Tag Archives: maximizing performance

Customizing A Developmental Plan

Posted on January 1, 2018 by in Raising Athletic Royalty

The following post is an excerpt from Raising Athletic Royalty NOW available through most online retailers!
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 Raising Athletic Royalty

GOAL SETTING

LESSON: You Get What You Pay For

Dr. Chang Lee practices medicine in Los Angeles. His son Ken enjoys the game of golf and is on the local high school golf team. Ken is a junior and again missed the cut for varsity; he was sent back to the JV squad for another year. Ken wants to play golf for a major university and is seeing his dreams slip away.

Dr. Lee and Ken made the drive down to Laguna to do our three-hour Customized Evaluation Session. After the cordial chatting, we get into the details of Raising Athletic Royalty. Within 15 minutes a reoccurring theme starts to appear. Dr. Lee has Ken in a golf clinic two days a week at his country club. The one-hour clinics consist of 18 junior golfers ranging from the age of 9-17.

The clinic is marketed to be taught by the club’s golf director, an X-PGA player, but it is really run by his two assistant pros. In reality, Ken gets access to the range and a 9-1 ratio of player to pro for two hours a week.

I explained that range hitting isn’t “practicing in the manner in which your expected to perform.” It’s simply block learning being applied in a game that requires very different flexible skill sets. The type of grass, length of grass, the slope of the lie and the weather are just a few variables that must be addressed in the game of golf. Managing performance pressure, club selection, focus control and reading the course all play a part in Ken’s ability to shoot a low score. Besides, I added, even if Ken was only focusing on a fundamentally correct swing, a 9-1 ratio clinic for two hours a week isn’t going to maximize potential at the quickest rate.

Once I got Dr. Lee’s attention, we ran through Ken’s evaluation package. It turns out that even though Dr. Lee is very educated and successful; his raising athletic royalty skills were below par (no pun intended).

Dr. Lee thought that by placing his son, Ken, into the golf director’s group clinic at their country club, that Ken would get the proper training for a collegiate golf career.  However, the clinic was not providing Ken with the essential components needed to attain elite athletic stature. Such components would include: organizing a personalized developmental plan, assisting with stroke mechanics, arranging practice rounds, strength training sessions, scheduling tournaments, helping with equipment preparation etc. Ironically, the golf director didn’t even know Ken’s name.

Towards the end of our session Ken said, “Dad, it makes sense now, if putting is the worst part of my game, hitting drives and irons off the mats for two hours a week isn’t even addressing my biggest flaw! We have been wasting so much time.”

We customized a developmental plan and shed light on the essential components that needed to be developed in Ken’s game. A goal without a plan is just a dream.

FYI: Parents, if your child is only attending a few private lessons or group clinics each week, please don’t assume that a world-class developmental plan is in the works. Also, please don’t expect high-level results.

 

 

“Achieving Goals Requires Flexibility And Compromise.”

 

“Goals Should Be Beyond Your Current Reach Yet Realistic and Under A Timeline.”

 

 

Maximizing Tennis Growth Potential

Posted on November 6, 2017 by in Blunders and Cures, Customized Organizational Plan, Maximizing Tennis Potential

The following post is an excerpt from the Second Edition of The Tennis Parent’s Bible NOW available through most online retailers!  Click Here to Order  black_ebook_design2

 

 

 

 

 

ACCELERATED GROWTH BLUNDER: Not Seeing Stumbling Blocks as Stepping Stones

 

Regardless of the comfort level, accelerated growth demands aborting ineffective strokes, strategies or tactics and systematically re-tooling them. Change is mandatory for growth.

 

“Change is the only thing that’s permanent.”

Here’s a terrific example: a few years back, Molly Scott (former 2006, SCTA #1, Dartmouth College #1 standout) sprained her non-dominant left wrist.

Her initial position was to follow protocol which was no tennis for 4-6 weeks. Molly called saying, “Frank, I have to cancel my training for 4-6 weeks because my left arm is sprained.”

I said, “That’s upsetting, but we needed some time to switch focus anyway. This actually fits into a new developmental plan. We’ll begin to organize your proactive patterns and between point rituals, we’ll develop your one-handed slice backhand drop shot and your low, backhand volley. Let’s begin today with a new 4-week crash course on lower body fitness and stamina.” Molly’s voice dropped to this low, quiet depressed tone, “ooohhh….really..aahh…that’s… um….super.”

