Being in “the zone” is something most athletes dream about. The body performs by itself, in its own automatic way.
The zone is where everything comes together and where you experience that your body simply performs by itself, automatically and intuitively. Where you don’t have to “think” about the movement, but are engaged and concentrated without using mental strength. Where the moment almost stands still. The greatest performances have often been made while the athlete was in the zone.
But is it possible for athletes to get better at getting into the zone?
The answer is a clear yes.
As an athlete, you can increase the possibility of getting into the zone by training your thoughts so that you become good at keeping your attention on the things that bring you closer to the zone – and become good at shifting your attention away from the things that distract and slow down getting in the zone.
It is all about awareness
Our senses are constantly at work. When we see a movement, hear a sound or smell something pleasant or perhaps unpleasant, it is our senses that are at work. It happens by itself, almost without us noticing.
The same happens with our thoughts. Thoughts appear on their own, without us asking them to. And thoughts create feelings. Emotions follow when your head is filled with thoughts. The thoughts may be about something that has happened or expectations we have – and suddenly we feel the emotions, such as anxiety, anger, frustration, joy or satisfaction. Most of us can recognize the feeling of being caught up in emotions, of getting stuck in them. They grab our attention.
You may also suddenly become aware of how your body feels right now. It could be the sensation of cold or heat, your breathing, fatigue, hunger or pain.
Your attention can also be focused on how you move and how others move around you.
You are always paying attention to something.
Attention is something you can train. And training your ability to shift your attention to the right thing is crucial for your performance.
If you want to increase your chances of getting into the zone, you need to train your ability to focus your attention. And it takes hard mental training because attention is so easily distracted.
Green field and red field
As an athlete, your attention can be focused on two fields.
The green field is everything that you can influence as an athlete. It is your own attention, your own movements, your own thoughts – and especially the “now”.
The red field is everything that you cannot change as an athlete. It is the physical environment, for example the field, or the weather. It is the actions of others, for example the referee’s rulings, shouting from the crowd. It is your feelings. And that is the past, meaning, everything that has already happened today or earlier.
Everything that can happen in the red field has one thing in common: it is a waste of time and attention. You cannot change it, and you are likely to weaken your performance if you try anyway.
An example
The referee makes a ruling that you think is unfair and wrong. You stay in the red field: You get angry and react to the referee by expressing your frustration. Afterwards, you can’t get rid of the anger that remains in your body. You find it difficult to concentrate and the strong emotions affect your performance.
Now let us imagine that you have trained your thoughts and are therefore successful in keeping your attention in the green field. Your thoughts after the referee ruling therefore go straight to the “now” and your own options. It can be to focus all your attention on your breathing, your thoughts – and on the next movement that you know inside out and have practiced so often.
Go from red to green to the zone
When you start mental training and want to get in the zone, be aware that it takes time to get good at “catching your attention” and shifting it elsewhere. You will find that it is easiest to detect when you are in the red field. And you will find that it takes time and practice to get good at moving towards and into the green field.
The MASS app helps and supports athletes with the crucial mental training that enables them to shift their attention to the green field. MASS provides concrete tools to shift the attention from the red to the green field. The app is used for both training and competition, and over time, you and your coach will see significant improvements in your ability to focus on the right things.
