Why Tennis Players Need Mental Training
What contributes more to peak performance in tennis: your physical skills or mental skills?
More importantly, would you say your mental game is at the same level as your physical game?
Most tennis players would rate their physical game at a much higher level than their mental game.
If the mental game is as important as your physical game, why does your mental game lag far behind your physical game?
Your answer may be, “I give up? I have no idea why my mental game is so far behind my physical game.”
Within your question lies the answer…”You give up!”
You probably don’t stick to mental training long enough to make a profound impact on your performance.
This topic was raised by a tennis player in our Mental Game of Tennis Survey:
“How do I adjust my expectations so that I will stick with mental training long enough to see improvement in tennis match performance and know that mental training is actually working?”
The question you raised is familiar to many tennis players. You finally decided your mental game has held you back from playing at a higher level. You work with a Mental Game Coach for several weeks to improve your confidence and focus in matches.
Each week, you are assigned mental exercises to be completed, and you discuss them with your Mental Game Coach during your weekly sessions. You feel like you are gaining good insight into your game and can feel some degree of improvement in your confidence.
Then, you play a tough match and your confidence just isn’t at a high enough level to play at your peak. This causes you to question whether mental training is even worth it. You ask yourself, “What if I am not capable of improving my mental game?”
Many athletes we work with want the quick fix or overnight fix, which doesn’t exist when it comes to the mental game.
You are right about how your high expectations cause you to call into question the value of mental training.
But consider these questions: How long did it take you to hit a powerful first serve? Did that serve develop overnight?
The answer is that developing that strong serve took time. Every time you worked on that serve, little improvements were made and, over time, those unnoticeable improvements contributed to strength in your game.
The same is true of mental training. You should temper your expectations and understand that nothing happens overnight.
Even though you made not see immediate, noticeable improvements, your mental skills are getting stronger. These mental skills, with practice and consistency, will eventually be a strength and take your game to the next level.
To develop a strong mental game, you must be as consistent in your mental training as you are in your physical training.
Developing skills, both physical and mental, requires patience and repetition and the impact on your game will be noticeably profound.
Sticking to a Mental Training Program
Develop a 6 month mental training plan. How often will you be practicing or developing mental skills per week? What mental training sources will you utilize? What mental skills will you be working to develop?
If you are unsure what needs to improve in your mental game, download our test at sportspsychologytennis.com. Click here to get it.
Learn Proven Tennis Mental Game Strategies To Perform Your Best On The Court!
Are you (or your players) performing up to your ability in competition?
Do you bring your best and most confident game to matches?
I often hear players complain about the following problems when they play in matches…
“I get so tight or tense before matches that I can’t think straight or have any rhythm in my game.”
“I get so frustrated with hitting bad shots or with errors and it snowballs.”
“I expect so much when I play that I unravel and lose confidence when the match does not go as planned.”
“My confidence seems to disappear when I go from practice to matches and I don’t know why.”
Successful tennis players have learned how to perform with ultimate confidence in tournaments.
If you are ready to improve your mental toughness and perform with ultimate self-confidence in matches, Tennis Confidence: Mental Toughness For Tournament Players can help you do this!
- Players: Learn how to take control of your confidence, focus your best, and win more close matches.
- Parents: Help boost your junior tennis player’s confidence for tournaments. Just load the program on your player’s IPod!
- Coaches: Boost your team’s confidence using simple, proven mental strategies.
- Instructors: Learn how to give your students the mental game advantage.
Use Tennis Confidence to help boost your mental toughness in tennis and discover powerful and proven mental game strategies that have helped professional athletes win!
Tennis Confidence: Mental Toughness For Tournament Players
What are mental game customers saying?
“So far the program has been going really well! My son is doing the workbook and listening to the audio part and has been enjoying it! He has played better the past couple of weeks and he said the program is helping him focus and not get quite so frustrated.” ~Tara Mariano, Sports Parent
“Dr. Cohn, one of my goals is to become a world-class-coach. There are a few coaches from the US who inspired me the most–John Wooden, Don Shula, and Pat Riley. After working with you, I now also list your name among the most influential coaches in my field!”* ~Franz
“I have really enjoyed listening to your tennis psychology podcasts on iTunes and reading your E-books. I just found your web site and I already have improved in my mental game. I played in a tennis tournament this past weekend and played with the amount of confidence I should have in myself.” ~Melanie Lewis, Junior Tennis Player
Boost Your Self-Confidence And Focus With Expert Mental Game Coaching!
Master mental game coach Dr. Patrick Cohn can help you overcome your mental game issues with personal coaching.
You can work with Dr. Patrick Cohn himself in Orlando, Florida or via Skype, FaceTime, or telephone. Call us toll free at 888-742-7225 or contact us for more information about the different coaching programs we offer!
What are our mental coaching students saying?
“We are amazed at how much ‘The Confident Athlete’ program has helped my niece play her best tennis during matches. She literally made it to the farthest round of a tournament (semifinals) after finishing the CDs and workbook. We are going to do all 3 in the series.” ~Jason Bourguignon, Uncle
“I want to let you know that your Tennis Confidence CDs have been extremely helpful to me. I listen to them in the car, and the program is helping me overcome a lifetime of tournament performance anxiety. Thank you!” ~Wing Wu
“Maggie had such a great weekend. As always, after she works with you she just seems more grounded and focused. She’s less likely to look around and get distracted during her match. She’s more focused on one point at a time. Also, as a parent, I’ve learned to encourage her process goals and not outcomes. Consequently, she played well and won her first doubles match, upsetting a seeded team in a really really close match!” ~Katherine Johnson Cannata, Maggie’s mother
“Danielle did really well with controlling her emotions during the matches today. We were very proud of her for not showing her frustrations during the match; I think that was a big accomplishment. She really looked in control of her emotions even when she double faulted or made mistakes. The changes we saw on Danielle’s behavior in less than 24 hours were AWESOME! Thank you for your guidance!” ~Jennifer Alamo, Tennis Parent
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