Breathing to Manage the Meltdown
IN: Golf Psychology | by Andrea Furst | 01 Oct 2007
Skills for improving your mental performance on the course must be trained. Time needs to be allocated to ensure that you are giving these skills time and effort to develop into skills that can be called upon when you are under the pump. They are no use to you unless you do this. They will not suddenly appear to assist you unless you give them some regular attention.
There are many skills to assist avoiding the choke and managing the meltdown. Essentially, you want to be able to relax your mind and body and recreate the style of focus that got you to the special moment in the first place.
Breathing is a skill that can enhance your ability to handle the pressure situations.
No matter how much I emphasise this, I sense that there are only a small portion of golfers who seriously commit to regular breathing. I am not just talking about breathing to stay alive I am referring to specific time spent on being aware of your breathing with the aim of making your breathing deeper and more effective. This is so that you are using your lungs to their full capacity and that you are able to get oxygen moving around your entire body to relax your muscles.
It is a true blend of the physiology and psychology, the psychophysiology of performance. The physiology of breathing is one thing which you can look up in addition to reading this article to completely understand its benefits. The psychology of breathing is that it gives you something to focus on. Something that is simple. Something that is within your control. Something that doesn’t need anyone or anything else but you. Something that is in the present.
To become competent at being able to relax yourself in the pressure situations described in the previous article you must practise your breathing. Treat your breathing as a skill like all the other mental skills that you are now considering as ones which are on par with importance as your technical, physical, and tactical skills. Here are some simple tips on one breathing strategy – diaphragmatic breathing.
Diaphragmatic breathing is smooth, deep, rhythmical breathing from the diaphragm.
Instructions
Preparation
- Get into a comfortable position such as lying down on your back with legs and arms flat on floor, slightly spread so that they are not touching your body
- Loosen neck and shoulder muscles. Drop your shoulders and lengthen your neck
- Clear your mind of worries and distracting thoughts and aim to focus on your breathing
- Pick a focal point to direct your thoughts to your breathing
- Take long, deep breaths
- Inhale through your nose, exhale through your mouth
You can use the following as examples of a focal point for you breating exercises – counting your length of breathes, observing the movement of the diaphragm, or feeling of air moving into your nose and out of your mouth
Inhale
- Inhale deeply and slowly through your nose and notice how your body seems to lift up
- Breathe from your diaphragm in a relaxed, easy manner, and then let the air fill and expand your central and upper chest
- Push your mid-upper abdominal region fully outward as you breathe in as you fill your lungs
- The inhalation phase should last about 5 seconds
Exhale
- Exhale through your mouth
- You should feel the muscles in your arms and shoulders relax
- Your mid-upper abdominal region will fall as you breathe out when you empty your lungs
- As you breathe out and relax, you should begin to feel centred and well anchored to the ground
- Your legs should feel relaxed, yet solid and firm
- The entire exhalation phase should last about 7 seconds
- It is important to exhale slowly and steadily
Do It Anywhere
- At home when resting or recovering
- Before bed or sleep
- Before a round
- Pre-shot routine
- Post-shot routine
- Walking between shots
- Travelling (eg car, bus, train, plane)
- Waiting around (eg delayed or stopped play, slow rounds, between rounds)
- Any quiet time or ‘spare’ time
Diaphragmatic breathing is only part of the solution and the ability to relax is dependent on the individual player. However it is definitely a skill that once practised can be used on the course while standing and walking in any of the situations listed above.
The main point is that you are giving your mind something to focus on that not only reduces the load on the body but it has a positive chain reaction to the body which is in charge of executing the technical skills required for the game.
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