The Importance of Mental Toughness In Sports
Channel: Mental Toughness Trainer
Date: 2012-02-05

http://www.mentaltoughnesstrainer.com

Mental Toughness Training http://www.mentaltoughnesstrainer.com/2011/11/how-to-develop-mental-toughness/

In this video, Craig shares with the Lady Big Dogs basketball team the importance of mental toughness training in sports.


So what's mental toughness you might say?  Well, it's focused, confident, determined, and resilient.  Resilient means that you have the ability to bounce back from difficulty, loses, mistakes.  It means to never, ever, ever, ever give up. 
 
I'm here to give you some tools to get you all that in your next game, your life, and beyond.  So let me just start out by explaining how having mental toughness will help you play better.  And that's what we're here for.  

Let's just start off by thinking about the best game you have ever had for a second here.  Now for that moment didn't that just feel great thinking about it?  You know while playing, and even now, while you are just thinking about it, didn't that get you somewhere thinking about your best game?  

I'll bet that before that game that you weren't down and depressed -- right?  And thinking about losing now weren't you?  What were you thinking about before and during that game?  How did you feel before that game?  Confident?  Ready to go?  Excited?  That's what we're talking about here.  

Isn't it true that you are most likely going to play better when you feel great?  Feel confident?  It's the objective of the game for us here in learning mental toughness is to get ourselves to feel, think, confident, before and during the game.  This is how you're going to play your best.  Pretty simple.  

So here's the deal.  I want to talk a little bit about winning for a moment here.  Winning is a good thing.  I want you to win.  You see far too many young athletes they think way too much about winning and losing.  That's how you put pressure on yourself.  The pressure doesn't feel very good -- does it?  And that makes it harder to play your best when you feeling that kind of pressure and that nervousness.  Also, too many young athletes, they think that they can only feel good after they play well or their team wins.  And that's not true!  

What you want to do is work with yourself so that you feel great before you start the game and you'll  keep it going during the game.  That's what allows your best performances to come out.  Stop thinking about winning and losing so much.  Get this, winning is almost like an accident.  It is a byproduct of feeling so great about yourself and your abilities to go out there and do your best.  Some people call that type of playing in the zone.  

So now you might be saying to yourself, "Well, if I am not thinking about winning this game, what should I think about that will get me to feel great so I can play my best as you say?"  Well, you have the answer for that right inside you.  I want to get you started.  Would you play even if you knew you weren't going to win and why?  All the things you love.  

Start this list here, right now today, and add to it when you get home.  These are the things you will be focusing on and thinking about before and during your next game.   

Visit http://www.teenmentaltoughness.com to download FREE: 

"The 10 Commandments For A Great Sports Parent" ebook
and  "Master The Pressure" a GAME-CHANGING guided visualization for teen athletes.