When you’re striving to achieve a specific goal, how you show up is everything.

Are you a marathon racer looking to move into the top 10 in your category? A road racer looking to improve your climbing? A trail rider preparing to nail a key section at a bike park? Whatever goal it is that you are pursuing, you obviously need to do the physical training to get into a position to achieve it, but you need to show up mentally prepared too. In this article, Sports Psychologist, Dr Andrew Lewis, details the basics on how to use visualization as a component of your mental preparation to help you achieve your goal. 

Visualization is a holistic process that makes use of all the senses: smell, sight, hearing, touch, and taste. Often, when athletes talk about visualization, they are often referring to the visual aspect, and think that they should actually “see” pictures in their mind in order to effectively use mental imagery. However, not all athletes are visually dominant; and some largely make use of their other senses in their minds-eye. For athletes to make the most of visualization, they need to identify which sense works best for them and create pre-performance images that help tell their bodies what they want them to do. The body-mind connection is well known and here it can work to the utmost. Visualization also allows you to be process-oriented and experience the whole race as opposed to being outcomes-based which is focusing only on the prize or end time. Experiencing all of our senses from start to finish allows us to be fully in the moment as opposed to just focusing on the end prize. Often, the latter causes performance anxiety.

Here’s how

START HERE | Begin your visualization with some easy routines first and then progress to more complex and intricate routines. Start with the basics first… by relaxing, perhaps lying on your back in a quiet space away from any noise and activity and then focusing on relaxed and deep breathing. Then visualize a safe, comfortable and relaxing place that you have previously experienced, for example, your bedroom or being on holiday or at home. Ask yourself questions about this place to elicit your five senses. Also, what did you think, feel and do during this time? This should take about 10-15 minutes. Reflect on these experiences and then thereafter, practice visualization every day, even before and or after every training session or race.

RACE PREPARATION | As an example, a visualization activity the night before a race, could be along the following lines. Begin by imagining yourself performing well in the race… from start to finish. Think about how you felt/what you were thinking/what exactly it is that you did during the race. Run through the entire process of performing well. The key here is to remain focused on your performance and not on the race result or outcome. Visualize a great performance and then the idea is on race day you simply execute that plan. ENDS.

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| IMAGES: Allen Mackenzie, Pexels, Trek Factory Racing. |

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About Dr Andrew Lewis | Andrew Lewis is a Health Professions Council of South Africa (SA) and Health and Care Professions Council (UK) registered Educational Psychologist with rooms in Stellenbosch and Somerset West. With a post-graduate qualification in Sport Psychology, he works with individual athletes and teams who compete at all levels―national and international; and those who compete for pleasure. Andrew also collaborates with institutions and schools and publishes Sport Psychology- and Educational Psychology-related articles in peer-reviewed academic journals, newspapers and popular magazines. He also presents Sport Psychology workshops to other health professionals and athletes; as well as scientific papers at international and national conferences. Andrew also has an extensive sporting background and understands the demands and pressures of competitive sport―himself competing in the Ironman triathlon.  Andrew is currently a senior lecturer at the University of the Western Cape and was also a senior-lecturer at Stellenbosch University and the University of South Africa for 19 years where he trained Educational Psychologists and teachers; lectured students and conducted research. He also taught at two primary schools for 5 years. Andrew has received training in and practices through the medium of relations theory, Ericksonian hypnosis and play therapy.  Contact: info@andrewlewis.co.za 082 874 6112

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