Especially for athletes
It is a scientifically proven fact that athletes who are more positive about themselves and their future have an edge over their competitors who are negative and have a doubtful or fearful view of themselves and their future. Your emotions can and do have a powerful affect over the level of strength in your body and therefore play a significant role in your performance.
Emotions can drastically affect your level of performance whether in the water, on the court or on the field. Negative emotions such as fear, frustration, worry, and doubt all zap your power, distract your focus, and slow your times. On the other hand, positive emotions boost your energy and enhance your performance!
The explanation for how this works is quite simple. The mind/emotions control the body’s performance. Your thoughts and emotions are the “fuel” that drives the body. And as you would expect, when your body is fueled with “garbage” or negative thoughts and feelings, the results will be likewise. However, when your body is fueled with the high-octane of positive thoughts and feelings your results will be positive as well. Remember, the body mirrors what you are thinking and feeling!
It is vitally important that you work hard in practice but it is equally important, if not more important, that you work on creating positive thoughts and emotions. To get the best results every time you must monitor your thoughts and feeling throughout the day so that looking for the good, feeling positive and upbeat becomes second nature.
At this point, I am sure some of you are thinking that I am not living in the “real” world, that things are not always wonderful. I totally agree with you in that things are not always great, however, you always have a choice in how you perceive things. You can choose to see the “good” or you can look for the “worst”. When you consistently choose to see the good, when you consistently choose to feel happy and upbeat, you build and store energy in the body.
Before you perform, focus on things that make you smile and think about things that make you happy. Flood the body with thoughts and feeling of people and situations that make you feel good. When you are emotionally strong you will be physically strong! This will boost the energy in the body and will create amazing results.
Nancy Gordon, Ph.D.
Psychoneuroimmunologist
National Wellness Consultant, Author, Lecturer, and Coach
Level5ConsultingandCoaching.com
Author: The Guiding Philosophy for the Future of Healthcare: It’s Not What You Think…Actually It Is What You Think!