The season is in full swing! Eliminate the negative thoughts just before the race.
July has arrived and the season is finally in full swing. Many swimmers are fully prepared for the important competitions that are fast approaching, thinking, "My daily tapering is going well," "I've been able to do well in my off-season training," "I'm taking in a well-balanced diet and supplements," and "I'm sure I can do it this season!" However, just before the race, when the noise from the stands at the assembly area is so loud, you start to worry, "Am I going to false start?!", "What if I don't break the record?!", or "What if I lose pace in the last 75m?". This is something that everyone, regardless of their swimming ability level, has experienced.
Today's topic is how to deal with those negative thoughts just before a race that everyone experiences, even during the best seasons.
Anyone who has experienced the tension before a race knows that once you start having negative thoughts, it is difficult to get rid of them. So before we get into the specific ways to deal with them, here are some things to remember:
"No matter how anxious or pressured you are, it is possible to swim your best."
- Yes! It's okay to feel anxious! In fact, it's natural. Just remembering that it's possible to perform at your best even under various pressures will make you feel more at ease. Furthermore, if you can learn a few ways to control those negative thoughts yourself, you will be able to take on the race with much more ease.
The first step to controlling negative thinking is to understand the fundamentals of what it means to be positive, or the ideal way to be positive.
Here are some common things you may hear about "Being positive":
- Being positive will bring out the best performance and time.
- Negative thinking leads to negative results.
- Controlling negative thoughts can help you become positive.
- If negative thoughts start to form during a race or at an important moment, it's best to get rid of them immediately.
- You should not have negative thoughts, and when you do, it is because you are not prepared.
Actually a misconception?!
First of all, these vague items about "becoming positive" are actually just "preconceptions". And just remembering that it is quite normal to have so-called "negative" thoughts right before a race should make things a lot easier! Even the fastest swimmers are assailed by these negative thoughts. However, just because you start thinking negative thoughts, it shouldn't lead to your motivation for the race decreasing, your mental preparation not being good, or your inability to swim well. Moreover, you are the one who knows best how much you have devoted yourself to daily practice in order to perform at your best in the race, so it is hard to imagine that "last-minute negativity" has the power to ruin the skills you have built up up until that point, right? Negative thoughts are simply a nervous system reaction, just like the nervous activity that has been motivating you, and are part of your mental preparation for the race.
The problem isn't the negative thoughts that arise, but how the players themselves react.
The more you resist, the more it will last!
Now that we know that being negative is a very normal phenomenon, what do we do then? If you are hit with negative thoughts before a race, in most cases you will desperately try to suppress your thoughts by telling yourself "I have to be positive!" or "I won't think negative things!", which will result in a vicious cycle of increased anxiety. Why? The answer is very simple. It is basically impossible to control what you think! It's not just you who can't do it, it's impossible for any human being! So stop resisting in a way that is impossible and has no answer . In times like these, try to approach things from the opposite perspective. It's exactly the principle of "If pushing doesn't work, try pulling!" Instead of trying to push through the negative thoughts in your head, try to calm down and switch to a stance of accepting (or responding).
How exactly do you switch?
- Negative thoughts are natural and it's okay to think them, and you end up affirming the very act of thinking them.
- Don't try to fight negative thoughts (let them live in your head).
- Even with negative thoughts, you can still perform at your best.
- Understand that it is not negative thinking that is the bad thing, but your reaction to it (the resistance to overpowering it) that is the real bad thing, and that this leads to stress before the race.
- Focus on pre-race stretching and the things you normally do.
Putting emphasis on "doing" and "feeling" aside from "thinking"
From what we have discussed so far, it is clear that what is important for performance in a crucial race is what you do before and during the race , not what you think. To go deeper, what you do and feel physically before and during the race is important. Instead of fighting the pressure before the race, do something physical: for example, pay attention to conditioning by doing things physically, such as the state of your muscles when stretching, the feeling of your respiratory function when taking a slow, deep breath, etc. If negative thoughts start to appear during the race, think about what to do right now: the number of breaths, the length of the dive after the turn, whether you are splashing water, etc., and take a physical, concrete, and effective approach to that moment.This is a challenge that even top Olympians face all the time. The best thing to do is to understand that the anxiety and pressure you feel right before the race are not factors that will affect your performance on the day. Instead of consciously trying not to think about it or trying to turn it into a positive thing, try to focus on what you can do now and what you need to do specifically before the race.
*This article was translated from the official USA SWIMMING website based on an article by Dr. Alan Goldberg (Sports Clinical Psychologist at the United States Olympic Training Center, Colorado Springs).
Article taken from USAswimming.org