Competition Is 100% Determined by Your Mental Skills

What percentage of competition is determined by physical skills and what percentage is determined by mental skills?

Is it 50-50? Is it 25-75? Is it 10-90?

Actually, the correct answer is none of the above. Competition is 100% determined by your mental skills.

Competition is 100% Determined by Your Mental Skills

Wait, what? What do you mean competition is 100% mental?

Think of it this way.

Say you land your triple salchow in 85% of your short program run throughs during practice (there is no 100%, for mental game purposes 85% is consistent enough). You’re super consistent. You rarely miss it.

Say you go to competition and fall on it. Sure, maybe the fall was caused by a technical error. Maybe you failed to check your left shoulder on the takeoff. Maybe Your free leg was too wild on the three turn. But, you can do it in your sleep during practice, so why is competition any different?

The answer is your mental game.

No, you didn’t make a fluke mistake. No, you don’t need to do 1000 more triple salchow reps to make sure it doesn’t happen again. You need to fix the problem at its root. You need to warm up your mental game.

What Do You Mean, Warm Up My Mental Game?

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “trust your training.” Maybe your coach said that to you in the past, maybe it was your parents.

Trusting your training is a mental skill. It’s not a physical skill, it’s a mental one.

In order to trust your skills you need to let go of your worries about them. And in order to do that, you need to be in the moment.

Recognize when your mind is drifting and refocus on what you’re doing right now. If you’ve read any of my other articles, you already know the drill.

This is what you need to be doing during competition. This is the mental skill you need to warm up.

Six Minute Warmup

Alright, I’m convinced. I need to warm up my mental skills. Competition is hectic. I don’t have a lot of free time. When do I do it?

Actually, every competition you’ve been to has the perfect time for you to warm up your mental skills. The six minute warmup.

You’re a skater. You’ve done a six minute warmup. You get on the ice, do half a lap, then go directly into your jumps. Every so often you go back to your coach to get corrections or get a sip of water, and before you know it the warmup is over.

The six minute warmup is the perfect time for you to warm up your mental game. In fact, the entire purpose of the six minute warmup is to warm up your mental game, not practice your technical skills.

Fall on a jump? Recognize that your mind is drifting and refocus on the present.

Think another skater blocked you on the entrance to a jump? Recognize that your mind is drifting and refocus on the present.

See that mom of a rival skater is taking video of you? Recognize that your mind is drifting and refocus on the present.

Realize that your long lost father is sitting in the stands? Recognize that your mind is drifting and refocus on the present.

Once the six minute warmup is finished, not only will your body be warmed up, but your mind will be too. So, when you get into your program, if you catch your mind drifting you’ll quickly and efficiently be able to refocus yourself on the your current action.

Warming Up Your Mental Game is Important

Competition is 100% determined by your mental skills. Which means, warming them up is super important.

The purpose of the six minute warmup is to warm up your mental game, not to practice your technical skills. Your technical skills are where they’re going to be, six minutes of practice won’t make them better.

At your next competition, prioritize warming up your mental game. Instead of going onto your six minute warmup and muddling through your usual routine, use this time to warm up your mental game. You might be surprised at the difference it makes in your performance when it comes time to compete.

Mental skills training can make a difference because it can help you access what is already there during competition and practice.

Start here: download “Confidence Myth Busters,” a complimentary eBook and make a change.