Managing Last-Minute Negative Thinking and Doubts
Managing Last-Minute Negative Thinking and Doubts
By Dr. Alan Goldberg, Competitivedge.com
One of the more common problems that plagues swimmers is being flooded with last minute negative thinking and doubts. You know the story: You've been feeling relatively confident and relaxed going into the big meet, but after warm ups on day 1, when you get behind the blocks for your very first race, you're suddenly overwhelmed by waves of negativity and the “what -ifs!” You start getting nervous as a result, the doubts get stronger and before you know it, your confidence has done a disappearing act. You try to be positive and remind yourself how hard you've been training and how fast you've been going, but those negative voices just seem to get progressively louder, drowning out any attempts you may have made to stay positive.
So what do you do if these last minute negatives start dancing in between your ears?
