Train Your Emotions - Dealing with Anger

If your emotions are not in sync with the rest of your mental preparation, then you may not be as successful in effectively applying your game plan. In this chapter, we are going to study two critical emotions-anger and fear­-that often negatively impact a grappler's or combats athlete's performance, and we'll look for ways to deal with these emotions.

How do these emotions become stumbling blocks?

• Anger or fear can affect your concentration, since these emotions fill your mind, and you will be unable to maintain the high involvement necessary to play your game.
• Anger can alter your attitude from being positive and assertive to being hostile and intimidating. If your emotion is fear, your approach may become distinctly diffident and hesitant.
• Your judgment gets affected: You may not think clearly enough to use the right moves. Your game is now directed by your emotions instead of by your true motivators.

Triggers for anger

Anger is actually a form of stress and can result from any of the following in a grappler or combat athlete:

• frustration with your performance
• failure to win in recent matches
• animosity built up in a previous encounter with the opponent-you believe that someone did not behave properly toward you.

Its expression

• A negatively activated state-of-mind: aggravation, annoyance
• Retaliation against opponent

Anger is an emotion that fills the mind with feelings of fury and rage. This fury translates into extreme antagonism toward the opponent. When a grappler or combat athlete feels angry, the power of the emotion can break concentration and cloud the mind with thoughts that hamper the effective use of game plan and strategy. Anger causes a shift in focus in the mind. Instead of concentrating on techniques and tactics, the mind is now filled with revenge and rage.

Impact of anger on you

Anger is something you can do without on the mat. Anger is an emotion that is completely counterproductive. Anger leads to:

• loss of control
• loss of concentration
• inability to pay attention
• inability to recall your strategies

Anger management

The break in concentration is one of the most significant harmful fallouts of anger during a game. The other unfortunate fallout is bad behavior. Grapplers and combat athletes, who make a conscious effort to overcome anger minimize this effect and instead play the game as the situation demands. To stay focused during a match, there are several anger-management techniques that can be applied by a grappler or combat athlete.

• Refocus thoughts when concentration breaks: Regain concentration levels by replacing angry thoughts, with thoughts of giving a good performance
• Use the cue technique: This is something you can do during the match to gain control and weed out anger from your mind. You can also use "word cues" to manage your anger. This method is based on the premise that you are aware of your uncontrolled anger that surfaces from time to time on the mat. When you begin to notice your anger growing during a match, give yourself the following cue word: "Replace:' As soon as the cue "Replace" enters your mind, you have to actively intercept the angry thoughts and replace them with tactics that you can use in the moment. In other words, you refocus yourself on an immediate task and slowly move away from the anger. You are actually restoring and reinstating relevant thoughts and cutting off angry thoughts before they overwhelm you. Granted that there are times when your anger has been genuinely spurred by an injustice or unfair behavior toward you. But the time to show this anger is not on the mat, where you need to apply your judgment and use your strategies. Once you replace the unwelcome thoughts, you will again find yourself working at full potential.
• Anger management through yoga - you can have control over yourself if you want to. And that's an absolute fact! You can gain control of your emotions if you try, but there is help in the form of yoga techniques. Pursue specific yoga techniques with the help of an instructor in the days before a tournament. Specific yoga exercises can assist you in keeping your temper cool. It will help you control your thought processes and manage your anger.
• Enlist the intervention of friend and well-wisher to talk about the anger that often builds up in you. When you have it out in the open, you begin to think about the basis or cause of your anger and can reason yourself out of it through discussion.
• Don't fret over failure: Losses and wins are part and parcel of being a grappler or combat athlete. Fretting or worrying over a lost game increases your disappointment and aggravates the senses to a state of frustration and annoyance. It is like letting a wound fester. The ultimately leads to anger building up. A better approach is to introspect about the match and look for reasons for failure. Here's what NHB Champion Mike Easton had to say after he lost in the semifinal round of the Muay Thai Championships: I will think back a little bit about this match, but I've learned so much from it. I have to get back to the basics and not try things that aren't a part of my game plan."
• Question the anger: When you find yourself getting angry, ask yourself why. This can momentarily arrest the angry thoughts and replace them with a more rational thought process of understanding your anger.

