Top 5 Ways to Help Athletes Refocus

2011-08-12T11:53:00.014-04:00

ne of the most important mental strengths during competition that athletes and sport professionals will agree with is concentration or focus. At any point in time during competition, an athlete’s level of concentration can make the difference between a victorious and an unsuccessful team or individual. If you disagree, ask any of the Trinidad and Tobago footballers at the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals. They made history being the smallest nation at any World Cup finals. On top of that, while playing against powerhouse Sweden, Avery John was sent off leaving the Soca Warriors down to 10 men. Nevertheless, the players were able to maintain their high level of concentration, partly due to the heroics of Shaka Hislop in goal and earn their only point in the 0-0 final score.

Athletes are often told to “concentrate” by coaches, peers or even parents. What exactly is concentration? This involves putting all your attention and energy into what you have to do in the present moment by limiting distractions. Simply put, athletes become distracted when their attention is divided. A focused basketball player at the free throw line might focus on the backside of the rim but, when distracted he or she may begin to pay attention to the sounds of the fans or the players around, forgetting or ignoring the back of the rim completely, resulting in a miss or even an air ball. This could be a deciding factor in the final seconds of a game.

Are you focusing on what you are supposed to?
Shifting of attention can be broad, where a number of signs, individuals and objects on the field, course or court are observed. On the other side of the fence, attention can be narrow. A narrow focus involves paying attention to fewer cues in the environment.

A Broad focus is beneficial for instances when athletes need to be aware of their environment (opponents positioning, teammates or field/ court/ course area). To take this a step further, these cues in the sporting environment help athletes make crucial decisions that contribute to optimal performance. Athletes will take the external information and make the best decisions based on what they have observed. A point guard in basketball sees his opponents, teammates, and position on the court then, decides where he or she will pass or dribble the ball. Some cons of the broad focus involve being distracted by too many external cues in the sporting environment to the point where individual skill execution is diminished. So, this player is observing a number of things but forgets to protect the ball causing a turnover.

2 TYPES OF BROAD FOCUS
Broad external- understanding and seeing many different things in the environment. A midfielder in football sees opposing players around the field, knows where the ball is, sees spaces and is aware of his or her positioning. A center in basketball is aware of the lane, makes eye contact with the point guard, sees possible blocks/rebounds depending on the play and observes movement of opponents.

Broad internal- be able to make accurate, wise and timely decisions after external information in an athletic environment is interpreted and processed. For instance: a golfer being aware of sand traps, trees, wind and ponds on the course then, deciding how much force, stroke and what technique will be used in stroke execution. Another example is a bench player observing what is going wrong during a game (tactics, strengths and weaknesses of both teams) and knows how to make a positive contribution when he or she gets in.

Narrow focus helps athletes be in tuned to a couple specific things they can control and place all of their attention on those things. This can be seen in a rifle shooter who concentrates on his or her breathing and is able to stay calm with the sole focus of hitting a target. A negative of this form of focus could be the fact that too much attention is placed on one thing especially in team events. This ‘tunnel vision’ can cause some footballers to lose possession of the ball because they failed to see an opposing defender.

2 TYPES OF NARROW FOCUS

Narrow external- focusing on a limited number of cues in ones surroundings. Some examples include: knowing where to move after looping a ball in table tennis doubles to make way for a teammate to return the ball while being aware of the opposing duo (focus here is on movement and the opposition).

Narrow internal- placing all of one’s attention on a limited number of thoughts. This is like going over plays of routines in one's mind. Some examples are: a swimmer mentally rehearsing his or her stroke and bodily sensations or a gymnast visualizing or seeing himself or herself tumbling (backhand spring is an example) in a floor event.

In sport, selective attention can be a key tool to performing optimally. The different forms of attention mentioned are flexible and usually changes depending on sporting environment, the individual athlete and type of sport. The important thing is for athletes to understand how best they focus in their sport, which type of focus is best for them and at what times.

The three R’s

1. Rest: Just Stop!

It is ok to be nervous, tense or feel anxious. These are all natural experiences most people experience at some point in their lives. The important thing is how we react or cope with the increased arousal level. A typical case where this usually occurs is after a mistake or performing poorly. To avoid a continuation of the heightened arousal state, pause for a second (not saying come to a complete stop in the middle of a game) but, accept that a mistake or error has occurred and figure out how it can best be corrected. I heard a coach say that, “a mistake should be made once.” You then learn from it, correct it and the next time you make a mistake it will be a new one.

2. Regroup: Breathe!

Increased arousal level (tight muscle and increased heart rate) affects concentration so controlling arousal can be beneficial. There are a number of ways to breathe for relaxation purposes. What remains constant is that a deep breath has a soothing effect on the body.

Inhale

Take a deliberate controlled breath in through the nose

Imagine you are breathing in cool, relaxing, blue ocean air slowly for about 4 seconds

Fill the stomach up with this fresh air while imagining your stomach is a balloon that you are filling (breathing through the stomach engages the diaphragm and sends a relaxation response to the rest of the body

Exhale

On exhaling, make sure that this is longer than the breath in and imagine you are breathing out the color red representing all the tension and stiffness in the body

As you exhale, the shoulders should drop and be relaxed.

3. Refocus: Cue Word!

Here a word, phrase, symbol or action can be used to remind you of the task at hand, why you play your sport, your strengths or what you need to do in that particular moment. Often, when distracted by mistakes, sub par performance or complacency, athletes tend to forget what makes them play at their best. These cues serve as a reminder of specifically what an athlete's objectives are physically, technically, tactically and mentally at any given time during training or competition. Some examples are: “Come on!” “Let’s go!” “Fight it!” “Stay low!” “A little to the left!”

4. Process: Things you do!

Pay attention to something you do before, during or after practice or competition (depending on when you feel the need to be refocused). Most elite athletes have their routines. After a mistake some may “shake it off” by literally shaking their bodies or jumping on the spot. This is something that helps them get their attention back to the present moment. The present moment can be zoning in on your rhythm, a stroke in golf, tracking breathing or focusing on technique. Time spent harping on what the final score may be or what the celebration will look like is time and energy that could have been spent on decision making at key moments in a tournament.

5. Do your thing: Everybody is different!

In the end, each person is very unique in a number of ways. A lot of athletes have their way of focusing and refocusing their attention during practice and competition. One athlete might bring his or her game face on any given day. Another might be the total opposite and have to fool around and be funny to lighten the moment. The strategies mentioned may not suit every athlete however; athletes need to find what words, phrases, actions, approach or way of thinking that best fits their personality ans stick with it. This is essential for optimal level of concentration with minimal distractions.

“As fast as the game moves, his mind moves faster. He is able to analyze the game frame by frame, as if the play unfolds in slow motion. He can sustain concentration in each frame of the game. If an opposing player loses his concentration for a split second—Bam! Michael grabs the advantage.”

~Isaiah Thomas (1998) Talking about Michael Jordan~

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