Mental toughness
Posts tags Mental toughness
A Strong Mental Game and The NHL Playoffs: An Example
The NHL playoffs have begun, and are moving along at quite an exciting clip. We have seen series that have gone to game seven, and some that have been shorter, but all have been incredibly competitive as always. One game that jumps to mind when it comes to the mental game that we strive to teach here is Game 5 of the Blackhawks vs. Predators series.
In what was an incredibly riveting game, the Blackhawks jumped out to a 3-1 lead early in the second period. Most fans were happy, and thought the Blackhawks could wrap the game up easily. Then came the storm that was the Nashville Predators; half way through the third period the Predators had stormed back to tie the game as well as take a 4-3 lead.
Mentally how do the Blackhawks respond? When something like this happens players begin to think, “how could this happen to us?” and begin to hang there heads low. The Blackhawks began to make mistakes, Marian Hossa receives a 5-minute major for boarding. With the Blackhawks on the Penalty kill, they have to buckle down mentally, and play the best five minutes of defense they can. Because of there strong mental game they were not only able to kill the first minute of the penalty, but score the game tying goal to take the game to overtime.
With the Predators still on the power play, the Blackhawks had almost 4 minutes of penalty time to kill, and that is exactly what they did. With Marian Hossa being out of the penalty box for only seconds the Blackhawks make a play and Marian Hossa is there to put home the game winner. This game makes it clear how important the mental game is. The Blackhawks were able to clear there minds of mistakes made, and make plays to win a momentum changing game.
Is your ability to clear your mind and be ready to play in any situation where it needs to be? Contact us to get yourself on the road to a better mental game!
Navy SEALs versus Athletes: Similar or Different?
I recently read an article in LiveScience by Charles Coi (April 14) on how Navy SEALs recognize anger more quickly than the general population. Obviously, this is pretty important for their job so it makes plenty of sense. From the article, which cited research conducted by several neuroscientists at UC San Diego:
The scientists found the insula, a region deep within the brain, activated more strongly in Navy SEALs when they saw angry faces than when compared to ordinary men.
“The insula is important for understanding your body sensations, or gut feelings” Simmons, [the neuroscientist who conducted the research], explained. “This suggests that when they see an angry face they do a ‘gut check.’ This may be because angry faces, but not fearful and happy faces, do require immediate attention for safety in combat.”
When it came to happy or fearful faces, the brains of Navy SEALs reacted more slowly than non-SEALS.
“Slower reaction time can indicate reduced attention, increased contemplation, or distracted or multiple processing,” Simmons said. “Given the SEALs’ capacity to excel in performance-related tasks, it may be most probable that they decide not to exert much effort in responding to faces that are not giving as important information.”
Does this have a connection to athletes, too? The well-trained athlete might develop neurocognitive speed in identifying other important visual cues taking place in the game, while having lower speed on cues that are irrelevant. Was Wayne Gretzky’s insula activating more intensely giving him better anticipation? Are good soccer forwards better able to detect at the precise time a defender is going to attempt a tackle… based in part on a facial or another body expression?
Just thought it was interesting….
