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VISUALISATION

What is Visualisation?

Visualisation is recalling pieces of information from previous experiences, feelings experienced internally when the body moves or performs a combination of tasks.

Imagining the start of the journey the execution and the end result. Visualisation can also be called imagery, mental rehearsal and mental practice. All of these terms mean the same.

Do you ever find yourself going over things in your mind picturing what you are going to do and how you are going to do it? This skill and mental planning can be used to enhance your performance both as an athlete and in every day life.

Using the Senses

There are four types of sense used when visualising something the more of these you can use when imagining your goal. The more vivid the memory and therefore the end result are more realistic. The four senses are:

Kinesthetic. …………Awareness of movement

Auditory……………..Sounds

Tactile.……………….Feelings

Olfactory.…………….Smells

For examples, watching the ball coming toward you, hearing the bat hit the ball, feeling the grip of the bat and the vibrations as the ball hits the bat, the smells of the freshly cut grass and the odour of the recently washed kit, the oil of the bat and the smell of leather of the ball. If you use all of these senses it brings realism to your visualisation.

Does Visualisation Work? (DEMO) Try This.

Demonstration

Stand with your feet together with both hips and shoulders facing forward.

Lift up your right arm straight out in front of you.

Keeping your hips forward rotate clockwise from the waist keeping your arm at shoulder height. Go around as far as you physically can. Look down to your fingertips and register a mental mark on the wall behind you to indicate how far you have travelled.

Bring the arm back the route you came and bring it to rest by your side.

Now, close your eyes visualise lifting your arm taking the same route as before and stop at the mark on the wall you made earlier. (No physical movements must be made in this section). In your minds eye move your arm beyond this mark, way beyond as far as you can, you are almost going a full circle.

Mentally bring the arm back the route you came and bring it to rest by your side.

Now open your eyes.

Repeat the original exercise by lifting up your right arm straight out in front of you keeping your hips forward rotate clockwise from the waist, keeping your arm at shoulder height. Go around as far as you physically can.

Now, look down to your fingertips and register a mental mark on the wall behind you to indicate how far you have travelled.

Have you travelled further?

Does visualisation work?

The factors affecting the effectiveness of visualisation.

The nature of the task

There is no point in visualising a task that is impossible for you to do; in any case this is just pure fantasy. When you are first learning or mastering the techniques of mind mastery and visualisation choose a simple task and see how you benefit from the results. This should increase your confidence in using this kind of enhancement technique. All visualisation should be based on previous experiences with similar skills. Visualisation helps with both the novice and the experienced athlete but possibly more with the experienced athlete. This is simply because they have more memories and experiences of their performances to call on.

Imaging ability.

This is basically the athlete's ability to imagine. The athlete who can imagine vividly the task in hand and control that image will yield the best results. This is a skill within its self and like any other skill practice has a dramatic effect on the success of your visualisation technique and the end result.

Combining Visualisation with physical Rehearsal.

Visualisation does not take the place of physical practice. Visualisation and physical practice together can yield the best results. However, mental practice is better than no practice at all. In the cases of athletes suffering from injury, or in the course of rehabilitation, it is sometimes the only form of practice.

It can be considered as one of the ingredients involved with physical training. This is like the sugar that activates the yeast when baking bread. Assisting performance, because without it, the performance would be flat.

Remember to visualise what is achievable and not what is beyond your physical capability.

For instance a cricketer at the start of his new season was looking to establish himself in the first team at his county level. In his first game he knew that he would be facing Curtly Ambrose at this time the number one fast bowler in the world. He visualised not just surviving and connecting bat to ball but hitting every ball for a four or a six. The task he had set himself was too large and mostly out of his control and not least of all unrealistic. In his first innings he made seventeen runs and the effect of that performance damaged his future appearances and also his ability to visualise accurately in the future.
I have designed a questionnaire for you to assess how good you are at visualisation. Take it away and photocopy it, monitor your progress as you improve your visualisation skills.

