Mental Tennis Training: Smile

Emotions play a HUGE part in every match we play. And we have to manage them effectively if we want to emerge victorious. Why? Because it can get us killed if we don’t.

You see, we’re tennis players – true. But we’re human beings first. And in life, we’re creatures that are very “reaction” oriented.

For instance, our moods can change rather quickly when something happens to us directly or alters  our environment in some way – many times involuntarily.

And that, many times, can greatly effect our performance and the outcome of the match.  Now, this can be a great thing yet can lead to our downfall at the very same time.

Let me explain. When we’re able to smack shots  for winners, string a few consecutive points together where we come out ahead or if we just made a great play to save a critical service game, we do pretty well.

We react very positively when emotionally responding to those situations. We’re jumping for joy on the inside, and we’re feeling great.

And we get to enjoy that feeling, often dubbed the “natural high.” And thus, the likelihood that we’ll continue to play on a high level begins to go up. More shots go in… Our movement on the court appears effortless…

But on the other hand, if we lose that critical break point or lose a couple games in a row, it can (…and often times does) have the opposite effect.

We tend to either get enraged about our under performance (…and give our racket a good thrashing) or begin to doubt ourselves a bit and wonder if we’ll ever be able to turn things around again.

And if that happens…

2 Negative Results If You Lack Proper Mental Tennis Training:

You’ll…

1. Receive A Biological Error: When you get angry or start to feel down and doubt your ability to perform, it’s mental, yes. But it’s also biological. Yea, when your emotional state goes haywire, it causes problems throughout your entire body – not just your mind.

When you allow those negative thoughts to flood your mind, your body immediately responds, N-E-G-A-T-I-V-E-L-Y.

Your adrenal glands will begin to GUSH out adrenaline. Now,  you may say, “I thought adrenaline was a good thing.” Yes, when it’s being secreted at an appropriate speed over a certain amount of time, it’s a great thing!

But in this case, it’s going to flood your system at a rate that’s extremely difficult to manage and for your body to keep up with.

As a result, your muscles will begin to constrict, causing difficulty in court movement and your ability to hit fluidly and with good form on your shots. And you guessed it, error-city.

2. Boost Your Opponent’s Confidence Through Facial Expression Failure: Yes, this feeling of discomfort will show in your strokes, but sometimes it can be looked at as just a bad slump that any player can pull themselves out of.

But when it moves to your face and its expressions, that can be a dead-on giveaway to your opponent that you’re having real mental troubles. Your head is hanging down, your eyes are drooping etc.

And this isn’t a matter of  “if.” It’s bound to happen. Rarely do players feel poorly but  look vibrant and booming with excitement.

That said, when you have that sad and defeated look on your face, this will ignite your opponent’s competitive fire.  You’ll look like a wounded gazelle in the African Wilderness.

And your opponent will quickly become the lion who is looking to feast. Oh yea, it’s definitely survival of the fittest out there. Your opponents are always looking for blood.

Now, if you find yourself in this type of situation and feel it starting to go downhill, don’t wallow in sorrow and think that all hope is lost. Yes, you’re in an undesirable situation, but you can still get the victory.

*BUT* if you have any hopes of getting back in the match before it’s time to shake hands, you better do something, and you better do it fast. Otherwise, the match *WILL* be over.

So… what can you do?

Smile. Smile? Yes, smiling, though simple, is a tremendous mental tennis strategy. It can act as a great antidote, quickly getting you out of your mental rut. How?  Well, it…

A. Improves Your Mood And Your Mobility: Smiling is an extremely potent form of f-r-e-e mental tennis therapy.

By smiling, you’ll send a message to your body that everything is going to be alright and that you do have the ability to change things.

Almost immediately, you’ll  notice that you’re not as agitated or feel as down on yourself or as doubtful about what you’re capable of pulling off.

Hey, and even if you don’t feel happy at the moment, try to smile anyway! You see, the body is tricked very easily.

Within seconds, it can improve things from the inside out by lowering stress hormones like cortisol, improving the regulation of the amount of adrenaline your body secretes and will send a massive amount of endorphins (a.k.a) the “feel good” hormone  throughout your body that will help boost your tennis confidence *AND* relax your muscles.

As a result, you’ll have a much easier time getting to the balls and following it up with great execution. Yea, no more error-city.  It’ll be more along the lines of winnersville haha.


B. Regain Confidence And Stifle Your Opponent’s: By turning your frown upside down, this will send a much different message over to your opponent – one of confidence and determination – not fear and vulnerability. This way, your opponent won’t receive that royal confidence boost and see you as prey to be taken advantage of.

Instead, he’ll see you as an equal ( a strong adversary capable of taking him out). And he’ll have to look for another way to exploit you. Why? Because you’ll appear mentally stable. And even if you lose a few points, even a big point, you’re going to keep fighting.

So, when you feel like you’re in a mental tennis rut, feeling sorry for yourself isn’t going to help your cause. Solve the problem.  Smile, and show those pearly whites. It’ll help you get back on track and increase your chances at getting that win.

And heck, you might even get a contract with Crest or Colgate .

For more mental tennis tips and strategies: click here

Have a great week, and an even better game!

Brian
TennisMindCamp