Mental training

Mental skills training provides the methods and techniques to not only develop skills such as concentration and positive body language, but also to foster personal characteristics such as self-esteem and positive competitive skills and behaviors.

Mental skills techniques help athletes adjust their actions, thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations in order to improve their games. Mental skills techniques do this by helping the player to:

• develop self-confidence;
• set goals and create a positive long-term vision;
• use imagery and visualization to work on competitive skills;
• focus concentration and attention;
• deal with adversity;
• improve error management;
• develop a positive approach to competition;
• create on-court routines.

The use of sports psychology may extend far beyond mental skills training. For example, problems related to growth and development issues, academic stress, strained relationships, time management, family conflicts, and financial concerns affect everyone at one time or another.

Mental skills training for tennis does not occur in isolation, but rather takes place in a dynamic environment that is influenced by the core beliefs and values of coaches, players, and parents. A brief discussion of four influential factors follows.

Philosophy of Coaching

A strong philosophy of coaching lies at the core of every great coach. It consists of principles and beliefs that guide actions and decision making in dealing with players. A philosophy is not acquired from any one source, but rather from a compilation of experiences. These beliefs about life, coaching, and sports guide and impact coaches as they coach, teach, and motivate their athletes both on and off the court. It is difficult to discuss mental skills training effectively without a clear understanding of one’s philosophy of coaching and how it impacts implementation.

Coaches must apply their philosophy of coaching within the context of three broad perspectives: coaching to help athletes develop physically, psychologically, and socially; coaching to have fun; and coaching to win. These three converging perspectives are complex and unique to each person. In addressing these three areas, expert coaches integrate their knowledge with experience to bring out the best in their athletes.

Love of the Game

At the cornerstone of tennis development lies a common thread, which perhaps stands out as the most important ingredient to success. This is the development and maintenance of a love and joy for the game. Research shows that athletes who develop a deep love for a sport and are not pushed into serious and heavy competitive environments too early have the proper basis to excel later in their careers. A player’s love of tennis must be consistently nurtured within the framework of mental training.

Role of the Family

The family is a very important part of the support team for a developing player. In today’s game, the role of family members varies tremendously from that of active on-court coach to that of supportive sidelines spectator. The evidence is quite clear that for a young player to have a healthy approach to competition and training, a parent or significant individual must help create an environment that is both supportive and conducive to excellence.

Planning Skills

Success is the direct result of doing one’s best. However, in addition to this obvious fact, having a vision and a plan can bring life to an athlete’s hard work and commitment. Many things have been written about the importance of planning. Individuals attend seminars and purchase videotapes and books to become more proficient at planning and more effective in their work. What is the basis for the importance of planning, and how can the planning process help coaches become more effective on court?

A plan can be seen as a basic psychological process in which a person visualizes the future and develops a framework to guide action in order to achieve this future. The assumption then is that planning affects in some systematic way the manner in which coaches interacts with their players.

A developmental plan is one way to bring structure and life to a player’s quest for success. This plan is a blueprint for the long-term development of a player that provides focus and clarity to the coach and the athlete on what needs to be addressed and how it is to be accomplished. As the research points out, a plan of this nature can serve as a tremendous source of motivation and inspiration for the player to work hard to achieve their goals. A developmental plan should include the following:

• a long-term, comprehensive vision of the type of player the athlete wants to become (style of play, weapons, conduct, physical conditioning, etc.);
• the strategies and patterns that need to be mastered and the weapons that need to be developed;
• the training needed to make sound basic tactical adjustments and good shot selection;
• the techniques to be developed;
• the emotional/psychological approach the player will take to competition;
• scheduling and periodization;
• physical development;
• goal setting.

One benefit of a mental skills training program is that it enhances performance on the court. Winning is one of the objectives in tennis, and winning requires consistent performance at a high level. One way to better ensure consistent performance is to individualize the mental skills training program to the athlete. Individualizing a mental skills training program can be accomplished by evaluating an athlete’s mental skills set within the framework developed by Gould. According to Gould, some of the areas that coaches need to analyze and evaluate include:

• goal setting;
• personal motivation;
• practice intensity;
• imagery skills;
• error management;
• positive self-talk;
• positive body language;
• confidence and composure;
• concentration;
• routines;
• stress management and arousal control;
• sportsmanship;
• pre-match preparation;
• competitive skills.

This analysis and evaluation of a player’s mental skills set can prove to be difficult due to the many variables that affect on-court performance. For example, Loehr states that it is important to note that emotional problems during match play can just as readily be caused by physical deficiencies as by emotional ones.

Lack of physical recovery due to inadequate sleep, rest, nutrition, or hydration can completely derail a player’s ability to summon the right emotions at the right time. This is particularly evident in player breakdowns. Just as poor fitness can lead to mental and emotional problems, excessive anger, frustration, or nerves can undermine both mental focus and biomechanical efficiency. Due to these many factors, coaches should take great care when identifying and evaluating a player’s mental capacities and be aware of the integrated nature of performance.