Deal With High Pressure Situations In Games
Why is it that some athletes step up in high-pressure situations when athletes dread those feelings of pressure?
You have been in those situations where the end of a competition is running near and there is that critical moment where the outcome is about to be decided… your heart is pounding… it’s all up to you now… You feel that pressure to perform in the clutch… You think, “it’s either hero or scapegoat time.”
In this same scenario, two athletes may respond totally opposite. One may get “psyched up” for the challenge while the other may become “psyched out” and overwhelmed.
The difficulty with pressure during competition is that it can preoccupy your mind and distract you from focusing on your game.
Most athletes talk about “feeling pressure” but it is your “thoughts” about pressure that causes that overwhelming sense of fear.
Pressure is a part of all competition… but that doesn’t mean pressure is a bad thing. The problem is that athletes are expected to deal with pressure without ever being taught how to manage it.
What is pressure?
Pressure usually refers to the feelings and thoughts an athlete has about performing in a competitive situation.
Pressure kicks in a mental and physical response to meet the athletic demand in front of you.
How you think about the athletic demand will determine how you respond in pressure situations.
If you learn how to harness the energy in pressure, it can enhance performance and help you rise to athletic challenges.
The Pressure of Kicking Field Goals
A placekicker is one of the only athletes whose sole responsibility is putting points on the board…
Placekickers do not choose what yard line the will attempt their kick from, it is chosen for them…
And every attempt gets an immediate pass/ fail grade…
In addition to all this pressure, placekicks often have to successfully make a kick with the game on the line.
Ian Frye is a senior kicker for the University of Virginia football team. Frye is among the nation’s best at his position and is a candidate for the Lou Groza award (awarded to the best NCAA Divison I placekicker.) Last year, Frye was a second-team All-ACC selection after connecting on 22 field goals out of 27 attempts.
UVA Special teams coach Larry Lewis extolled Frye’s cool demeanor under pressure.
LEWIS: “Those kinds of things [pressure] really don’t affect him. Ian really is quite focused when he’s out there. Nothing really bothers him.”
How is Frye able to perform under pressure? Frye has been coached to develop the ability to deal with pressure in a unique way. Coach Lewis creates game-like situations to condition Frye’s body and mind to deal with pressure.
LEWIS: “A lot of times that’s why I go out and scream and yell at those kids. A lot of special teams coaches don’t do that. I try to do that. Just put a little pressure on them, to see if I can rattle their cages a little bit during practice. Ian’s pretty level-headed most of the time.”
Frye concurs that training under pressure has given him the mental toughness to succeed at critical moments in games.
FRYE: “As a kicker, you have to be ready for any type of pressure that comes at you. Being under pressure constantly really helps for a kicker.”
Try this tip to improve your performance under pressure:
- Adopt unique methods to increase levels of pressure you experience in practice.
- Make these scenarios as “game-like” as possible. Take notice to how you respond to these “practice pressure situations.” The more you train, the better you will become at performing under pressure.
Check Out Our Video of the Week, How Athletes Can Overcome Tentative Performances!
For All Athletes – Learn Confidence-Boosting Techniques!
D you have a negative self-image of yourself as an athlete that stifles confidence?
No matter ow positive you try to be, are you unable to shake the doubt that rushes into your head when you size up your competition?
Have you labeled yourself as a loser, poor closer, or mediocre athlete and these labels keep you stuck in a rut of self-pity and indecision?
If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, check out The Confident Athlete!
The Confident Athlete CD and workbook program is a 14-day plan for ultimate self-confidence. This program is ideal for any athlete or coach that wants to discover proven confidence-boosting techniques guaranteed to drastically build self-confidence and improve sports performance.
Learn more about one of our most popular CD programs in The Confident Athlete Series…
The Confident Athlete: A 14-Day Plan For Ultimate Self-Confidence
Check out all of the products in The Confident Athlete Series!
What are customers saying?
“We love ‘The Confident Athlete.’ My 10-year-old daughter is an equitation rider and show jumper. We started your program as soon as we received it and got to lesson 6 just before a major competition. Natalie came 4th in the children’s open equitation and 3rd in the children’s show jumping champs. An amazing achievement on which many people commented… As a parent, it has been great for me as I now am more capable of assisting her in her mental preparation. Thanks so much!”
~Beth MacLarty, Sports Parent
For Young Athletes and Parents – Learn More About How to Help Kids Improve Confidence Quickly!
We’ve got a great program for you called “The Confident Sports Kid: A 7-Day Plan for Building Ultimate Self-Confidence.”
The Confident Sports Kid is a 7-day program for sports parents and kids to boost young athlete’s performance, happiness and success… in sports and life!
The Confident Sports Kid is two programs in one. There’s a manual and CD for parents/coaches, and a workbook/CD for young athletes.
Packed with mental strategies that you and your kids can start using immediately, this program teaches your athletes how to identify confidence busters, proactively deal with them, manage expectations that undermine confidence, and mentally prepare to stay confident when faced with adversity.
What’s more, our program teaches you, as sports parents and coaches, how you may be hurting your kids’ confidence and gives you instructions for changing your behavior in ways that will improve your athletes’ performance, confidence and enjoyment.
Learn more about one of our most popular CD programs in The Confident Sports Kid Series…
The Confident Sports Kid: A 7-Day Plan for Building Ultimate Self-Confidence
Check out all of our products in The Confident Sports Kid Series!
What are parents and coaches saying about our program?
“I appreciate the advice to parents as to how to help your child become more mentally resilient to bullying in sports. The specific advice and scenarios are extremely helpful for any child on a team and very helpful in guiding parents, coaches and administrators in how to deal with bullying in sports. I cannot thank you enough for your input, and I am so reassured to know that there are people like you who are writing articles and doing interviews on such timely and important matters.”
~Julie Goot
For Mental Coaches – Add More Value To Your Mental Training Programs!
This workbook series was designed for coaches and mental coaches to use with their athletes.
The Athlete’s Mental Edge workbooks complement your existing mental training program. Each of the 15 workbooks in the Athlete’s Mental Edge System teaches your athletes a specific mental skill to improve their performance.
For mental coaches, this system is ideal for between session education.
For sports coaches, you’ll be able to conduct 15 team seminars using the workbook system.
In the Athlete’s Mental Edge workbook system, you receive 15 easy-to-read, practical Mental Edge Workbooks on PDF, as well as 16 coaches’ game plan MP3 audio files.
Athlete’s Mental Edge Workbook System
What are coaches saying?
“I am impressed with the willingness and openness of Dr. Cohn to share all of his assets (intellectual, products, etc.) with the MGCP students. You have developed an incredible model/package for mental training. Even though we are paying for your service, you are passing on a legacy built on your contribution to the world of sports. Thank you for that.”
~Tony Melito, MGCP