UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF MENTAL IMAGERY USING YOUR IMAGINATION IN YOUR ROUTINE by Patrick J. Cohn and Lisa Cohn

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1 UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF MENTAL IMAGERY USING YOUR IMAGINATION IN YOUR ROUTINE by Patrick J. Cohn and Lisa Cohn Kids Sports Psychology ( E-book Terms of Use The information contained in this document represents the current view of Kids Sports Psychology and Peak Performance Sports, LLC (kidssportspsychology.com and youthsportspsychology.com) on the issues discussed as of the date of publication. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information presented after the date of publication. This Kids Sports Psychology E-booklet is for informational purposes only. Peaksports MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS DOCUMENT. Complying with all applicable copyright laws is the responsibility of the user. Without limiting the rights under copyright, no part of this document may be reproduced, modified or distributed for profit in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the express written permission of Peaksports.com and Dr. Patrick Cohn. Kids Sports Psychology may have patents, patent applications, trademarks, copyrights, or other intellectual property rights covering subject matter in this document. Except as expressly provided in any written license agreement from Peaksports, the furnishing of this document does not give you any license to these patents, trademarks, copyrights, or other intellectual property. BY PROCEEDING WITH THIS E-BOOKLET, YOU AGREE TO ABIDE BY THE ABOVE TERMS AND CONDITIONS WITHOUT LIMITATION. Copyright 2008 by Peak Performance Sports, LLC. Patrick J. Cohn, Ph.D. and Lisa Cohn All rights reserved. Published by Peak Performance Sports, LLC 7380 Sand Lake Road PMB 5012 Orlando, FL

2 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 2 UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF MENTAL IMAGERY: USING IMAGINATION IN YOUR ROUTINE Frequently, athletes use their imaginations to practice skills mentally, outside of regular practices and games. But mental imagery can also help you focus during games or competitions. Your efforts to create images, thoughts or feelings in your mind, will help you build confidence. The images help you tell your body how to perform. When you use your imagination to remember what a good dive feels like, you are using mental imagery. You Don t Have to See Pictures in Your Mind To Use Imagery When high-level athletes talk about visualization, they are often referring to just one part of mental imagery. Many people think this is the only kind of mental imagery. They also think you should actually see pictures in your mind to use mental imagery. But not all athletes are visual learners who can do this. Some athletes are more comfortable feeling in their minds. If they try to make themselves see pictures in their minds, they might hurt their performance rather than help it. Athletes use a variety of images (seeing, feeling, hearing) to help them get ready. To make the most of visualization, you will need to create preperformance images that help you tell your body what you want it to do. Keep It Simple! Warning: Too many thoughts or images (or trying too hard) can confuse your mind and hurt your performance. You also don t want to make the mistake of using the wrong or too many mental images.

3 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 3 This section will help you identify your preferred learning style and learn how to use helpful images during your routines. Three Imagery Styles Here are the different types of learning styles. Visual Learning Visual learners prefer to get information through their eyes. The visual learner learns best by watching a demonstration. Watching another athlete perform a movement is helpful to visual learners. Athletes who are predominately visual learners want coaches to use visual aids such as pictures, videotapes and charts. In terms of imagery, visual learners like to see pictures in their heads (also called their mind s eye) of how a movement should look. For example, a golfer might picture himself putting before he putts. A basketball player might see the ball sinking into the hoop before she shoots a free-throw shot. A skater might picture her routine in her mind seeing herself perform physical movements in her mind. Kinesthetic Learning: Learning from Experience or Feel Kinesthetic learners learn by experience and want to know how a movement feels. The kinesthetic athlete communicates to the body what the correct movement feels like. If you re this type of learner, you like to have coaches put you in the correct position so you can feel the movement. If you re going to imagine movements using imagery, you re the kind of learner who imagines the

4 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 4 feel of the movement. For example, bowlers might feel the tempo of a smooth stroke before the throw. Auditory Learning: Using Your Ears If you re this kind of learner, you focus on sounds and rhythms. You like lectures, discussions and audio tapes. You like coaches to talk about movements, or skills and strategies. You will do best if you create a mental routine that includes sounds and words. For example, a tennis player might focus on what a good shot sounds like by rehearsing the sound of the tennis racquet making solid contact with the ball. Most Athletes Use Feel, Sight and Sound Do not assume that you must fit into one of the three styles of learning. Most athletes use two or three senses when they learn and imagine. A field goal kicker in football might see the flight of the kick in his mind. He might rehearse the feeling of the kick during his pre-kick routine. Research shows that it s actually best to create mental images that involve all three senses sight, feel and sound. Testing Your Imagery Style Below are two simple tests to help you determine your preferred style of imagery. You may assume you re a seeing learner, but discover that you re a listening learner! Table 1. Imagery and Imagination: How You Learn Best

5 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 5 Directions: Please respond to the following questions with true or false below. Select true (most like me) or false (least like me) next to each statement. Please be as honest as possible. 1. When I dream about my sport, I mostly see pictures in my mind. 2. I always recall a feeling of a movement or skill before I perform it. 3. When thinking about past play, I mostly see pictures in my head. 4. I learn new sports best by watching a demonstration. 5. A coach helping me to feel the motion of a new skill helps me learn it. 6. I recall how the skill or movement should sound before I execute it. 7. I learn better by performing a skill rather than hearing how to do it. 8. When I perform, I see only images or pictures in my head. 9. When I perform, I cannot see pictures in my head. 10. I prefer to see my performance on video to make corrections. 11. I prefer my coach to tell me how to execute a skill instead of show me. 12. I use cue words such as push or tempo to help me perform. Your Results: If you answered true to statements 1, 3, 8 & 10, then you are likely a visual performer and learner. You should use visual or seeing images in your routine. If you answered true to any of statements 2, 5, 7, & 9 then you are likely a predominately kinesthetic or feel-oriented learner. You should use feeling images in your routines. If you answered true to any of statements 6, 11, 12 then you are likely an auditory or listening learner. You should use auditory images or cue words in your routines.

