I have posted up before on the mental skills that help elite athletes reach there peak performance. However in light of my climbing experience over the weekend I feel that it would be interestingly to use it as an example of how I use them when I climb to help me reach my peak performance.
Firstly having a goal has been paramount for me maintaining my motivation, however as well as dream rotes to aim for my training has used what can be described as micro-goals. In that every time I go to the wall I attempt to improve on what I achieved the last time. I don’t write it down, but you’d be surprised at what you can remember if you train a lot at the same wall.
I also used imagery, although not in a formal day to day pre-thought out scripted way. instead i tend to attempt to have more lucid dreams about my successful days out and dreaming about my the routes I want to do. I dream of the type of moves, type of holds, typical gear placements on the routes. Anything that will help build a mental parallel to the experience I expect to help me to plan for the ascent in my mind. If i had taken this further and imagine, what if this or that happened, I might well not have fallen off due to misreading the route first time round. In a way my imagery is more about mastering the rock and my emotions, than a specific sequence for onsighting routes.
I then used imagery at the based of the route, imagining getting to the first ledge, then the second, placing the gear, finding the ledges to be good rests. I do this to get me psyche up and in the right mind state. Although on Sunday I was fighting extreme nerves, I was suffering from feeling quite jittery and my heart was racing as the adrenaline flow through me in anticipation, similarly I was concerned over blowing the on-sight, rather than falling off and injuring myself. These are the two side of anxiety that of cognitive worry and the bodies interpretation of the physiological response to stress.
Whilst i was carrying out my pre-performance routine of racking up, tying in to the ropes, tying shoes tight, cleaning the shoes and chalking up. I was also doing so breathing exercises to relax my mind and control the anxiety. I am used to it and know that as soon as I start climbing the jitters tend to disappear. In my mind I had prepared well. I had previous climbed E5 of this slab and felt fitter than every despite not having climbed much on real rock I was cardio-vascularly at my best, as well as near the top of my game in terms of anaerobic endurance, I was confident in my ability to climb the route.
In total i think I consciously used goal setting, self-belief, self-confidence, imagery, relaxation, pre-performance routines and self-talk to reach my peak performance. Did it all help? In the right place I think it did.