We have all suffered from pre performance jitters or nerves at some point in our life. For some, their jitters are before a big test, presentation, or meeting. Others have received jitters before a big game. Regardless of our profession we have all experienced some sort of stressor like this. However, the separation between people who can easily channel these nerves and control them compared to the others who let these feelings overwhelm them is the difference between average and elite. Ever practice your presentation over and over again to the point of perfection and then bomb it in front of classmates? Or are you able to consistently execute pitch after pitch in practice but fail when it matters? Your preparation may need to be altered. Here are 5 quick and simple ways to eliminate your stressors.
1. Cold showers
Ever plunge into a cold pool or lake? The initial shock almost leaves you gasping for air on the verge of hyperventilating. But what happens when you finally adjust to the cold? You feel fresh and revitalized. Cold showers have the same effect. In fact, Researchers from University of Osaka found that cold-water bathing had a beneficial effect in reducing the cortisol hormone (a causation of stress). This usually kicks into action when stress and anxiety are taking over. Some studies show that it can improve our resilience to stress. Not only can cold showers reduce stress and anxiety but also they force us to control our breathing (more on this later).
2. Tapping
Tapping is a combination of Ancient Chinese Acupressure and Modern Psychology that works to physically alter your brain, energy system and body all at once. The practice consists of tapping with your fingertips on specific meridian points while talking through traumatic memories and a wide range of emotions. Tapping was first introduced to me in the summer of 2017 by Dr. Tom Hanson. I had been suffering from an autoimmune disorder triggered by stress called alopecia. Tapping has been proven to decrease stress as well as anxiety. In a 2012 study of 45 people with anxiety disorders (published in the journal Explore), researchers found that participants treated with Thought Field Therapy (tapping) experienced significantly greater improvements in anxiety symptoms than study members assigned to no treatment. A similar study was published in the Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. Here, they found that patients who participated in daily tapping yielded a drastically lower level of the stress hormone cortisol, as well as significant improvements in anxiety and mood.
3.Wim Hof Method
This is one of my personal favorites. You may be familiar with the “Ice Man” and his world records when it comes to performing at a high level in drastic temperatures. The Wim Hof Breathing Method benefits have been proven to reduce stress, recover quicker from physical exertion, improve sleep, enhance sports performance, and create mental focus and clarity. In fact, Braves starting pitcher Mike Soroka noted in a Starting9 interview that the Wim Hof Method was part of his routine before an outing (https://www.barstoolsports.com/baseball/starting-9-podcast-ep-121-mike-soroka). For more on the Wim Hof Method visit wimhofmethod.com or download the Wim Hof App.
4. Meditation
According to Tools of Titans more than 80% of the world-class performers Tim Ferriss has interviewed participate in some sort of meditation or mindfulness practice. Both can be thought of as “cultivating a present-state awareness that helps one to be nonreactive. Meditation is a meta-skill that improves everything. It is considered a mental warm up so you can mentally focus better in important situations. According to Ferriss, “Meditation allows me to step back and gain a ‘witness perspective,’ so that I’m observing my thoughts instead of being tumbled by them. I can step out of the washing machine and calmly look inside it” (Tools of Titans). Meditation is a useful exercise especially in the realm of competition. Oftentimes an athlete can get sped up and out of sync. Meditation is a way to help prevent this feeling during competition.
My recommendations:
1. Download the apps Calm and/or Headspace and let this be your beginner guide
2. Start with a little and make it a lot. People think meditation has to be an hour-long session of extreme focus. It doesn’t have to be. Only start with a few minutes then gradually build up.
3. Let your mind wander but always focus on bringing it back.
Writing affirmations
Affirmations are a complex concept that can be broken down into simple sets. The Reticular Activating Systems is the base of affirmations. Here, the Reticular Activating System serves as a filter to the noise and information that comes throughout our brain. If the information is deemed important the Reticular Activating System will open up and absorb the information. However, if the information is not deemed important the Reticular Activating System will block it out. This serves along the same premise as threats. If something is seen as a threat, the Reticular Activating System will acknowledge it. If it is not deemed a threat, the Reticular Activating System will filter it out as background noise (Alexander, 2015).
The Reticular Activating System is also important in regard to goal setting. If you set your goal of what you want to do with your career, body, and mindset your Reticular Activating System will begin to open up and find possible paths for you. The contacts, resources, and money you currently have are far less important than the goal you set for yourself. On top of setting goals, it is important to share your goal or mission with others (especially those who are close to you). The next phase of affirmations is the Adaptive Unconscious (Alexander, 2015).
The Adaptive Unconscious shows that our perception of ourselves ultimately dictates how we act. I have learned that we have the ability to change our actions by changing our own perception of ourselves. The adaptive unconscious splits up the conscious mind and the subconscious repository. The subconscious repository stores repeated patterns and self-image whereas the conscious mind perceives, connects, evaluates, and responds. In between these two sections is our adaptive unconscious. Here, the adaptive unconscious matches these two pictures (Alexander, 2015).
Self-talk plays an important aspect amongst their perception. Everything starts with self-talk. The self-talk then forms an individuals self image. Finally, the self-image dictates how the individual acts in the world back. The individual’s actions then circle back around to their self-talk. Finally, affirmations can be broken down to the formula of IxVxF=C. This formula represents Imagine Vividly with Feeling creates change in the subconscious. There are multiple ways and time frames to create change in subconscious. The first is 30×30 meaning 30 times for 30 days straight. 15 times a day for 60 days works as well also. Finally, for deeply rooted issues like attempting to quit smoking a 100-day process is recommended (Alexander, 2015). An example of an affirmation relating to performance may be, “I execute 90% of my pitches with confidence and fearlessness.” Noticed affirmations never use a negative such as “I don’t pitch afraid.”
All of these methods take 10 minutes or less and can be impactful in not only your performance but your life as well. Keep pushing the rock.