6 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 6 Ranking Your Style Most likely, you will apply a variety of styles to your program during the routine, but will have one dominant style. Below is a table that contains three styles. Using the results from test above, please rank (from 1-3) whether you like the style described best or least, with 3 being best and 1 being least. Table 2. Ranking Your Imagery Preference Imagery Descriptors Rank See, observe, look, visualize, see Visual Style in your mind s eye, picture the target in your mind, and see how the skill should look. Kinesthetic or Feeling Style Feel, experience, imagine the movement, feel tempo or balance (rather than seeing it) Auditory or Hearing Style Listen, hear, imagine the sound, focus on cue words.

7 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 7 If you are still unsure about your style, you may need to test different styles in practice. Here s yet another test to identify your style. Close your eyes and experience yourself performing in practice. If you re a soccer player, for example, imagine shooting on the goal. What kind of images do you come up with? Do you hear the sound of your foot hitting the ball? Do you see the ball heading toward the goal? Testing How You Use Your Imagination To Create Mental Imagery 1. Recall a recent performance or competition. Try to experience yourself at that same event, as if you are actually there again. First, lie down and take a few deep breaths to relax and concentrate. Think about a recent performance or game and recall it in as much detail as possible. Use the same thoughts, images, sounds, and feelings as if you were performing, 2. Write one or two paragraphs about how you remember this event. Describe the images, pictures, or feelings that came to you during the event. 3. Review the words or phrases you used to describe this performance based on Table 2 above. This will give you clues about the style of images you prefer. For example, if you mostly recalled images of the feeling of the performance and used words such as felt or feel, then you are likely a kinesthetic (feelings-based) performer or player. Practice Exercise You can figure out your preferred pre-shot imagery by spending time on the course, court or field working on a few different images.

8 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 8 You want a positive mental image in your mind, to get your body ready in a positive way. This image will help you trust in your practice and abilities and ignore distractions. Your body will play or perform well if you use simple images (a feeling, a sound, or a visual image). For example, let s pretend for a brief moment you are a tennis player. We would go to the court and test several possible images that could help you hit your best serve. You d begin by hitting a few serves while trying to visualize the flight of the serve. Or you might just focus on the target (location on the court) in your mind s eye as you wind up and hit the serve. You might hit about ten serves using this type of imagery. You d see the serve before you actually hit it. Second, ask yourself what a good serve feels like. You might say, Good extension or good balance. Then, you would hit ten serves each, focusing on good tempo, balance and full extension, one at a time. Finally, try to use a verbal cue before you serve. This cue might be smooth or it might be good tempo. Hit ten serves focusing on a word or sound to prepare you. Now, compare the various sets of serves and look at (1) how consistent your serve was did it hit the same target over and over? and (2) whether it was easy or difficult to do the set. You might pick one image that felt easy to do and produced the best performance. This method can be applied to any self-paced task such as a pitch in baseball, or the start of any continuous sport such as swimming.

9 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 9 Using Imagery in Your Routine Based on your results from the previous exercises, you can now identify how to best use mental images in your Get Ready routine. Remember, the goal is to help you feel confident, focus on the right things, and trust your experience when you begin playing or performing. Mental imagery can be used at various stages throughout the routine. In fact, an athlete s routine is often a series of images. You should use simple images or feelings instead of too much conscious thought. Once you become good at a skill, you should keep the imagery simple because you won t need a lot of thought to do the skill. You simply react. For example, most people can play darts with little or no practice. When you see 0 the cue the bull s eye you aim at the target and throw using handeye coordination. It doesn t have to be more complicated than that. When in doubt, choose simplicity in your routine. You can see the plan, mentally rehearse the performance, and get yourself ready by using a simple mental image. Your last thought or image, (also called a swing cue or swing thought) is the most critical thought in your routine. This last thought or image helps you increase your trust in yourself just before you begin playing or performing. You should simplify this to only one seeing,

10 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 10 hearing or feeling image or thought. This image should not be about the how to of your performance or about the details of your technique. Again, the dart-throwing example is a good one. You imagine the target, and then you see it. The mind only needs one cue a target. The body then takes over. Table 3 contains examples of the seeing and feeling thoughts you can use to prepare yourself. If you watch a guy who is playing well, in what I call the zone, he is doing everything the same. The amount of time he takes [to prepare] is the same, the swing looks the same because he feels comfortable and confident. ~Bob Tway, PGA Tour Table 3. Simple Mental Images to Help You Perform Seeing-Oriented Feeling-Oriented Imagine the feeling of See the target in your mind smooth tempo, such as the bowler feels when he makes the throw.

11 Using Mental Imagery In Your Routine 11 See the pattern baseball players might see the flight of a pitch Feel an effortless performance. Motocross racers might feel in a flow. Think about where your opponent will be Feel what it s like to do it right. A weight lifter might feel good balance. In summary, you can apply mental imagery to: Help you plan and strategize: Soccer players doing a corner kick might imagine the best option for putting the ball in play. Mentally and/or physically rehearse your performance: A golfer might see a good golf shot and feel the correct shot during a practice swing. Prepare your body by using a last thought or image as you begin your performance. Tennis players might see the target in their mind as they hit a serve. Mental imagery is a great tool to use in your preshot or get ready routine. You can use it to help you plan a corner kick in your mind or see/feel a successful corner kick too. Our students usually will use mental imagery when they are either planning an action or programming themselves to perform an action. Both planning and programming your mind and body are important to your success in performing a skill.