One day it was there. The next it was gone.
That was the sad story of Skatergirl’s double lutz. Never mind the fact that Skatergirl was working on triple salchow and triple loop. That didn’t matter.
All of a sudden, she couldn’t land her double lutz, and she didn’t know why.
Skatergirl had problems with her double lutz on and off throughout her skating career. There were times when it was super good, and Skatercoach was saying they should work on triple lutz. Then, there were times when Skatergirl was struggling and she couldn’t do a single one.
This was one of those times. One of those times where she couldn’t land a double lutz to save her life.
Later that week, Skatergirl talked to Mentalgamecoach.
“How am I supposed to deal with this?”
“Well, here’s the deal. A poor performance can lead to negative thoughts, which leads to tension, which leads to a decrease in performance. This decrease in performance leads to more negative thoughts, and the cycle continues.
“It’s a vicious cycle. One that many athletes fall into.
“What’s the solution? It’s worth nothing that this cycle works in the opposite direction as well. A good performance can lead to positive thoughts, which leads to a relaxed body, which leads to an increase in performance.
“It is possible to start at any point in this cycle, so let’s start with your thoughts. When you have a bad performance, you have several options. You can think negative thoughts, which leads to more tension in your body and a decrease in performance. Or, you can do your best to be neutral in your thoughts, which will help you to stay relaxed and give you a better chance at performing well. Who knows, you might even turn a be able to turn a normal performance into a great one.
“Dealing with negative thoughts isn’t easy, but it is straightforward. When you work on getting to a neutral outlook instead of immediately reacting to your negative thoughts, you can avoid the vicious downward cycle.
“Notice I said neutral, not positive.
“If you can shift your mindset from negative thoughts to positive thoughts that’s great, however many athletes struggle to do this. For those athletes, the positive thoughts can be so unbelievable that they start an argument in their heads, which leads to even more tension and negativity.
“Instead of trying to do a 180 degree flip and think positive thoughts, simply take one step up and go towards a neutral mindset.
“Be curious rather than negative about your performance. Negative thoughts cause frustration and tension in your body. Be curious about what you are doing, what this action or that action does to your jump, rather than becoming frustrated. This will allow you to practice and experiment more, which will give you a better chance to perform well.
“By maintaining a curious mindset, you’ll avoid getting tense and your performance will be better.”
Mental skills training can help to keep your emotions on an even keel so that you can practice and compete your best.
Start here: Download “Confidence Myth Busters,” a complimentary eBook and make a change.