CrossFit Southern California Regionals : A Sport Psychology Perspective
I attend CrossFit Events, Olympic Lifting Meets, and tune in to many other sporting events to watch the athletes. No, I don’t just watch like everybody else in the stands, I actually really intently study certain aspects of the athletes. I take notes on their warm-up routines, their breathing patterns, where their eyes are focused, their facial expressions, what words come out of their mouths, how they carry themselves (body posture, etc), their specific routines and rituals, how they react after a performance good or bad, and many other psychological and physical characteristics and actions. I study athletes as closely as possible because of my passion for the mental aspect of performance
What I saw this weekend at the So Cal Regionals
- Blood, sweat & tears which is a part of any true competition
- Athletes who smiled and reset between ‘no rep calls’ and athletes who rolled their eyes and bitched at their judge
- Athletes who cheered on others until all competitors were done and athletes that left the field early
- Athletes that didn’t focus during a lighter weight thruster and missed the rep and athletes who PRd by 20+ pounds
- Athletes that did not care what was happening around them and athletes who were too caught up in what others were doing
- Athletes who shook their judges/volunteers hand, hugged them and said thank you, and athletes who wouldn’t even look their judges in the eyes
- Athletes who competed with one arm and athletes who counted themselves out before it was over.
- You get it, I saw it all, the whole enchilada… the good the bad and the ugly.
My 2 favorite competitors this weekend… who I saw embrace mental performance strategies and who had unbelievable outcomes at Regionals
Katie Hogan (2nd place finisher: Valley CrossFit) – I met Katie at Coaches Prep where she mentioned how important the mental aspect of training was to her…I saw her compete in full force this weekend with a commanding aura.
- She took deep breaths between muscle ups when she needed to calm herself & yelled with intensity before her thrusters when she needed an extra boost. Katie stayed in the moment with each movement and never took her focus off of what she was doing. She smiled and laughed at appropriate intervals during workouts and jumped with joy after each finish. She hugged her competitors, cheered them on, thanked her judges and celebrated with her fans after each event.
- She used self-talk and key words/phrases to get her through ‘tough spots’ during Amanda and even used ‘disassociation’ as she closed her eyes and knocked out about 20 of 100 KB swings. She was intense with her focus and her eyes were fiery, yet the minute it was over she was able to switch her persona and dance off the field. These are signs of an elite athlete with a real mental edge.
- I was going by the athlete prep/warm-up area to check out the athletes and I saw Greg out of the corner of my eye. His shoes and shirt were off, and his eyes were closed. He was standing by himself with no equipment in sight. All of a sudden I saw him bend over, and move through a clean into a thruster – with no barbell – just pure visualization. He moved smoothly and perfectly through the thruster a couple of times before being interrupted. I wish I had this on camera because it was just amazing to see.
- During the competition Greg was elite, composed, passionate, prepared and graceful. He is the type of athlete that doesn’t need to wear a shirt with a catchy slogan to gain attention, that would never fight with a judge, that would never stop moving before time expires and that has gained the respect of every CrossFitter who has ever seen him perform. His mental preparedness and execution throughout the weekend was unmatched and helped him perform at an amazing level.
My favorite moment from the CrossFit So Cal Regionals
- Rebecca Voigt finishing the Amanda workout and going to grab chalk and write the word ‘BELIEVE’ on the mat directly under where her teammate Lindsey Valenzuela was continuing to fight through muscle-ups. Wow.
I can normally tell who is going to perform well, and who will struggle. I can sense breakdowns and breakthroughs before they occur. I understand what type of mental training would bring certain athletes to the next level. I am drawn to specific CrossFitters because of their intense stare or their positive mental demeanor Yes athletes, I am picking apart your every move, looking for the good, the bad and the ugly. Can’t wait for the Games!
www.FletcherFitness.com : Sport Psychology for Elite Fitness