 

Six weeks later Molly beat a top ten player in the nation as she applied her newfound slice backhand drop shot to perfection!

 

Overthinking in Competition

Posted on October 27, 2017 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential

The following post is an excerpt from Raising Athletic Royalty NOW available through most online retailers!
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Raising Athletic Royalty

ZONE

LESSON: Parental Fear, Stress and Overthinking

Courtney is a future star and USA nationally ranked gymnast. She lives in Bend, Oregon and is homeschooled so she can focus on her training. Courtney performs in the zone and religiously nails her routine in practice but seems to falter in actual competition.

Her mom, Kelly, called me and wanted to discuss this disconnect. “How can my daughter be so talented and never win? We do this full time. I leave no stone unturned. Courtney knows the importance of national events.  Winning the nationals is her ticket to the Olympics but she always finds a way to choke.  What’s wrong with her?”

We set up a Skype session and began to uncover why Courtney was having difficulties in competition. I asked Courtney why she felt that she was not getting the results she was capable of achieving. Quickly, Kelly interrupted, “Her head gets in the way; she’s so worried all the time.”

I then ask Courtney another conversation opener, “Courtney, performing at your peak potential requires you to begin with your pre-routine relaxation rituals. Can you tell me about yours?” Once again, Kelly jumps into the conversation, “I talk to Courtney to pump her up before each event. She acts like she doesn’t want to hear it.”

I was beginning to see the stressor that was blocking young Courtney’s ability to perform in a relaxed, positive, confident state of mind. Just to be sure, I ask Courtney one more question, “Courtney, have you ever heard of this statement: Focus on controlling the controllables and let go of the uncontrollables?” Once again, Kelly interrupts and adds, “Honey, he means your routine.”

Within the first few minutes of our hour-long Skype session, their story was already unfolding. Kids aren’t born with fear and stress. These are learned behaviors.  Kelly is both the reason Courtney is a gymnast and the stressor that is preventing Courtney from performing at her peak performance.

I then told Courtney that I would share a very similar situation I had with another gymnast from California. But first I had two questions for Courtney about an athlete’s ability to only focus on the exact protocols needed to perform at their peak- controlling the controllables.  (Controllables are the thoughts, attitudes, and feelings that pull you closer to your goal of an excellent routine. Uncontrollables are the thoughts that pull you away from focusing solely on your performance routine.)

I asked if Courtney could name a few controllables? Surprisingly, Kelly allowed Courtney to answer and she did brilliantly, “It’s, like, my cadence, my breathing, my landings?”

“You nailed it!” I said, Then I asked, “Can you name any uncontrollable thoughts that shouldn’t be in your head during competition?”

Courtney replied, “Hum…. I guess … choking?… and…winning the whole event.”

“You are correct sister!” I enthusiastically responded.

I followed up with telling her about my familiar story:

A few years ago, I worked with a gal from California with almost the identical difficulties in regards to competing. She and her mom viewed each event as a loss if she didn’t win the whole thing. We talked about flipping her goal from always having to win the event to simply perform an excellent routine. Her best overall score in a national event was 8.6.

So in her next event, the Winter Nationals, she scored an overall 9.4 – exceeding her best score ever! Then an hour later, a competitor nailed her Double Twisting Double Layout and scored an overall 9.5 to take the title.

I then asked Courtney, “Did my gal control her controllables and perform better than she’s ever performed in a national?”

“Yes, she exceeded her best score ever, right?” asked Courtney.

“Absolutely, she performed better than ever. She achieved her goal of improving her performance- a very important goal for a competitor your age. Could she control her opponent’s performance?”

“No.”  Courtney said, “That’s an uncontrollable, right?” “Right”

For the rest of the Skype session, I chatted with Kelly about her parental role of de-stressing Courtney prior to competition rather than adding stress. We talked about the ability to nurture letting go of the outcome and focus on the performance. Courtney’s issues were really manifested by Kelly’s worries, stress, and fear. Kelly promised to pay attention to her own attitudes and thoughts and try to enjoy the journey instead of agonizing over Courtney’s gymnastics.

Parents, if your focus and stress are all about the outcome, how is it possible to expect your child to focus on their performance. After all, isn’t that what matters most? Performing in the zone requires trusting your skills and letting go of the uncontrollables.