Visualize the Athlete You Intend to Be
by Melinda Burris

The adage, “If you can see it, you can be it,” has often been applied to sports figures, from improbable cultural phenomenon Daniel “Rudy” Ruetigger (with the aid of Hollywood’s talent for embellishing an already amazing story to even more climactic and sentimental heights) to entirely fictional heroes like the everyman turned unlikely world heavyweight champ, Rocky Balboa. Despite the stereotypes, any serious athlete or coach will tell you that to play for the win, your head has got to be in the game, and that mental focus must be in place long before you step onto the field or into the stadium.

Craig Sigl, a motivational speaker and mentor who specializes in working with amateur and professional athletes around the world, particularly student-athletes, developed his own mental toughness certification program. Sigl has devoted his life to teaching others that the key to developing and maintaining “a healthy and powerful mental state of mind” hinges on our ability to remain “aware of our internal dialogue.”¹ Recognize self-defeating thoughts and turn that narrative around to focus on the belief that we can and will accomplish positive things. Sigl asserts this philosophy is fundamental to success not only in sports but in life in general.¹

It should be noted that Sigl takes issue with the term visualization, asserting that coaches who urge athletes to simply visualize success actually “do a disservice to their athletes” because while many people are visually oriented and find it easy to picture themselves doing something in their head, others find this concept hard to comprehend. For this reason, Sigl prefers the terms “mental practice” or “imagination practice” wherein the athlete is asked to simply imagine themselves reaching a certain goal.¹ Since all humans imagine, this approach is more inclusive and easier for individuals to grasp and apply toward the pursuit of their chosen objective.

Other sports experts from coaches and trainers to sports psychologists agree with Sigl’s assessment, declaring “visualization is far more than a purely visual exercise.”² To really believe a goal is obtainable, an athlete or anyone who really wants to achieve something must commit fully by “[engaging] all their senses when going through this [mental] exercise.”² This means going beyond daydreaming about turning in a wonderful performance.

You must mentally project yourself into that moment. How will it feel to finally attain this long-sought-after goal? What will the ground underneath your feet feel like? What smells and sounds will you experience as you realize your victory? Imagine your physical and mental reaction to finally having all your hard work come to fruition.

According to Sigl, there are four steps you should take to successfully manifest your imagined performance:

1.    Be Specific

For maximum impact, you should focus on a specific factor of your performance that you wish to improve upon^.1 For example, if you are struggling to clear hurdles in good time at your metes, imagine yourself maintaining a steady rhythm, stepping over the hurdles just as much as is necessary to successfully clear them rather than jumping too high and losing valuable time regaining your footing before the next jump.

2.    Prioritize Comfort

You should dress in comfortable clothing and shoes that fit well as this will not only allow you to keep your mind centered on your goal and the task at hand, but it will also allow you to compete safely.

3.    Just Breathe

Anyone who has ever practiced the art of meditation will tell you that the simple act of taking a few deep breaths relaxes the body and allows you to retrain your mental energy. Do this before your next event and take note of the surge of calm, centered focus you experience. As Sigl points out, deep breathing is also a great technique for dealing with high-tension situations, a common occurrence in competitive sports and in life.¹

4.    Take Command of Your Thoughts

Lastly, apply all that mental practice you have been doing to your physical performance. Make what you have imagined a reality by remaining mindful of your thoughts and staying positive and confident in your ability to achieve what you have set out to do.

Tips for Making Visualization or Work for You

Coaches and programs have different approaches to building teams and developing skill sets of individual athletes, but the sports community agrees that visualization or mental projection is a key component in the success of athletes at every level, right up to the highest echelons of competition. In fact, psychological studies have shown that when practiced seriously and consistently, visualization or “mental practice” has yielded results nearly as effective as physical exercise.²

Here are two tips experts recommend when employing this technique: 

1. Practice Does Make Perfect:

Like any other skill, to become proficient in visualization, you must practice it regularly. Visualization should be viewed not as a supplement to your training routine but as a core component of your daily workouts.  Remember, if it is to become your reality in the future you must behave as if it is your reality in the present.

2. Don’t Rush the Process

Again, keeping in mind that your goal is to make what you are visualizing a reality is key to your success. For there to be a realistic chance of achieving your objective, you must train for it in realistic conditions. For example, if your goal is to break a record for 400m hurdles, you should spend the amount of time you hope to complete the hurdles in visualizing how you will accomplish this—at least once a day.

The Drive to Find That Winning Edge

Athletics has always thrived on competition; that’s a huge part of what makes it so exciting! Modern technologies and advances in training methods continue to drive competition in sports, to the point that the difference between first and second place often comes down to a fraction of a second. To compete at your highest level means honing not only your physical prowess but your mental strength as well.

References:

1. Sigl, C. (n.d.). Visual Techniques for Sports.
2. Restoric. (19 November 2020). What is Visualization? How Successful Athletes Practice This Proven Technique.