Recently I flew out to spend some time with family while I am still working on what’s next, and amongst all the things I watched in the flight to pass around 6.5 hours, one topic that made me think a lot was a documentary on athlete’s mind. Imagine how one athlete stands out from the crowd, makes his mark and one fine day he looses with a close or bad score but you know what, on the next round or opportunity, he is back and wins with flying colours. Sounds like an excerpt from a movie, doesn’t it? This is reality, if you see the history and follow some key athletes, all of them have had their share and moments of fame and not so much acclaim. Come to think of it, we too have our good days and not so good days in sports, fitness and life, have you ever wondered why?
With fascination, I watched some memorable videos of renowned athletes and their moves, their wins, the strength of their body & achievement through their minds, hoping to get some answers. What is it? Mental or physical? Or both? Or are they born talented? How do they know how fast they will run today, how do they know how far they would go, how do they know they will win today or how do they know how to pose after their win (ahem… Usain Bolt!)? Even though I feel it’s a combination of mental and physical training, surely it is technical training as well and that’s what this documentary was highlighting as the complete story.
Some strong terms used in this 50-minute video such as cognitive mind, absorption of information, catch the signal in time and put next reflex on hold and oh the famous words that I learnt in the recent certified course.. ‘Motor Neurons’. It’s amazing how all of these words and actions are always somehow related.
The one question I found asking myself amongst million others was … Is the brain of top athletes any different from normal people? One example they showed was of a karate game, they said it’s the perfect combination – maximum velocity and everything synchronised with such precision that the brain controls what’s best with speed and agility. So does that mean, the athletes practice how to suppress their default response as well, on how to act? Does this apply only on high performance sports?
The latest technology as I could comprehend, is not limited to training the athletes physically but also working on their Neurons, making ‘born with a talent’ a myth. How many times do we actually visualise the action and work in our minds before the start, thinking of the time needed to not only finish a race but to excel too? I know I do, every single time when I am at the start of a marathon but somewhere in the process I give up and then the Plan B hits in, that programs me to finish strong with no injuries, which in itself is a process, and that’s to succeed.
They moved on to show how a virtual stimulator is the new thing in practise for the players, developing their analytic capabilities especially for footballers, the concept here is to automate the neurons of the players. And what’s to say about the famous win in 2014 by Renaud Lavillenie, a French Pole Vaulter (world record holder) who beat the highest score of 6.15 metres after 20 years with 6.16 metres height. For a sports that was considered to have reached its limits and the maximum height, was well challenged.
So what does this all say in a nutshell?
Visualise your play first, maybe in slow motion with eyes open or closed and perform to the best of your ability…. No two runs are the same, no two days are the same but there is one thing that remains the same and that’s the feeling of achievement. When we cross that finish line with a score that meets our expectation or exceeds it, when we can tick off one more title off our list, that feeling is same … Same same yet different (you know what I mean!)
And since few days now, I visualise my rounds in circuit training during the morning exercise sessions keeping in mind the reps and sets & before I know it’s time for the next circuit. So far it’s working ?
