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Mental Toughness

The thoughts in our own head keep us from accomplishing goals more than any opponent we face.  Mental toughness is learning how to expand and control your mind. Your mind controls your thoughts, and your thoughts control your actions.  Our bodies are capable of almost anything, it's our minds that keep us from performing at our best. 

 

The mental toughness introductory class will introduce students to seven mental traits that have a huge impact on performance.  The classes taught in this section will teach student athletes how to use their minds more constructively, how to stay focused, how to deal with adversity, and how to stay motivated during difficult times so they have a better chance at following their dreams both on the court and in their day to day lives.  

Mental Toughness Introduction Class

Confidence

Confidence is the most important trait of the mental game.  When you are confident in what you're doing, you can relax, trust your game, and perform your best.  Confidence comes from being both mentally and physically prepared.  Experience tells athletes what to do, and confidence allows them to do it. 

 

This class will help athletes identify and breakdown common insecurities they are feeling on the basketball court.  It will also teach students how to change their mindset to have a can-do attitude and positive thought process.  Athletes will be assisted to come up with individual game plans to combat their insecurities and build their self confidence.

Competitive

When the going gets tough we have two options, try harder or quit.  Competitive athletes take setbacks and bad breaks and use them to drive themselves to work that much harder.  However, overtrying can lead to under performing. 

 

This class will teach athletes mental toughness skills on how to persevere when times get tough.  It will also teach students how to work smarter on the basketball court, to perform more efficient.  

Control

The hallmark of a mentally tough athlete is the ability to maintain poise, concentration, and emotional control under the greatest pressure and the most challenging situations.  We don't always have control over what happens to us in sports, but we do have control of how we respond. 

 

This class will teach athletes how to focus on the things they can control: their preparation, effort, attitude, and concentration.  This class will show many examples of when athletes were successful at controlling their emotions, and also some where they were not.  Students will also learn coping techniques to help them refocus after a setback occurs.  

Committed

Mentally tough athletes focus their time and energy on their goals and dreams.  They are self-directed and highly motivated.  Kids all over the nation have the same goals as you, so what are you doing to put yourself above the rest.  

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This class will teach athletes the work ethic necessary to achieve success.  The best athletes live their lives on purpose and are committed to their goals.  Students in this class will develop time management and planning skills to build individual training schedules that best fit their personal dreams.  Athletes will also break down their dreams into manageable and measurable goals that they can keep track of and make progress on.  

Composure

Basketball is a very competitive sport that puts us in some high pressure situations.  Mentally tough athletes know how to stay focused during these tense times and know how to deal with adversity.  When under pressure, some athletes thrive and rise to the occasion.  Others panic and fall victims to their own fears and emotions.

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This class will teach athletes how to recognize early warning signs stress causes and coping mechanisms to counter them.  Athletes will learn how to view pressure as a challenge to meet, rather than a threat to defeat.

Consistency

Consistency separates good athletes from great ones.  The best athletes win consistently because they think, act, and practice consistently.  A lot of athletes train half speed in practice, so then their bodies are not ready to go full speed in games.  You must practice how you want to play, both physically and mentally.

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This class will teach students that consistency begins with concentration and effort, and both are born in practice.  Athletes will learn how to develop practice routines that will train both their minds and bodies to perform at the highest level.  The conscious practice of routines leads to the unconscious habits of success.  Are your current routines setting you up for success, or failure?

Courage

It takes great courage to chase after your dreams.  In basketball, you have to be aggressive and take risks to be successful.  There are many athletes that play it safe.  They don't do anything wrong, but they don't do anything helpful either.  You must be willing to try new things and even fail before you succeed.  

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This class will present many examples of athletes who showed tremendous courage to succeed.  We will break down game film to show students opportune times to take risks within a basketball game.  Students will also learn to look at attempts as chances to learn, rather than failures.  All of this will hopefully build their confidence to take more risks.   

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