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Maintain a Performance Monitor

A performance monitor is a kind of diary or record to regularly track your training program and your skill improvement. You can either use a paper-based diary or record on audiocassettes. This performance monitor must be used after every training session to record different aspects of the session,

• What did you learn? - Styles, techniques, moves, submission, defense strategies, and so on
• Your mental framework during the session - Rate yourself-poor, average, good, excellent-on each of the following factors.

§ Your ability to handle distractions

§ Your calmness: Were you relaxed or not?

§ Your confidence

§ Your alertness

§ Your attentiveness

• What mistakes or slip ups did you make?
• What do you want to learn in your next session? Make a list of learning objectives and a list of mistakes that you want to avoid

As your training progresses, the aim should be to minimize your slip-ups and advance your rating on mental skills issues to either good or excellent.

The performance monitor is a simple daily assessment method that has the dual advantage of taking into account your training on grappling or combat athletics techniques as well as mental skills preparation. You will be assessing yourself, and must be as objective and as tough on yourself as you possibly can to benefit from the exercise.

Advantages of maintaining a performance monitor:

• You always have on record a benchmark of your previous session on which to build and improve in a new training session.
• You start out with a set of objectives for each new session, which makes the training sessions a lot more useful.
• Mistakes don't get swept under the rug. You address them in your next session.
• You can monitor your progress over a period especially when you rate yourself on mental skills.

Consistently Follow the Principles in Mental Skills Training

Commitment to apply mental preparation techniques requires you to follow up on mental skills principles on a regular basis.

Spend time each day to follow up on development of mental skills

1) Recall previously learned/practiced mental skills

2) Rehearse key skills -Visualization, affirmations, breathing exercises, etc.

3) Review your progress after each session

4) Make a note of issues that need further practice or input from your trainer

The effectiveness of your mental skills training depends on:

• Your ability to learn and apply the techniques
• Consistency in using the skills - following a daily pattern in mental preparation, using mental preparation just before you enters a game, and applying the techniques during the match.
• Your ability to retrieve learning at crucial points in the game

Sample of a Daily Mental Skills Training Program

Duration: 30-40 minutes

A. Start with a relaxation exercise

B. Visualize a few techniques and styles using mental imagery

C. Practice a concentration-building exercise

D. Recall your long-term goals/ambitions/motivators

E. Give yourself a few minutes of confidence-building self-talk, based on past wins, expertise in techniques, etc.

F. Write down the techniques and styles you want to visualize the next day

G. Write down other mental skills that you want to address in tomorrow's session

Understanding memory:

The functioning of the brain defies and challenges most scientists around the world, but we do know quite a bit about the memory function. Memory plays a role in all aspects of life and is especially important in sports. The effective storing of information and images in memory is a function of the attention paid during the learning process.

Dr. Susumu Tonegawa, who won the Nobel Prize in medicine in 1987 (and is the founding director of MIT's center for learning and memory), has been conducting extensive scientific studies into the process of memory storage and retrieval. In his study on retrieval mechanisms, he finds that "cues" are crucial in triggering a person's recall. For instance, the word "park" can trigger recall of jogging in the park and all the sights and sounds associated with it, including people you may have come across en route.

Let's take a few minutes to understand how information processing and memory retrieval works (see Figure 13).

When the brain receives information, the information first enters sensory memory. The information then moves on to short-term memory and finally into long-term memory from where the memory has to be retrieved when a person needs it.

Sensory memory: Sensory memory does an initial analysis of the information on sensory factors like loudness, color, contour, feel, etc. The information is received through the senses. The information is passed from sensory memory into short-term memory.

Short-term memory: In short-term memory the information goes through primary processing and is converted to comprehensible meaning. Short-term memory has limited space capacity, and the information is held briefly here. If the person does not rehearse the information, it fades away and is forgotten. Rehearsal is a form of inner speech that we all do when something is important or relevant to us. This rehearsal leads to active processing of the information, and it is then moved into long-term memory.

Long term memory: Long-term memory stores of information over a long period of time. Learned information has to be retrieved from long-term memory.

The key thing to keep in mind for sports professionals is that emotional factors have an effect on long-term memory. Information is not lost from long-term memory, but retrieving it can become increasing difficult for an emotionally over-wrought person. Stress, tension, fears, and anxieties may reduce your capacity to recall the things that you learned during practice. The ability to accurately recall your moves or even details of your game plan gets reduced.

