PART 1 MENTAL TRAINING
This is just a brief a introduction of my background in the area of Professional Sports. My goal here is not to Self-Aggrandise, but to share information I have gained over the years of traveling on the Tour. I hope to help you make changes that last and to help you rediscover your instincts to grow, physically and mentally – From 2004-2007 I held the position of Head Tennis Coach at the Japan Institute of Sports Sciences, where I Coached some of Japans top world ranked juniors and Professionals. I also held a teaching position at Asahi University from 2007 – 2013. I am currently a member of the Dunlop Tennis International Advisory Staff and the Head of Expert Performance at Organic Sports Development & Consulting.
Time and time again I read Headlines like ‘ 10 Tricks to a Healthy Lifestyle ‘ or’ 5 Secrets to a Fit Body ‘ or ‘ 20 Tricks To Lose Belly Fat ‘
Well I’ve got 1 trick – DRINK SOME CONCRETE AND TOUGHEN UP PEOPLE –
Getting that body you’ve always wanted is not as easy as eating a few Blueberries, drinking some Green Tea and going for a 15 minute walk each day. I’m amazed at the amount of people still looking for those Magic Answers to questions like ‘ How do I Lose Body Fat? ‘ or ‘ How Do I pack on Muscle Mass? ‘ or ‘ How Can I Become Healthier? ‘ I have come to believe in my experience that most people know the true answer to these questions.
ITS HARD – WORK
Ask yourself – whats holding me back? why am I still carrying around this extra body fat? Well guess what – Its Time to Drink Some Concrete and Toughen Up. Today its time to make a change! Like Albert Einstein said ” Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result ” You have to say to yourself – Ive had enough, I’m not going to let this fear of hard-work run my life anymore “. You have to rediscover your instincts to become better, to succeed, to push yourself.
From today on I want you to decide, you will use FEAR to drive you towards your Goals. You will never finish another day with regrets. You will finish your days with a smile on your face because you had done everything you could that day to achieve your goals. To achieve that body you have always wanted you need to be drenched in sweat, at the point of exhaustion while no one else is around. – You have to do it yourself – ! You must take full responsibility for your own Training and Diet. No excuses. You don’t need Motivation or Inspiration. What you need, is to get up each day and get the job done, or to quote from Grand Master Yoda ” Do or do not, there is no try ” Thats what the most successful people do best – THEY DO IT –
Here’s a few Mental Skill Sets which I teach all of my players. Wether they are top Juniors or top Professionals, these skill sets are of vital importance for helping them achieve their Goals. You can use them to help you achieve your Goals too!!!
SET GOALS
A goal is simply a target, or a specific standard or accomplishment you strive to achieve. Goals must be incorporated into your Fitness Program if you wish to succeed. Goals will help you plan, set, focus on, evaluate and manage your behavior and thoughts in relation to your Goals. Setting goals works because it focuses your attention on Specific Tasks. They increase your effort and intensity and encourage perseverance when you encounter adversity. – Those people who are task-involved, try harder and perform better.
ACHIEVEMENT DRIVE
Achievement drive is having a compelling desire to achieve a goal that has great importance to you. Having that deep desire to succeed will help you stay commited and mange your daily life to achieve your Goals. Good old fashioned guts, perseverance and desire is what its all about. Its not flashy, but in the long run its what makes all the difference.
CREATE NEW BEHAVIORS
It was Aristotle said ” We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit ” .The human mind is wired to make physical and emotional connections. These connections can trigger powerful actions in the future. Remember, old habits and behaviors are hard to break, so focus on creating and building new ones.
SELF AWARENESS
Make sure you listen to and understand your own thoughts and feelings. Be honest when Self-Appraising. Honest Self – Appraisal has been identified by Professional Athletes as a vital skill in the pursuit of their success. An example of Self-Appraisal is the Tennis Player who loathes going to the gym but CHOOSES to do go, realizing it will help him/her achieve their goal. Make your mind like water. When you are in complete control of your mind, you are able to keep distractions from interfering with your goals. Your mind is like the surface of a pond, reflecting a mirror image of its surroundings. If the surroundings change so does the mirror image.
THERE IS NO PLAN B
Have confidence in yourself that you have the Mental Fortitude to achieve your Goals. Go after your goals with a commitment and deep passion to see them through. Traveling week in week out as a Professional Coach for over 12 years it has become clearly apparent to me, that what separates the ‘ Best ‘ from the ‘ rest ‘ is their unwavering resilient and self robust confidence. Make sure you stay focused on Plan A. Don’t let the inevitable disappointments and frustrations derail your plans, if you happen to get off your diet for a few days don’t worry about it, just get back on track and keep moving forward. DO NOT look for the quick magic improvements, seek the small improvements one step at a time, that’s the only way it happens, and when it happens it lasts.
Stay posted for Part 2 when I go over some of the basic fundamentals of Nutrition.
From 2007-2013 i held a teaching position at the University of Asahi. The main part of my job however has been travelling to tournaments for the last 10 years as a coach, where i am on the road about 32 weeks of the year.
I am also currently a member of the Dunlop International Advisory staff and at the moment I am working privately with a womens player Shiho Akita from Japan.
