Need to up your mind game? Here at Breaking Muscle we want to help you become better at every aspect of training, including the mental side. Here is the list of the top ten sports psychology articles from 2013, counting down from number ten to the most popular one of the year. Which one will it be? And have you read them all?
Top 10 Sports Psychology Articles of 2013
10. Visualization: The Simple Tool for Even Greater Athletic Success (Erica Saint Clair)
In 1984 the Russians realized that Olympic athletes who mentally rehearsed their sport experienced a positive impact on their performance. It’s simple, and you should try it too.
9. What the Marines Know About Discipline That Will Make You a Better Athlete (Eric C. Stevens)
The Marines know a thing or two about discipline. But what they also know is discipline comes through breaking you down, pushing you, and through failure. Success can’t happen without failure first.
8. How to Calculate Your Fitness Age (Though Your True Age Is an Attitude) (Eric C. Stevens)
In my experience, being “young” is a decision. So, if you’re stuck in a rut and feeling older than you are, here are a few tips to get you moving towards feeling young.
7. What Do You Really Want? When What You Want and How You Train Don’t Match (Becca Borawski Jenkins)
What is your goal? What do you really want, as opposed to what you say you want, and are you doing everything that needs to be done to support that goal?
6. 5 Mental Cues to Bulletproof Your Brain for Training (Bret Hamilton)
How you mentally handle hardship when it arises can make or break your ability to stay on a fitness regimen. Consider the following five tips for when life is trying to get you down.
5. You’re Not Making the Godfather: Stop Taking Your Training So Seriously (Becca Borawski Jenkins)
While it’s great to have passion about your fitness, it’s not healthy for the long-term to act like you’re headed for the Olympics. It’s time to look at the big picture.
4. Missing Link in Your Health: Accepting Yourself (Summer Inanen)
There is an epidemic destroying our nutrition and fitness goals. It’s not a disease or a food – it’s a mindset. It is unrealistic expectations and an obsession with perfection. Here’s how to cure it.
3. 6 Steps to Building Mental Toughness (or How to Stop Being a Pussy) (Andrew Read)
The best way to develop toughness is to realize it’s not an overnight process. Learning to embrace the suck when everything in your body is screaming to slow down is not a quick skill to learn.
2. Overcoming Self-Imposed Limitations: Mind Training Strategies From Gym Jones (Rob MacDonald)
Our potential is limited by our own expectations. How do you get rid of your limits? It certainly isn’t easy but there are ways to do it.
1. Strong Is Still Strong, Skinny Is Still Skinny (Megan Clements)
When I first heard the saying “strong is the new skinny” I loved it, but since then, I’ve kind of grown to hate it. Let me explain.
Photo 1 courtesy of Shutterstock.
Photo 2 courtesy of Rob MacDonald.