Meditation is a practice that has gained immense popularity over the past few years, and meditation for athletes is growing in popularity. With a greater focus on setting performance anxiety, doubts and fear of failure, more and more athletes of all sports are turning to it.
What Is Meditation and How Can it Benefit Athletes?
It has been observed that meditation can help individuals deal with stress, anxiety, and depression. However, meditation isn’t just limited to mental health, but it also has several benefits for athletes.
Meditation is just sitting still, being quiet, and observing your thoughts as they flow through–without judgment.
It is a simple practice, but it can make a significant difference in an athlete’s life. Meditation can help a player enhance their focus, reduce stress, and perform better in high-pressure situations. It’s a great tool to enhance visualization and clear thinking in big moments.
Watch Now: My Tutorial on Meditation for Athletes of All Sports
Prefer to watch a video? Check out my in-depth video guide below.
My Meditation Story: From Struggling Pitcher to 2-Time All-Star
In 2011, my second year in professional baseball, I had the worst season of my career. I got hit hard (I was a pitcher) nearly every time out and my confidence plummeted. Before long, I was expecting to fail, expecting to get released–baseball terminology for released from your contract and sent home.
After that season, I attended a mental training camp and learned to meditate. I dedicated myself to meditating every day, and the practice transformed me. I experienced a sense of calm on the mound that I hadn’t in my entire career. Doubts and fears would still roll through my mind, but I wouldn’t fixate on them and let them derail me and affect my performance.
I became an All-Star for the first time following my off-season of meditation. I continued the practice until I retired, and it made a huge difference in my career. I credit the last three years of my baseball career as being saved by meditation and my new focus on mental skills training.
As part of my overall mental skills routine, meditation allowed me to visualize myself performing the way I wanted to, to execute in the game as if I was playing a video game. It was SO powerful and transformative.
If I couldn’t find a quiet place to meditate, I’d just get it done wherever I could – including in my locker (shown below).
Key Benefits of Meditation for Athletes
There is a lot to love here for athletes of any sport. This is a powerful tool to improve your confidence in competition. Here are a few key benefits:
- Enhanced focus
- Meditation can help athletes improve their focus, concentration, and mental clarity. By observing their thoughts and focusing on their breath, athletes can train their minds to stay present in the moment. Staying present means to be focused only on what’s happening right now – the thing you can control at the moment – rather than worrying about the future or the past.
- Reduced stress and anxiety
- Sports are stressful, and athletes often face immense pressure to perform at their best. Meditation can help athletes reduce stress and anxiety, allowing them to enter a competition with a greater sense of calm, both physically and mentally. All of us want to play loose, free and easy, and meditation can help with that.
- Better performance in high-pressure situations
- High-pressure situations – coming through when it really counts – is one of the biggest things athletes look for in a mental skills practice. Yes – meditation will help with this, by giving you the ability to refocus faster and with greater clarity when the nerves, doubts and anxiety flood in during a stressful moment.
- Stronger ability to visualize
- Meditation helps to calm and clear your mind so that you can have stronger visualization sessions, which are powerful for creating better performances in competition. Visualization is a crucial part of a successful mindset.
- Better sleep
- Athletes need restful sleep to perform at their best. Meditation can help athletes improve the quality of their sleep, allowing them to wake up feeling refreshed and energized. Research is clear on this – lack of quality sleep reduces decision-making speed and quality. Better sleep improves reaction time. Overall, great sleep = better performance.
How to Get Started with Meditation
If you’re an athlete looking to start practicing meditation, here are some tips of my best tips to get started:
- Find a quiet and comfortable space
- The first step to practicing meditation is finding a quiet and comfortable space. It could be your bedroom, basement, or any place where you won’t be disturbed by noise, lights, or people. If you’re on the go, you can even meditate in the corner of an airport or behind a tree.
- Choose a comfortable posture – sitting or laying down
- There’s no right or wrong way to sit while meditating. You can sit with your legs crossed, with your back against the wall, or even lie down. The important thing is to choose a posture that is comfortable and allows you to relax.
- Set a timer for 5-30 minutes
- Start small – with just five or ten minutes and make it easy on yourself. Just get started!
- Focus on your breath
- Once you’ve found a comfortable posture, start focusing on your breath. Take slow, deep breaths and observe your breath as it flows in and out of your body. If your mind starts to wander, gently bring your attention back to your breath.
- Observe your thoughts without judgment
- As you focus on your breath, you’ll notice that thoughts start to arise in your mind. Don’t try to stop them or judge them, but observe them as they flow through your mind. Imagine your thoughts as ships passing by on an ocean. The key is simply learning to not fixate and be overcome by negative thoughts.
- Practice regularly – make time for it in your routine!
- Like any other skill, meditation requires practice. Start by meditating for just a few minutes a day and gradually increase the duration. You can also meditate at any time of the day that works best for you.
Meditation Helps Create a Growth Mindset
Meditation is a practice that helps you feel more grateful for who you are, and less judgmental toward your flaws and shortcomings. This is SUCH a good thing – to learn to become more accepting of who you are both as an athlete and person.
A growth mindset is a big part of that, and the more you meditation, the more you’ll find that your failures and shortcomings are not character judgments and are not end points, but rather just opportunities to grow and improve.
For more on creating a growth mindset, check out my video below:
How Often Should You Meditate as An Athlete?
Set a timer for 5 minutes, sit down and try it.
It doesn’t have to be perfect and you will probably be very uncomfortable and anxious about it at first. This is normal! It’s okay! Keep going.
Any amount of meditation will improve your sense of well-being, calm and focus. The more you do, the better and faster you’ll see results. A short daily practice is ideal, but again – don’t make it feel difficult!
5-30 minute meditation sessions are typical, and 2-3 days per week is a great frequency to start with.
Enhance Your Mental Skills Training with Meditation
Meditation is a simple yet powerful practice that can benefit any athlete – in just a few minutes a day or a few sessions per week.
By taking just a few minutes out of their day to sit still and observe their thoughts, athletes can enhance their focus, reduce stress, and recover faster from injuries. So, if you’re an athlete looking to take your performance to the next level, consider adding meditation to your routine. It made a huge difference in my career and my life as a person.
Sign up for My Free Mental Skills Webinar
Take the next step in your mental skills training with my free webinar – click here or the image below to sign up for my free webinar with tips for improving your on-field performance.