There are two types of Visualisation.

Internal and External. Internal is where you experience performing a certain skill through your own minds eye i.e. as if you had a camera in your head. External visualisation is the same as watching a video of you performing the same task.

There are arguments for using each type of visualisation to yield the best results. Studies have shown increased electrical activity in the muscles when using internal visualisation. In reality both methods used together yield the most positive results.

Flicking backwards and forwards between the two techniques is quite normal. External visualisation is a difficult skill to master and physically watching a video of you is probably the best way of improving the skill. You may find when practising these skills that you will make small movement of the limbs that you are using. But even if you do not register a physical movement scientists say the electrical impulses are the same.

The Theories of Visualisation.

Psychoneuromuscular theory
In this theory visualisation is said to stimulate the motor skills. Vividly imagined events can stimulate the muscles as much as practising the physical movement.

I find myself when visualising a Tae Kwon Do form I will physically make the moves and gestures, I do not perform the pattern to it's fullest power, it is almost performed in a dream state, dancing the moves but not performing the moves fully or accurately. To the onlookers it must look quite strange, but to me, it is an important part of my preparation before a competition or a grading. These neuromuscular impulses are very similar to those experienced when performing the actual task. In your minds eye you can feel as if you've almost performed the complete move. There has been some scientific proof when athletes have been electrically monitored that their muscular activity has changed quite dramatically during visualising an event. The neural pathways used in imagining a movement and actually performing the same movement are very similar, and if you can imagine a move and physically make the move at the same time this can strengthen the neural pathways and the movement memory.

Symbolic Learning Theory

This theory suggests that the athlete can learn what is required to perform a specific task or movement. This laying down of a mental blue print of a particular task, then performing the task as a motor skill, reinforces the mental blue print. In some studies it was found that athletes who used visualisation performed better on tasks that required mental participation, i.e. strategy games like tennis than those that required purely physical participation, i.e. weight lifting. Of course most sports require both disciplines to be successful.

Psychological Skills Hypothesis

Some sports psychologist argue that visualisation works by honing the physiological skills such as stress management. If people can visualise coping with stressful situations and the anxiety experienced, their performance levels and the way that they cope with pressure situations, will improve the next time they encounter any such difficulties.

For example a snooker player could visualise himself sinking the final black ball to win a tournament. In the past he has experienced a tightening of the muscles and feeling anxious, finally snapping and missing the shot. If he was to visualise successfully sinking the shot, see himself taking deep breaths, relaxing the muscles and going through the pre-shot routine the next time that he found himself in this situation the end result will be more successful. It is important to master these psychological skills to improve confidence and maximise performance levels.

Bioinformational Theory

This theory is based on the fact that there are two types of propositions namely "stimulus and response". Stimulus propositions are the athlete's memory of the crowd as he walks out onto the pitch and the thoughts of previous performances. Response propositions are more tactile feelings, such as kicking the ball, feeling the bat in the hand, the beating of the heart and breathing patterns. The response propositions invoke greater psychological responses than stimulus alone. This theory depends on both propositions for the end result to be successful. Once again it is the synergy of the physical and mental visualisation that produces the best results.

How Can Visualisation Help

Improved concentration

Visualisation can help you react differently in certain situations. If you can visualise the last time you made a wrong move in a martial arts form or a bad pass in a game of football and then imagine yourself regaining composure and becoming more focused. The way that you react to making this mistake in the future will have also improved. Because lets face it, none of us are beyond making mistakes and even visualisation cannot totally erase all mistakes. This discipline will help you when things do not go according to plan and help focus the mind and improve concentration.

Improved confidence

This area is very similar, if you visualise a perfect strike or pass over and over again and receiving the plaudits that go with the act this can help you cope when under extreme pressure and operating in adverse conditions. Self talk, Psyching up, self-motivation, whether you believe it or not all use visualisation to improve the end result. Thus improving confidence.

