology is the science of success. Studies show that within a group of athletes of equal ability, those who receive mental training outperform those who don't almost every time. Mental skills, like physical skills, need constant practice (p.17).
"Under pressure you can perform fifteen percent better or worse." - Scott Hamilton
"When you have fun, it changes all the pressure into pleasure." - Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr.
"Pressure" or stress in competition and life is both natural and necessary. "Pressure is real. Pressure exists. Every athlete, whether he or she admits it, feels pressure in competition" (p.20).
Where does pressure come from? Most of the pressure comes from within... "The only pressure I'm under is the pressure I've put on myself" (Mark Messier, p.20).
Increased heart rate
Quickened breathing
Muscle tension
Frozen feet
Collapsing of the diaphragm
"...if you don't feel any pressure you're probably not going to do your best" (p.21).
Keep your job in perspective - your success or failure in sport is not the center of the universe.
"Refined indifference" - Let go of the outcome and trust your preparation.
"Uninhibited joy" - Become immersed in the joy of activity. "The probability of achieving the outcome you want increases when you let go of the need to have it" (p.23).
Everything gets interpreted. Pressure is in the brain of the beholder. Learn to view pressure as a challenge to meet rather than a threat of defeat (p.23).
"The most important attribute a player must have is mental toughness." - Mia Hamm
"Competitive toughness is an acquired skill and not an inherited gift." - Chris Evert
Mack doesn't necessarily give a definition of "mental toughness", but shares stories of athletes like Mia Hamm who were the epitome of mental toughness. I will take the opportunity to define for my own sake mental toughness as "a fearless determination to persevere".
"They are a set of behaviors and beliefs about yourself, your work, your sport and how you interact... Like physical skills, mental toughness can be learned through quality instruction and practice" (p.25).
Competitive - "find a way to win"
Confident - "can-do attitude"
Control - "The hallmark of mentally tough athletes is the ability to maintain poise, concentration, and emotional control under the greatest pressure and the most challenging situation" (p.26).
Committed - "focus time and energy on goals and dreams"
Composure - "stay focused amidst adversity" ... "manage emotions"
Courage - "willing to take a risk" ... "campers vs climbers" (p.27).
Consistency - "inner strength"
Competition is won or lost on the six-inch playing field between the ears. Practice the seven C's of mental toughness. Learn to love the competition (p.28).