Information retrieval is of two types:

• Recall
• Recognition

In the case of recall, the information is reproduced from memory. Recall can be hastened by providing certain cues that act to pick up the information from memory. This is the memory retrieval mechanism that helps a grappler or combat athlete recall moves and techniques simulated through visualization.

In the case of recognition, the information is retrieved along with the additional knowledge that the information has been seen before. This aspect of recognition is fairly significant for a grappler. If you anticipated certain moves that your opponent is likely to make during practice and your memory recognizes this move when in a bout, then the information on how to deal with it or how to defend yourself can be more easily retrieved. It is precisely for this reason that regular practice through training and visualization are all vital aspects of preparation for grapplers and combat athletes.

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Mental Perspective - Attentiveness

Attentiveness comes into play during training/practice as well as in an actual encounter. Being attentive means you have to stay focused on one thing at a time and then assimilate it into your mind. The brain allocates information processing capacity to incoming stimuli. When you are attentive, information processing is focused exclusively on the stimulus that you considered key (i.e., your opponent). Being attentive helps you to gauge your opponent's strategy and tactics better.

During training: Being attentive is extremely important to help you focus during the learning process. When you are attentive, you are able to absorb more and can absorb much more quickly than when you let your mind wander. Your powers of observation also increase when you are in an attentive frame of mind. It is especially important in grappling and combat athletics to be able to observe and emulate the moves and techniques that you learn during our training.

During a match: While concentration will help you focus on "the here and now" and draws the most relevant ideas from your mind to deal with various situations on the mat, attention works a little differently. Attention will help you in closely observing your opponent's tactics. Concentration and attention go hand in hand and work in tandem.

Your attention level has to be constant for it to positively influence your game. If your attentiveness fluctuates, you intermittently loss your sense of focus and this can have a negative effect on your overall performance. If you are completely attentive, you will be detached; you will lack clarity on what exactly is happening in the ring and will be unable to assess your opponent's tactics. The only issue on which you can afford to be inattentive while on the mat is the pain of an injury in the other words, people have the ability to channel their thoughts on critical issues that demand their immediate attention and put off focusing on other issues until later.

Attentiveness will also help you focus on physical process like regularity your breathing and any shifts and movements of your arms and legs that you want to execute.

Alertness is the ability to be watchful and wary at all times. If you slip up for even a second, then your opponent can take advantage of you.

Let's visualize the scenario in a grappling or combat athletics match in which you have just delivered a move that stunned your opponent. He is sitting on the mat with his head bowed. The crowd is cheering loudly for you and booing your opponent. Your behavior here could take two possible paths and these paths are based on actual observation of the manner in which grapplers and combat athletes behave in real encounters.

Path A: You get high on the applause and start strutting around the ring feeling like a king, failing to notice whether your opponent is still down or if he has managed to get up.

Path B: You allow yourself a moment, may be an affirmative shake of the first at the successful move, but then refocus yourself on the next move while keeping a watchful eye on your opponent.

Usually a grappler or combat athlete who takes path A pays for his or her momentary lapse or alertness and gets caught off guard. The opponent may recover quickly and attack you when you are unprepared. This is a common occurrence in grappling and combat athletics tournaments. The players want to acknowledge the cheering crowd and in so doing, they are caught unaware by the opponent.

A grappler who takes Path B is alert and waiting for the next move and, therefore, is ready when the opponent gets up and going again.

Adequate sleep, exercise, and pregame "walkabouts" can improve your alertness during a match. There is scientific evidence to show that alertness improves if you get adequate sleep, sufficient sleep restores the neurotransmitters responsible for brain function.

Rather than just sitting down while you await your turn, get up and walk around every once in a while. When you get on your feet and walk, you get more oxygen to your brain. Sitting for a long time creates a situation where blood collects in your in legs and lower body, depriving the brain to some extent.

Concentration blocks out all distractions, attentiveness zeroes in on critical issues, and alertness keeps you watchful and prepared at all times. Each of these can bring a high level of focus into your learning process and your performance in a match.

