Visualisation techniques in sport - the mental road map for success

doi:10.35189/dpeskj.2020.59.3.4

Abstract

Athletes of the highest level in many sports (athletics, football, baseball, tennis, golf, rugby, skiing, gymnastics, swimming, basketball etc.) talk about the importance of visualising technical execution both during the training period and in competition (during warm-ups, during breaks in official games, before throws, jumps, free kicks etc.). Visualisation techniques can improve motor skills, grow muscle strength, increase selfconfidence, attention concentration and decrease anxiety. Through the use of imagery, pain management, endurance, performance motivation and physical performance can also be enhanced in athletes. To achieve the best results, visualisation techniques should include the five major senses (touch, hearing, sight, smell and taste) and should consider key aspects such as perspective, emotion, environment, task and timing. Mental rehearsal (or visualisation) is powerful because the subconscious processes the experience as a real one (by firing those neurons that are responsible for skill acquisition), makes the person calmer and more adapted to stressful situations, and can speed up the learning process in athletes and not only. One hour of mental training a day in 6-10 sequences has a special benefit that cannot be obtained by any other means. By applying both guided imagery techniques and practice, athletes design their mental road maps for success.

Highlights

Visualisation refers to the representation of an object or phenomenon
We present below a series of recommendations and topics for reflection starting from the literature data, our goal being to maximise the effects of visualisation techniques: 1. inducing a relaxation state facilitates the imagery control; the person is verbally guided to look for a comfortable position in which to remain for a while with eyes closed; a quiet place would be preferable; Relaxation is used as a strategy to eliminate disturbing factors, the athlete’s attention being directed to their own body
We present some visualisation techniques used in gymnastics and golf:

Summary

Introduction

Visualisation refers to the representation of an object or phenomenon (in its absence). Functional MRI brain studies emphasise a change in brain activity from the left to the right hemisphere during visualisation (Newmark, 2012). It is known that the upper right quadrant of the brain is better at intuitive and imaginative tasks (Roco et al, 2015), the right hemisphere being linked to creative imagination, while the left quadrants of the brain are correlated with logical thinking, planning and organization (Popescu et al, 2015). When using the creative quadrant/part of the brain, visual imagery and performance are improved. Researchers highlight that, through the use of imagery, performance motivation, pain management, endurance, physical performance and self-confidence are enhanced in athletes (Thelwell & Greenless, 2003; Eddy & Mellalieu, 2003). Researchers emphasized that brain health (linked to neurotrophic factors and cognitive function) can be improved by practicing martial arts - taekwondo, karate, judo, and kung fu (Zou et al, 2018). Visualisation in the field of sport has been extensively applied after the 1984 Olympics, when specialists asserted that Olympians who had used visualisation techniques reported a positive impact on their performance and biological outcomes (Newmark, 2012)

Topic addressed

Conclusion