I work with athletes at many levels of sport, from juniors to collegians to pros. A significant goal that I help them achieve is consistency in their competitive performances. I see so many athletes who have big swings in their performances from great one week to mediocre to even lousy the next week, with those difficulties frustratingly continuing throughout the winter. Consistency is so important because it is one thing that separates the absolute best in every sport from the rest. The best athletes in the world perform consistently day in and day out, week in and week out, for months and even years on end.
This notion of consistently high performance is important to me because it is a key part of my definition of Prime Sport: Performing consistently high under the most challenging conditions. This is the goal toward which I believe all athletes, whatever their ability or sport, should aspire.
Of course, not every athlete is going to become a superstar in their sport, but that doesn't mean that they can't be as consistently good as they are capable. The question that all athletes and coaches ask is: How does an athlete perform as consistently as they can? I have identified four keys to consistently great athletic performances.
Consistent Effort
You must be consistent in all aspects of your training efforts. When you train, whether in the gym or on the course, court, field, track, hill, or wherever you perform your sport, you need to exert maximum and consistent effort. You must be in the best physical condition, including strength, agility, and stamina. You must be technically and tactically consistent in your sport with no major flaws that can lead to inconsistency. If your sport requires equipment (e.g., tennis, golf, sailing, cycling), your equipment must be consistently well-prepared. And, of course, your mental training must be consistently done.
Consistent Life
Many athletes think that if they do what is necessary in their athletic life that will be enough to achieve their goals. But I have found that often isn't enough. Instead, what you do away from your sport in your regular life, also impacts your ability to perform consistently well. In other words, to perform consistently, you must lead a consistent life. Aspects of your broader life that can help or hurt your performance include your nutrition. Because what you eat and drink is fuel for your body, if you aren't eating and drinking in a consistently healthy way, your body will not be capable of performing consistently well on the field of play. The consistency of your sleep also plays a key role. Consistent sleep will ensure that you are rested enough for consistently high performance. Being consistent in your schoolwork also has an influence. If you are stressed out because you are behind in your homework or you aren't prepared for a big exam coming up, you have little chance to perform consistently well. Lastly, if your relationships, whether family or friends are turbulent, you will not be in a place emotionally where you can be consistent.
Consistent Mind
Though I am biased, I would say that a consistent mind is also essential to consistently high athletic performances. A consistent mind begins with consistent attitudes toward your sport in which you see it as a challenge, not a threat; think about the process, not results, and have a long-term perspective on your sport. You're willing to take the necessary risks to perform at a consistently prominent level. You also need your attitudes toward your sport to be free of overinvestment, perfectionism, fear of failure, expectations, and negativity.
From these healthy attitudes, you must have consistent confidence that isn't significantly affected by frustrating days of training, disappointing results, who you're competing against, or the importance of the competition. Consistent intensity, focus, and mindset come only from training and competing with the same every time you perform.
Emotions play an immense role in the consistency of your athletic performance. But, if your emotions aren't consistent, you have big swings in your emotions, particularly on the day of competition, and it's challenging to perform your best consistently. Of course, getting excited about an event is okay, and it's normal to feel disappointed if things don't go your way. But too much fear, frustration, anger, or disappointment will put you in a place mentally, emotionally, and physiologically that will make it exceedingly difficult to find consistency in your performances.
Mental imagery is the most powerful mental tool for creating consistency in your athletic performance. Consistent use of imagery, in which you see and feel yourself performing consistently well, ingrains the images and feelings associated with that goal, so everything you imagined comes out on the day of competition. The result is much more likely to be consistently great athletic performances.
Consistent Preparation
Consistent preparation leading up to competitions is the final contributor to getting the consistently impressive results you want. This consistent preparation begins in the days before the events you want to focus specifically on consistency in your training. You also want to ensure that your life and mind stay consistent.
On the day of competition, you can create consistency in your preparations by having a clearly defined and well-practiced routine that maximizes every contributor to consistently great athletic performances, from what you do the night before to what you do first thing in the morning to your arrival at the competition venue to your final preparations before the competition begins all matter. Consistency throughout this process will be the final piece of the "consistently great athletic performance" puzzle you need to put into place that will result in performing your absolute best consistently and achieving your game-day goals.
Until next time,
Coach Nye
*Dr. Jim Taylor, contributor
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