As the year begins to round into better weather, we are looking at our favorite sports and how we can improve our performance and maintain that higher quality. There are many ideas for doing this but a few specific concepts can serve to focus our work. There are three important factors in enhancing sports performance:
1. Improved sport-specific training to provide greater strength and efficiency in the actions necessary for the sport
2. Increased control of the mental aspects, or the “Inner Game”
3. Decreased injury recovery time to allow for increased training and return to competition.
Sport-specific training includes strength and conditioning along with improving range-of motion efficiency of the muscle groups and actions directly involved in performance of the sport. This training involves more than merely amplifying the amount of time spent “doing” the sport. Sport-specific training was the cornerstone of the former USSR’s success in athletics. The USSR could not compete with the USA in nutrition, or healthy population, but by focusing on sports physiology and sport-specific training, the USSR was able to maintain an even footing with the US in world and Olympic competition.
Enhancing the capacity of the body to perform the specific activities of a sport allows the performer to coordinate the increased capacity to provide better performance. There are many individual programs for sport-specific training, but only one modality that can improve the application of these programs by reducing training related pain and stiffness recovery issues, along with enhancing pain-free range-of-motion. Using postural related exercise such as Muscle Balance and Function Development, or other functional strength trainingcan provide alignment and targeted increases in more efficient movement, power and speed. Often though, more exercise is deemed better, rather than targeted exercise. When that happens restricted range-of-motion and overuse injuries can develop. If unhealthy movement patterns develop, Bowenwork can complement targeted exercise programs in restoring powerful movement patterns.
Another important issue in enhancing sports performance is the “inner game” or the control of mental and emotional factors that can either support or sabotage an effective sports performance. At the Olympic level improvements of nearly 4% were noted using psychological methods to focus and control mental and emotional processes. Since less than a 1% difference usually separates Olympic medalists from non-medallists, the differences noted in the study could serve to help a performer medal where they could have finished out of the running otherwise. Sports psychology for enhancing performance is a proven technique that can be further improved by establishing better autonomic nervous system balance. How can that be done? Auto-suggestion methods have been used since the early 1900's. More focused methods these days are in the realm of energy psychology such as EFT, Tapas technique, TFT, Zpoint Therapy, and Autogenic training and Bowenwork. Top tier athletes use these to achieve and maintain high levels of achievement. Restoring balance to our autonomic nervous system and regaining efficient use of our conscious and subconscious provides us with powerful tools to focus our performance.
Injuries can interrupt training sequences and even the opportunity to compete. Accelerating injury recovery allows quicker return to training and competition. Competitive athletes often have faster recovery times due to their better fitness, but a proven method of accelerating healing and maintaining health is Bowenwork. Sport-specific injuries have been treated “on-site” with the athlete being able to return to action in a matter of moments. Bowenwork helps prepare for the game, compete in the game and stay in the game.
[1] Some Psychological Factors for Promoting Exceptional Athletic Performance, Brent S. Rushall www.psichi.org/pubs/articles/article_89.asp
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