Controlling Emotions

Anxiety can promote performances that are erratic and inconsistent. If you find yourself in this situation visualise prior to a performance a relaxing environment in itself it is a form of meditation and self talk. It must be performed in calm surroundings. This technique will help you if you have a pre-disposition where anxiety degrades your performance. On the other hand, if visualising a higher state of arousal enhances your performance, then controlling this emotion can be as beneficial. Some of us know this as psyching up. The importance here is to be aware of your own emotions and what stimulates you to your best results and you must use the technique that suits you best.

Coping With Injury and Rehabilitation

Visualisation can also help you in areas such as coping with injury and rehabilitation. Sometimes when an athlete is not permitted to make any physical movements then visualisation is possibly the only way they can practice. They can practice routines in the mind and practice strategies mentally rehearsing the different scenarios in different surroundings and varying conditions, helping them in the future and relieving the boredom that comes with not being able to participate in their particular discipline.

Visualisation is a skill that must be practiced and rehearsed over and over again. The constant repetition and role-playing will enhance your visualisation skill, bearing in mind that you must visualise the start, the execution, and the final outcome of every event. You must also be aware to visualise what is achievable and not what is pure fantasy. I hope that you will go from here and practice your visualisation techniques and monitor your improvement.

Thank you for reading this article and I hope I have inspired you to experiment with this subject. The following pages are a questionnaire, which should help you to develop you skills.

What now?

VISUALISATION QUESTIONNARE

Read the following descriptions of four general sport situations. For each one, imagine the situation and provide as much detail from your imagination as possible (using all the senses-seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting, and smelling) to make the image as real as you can. Think of a specific example of the situation (e.g., the skill, the people involved, the place, the time). Now close your eyes and take a few deep breaths to become as relaxed as you can. Put aside all thoughts. Keep your eyes closed or about 1 minute as you try to imagine the situation as vividly as you can. Your accurate appraisal of your images will help you determine which exercises you will want to emphasize in the basic training exercises. After you have completed imagining the situation, rate the four dimensions of imagery by circling the number that best describes the image you had.

1 = No image present
2 = Not clear or vivid, but a recognizable image
3 = Moderately clear and vivid image
4 = Clear and vivid image
5 = Extremely clear and vivid image

For each situation, pick the number that answers each of these four questions:

a. How vividly did you see yourself doing this activity? 1 2 3 4 or 5

b. How clearly did you hear the sounds of doing the activity? 1 2 3 4 or 5

c. How well did you feel yourself making the movements? 1 2 3 4 or 5

d. How clearly were you aware of your mood? 1 2 3 4 or 5

Practice Alone

Select a specific skill in your sport such as hitting a backhand, vaulting over the bar, swimming the breaststroke, or kicking a goal. Now imagine yourself performing this skill at the place where you normally practice (e.g., gymnasium, pool, field, rink, court) without anyone else present. Close your eyes for about 1 minute and try to see yourself at this place, hear the sounds, feel your body perform the movement, and be aware of your state of mind or mood.

a. c.

b. d.

Practicing with others

You are doing the same activity but now you are practicing the skill with your coach and your teammates present. This time, however, you make a mistake that everyone notices.
a. c.

b. d.

Watching a Team mate

Think of a team-mate or an acquaintance's performing a specific skill unsuccessfully in competition, such as dropping a pass, falling off the balance beam, or missing an empty net.
a. c

b. d.

Playing in a contest

Imagine yourself performing in a competition. You are performing very skillfully, and the spectators and teammates are showing their appreciation.

a. c.

b. d.

Scoring

Now determine your imagery scores and see what they mean. First, add the ratings for your four answers to part a in each section, your four answers to part b in each section, and so on, recording them below.

a. Visual + + + =______
b. Auditory + + + =______
c. Kinesthetic + + + =______
d. Mood + + + =______

For each dimension, your top possible score is 20 and your lowest possible score is 4. The closer you came to 20 on each dimension, the more skilled you are in that particular area. Lower scores mean you need to work on those aspects of your imagery.