Mental Imagery and Its Impact on Athletic Performance

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Mental Imagery and Its Impact on Athletic Performance

Jim just sat there before his match. Everyone else was running and warming up, but Jim just sat there. When the dual started, Jim went out on the mat and pinned his opponent, after showing excellent technique. The rest of the team lost. They didn't understand it; they would work out before the dual and couldn't win, but all Jim did was sit there and he won while showing excellent skill. Later they found out that Jim was using a technique of mental imagery, and he wasn't just sitting there. Many people have wondered about this way to train for sports. Mental imagery is "a cognitive psychological skill in which the athlete uses all senses to create a mental experience of athletic performance or just simply, the athlete mentally rehearses performance" (McCullough). These mental images are sometimes duplicated images of the past, or sometimes they are for desired or feared anticipation of the future. Mental Imagery improves athletic performance.

When people want to get stronger muscles they usually go straight to a lifting program. This is leaving out one of the simplest ways of getting stronger, mental imagery. Mental imagery is a safe, effective way to gain strength. It is the mental preparation for weight lifting. Some people refer to mental imagery as visualization, but it is encouraged in mental imagery to use each of the five senses so that the brain believes that the body is actually lifting (Schlosberg). Now the experts say that mental imagery is not just an extra in sports, but it is a necessity (Tattenbaum).

Suzanne Schlosberg (1998) says that the Olympic athletes have used mental imagery in their sports for years. About 99 percent of the Canadian athletes we...

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...s+Public+Website/English/Coach/Coaching_Guides/Athletics/Teaching+Athletics+Event+Skills/Mental+Preparation+and+Training.htm

Plessinger, A. (n.d.). The effects of mental imagery on athletic performance. Retrieved December 28, 2003, from http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/psychology/health_psychology/mentalimagery.html

Schlosberg, S. (1998, August). Let's get visual: With the right techniques, weight-training success is all in your head. Retrieved December 28, 2003, from http://www.findarticles.com/cf_0/m1608/n8_v14/21032039/p1/article.jhtml

Sports Coach. (2004, January). Mental imagery. Retrieved March 12, 2004, from www.brianmac.demon.co.uk/mental.htm

Tattenbaum, R. (n.d.) Can you help with... consistency and focus for sports and athletics. Retrieved March 12, 2004, from http://www.inner-act.com/CanYouHelpWith/Issues/?plugin:dataview:HelpWith:3:status=1

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