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Aussie's Taken Gamble on Brett Lee

Australia's selectors have admitted they have taken a gamble on Brett Lee's fitness by naming the fast bowler in their squad for next month's ICC World Twenty20 in England.

Lee, who uses a Woodworm cricket bats, has been named in the 15-man squad despite not playing any competitive cricket since he broke down in the Boxing Day Test against South Africa with ankle and foot injuries.

But Lee is close to regaining full fitness again and is currently in the United Arab Emirates with Australia where his recovery is being monitored by the national team's medical staff.

Lee's inclusion in the Twenty20 squad suggests that he is also likely to be named in Australia's squad for this summer's Ashes series in England. The Ashes squad is due to be named later this month along with a new list of Cricket Australia's 25 contracted players.

"We looked long and hard as to whether Brett would be available for the Twenty20 World Cup," said Australia' chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch.

"That's one of the reasons why we wanted him to come to Dubai and Abu Dhabi, to have a look at him, to train with the group.

"He's still going to have a fair bit of work to do before the Twenty20 World Cup starts".

"He's going to play on Thursday night but to be quite frank, we expect him to take several Twenty20 matches with cricket equipmentto get his rhythm back because he's going to be a bit rusty.

"Given the tournament is still a month away, there's no question he's going to be fit. He just needs to get some bowling into him"

"There was a lot of discussion as to whether this was the right way to bring him back into cricket or not.

"It was Brett's view and also the coaching staff that it was the right way to go not only for this tournament but also leading into the Ashes. It's a bit of a risk but we believe it's a calculated risk to go down this path.

"The Ashes squad hasn't been picked yet but we looked long and hard at getting Brett ready through the Twenty20 World Cup for the Ashes. We think it's the best way to go.

"It's not ideal. It would have been better if he had played more cricket before now. The coaching staff will set up a program for him during the Twenty20 tournament and if he is in the (Ashes) squad, he will be doing extra training outside what is required for Twenty20.

"Whoever is picked in the (Ashes) squad, the two warm-up matches before the first Test will be very important."

Some Considerations in Softball Hitting

Softball hitting is one of the most important skills which should be mastered by every player. The hitter has an important role of leading the game toward victory. If you have really made good in hitting, you can attract the attention of most of the audience because you have the power to smash the ball outside the field.

Like any other skills in softball, softball hitting should be learned properly before you can say that you have the best hitting skill. This article will discuss some helpful tips for you to try on improving your softball hitting skills.

The first important thing before starting any practice is warm-up. You should not forget to warm-up first because this will prepare your muscles to more vigorous activities. Without it, the tendency is your performance is limited. You have the higher chance to get tired easily because your muscles are not stretched. Do not get too excited to play. In doing your warm-up, you should focus more on the muscles which you use often. Warm-up is not only important in preparing your body for a long and tough game but it also helps in preventing the occurrence of some injuries.

Many players especially the beginners still lack self confidence. If you do not have enough confidence you cannot play your best because your attention will be focused on the impact of your performance to the other people. Thus, you will not notice that you are not doing the right thing.

Young players who haven't developed yet their confidence are often taken advantage of the catchers and pitchers of the opponent team. As a result the opponent team can score more and worst there is tendency that you will lose the game. Confidence is a must have quality of every player. Before you step on the plate, carry your bat with confidence and give an impression to your opponent that you are willing to do all your best in order to win.

Do not let your surroundings and your present situation affect your performance. If you do, there is a bigger chance that you will commit mistakes not only in your Softball hitting but also to the other aspects of your game. Even if there are a lot of distracters around you, you should not lose your focus. Always think of your main goal to help you focus your attention in the game.

Your goal is to hit the ball and keep it away of the fielders. You should think that it's just you and the ball. The relationship of your hands plus the ball should also be established.

Hitting more home runs will definitely be your pride. It might be a tough task but you can make it if you are really decided to do it. You should master the proper softball hitting mechanics. Before becoming an expert hitter, you should learn first the fundamentals of hitting. And by learning them, you are now on your way towards becoming the most sought-after player in town. Don't you want that to come into reality?

