Recently, members of the ICE community shared their concerns about returning to the ice in a Return to the ICE Survey.
There were more than a few athletes and parents who reported being apprehensive about what training will be like with the changes due to the pandemic.
This quick tip is specifically about wearing masks during training.
One athlete had concerns about not being physically able to run programs while wearing a mask.
We live in a time of uncertainty. Right now rules and policies are dynamic. Change is expected and consistency is rare. This is opposite from the usual situation for athletes who strive for technical consistency, and also rely on consistency (practice routines, competition routines) for success.
The current situation can be disorienting for everyone, not just athletes. We are all forced to face change, in contrast to the past when we could ignore it.
As a mental skills coach, I encourage you to take this opportunity to learnto be flexible and to begin to embrace change as normal. This skills will benefit you through your lifetime. The alternative is to fight futilely to exhaustion and worse.
Our world will continue to be in flux for a while. If you want to learn how to live more gracefully with change, start with this.
It’s not the event, it’s the way you look at it.
Any situation is neutral. The way you interpret the situation will set it up as positive or negative.
Positive or negative?
You are hosting a meeting, and you leave your house 10 minutes late. Your boss will kill you. But google maps had time to update and you take an alternate route instead of being stuck for hours in traffic behind the accident you would have been minutes behind.
Change: is it something to fear or a challenge?
Fear can lead to paralysis, which is one of our body’s natural stress responses. Fear can lead to worry and anxiety for something that (right now) is not real and might never happen.
Seeing a challenge puts your mind into action. It be as simple as tucking the information away for the future or taking action to be better prepared.
Shift your mindset, to change your reactions
Start to see your return to the ice as a transition.
The definition of transition is: the process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another.
It can be very helpful to remind yourself that returning to training is a process. It is not like a switch that will turn the room from dark to bright with a flick.
If your rink requires you to train with a mask, you can create a plan for yourself that will allow you to acclimate to the mask step by step. Just like you build up muscles over time during off ice conditioning.
You can pace yourself and skate 20 minutes, then take a break. Just like you do when you are breaking in new skates.
If you feel anxious or panicky like I do when I have a snorkle in my mouth, then start with 5 minutes.
Right now, the best mental game strategy you can use is to wait and see because the regulations are always changing. No one knows exactly what, will be required, by the time your rink open. As more information becomes available and treatments emerge, policies will change.
Policies are put into place now with the information we have now. When things start to open, we will keep learning and adjust. What you hear now may not apply in the future.
Rather than spend your time and energy worrying, why not focus on things you can control that will help you on the ice. Build your stamina with cardio, and work on dryland jumps and sports specific muscle conditioning.
At any rate, you will not be asked to run a full program with a mask the first day back. If your coach asks you to do this, please make sure you communicate your concerns with them.
When skaters wear masks to train for a competition in altitude, it is a process. They build up to running full programs over time.
When you start to worry about the future, remind yourself that getting back to training on the ice will be a transition (a process over time).
This can help you stay in the current moment and use your precious energy to take action and prepare yourself to be better mentally and physically right now.
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If you want to make a smooth transition back to the ice safely, quickly and with confidence, or make the most of this opportunity to return with a clean slate, I invite you to become an R2RU athlete.
Return to the ICE Ready 2 Ramp Up Program Registration closes May 22. Space limited.