Mental preparation in sport, what is it ?
When we talk about mental preparation, we refer mainly to sport, because the mind plays an important role in it. In addition to physical preparation, it allows athletes to prepare and be ready for a competition or performance.
It helps to strengthen mental and cognitive capacities while preserving the balance and development of the athlete.
This involves focusing entirely on the psychological state in order to prepare it to deal more easily and serenely with the difficulties imposed by top-level sport and any positive or negative situation that may arise.
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Mental preparation brings more than we think to physical training.
It is a psychological work that provides additional tools to prepare a competition and improve performance for the sole purpose of achieving a goal.
It allows you to progress and express yourself fully while having the means to have the mental capacities and skills necessary to achieve a sporting feat.
It is a psychological support that is intended for both amateur athletes and high-level competitors. This conditioning has several benefits.
Indeed, it helps to learn to manage emotional states such as anger, fear or stress, to remove possible blockages, to optimize concentration, to develop leadership, to boost confidence and to bring well-being to better understand competitions.
But it also helps to control negative thoughts, promote recovery, become aware of one’s behaviour, increase concentration abilities tenfold and raise awareness of injuries, fatigue, pain and failures.
The athlete can be physically, tactically and technically ready, but without this preparation, he can miss the event, so that mental preparation has an essential place in the field of sport.
Individual and collective mental preparation
There are 2 types of mental preparation: individual and collective. The first is to mentally prepare a particular athlete. During this intervention, he answers a precise diagnosis such as the stress management problem or develops and improves all his mental abilities.
For this type of conditioning, the session lasts on average one hour, but always according to the objective to be achieved. The second consists in working on a team where all the players are present.
The mental trainer then proposes methods, remediation and strategies to meet the coach’s request and objectives to be achieved.
The intervention is based on the development of group cohesion, the highlighting of the group leader, the development of combativeness, the improvement of communication within the team…
The methods used
Different methods are used to mentally prepare for a competition or performance, they must be adapted to each athlete.
There is hypnosis, mental imagery or visualization, self-suggestion, relaxation techniques, NLP, sophrology, emotional intelligence or cognitive and behavioural techniques.
But there are also performance routines that promote relaxation, concentration and combativeness as well as internal dialogue.
Preparation is essential to successful training, and it goes beyond simple sports competition by allowing people to approach events with serenity and confidence.
Almost all athletes use these techniques without the help of a mental coach, and the benefits are many to mention only the flawless mind, the achievement of goals, the pleasure of everyday life, a good level of stress and activated fluidity.