Powerful Softball Drills that Every Coach and Player Must Know

Powerful softball drill is really a great key for a team to achieve their goal of winning. These drills are very essential because this are the adequate time for every player to learn the ins and outs of the game and for every coach to teach all the necessary skills like the proper hitting, fielding, and pitching. If you are a coach then it will be up for you to decide which drills are appropriate and which will be best for your team. This is because you are the only who knows what they truly needed. You feel what they are feeling and you empathize with their emotions.

Here are some of the best and powerful softball drills that you need to know:

Yes, the main reason why your team is having softball drills is to practice but then try to incorporate some fun during these times. One of the most famous drills is called the Knockout. This type of drill will test your player's capability when it comes to throwing and catching. The first thing to do is dividing your team into two groups. And then command them to go on the opposite direction of the field. You and your assistant can be the pitcher for each group. You must make sure that the drill is going to be fast. You will throw the ball to the first person. After catching it he will now throw it to the next one. There will be successive throws until the ball comes back to you. The team will get a point each time they have completed this. If anyone in the team doesn't catch the ball there will no point for them. To make this softball drill a lot more fun, give some incentives to the winning team. For example, let them rest while the losing team is having a warm-up. They will surely like this.

Another softball drill that is done by many is called Stepping Stones. This drill will teach your team the significance of cooperation and oneness. You will need pieces of cardboard. You are going to lay out seven pieces of these cardboard after you formed six groups. The middle must be empty. Give one of them a softball. Tell them that anyone of them who desire to move must be holding the ball so there is really a need for them to toss the ball to each other and catch it and that will be the only time that they can move. This drill will certainly involve team building. And they also practice catching and throwing at the same time. See how fun softball drills can be. It can actually become stressful only if you know how to handle the moments well. The fun starts when everybody is participating so always make sure that you have the ability to include team-building strategies on every practice and softball drill that you have in your plan. The more challenging they are, the more energetic the players will become.

Softball Hitting: The best ways to learn it

Almost all of the softball experts know that there is a much need for a softball player to learn about softball hitting. It is actually a skill that once you are expert with it; you are most likely to win in any game match. What you need here is a perfect physical strength and a full coordination of mentality so that you will execute a power-packed game event of your softball life. You should also keep yourself mentally fit and physically active so that you can gain what you deserve in the softball diamond.

In the softball hitting mechanics, you need to have a self-assuring mindset in the future games that you will execute. It is therefore important that you have to be positive and hopeful about the performance that you will be developing. Successful bats are those that can give a certain result to several game matches. Beset your mind with positive points of view so that you can perform the realities of it. Don't be pessimistic about your next softball hitting performance. It is a must that you have to develop being confident so that you can be the best of who you are.

You must never repeat the same mistake in the softball hitting mechanics. Once you made a mistake, it is already a mistake and never endeavor to commit the same error again. It is not healthy to be focusing your time on developing a style which will not likely work for you. Instead, just devote your time on improving the skill that you already know. In this way, you will be assured that you are competent with what you are doing and that you can execute that softball hitting style just the way you wan them to be executed.

It is also a must to develop your focus on the pitcher and the ball so that you will be able to hit properly. Likewise ignore every distraction that comes your way whenever you are about to hit the ball. Concentrate on the pitcher and the ball that he is grasping.

If you miss the hit, then go to the next step right away. Do not let one failure be the cause of another failure. Move forward and make a second impression. Do not let the pitcher recognize that you have been frustrated by the hit miss. Handle properly your emotions and be able to regain your confidence in the softball field.

It is also important to learn how to deal with the next events of the game. You should anticipate always that the next game will be bigger and greater than the previous one so that you will be able to have a frame of mind that you will prepare more for it and be able to do more of the development of your skills and knowledge about softball hitting.

The Role of the Coach in Implementing Softball Drills

If you are coaching a softball team, make sure to pay attention to your players when you put them in some softball drills. The drills that you are implementing would not be effective if you don't watch them. You will not be able to see what's happening and will not be able to correct their mistakes. Thus, you should not be laid back as a coach of a softball team. Never underestimate your opponents and not do anything during the practice drills of your team. If you don't want to see your opponents become best from being worst and your team being left behind, start implementing some softball drills and be present all the time during practice.

You have to set a benchmark for your team because you are their mentor. It is important that you lead not only by example, but with the right example. Learn to possess the right attitudes in order to become an effective coach. Furthermore, make sure that you monitor the progress of each of your players when it comes to their skills and overall game. You have to put into practice some softball drills as they are vital aspects in your team's practice.

