Preparation Tips for Your Next Football Game

It's a good idea to prepare well for football game day beyond your regular team practice sessions. As a player or coach, there are things you can do to help you go into each game knowing you will perform properly.

One effective technique is visualization. Visualizing what you need to do during games will program your mind so that when the pressure is on, you can still play with a calm, reassuring feeling within the craziness of a typical football game.

The mind is a powerful resource. Very few people realize the potential of the mind. When asked what he'll do the night before Super Bowl XL, Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward said he'll sit back and visualize the entire game.

He said he goes over specific plays in his mind. He envisions running his routes perfectly, looking the ball in and crossing the goalline for the score. He sees the play in his mind as if it is happening right now so that it feels entirely real. Then, during the game, it all flows much more naturally because to the subconscious mind, each successful play and catch is already a reality.

Inside the mind, it has all happened already. Football game day is just a product of the visualization. Does this mean you'll now automatically play a perfect game and nothing will ever go wrong again? Of course not. You're still a human being prone to mistakes. But it will overwhelmingly help you to improve during times of stress or nervousness.

Coaches can benefit from visualization, also. There are many things a coach must deal with on football game day. A ref's call can get you so mad you almost forget where you are. A player can make a mistake on the very thing you've been preaching on all week and you can lose your composure if you're not aware.

One thing you can do for your players is to keep your emotions in check during football games. For example, if your quarterback comes off the field during a timeout and you're all geeked up and going crazy, it can get him nervous. However, if you can talk to him just like you would during a normal practice, he feels calm and relaxed. You're telling him to just go out and perform as he does during practice.

So, visualize yourself in this way before each game. Visualize situations that could cause you to lose your composure. As you visualize this, see yourself responding in a composed manner. In your mind, you know you're upset, but you keep a calm head and deal with the adversity positively. You give your players the message that you all will get through the tough situation and turn it into a positive.

"Try out your ideas by visualizing them in action."
- David Seabury

"You must see your goals clearly and specifically before you can set out for them. Hold them in your mind until they become second nature."
- Les Brown

"See things as you would have them be instead of as they are."
- Robert Collier

"Visualization and belief in a pattern of reality, activates the creative power of realization."
- A. L. Linall, Jr.

"Surely there is grandeur in knowing that in the realm of thought, at least, you are without a chain; that you have the right to explore all heights and depth; that there are no walls nor fences, nor prohibited places, nor sacred corners in all the vast expanse of thought... "
- Robert Green Ingersoll

[END FOOTBALL GAME VISUALIZATION ARTICLE]


Matt and Dave run http://www.football-plays-and-drills.com/visualize and have written the free coaching report, "5 Keys to Discovering the Successful Coach Inside You". Pick up your free copy along with one additional free report by sending a blank email to footballtips@aweber.com

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