Focus and concentration are essential to basketball, so a player’s mind needs to be razor-sharp at all times during a game. Poor focus and concentration lead to inadequate execution of skills, lapses in judgment, foolish errors, turnovers, and lost opportunities. Exceptional mindfulness allows a player to consistently perform at an optimum level no matter the circumstances. It’s what distinguishes the superstars from the rest.
Apart from physical strength and agility, basketball athletes need heightened cognitive function and perception to attain top-level performance. Requiring lightning-quick reflexes and super-fast reaction times, basketball is a game of reading and reacting. In fact, coaches, trainers, and elite players often say that basketball is 25% physical and 75% mental. The brain supervises motor skills, spatial awareness, depth perception, decision-making, intuitive thinking, and analytical quickness.
Basketball Exposes Players to Constant Pressure and Stress
A basketball match is full of internal and external distractions which can cause players to lose focus and concentration. External distractions may include a bad call made by an official, hostile crowds, or taunting from the opposing team while internal distractions may come in the form of negative self-talk, dwelling on a previous missed shot, or overanalyzing a game.
The term “choke” refers to any instance wherein a player fails to react appropriately or perform sufficiently under pressure, particularly during crucial moments late in a closely fought game, thereby causing his or her team to lose. Players “choke” because they let distractions get the better of them, causing them to lose focus and alertness.
Developing On-Court Mental Skills
The key to success in pressure-packed game scenarios is the capacity to tune-out distractions, remain poised and confident, rise above adversities, and focus on the task at hand. A first-rate mental game is all about taking control of emotional responses toward any given situation. Court awareness permits a player to see things in vivid detail and perceive a game more accurately so that the best possible response can be successfully executed.
Here are a few tips and tricks to cultivate focus and concentration:
- Master the fundamentals through constant practice and repetition. Sports trainers use this to establish “muscle memory.” By doing this, the mind and body will instinctively and intuitively revert to basic core skills during a game.
- Establish pre-game routines that calm the nerves such as listening to music, breathing exercises, making short phone calls to family or friends, etc. This helps to enliven mood and block negative thoughts.
- Use cue words to build confidence. Repeating words or phrases with positive messages such as “relax” or “I can do this” can fortify determination and self-assurance.
- Practice mental imagery and visualization. Picture dishing a perfect pass, hitting a crucial shot, or making a defensive stop. This positive imaging technique has been proven to deliver effective results.
- Ensure proper nourishment to empower the body to operate at peak competitive levels while preventing physical and psychological fatigue.
Elevate Mental Toughness with Athletic Greens
The human brain is a complex organ that needs an abundance of vitamins, minerals, and nutrients in order to function perfectly. Athletic Greens Ultimate Daily is a superior plant-based supplement that offers a comprehensive assortment of benefits for cognitive function and overall brain wellness. With no less than 75 organically-sourced ingredients formulated by health experts, it’s the most dynamic supplement in the market.
Athletic Greens Ultimate Daily’s ingredients are divided into four distinct categories:
- Nutrient-Dense Raw Superfood Complex
- Nutrient-Dense Extracts, Herbs, and Antioxidants
- Digestive Enzyme and Super Mushroom Complex
- Dairy-Free Probiotics
These ingredient profiles intensify focus, concentration and cognitive abilities by helping the mind and body to accomplish the following:
- Sharpen the senses
- Relieve stress and anxiety
- Promote analytical thinking
- Increase judgment and insight
- Improve memory and learning
- Uplift mood and frame of mind
- Regulate nerve and cell function
- Process information more efficiently
- Heightens alertness and enhances focus
- Improve the mechanism of the nervous system
- Augment cognitive function, concentration, and perception
- Support neurodevelopment and neurotransmitter function
- Reduce high blood pressure which contributes to cognitive decline
- Modulate the release of dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, and acetylcholine
- Prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other neurodegenerative diseases
It’s science
The brain health benefits of Athletic Greens Ultimate Daily are backed by clinical studies and extensive research as well as testimonies from professional athletes and health specialists. Combined with discipline, hard work, and sound fundamentals, Athletic Greens will raise any basketball athlete’s mental game to new heights and enable supreme focus, concentration, and court vision in each and every match.