It has been proven that the best and most effective way to teach softball drills is a hands-on demonstration. A lot of softball coaches and players can attest to its effectiveness. You have to teach your softball players the right stance in batting. It is a skill they have to develop in order to become a great softball player. They can learn form your examples, but it will be more effective if you teach them hands-on and let them try it themselves so they can have a feel of it.

You can start by showing then the correct way of holding the bat, the right way of hitting the ball, and the proper pitching techniques. Afterwards, you let your players apply all the stuff you taught them in their game. It is also important that you take notice of the position of your player's eyes, hips, shoulders, knees and feet. This is also a great way to determine who among your players have a great potential and those who need more training. You can only do this if you continuously assess their performances during your softball drills.

Another great way to learn softball techniques is to let your players watch some videos of professional players. Your team will be able to witness how the pros do it. They can also pick up some strategies and skills when it comes to pitching and hitting. But showing the videos can only be effective if your players are discussing all the stuff they see while it is playing. You would know if your players understood what they saw in the videos if you ask them and let them explain and execute it. Of course, if videos are not available, you can always use the chalk board in teaching some important softball drills.

Softball Drill - The Basic Key to Win

There is this great rule in softball that you should never underestimate your opponents. If you are a coach in a softball team then it is very important that you should not be laid back. You might be surprised in the end because the team that you expected to be the worse became the best and just won the game. As the mentor of the team, it is necessary that you set some benchmark for your team. Lead not by example rather lead with the RIGHT example. You must possess the proper attitudes that are essential for a coach. Aside from that, you must also see to it that your players' skill and overall game improve every now and then. For that reason, softball drills must always be an important part of your team's practice.

A lot of softball enthusiasts and coaches have said that hands-on demonstrations are truly the most excellent and effective method for teaching softball drills. The correct batting stance is a skill that you need to impart your players. Even though they will certainly learn from your examples, teaching them will be more effective if you show them the proper and allowing them to try it themselves. Show them the proper way to hold the bat, the proper hitting, and the proper pitching and after that allow them to apply what they have learned from you. You must make it a point to see how your players place their eyes, their shoulders, their hips, their knees, and their feet. If you can assess them continuously then you will know who among your players are good enough and who among them needs help and more training.

Another effective way is giving your players videos where they can watch how professional players play and how they execute different strategies and skills. Through these videos they can see the things that are right to do and the things that they must avoid doing. But then these videos can be more valuable if the players and the whole team is collaborating while it is playing. As a coach, you can test if your players understood what they see by asking them to explain and execute. Softball drills such as this will allow each of your players to think plausibly.

Using chalkboard or any kind of board is another effective yet traditional way for teaching softball drills. This method has been used by many coaches for so many years now but its effectivity is still unquestionable. Here, the coach is given a chance to explain deeper the ins and outs of each play. Each player can also execute and practice different positions because this is a perfect time for you to allocate them. It is very essential that you have a record of each play that shows the area on which your team is good and the area on which your team still needs to work on.

We can consider that teaching softball drills is one of the most challenging part of being a coach. These softball drills serve as the key that will ensure your team's victory that is why you need to teach them all of these. How you teach them these softball drills will generally affect how your player will play, you must always remember that.

Practice the Softball Hitting That Wins

When you're asked to play as softball hitter, you hold a key role in your team. Of course you want to give your best or else you will suffer the humiliating defeat. So knowing some strategies to good preparations is a must so that during the actual play, you can deliver that hard-hitting power that will catch your opponents off guard. So learn the softball hitting techniques that wins.

To perform well during the competition, good preparation is a must. Because your present physical condition and mental state are important, how you prepare makes greater impact. Are there ways to improve your softball hitting performance? Surely there are and you've got to know and practice them. This will ensure bigger winning chance.

When making preparations make it sure that you work on what you desire to achieve. Since you want hard-hitting power, achieve this through exercise. Perform specific body work out that strengthens your muscle. Weight lifting is a good way to achieve stronger muscles. Or you may try other techniques which you think will help you to improve your strength and stamina.

