Fear! - December 2020
Fear!
Fear is pretty much a right of passage in the sport of gymnastics and in life in general. Humans have four basic emotions and one of them – you guessed it – is fear. The root of fear is to help keep us safe. The physiological responses we get from fear, such as an increased heart rate, shakiness, and increased breathing, has been with us since the dawn of time.
Our caveman ancestors had to hunt for food and would be confronted with saber-tooth tigers. Our ancestors soon learned if they wanted to survive, they had to either fight the tiger or run away; hence where the term fight or flight comes from.
However, our brains cannot tell the difference between a real fear or an imagined fear. Fear tells us that we are in danger, but for the most part in gymnastics, the fear is one we create in our own minds.
Most gymnastics coaches and gymnasts talk about the fear of a skill. It can be agonizing to watch your gymnasts stand up on the beam for what seems like an eternity and not go for the skill because they are hijacked by fear.
But what about other fears gymnasts face? Fear of performing a.k.a. performance anxiety.
How many gymnasts seem to be able to nail their routines day in and day out in the gym, yet every meet they fall. As a gymnast myself this was always my struggle. I would get to competitions and just crumble! Why does this happen? Performance anxiety comes from a place of fear – fear of the outcome and what will happen if that outcome comes true. Ultimately, it comes down to fear of failure.
What’s the answer? Have gymnasts change their focus. See, fear takes us out of the present moment and sends us into the land of “What ifs.” It plunges us into the future. Fear has our brain focus on what we do not want to do and creates images and thoughts that are the very thing that sabotages the performance! Fear of performance often focuses on the outcome and external variables.
Gymnasts, and culture as a whole, need to shift their mindset on how they see failure. How does your gym or your family see and understand failure? Do you view it as an opportunity to learn and grow or do you view it as a limit of your or their abilities? Just having that small change in mindset can help lessen the fear. Gymnasts need to truly believe they are not their performance. They are so much more; their performance does not define them.
Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street.
- Zig Ziglar
Take Some Time for Self-Care
And if you are feeling a little extra stressed this holiday season, please make sure to take some self-care! Remember to embrace yourself in the present moment, because the present moment is all you have.
Give this 5-minute body scan a try!
Five Minute Body Scan
Help melt away your stress with this 5-minute body scan meditation. A body scan meditation can help decrease muscular tension and tightness in the body and other symptoms tied to stress, such as inflammation, pain, digestive issues, tension headaches, and insomnia.
Interested in More Information?
If you are interested in learning how to incorporate Mindfulness training into your gymnastics training, please reach out! I offer the following programs:
1. One-on-one sessions
2. Small group sessions
3. Large group sessions
4. Monthly sessions for clubs
Coming in January 2021
Train Your Brain Like a Muscle – 4-week program coming January of 2021. During this 4-week hybrid program, gymnasts will learn the importance of training their brain and how they can train their brain like a muscle. This is an interactive, hands-on program that will include weekly Zoom or Google Meet sessions with Ariana, as well as brain training activities for gymnasts to use during Zoom or Google Meet sessions as well as throughout the week.
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From My Family to Yours,
Wishing You a Happy and Healthy Holiday Season.
Follow me on Instagram: @themindfulgymnast and Facebook: Ariana LeBlanc