imagery, simluation and concentration
TRANSCRIPT
Imagery, simulation and concentration
Mental Imagery involves an ability to picture events via thoughts in the brain
Imagery is a form of simulation and allows the user to create, modify and strengthen important pathways involving coordination of muscles by training powerful thought processes
Imagery, mental rehearsal and simulation
Allow us to ‘feel’ our body as it moves through different actions
Heavily involves proprioception
Cartoon: “feeling” your way to the end result
EG: Hitting a golf ball
Kinaesthetic Senses
Before they jump, they will visualise the movements (flips, twists and turns) of the jump they’re about to perform
Mental rehearsal can only work if the athlete is in a relaxed state
Ski Jumper
Improves neural pathways between the CNS and muscles
Provides a mental template of rehearsal
Enables athletes to practice and prepare for foreseeable and unforeseeable events during competition
Imagery improves performance by;
Similar to imagery, simulation is carried out by making the physical environment as similar as possible to the game situation
EG: training in front of spectators, playing full contact games
Simulation
Very similar to the principle of specificity.
Simulation is thought to be superior to imagery as the stimuli introduced exists in reality
On the other hand, it requires greater preparation and set up
Simulation
The definition contains 3 parts1. Focusing on relevant environmental cues2. Maintaining attention focus over time3. Having awareness of the situation
Concentration and attention are used interchangeably
Concentration
1. Broad-internal focus:- Used to focus on
thoughts and feelings- Fast bowler preparing
to run in and bowl
2. Broad-external focus- Used to focus
outwards on an opponents actions
- Watching an opponent try to make a run to receive the ball
4 types of attention
3. Narrow-internal focus- Used to focus thoughts
and mentally rehearse upcoming movements
- A springboard diver
4. Narrow-external focus- Used to focus on very
few external cues- Taking an uncontested
mark in football
4 types of attention
Any most sports, attention needs to shift to adapt to the environment around them
It an athletes attention is inappropriate to the task, performance can be affected.
Sometimes distractions caused by future-oriented thinking EG?
Attention shifting
A situation where performance decreases because a heightened sense of pressure or importance is placed on an upcoming event or action
Choking
Roberto Baggio
◦ 1994 World Cup
Choking
The choking process
Simulation Shutting out irrelevant cues Use of cue-words (move your feet, follow
through etc) Routines (see example on P324) Overtraining skills (autonomous stage of
learning)
Improving concentration