Physical abilities (Strength, endurance, agility…) are important for athletes or simply every day life. However, people tend to neglect the mental aspect when it comes to exercising and training. With a healthy mindset, exercising promotes well-being, resilience, and long-term mental health. For elite athletes, sports psychology helps athletes regulate stress ensuring consistent performance.
“Mindset and attitude matter when it comes to achieving your goals, including those related to athletic performance and fitness.” — Tia Konzer, DO, a psychiatrist who specializes in sports
psychology and worked with professional athletes to help them get prepared.
However, it is not just athletes that can gain from mental toughness, or grit. Learning to persevere through tough times is crucial to all levels of athletic achievement. Whether it’s rebuilding your running endurance after an injury, or making steady progress toward your weight-lifting goals despite a busy and packed schedule, or joining a recreational basketball team after a 20-year hiatus from the sport, being able to have the mental toughness move you forward.
How to improve on mental toughness to boost performance then?
- Set goals that are specific. Have step by step goals that are realistic and attainable. This can be improving 10 seconds in pace when running a 5K; Being able to bench 10 more pounds by the end of this month; Or even just exercising at least five times this week.
- Build awareness. Pay attention to inner thoughts during workout. How do these thoughts affect performance? How do your thoughts and feelings change when you work out alone versus with a friend or when you’re in a different environment?
- Determine the narrative. Once thoughts and emotions are being recognized and tracked, start taking control of the narrative. Separate facts from thoughts to control the mind.
- Find the ‘Why’. Find the reason for what you are achieving. Make sure the ‘why’ is big enough to help push towards the limit, but not too big because it will be impossible to reach.
- Put yourself to the test as often as possible. Constantly challenge yourself in difficult situations to build resilience. Go up against tough opponents, don’t shy away from a workout that seems like it might be too difficult, or a race that’s longer than anything you’ve done before.
- Learn from people who are mentally tough.
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