Back during this year’s Sochi Olympics–the big data connection to the World Cup continues–one of the most endearing and anticipated storylines came from American skier, Steven Nyman.
He’s been a veteran of the sport for quite some time. His middling track record and career proved to be at a crossroads. He endured a season-ending Achilles injury a few years prior and wanted to come back better than ever. In order to make this glimmer of hope a reality, he completely dispatched all previous, intuitive notions in favor for a scientific approach. Conventional practices wouldn’t be the answer to, surprisingly, place himself in position to contend for a gold medal.
Nyman proceeded with the gamut of scientific facets an athlete can undergo through. This new, comprehensive routine transformed his habits and raised his skill level. There’s one underrated factor, however, he applied that’s atypical to what’s recommended or instructed: psychology.
It’s common for skiers to imagine to themselves what every attempt could end up like. For Nyman’s case, he couldn’t simply zone in on the task at hand; rather, he became consumed by potentially negative outcomes. Team USA’s Performance Psychology Program Coordinator, Lester Keller, helped guide Nyman through a series of positive psychological exercises. He emphasized tranquility and efficiency as opposed to something that directly intends to tackle the problem as such. The hurdle of Nyman’s traumatic injury recollection would be overcome by strengthening his mental construct.
While Nyman did not go on to medal in Sochi, his experience speaks to a larger, taboo issue prevalent in sports: the scientific implications pertinent to the athlete’s mind.
Dr. Mara Smith, an avid gymnast growing up and lifelong mental strength coach after her Cornell University studies, has witnessed this discrepancy first hand. Even though most athletes would acknowledge there’s a mental component to their respective sport, they don’t do much for it. The time spent exploring the mindset of a player practically versus how much of it, indeed, functions within a game do not add up. Dr. Smith admits to SportTechie that there’s a lot of negativity associated with developing the mind and the sports psychologists treating it, which impelled her to place a lifetime’s work in an app called AthleteMinder.
The simple rhetoric has revolved around “because he’s a head case” or a “choke”. Such phrases represent predisposed beliefs between an athlete and a sports psychologist. Yet, they can be quite inappropriate and baseless–to a large degree at that.
To assume that any athlete would be fine to achieve success through solely dedicating themselves to physical training wouldn’t be prudent. Rather, the mind permeates as a glaring omission within the athletic arena in order to optimally perform.
“I think what every athlete really is looking for is a consistency in what they do; and a recognition that they can do their best when it matters most,” Dr. Smith describes what mental strength should be defined as.
Although everyone is consumed by the quantitative outcome of a given player’s performance, there’s plenty of case studies, like the aforementioned one of Nyman, that prove the qualitative value of exercising the mind. Dr. Smith has noticed that those who have included mental strength to their conditioning plan end up improving their respective learning curve of the sport. They’re individually more prosperous for it than beforehand. This implementation then becomes a natural part of the regimen. No matter what, the one aspect athletes can definitely control is the way they think.
It’s unfortunate that a standard hasn’t been established up to this point when it comes to mental health or preparedness. Dr. Smith is cognizant that this practice appears to be somewhat “lip service” and “trendy” among sports; and this is evident on both ends of the spectrum, positive and negative accounts. Regardless of caliber of the athlete, AthleteMinder doesn’t intend to be medicinal, pathological, nor therapeutic, but “really educational” above anything else. This app fortifies the player’s ability to apply the manner in which they think coupled with the physicality of their sport.
“I think reflecting on what you’ve done on a particular day, how you’ve done it, and how you’ve moved forward is really a very important tool to have,” says Dr. Smith.
In a sense, conversely, AthleteMinder’s principles parallel those akin to yoga.
The two run in the same vein insofar as endorsing the power of mindfulness, of the importance of being in the moment. They both decline deviating a thought process that’s too far ahead or mired in the past. It’s more so about just utilizing what the individual has succeeded with, focusing on the task at hand, and funneling all of this to get ready. The stereotypical rejections by athletes with yoga could be linked to the difficulty to embrace time and space. Instead of encouraging athletes to train more whenever they make mistakes, fostering an environment of thoughtfulness for their habits would come a long way.
Similarly, the app creates an interplay that’s approachable, nonthreatening, and nonjudgmental. Practicing the psychological and mental skills are strictly between the user and the app. It’s quite an interpersonal relationship, especially compared to social networks norms. The user doesn’t have to post external information or share it with others. The fact that nothing exists outside of the app, itself, supports a customizable, compartmentalized user experience.
At its core, the app comprises of three focal points: competition, training, and rest.
The first bucket is quite apparent to include due to its significance. Everything that occurs within a game setting takes a lot of mental focus throughout. The outcome from it delves into another phase of consideration. Competition, essentially, is about simplicity.
The second area is extremely critical for AthleteMinder because it’s where a lot of the work happens. There needs to be thorough understanding of the decisions and risks inhibited here. This prior period before the games, themselves, provides a ton of insights, in terms of the athlete’s faculty.
And rest stands as the least acknowledged part among a player’s routine. This element provides an avenue to seriously look back at what just took place. Peace of mind should be welcomed or worked towards after every practice.
That said, the questions compiled inside the app derive from a large survey that consisted of 700 athletes across nine different sports. It’s worth noting that the last two questions of the five in each category are eating and sleeping, which shouldn’t be dismissed either. They wanted to bring awareness that these actions are equally integral to functioning as an athlete as well.
While the app doesn’t feature guided visualizations or a specific relaxation exercise in it, the infrastructure around personal questions ensures the athlete has a purposeful interaction. This dynamic enables a reflecting state to transpire, albeit for three to five minutes. The former concept of either visuals or sensory exhibitions would empower users to transmit into perhaps a more comfortable, self-examining position. The app, though, does record data points from each session that the user can see progress reports, weekly or monthly statuses. Feedback, so far, has demonstrated such big data gathering to be helpful among athletes.
Concurrently, Dr. Smith touches on the barriers of adoption and then real life training application for it that can happen during this trial and education process: “What I often say to athletes is: ‘The same way that it takes time to build physical strength and skill, some of these things are also going to take time.’”
Overall, AthleteMinder aims to restructure the way athletes of all levels think about matters. This app doesn’t attempt to address particular symptoms. There’s an overarching need to channel extra energy towards competition into a more productive space. Inner discourse of an athlete’s mind tends to produce negative results that can easily be avoided instead. Outside and internal pressures are real and very difficult to put aside; nobody lives in a vacuum.
As for the $1.99 price point, though, Dr. Smith offers this statement: “I would ask any athlete how much they spend on their equipment for a season. Imagine a piece of equipment that can help you feel more in control as an athlete for less than the cost of one drink?”