Do you love bowling? Are you pro or do you bowl in a league or two a few nights a week? Do you love the feeling of seeing the ball in the one-three pocket? Can you feel a strike ball the second it leaves your hand? Do you know what it is like to bowl in the zone and get on a roll? Do you hate seeing a high ball knowing that you will face a split? Don’t you hate it when you miss a seven pin or a ten pin?
Once you master the mechanical and physical techniques that are involved in bowling, this sport becomes quite mental. That is, once you know how to roll the ball, hit your marks, keep your rhythm and your balance the game becomes quite psychological.
Over the years, I have counseled many bowlers. Some have been recreational bowlers and others have been professionals. I have used hypnosis, guided imagery, relaxation training, confidence building techniques, focusing techniques and motivational strategies to help them achieve their long term goals and their short term goals.
Some want raise their average. Some want to earn their living on the lanes. Some bowlers want to be stars in their weekly leagues. Others want to avoid choking when the pressure is on.
In counseling these bowlers, I tend to learn a great deal about their personalities, their dreams and their approach to the game. Believe it or not, many of them have very different things running through their mind when they step up to the lane and get their fingers into their ball.
Some bowlers are target oriented. Others are more technique oriented. Some enjoy the pressure and the crowds. Others like to feel alone, centered and focused on the lanes. They like feeling that they are in their own cocoon of concentration. The mental training I do with them is about getting them into the ideal state of mind to perform to their fullest potential.
One of the very important decisions I help my clients make is whether or not they want to watch their opponents bowl. They also need to decide if they want to watch the score or not. Some players do better attending to the competition and some do better bowling in a physical and psychological vacuum.
The bowler and I frequently sort this decision out via counseling and trial and error. We tend to go with whatever works, whatever feels most comfortable and whatever produces the highest scores and the most wins.
So, no matter what level you bowl at, you need to decide how aware you want to be of external cues.
By: Jay Granat
Posts Tagged ‘Sports Psychology’
Sports Psychology For Bowlers – A Very Important Bowling Tip to Get You Bowling in the Zone
March 2nd, 2010Sports Psychology For Jockeys – How Can Sports Psychology Help Jockeys?
February 7th, 2010
The Breeder’s Cup was held last week and it caused me to reflect on some of my experiences counseling jockeys and others who compete in sports which involve horses. Over the years, I have counseled a number of jockeys, cowboys and equestrian riders. Some of these people compete at a very high level.
Because I am an animal lover and someone who is curious about the relationships between animals and people, these patients and these sports have been quite fascinating for me. Jockeys are extraordinary athletes. They are strong, courageous and very skilled. The successful ones are paid well, like other athletes. They work very hard and they put in very long days. Many of them work twelve hours a day, six or seven days a week. These remarkable athletes present an interesting set of psychological, emotional and interpersonal issues when they have called me for counseling.
The issues that they have raised in their conversations with me.
Making the weight can be a source of significant stress. Some of the jockeys resort to vomiting to control their body weight. This bulimic like behavior can cause physical as well as psychological stress.
Interpersonal conflicts with other riders, owners and trainers can be quite stressful for some jockeys.
Losing confidence after a fall or an accident or an injury can shake a rider’s belief in himself.
These kinds of stressors can severely impact a jockey’s confidence and it can make it harder for them to get into the zone when they are aboard a horse.
Most jockeys will also tell you that there is a special relationship and a distinct way that they and the horse communicate with one another. If the jockey is tense, unfocused and loaded with self-doubt, the horse will feel it. This self-doubt will be communicated through the hands of the rider to the horse. This is a dynamic relationship, so the rider will impact the horse and a then uneasy horse will impact the rider. This is not a good situation for someone who earns his or her living by communicating effectively with horses.
I believe that many jockeys probably face the kinds of issues I have outlined above. Counseling can help professional riders to manage these kinds of concerns. As I do with other athletes, I help the jockeys to change behaviors and attitudes in a manner which will allow them and their horses to perform to their fullest potential. The right kind of coaching and mental toughness training can help jockeys to manage stress more effectively and perform better on the track.
By: Jay Granat