Next to consider is how you hold the bat. Holding it bat the wrong way is counter effective. Make sure that your hands are relaxed, otherwise, you cannot deliver a good strike. Practice to hold the bat correctly, this will reduce arms tension and gives you even greater speed. Loose grip should be applied by the upper hand, whereas the bottom hand maintains a grip just like when you hold a hammer. Determine also how many inches your grips should be from the bat knob. This affects your hitting power. So when practicing you take note on how you hold your bat, until it becomes your habit.

When doing some physical exercises, concentrate on the muscles that work harder during the play. Your triceps, chest, hips, legs need sufficient strength. Following regular schedule of exercise will yield better results.

Give attention also to your stance; good position of the feet make some wonders in softball hitting. Although some coaches differ in preference when it comes to correct stance, the ideal thing to do is to stand not wider that your shoulder. Good balance allows you to gain more agility, so give this aspect attention too. Stand in a matter than will allow you for swift action.

Another thing that calls for your attention is how to relax your shoulder. To do this, position your hands correctly. Good hand distance from the body ensures flexibility and helps the shoulder to reduce tension. Try positioning your hands three to four inches from your chest and see the difference. Once you learn to relax your shoulder, it helps you more to become agile and in a better position for hard hit.

Is your bat the right size for you? No matter what amount of practice you do, it won't help if you're uncomfortable with your bat. Hitting speed is also determined by the size of the bat. Make sure that you use the one that is perfect for your size. This particularly true among females players.

Softball hitting is not easy, but it doesn't have to be daunting. Once you learn the technique it comes as natural. But to do so requires a lot of practice. In softball game practice will also make your move perfect. So practice the right way.

Mental Muscle Part - 1

The mental muscle or mental strength aspects of focus have three key traits or behaviors:

1. Ambition - Do you want to excel? Do you have the killer instinct?
2. Ego - Healthy ego Vs Bloated ego, which one is yours?
3. Motivation - What makes you tick?

We will talk about the first two in this article.

¨ Ambition - Killer ambition, Killer instinct

Ambition is the need to excel at what you do and to reach the pinnacle of success in your profession. Killer ambition is an all-consuming need to achieve - you eat, sleep, and dream victory and success. You work at a feverish pace to achieve your goals.

Killer instinct is good if it is not vicious, but rather it is actually channeled toward the use of techniques and method to overpower an opponent. Killer instinct has to be focused and intuitive enough to make use of the best techniques, at the right moment, with the right level of intensity to completely vanquish your opponent. However, the killer instinct or heightened aggressiveness has to be sustained throughout the round. Piecemeal aggression will not work. Piecemeal aggression is a result of reactive behavior. For aggression to truly work, you have to initiate the aggressive moves and continue your stance through the length of the bout.

When you have a burning desire to achieve, every win becomes important to you and you will not let up in your assault. Killer instinct is a high level of aggression channeled in an intelligent manner to seize the moment and ensure a win.

Aim High: The ability to reach for the stars is another facet of ambition, but aims have to tempered with abilities and training. You or your coach will know when you are ready for the next level, when you begin to operate at a higher performance level and outdo the requirements of your current level. More importantly, don't be afraid to dream. It is important to covet championship titles and to try to pick up all the important belts that define success in grappling and combat athletics. But, nothing is ever achieved overnight. A constant endeavor toward a cherished dream will take you places, the places you want to be.

¨ Ego

Your ego is your sense of self-worth. It is easy to let yourself get carried away by the attention you get from squealing fans into imagining yourself with an inflated state of self-importance. You may start thinking too highly of yourself and begin to consider your capabilities way above those of your opponent. You can end up developing an inflated sense of pride and superiority complex over others. While a good self-image and self-esteem are the backbone of a healthy ego, never rest on your laurels, never get carried away by a win, no matter how important it was.

You also have to guard against having your ego bruised too easily. You must learn from lapses or errors and move on; your ego is healthy if you are aware of your capabilities, strengths, and standing in the grappling or combat athletics community and take pride in it without throwing your weight around.

If you display a super ego, chances are that your opponents will train even harder, since they fear you or just to put you in your place. This will actually make matches extremely difficult for you. This, it is in your best interest that you appear balanced and down to earth.

Sources:

http://www.lloydirvin.com

http://www.lloydirvinlive.com

http://www.brownbeltsecrets.com

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