Take a Page From Aaron Judge’s Mental Preparation
Most athletes can benefit from taking a page out of New York Yankees super star Aaron Judge’s playbook to improve performance. This article in shares a glimpse of Judge’s mental pre-game routine. Prior to games he watches a few minutes of video that highlight his past successes. Some days he adds watching video of athlete’s that inspire him as a motivational tool.
Watching video where you perform successfully, under pressure or through challenging situations is a gateway for reinforcing positive performance imagery. Over time this develops an internal blueprint that is stored internally. Watching successful video clips of past performance can serve to turn down the cognitive process of the pre-frontal cortex and allow working memory to perform the skill uninterrupted.
Setting aside 5 minutes prior to playing or doing this exercise the evening before can be helpful. Repeatedly seeing yourself on video or using imagery skills, performed with correct form & effective energy can enhance performance. Other factors involved when practicing this such as being in a relaxed alert state, listening to your mental dialogue (critical or curious) while watching the videos or imaging, is important. Adding this 5 minute exercise doesn’t replace practice nor the experience of competing but can add to an athlete’s mental readiness.Other potential benefits include:
*Builds imaging skills
*Watching positive successful clips enhances skill confidence.
*Promotes calm
*Can enhance concentration
*Can reinforce skills programming
Adding a pre-game video or imaging routine is an easy mental performance tool that can bring big benefits. Just ask Aaron Judge!
Picture credit to: Martin Péchy @ Pixels
Picture credit: Cottenbro Studio @ Pixels