Tag Archives: mental and emotional tennis

COGNITIVE CONTROL- PART 2

Posted on August 7, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential

PRE-ORDER SPECIAL

Preparing for Pressure to be released AUGUST 20th.

For Click Here to Pre-order the ebook through Amazon for only $2.99!

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RANDOM FOCUS CHART:

PAST

  • Mistake
  • Confrontations
  • Ranking
  • Seeding
  • Successes
  • Failures

PRESENT

  • Global Strategy
  • Tactics
  • Opponent
  • Profiling
  • Rituals
  • Routines
  • Optimism

FUTURE

  • Next Opponent
  • Ranking
  • Trophy
  • Parents Views
  • Friends Views
  • Lunch
  • Homework

Match-time meltdowns typically start when an athlete fails to stay in the moment. Staying in the present, focusing on performance goals is a crucial asset for the mentally strong athlete. It’s important to note that even the top athletes lose focus. The difference is that the seasoned competitors recognize the mental drift and quickly return to their script.

Lucky for most junior players, losing focus for a moment won’t make them lose the match. What does cause serious trouble is being unable to refocus and get back on script. It’s safe to say that preparing for pressure includes eliminating mental interferences.

 

Performing well under pressure requires that the athlete recognize when their mind travels away from the task at hand.

Neuro Priming – Part 2

Posted on May 17, 2019 by in Neuro Priming for Peak Performance

The following post is an excerpt from Neuro Priming for Peak Performance NOW available!
Click Here to Order neuro priming

The Sports Science of Neuro Priming

Neuroscientists report that mental rehearsal activates a network of neural coded motor programs in the brain that when primed activate the athlete’s correct physiological responses. By creating customized audio recordings and then routinely listening to the recordings, the athlete strengthens the neural pathways required for competition.

Why Neuro Priming Works

Mental rehearsal is a form of preventative medicine. It identifies the causes of an athlete’s anxiety. Neuro priming pin-points the possible problems and pre-sets their solutions. Performing at peak performance level requires the athlete to be confident and able to adapt when things go astray. In competitive matches, the athlete who has their pre-set contingency plans has superior confidence in their problem-solving ability.

Neuro priming is one of an athlete’s greatest defenses against performance anxieties. It assists the athlete in trading in pessimism for optimism.  (Note: Neuro priming may be a 3 -second between-point visualization routine or up to a 20-minute complete pre-competition review.)

ATP and WTA touring professionals are often quoted as saying the game is 90% mental and 10% physical. Neuro priming is a cutting-edge method to improve the mental and emotional components of a competitive athlete’s tennis game. As I stated at the beginning, an athlete’s routines and rituals ultimately define their success. I hope you find Neuro Priming for Peak Performance the key to maximizing your athlete’s potential.

Designing and Recording Protocols

Neuro Priming for Peak Performance is organized into five chapters.  Each chapter is devoted to a distinct tennis skill set. Designing an athlete’s personalized audio recordings is best completed with a high EQ (Emotional Quota) coach or tennis mind. The following is a step by step guide for all five sections. (Sample solutions for all five sections provided in Sample Solutions section beginning on page 59.)

Step 1

With your coach, discuss each of the audio recording topics and complete your personalized script of solutions. These solutions should result from on-court training and most proficient patterns and tactics. The athlete should be able to perform the solutions routinely.

Step 2

Once solutions are identified, find a quiet space, eliminate all distractions, and get comfortable while you read your customized scripts into your cell phone’s digital recorder. Allow 5 seconds in-between tips to enable time for adequate mental rehearsal visualization.

Step 3

Begin your mental rehearsals in a calm mental state by breathing deeply, eliminating muscle tension and controlling your wandering mind. While visualizing your physical, mental and emotional skill sets, apply realistic imagery using slow motion and real-time visualization.

 

Key Times for Neuro Priming

  • Nightly before falling asleep, especially before matches.
  • Early morning, when you’re just waking up.
  • Drive time/travel time.
  • Before competitive matches.
  • Between points & change-overs.
  • After competition as a performance review.

 

 

The Tennis Parent’s Bible Industry Quotes -3

Posted on February 1, 2019 by in Maximizing Tennis Potential, The Second Edition of The Tennis Parent's Bible

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

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Tennis Industry Quotes About Frank’s Tennis Parent’s Bible:

“The Triangle between player, coach, and parent is full of speed bumps and sharp curves! Everyone wants to accelerate and speed ahead to the supposed finish line. Too often what should be a fun and rewarding journey gets forgotten. kudos to Frank for providing a roadmap to developing a better young tennis player, and a better relationship with their coaches and parents……..forever.

This is a great resource for every coach who wants to develop great players and most importantly, responsible young adults.”

Chuck Gill, President USPTA

 

“Frank Giampaolo has created a masterpiece for the competitive junior tennis player’s parents.  The Tennis Parent Bible, in its’ second edition, clearly spells out what tennis parents need to know and understand about how to navigate their tennis playing children through this maze of highly competitive and performance driven tennis.  Don’t think about this one!  Just read it!”

Lane Evans, USPTA Elite Professional, iTPA Master Tennis Performance Specialist

 

“Frank is one of the most knowledgeable tennis coaches in the country. He has written, in my professional opinion, the best and most comprehensive tennis book for parents that I’ve read in my 55 –year tennis career.”

Desmond Oon, Ph.D., Former Davis Cup Coach (Republic of Singapore), Author, Master Pro USPTA

 

“A first-class book from a first-class coach. Frank is an encyclopedia of tennis knowledge, has extraordinary talents to share and is a model of professionalism. When all of these components come together, an excellent book such as The Tennis Parents Bible appears.

By educating yourself, your children will have better results. This book is a must-read for parents to understand how to educate themselves and to appreciate the extensive process they, their children and their coaches are undergoing while their children are developing their tennis skills.”

Shaul Zohar, Manager, Kiryat Shmona Israel Tennis Center

 

“The Tennis Parents Bible should be mandatory reading (with an annual rotating online quiz) that’s required for ALL PARENTS for their children to play in USTA events! Seriously. If parent training was required, it could change this sport in a powerful way for generations!”

Joe Dinoffer, President, Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd., USPTA and PTR Master Professional, Dallas, Tx.

 

“Reading The Tennis Parents Bible is like having a delicious conversation with a tennis guru who is generously sharing all of his knowledge, results, and lessons learned. As a former tennis coach, I’ve recommended this to hundreds of tennis families who come back to me within days overjoyed and excited. They feel like they finally can put all the pieces of the puzzle together. Quite simply it’s your go-to guide that is already a classic must-read for every coach and tennis parent.”

Ian Bishop, CEO of Coachseek, New Zealand

 

“If you’re a parent who thinks you already know all there is to know…hold on because you’re in for a bumpy ride.  This book is like turning a light on in a darkened room. I highly recommend it to any parent or coach serious about maximizing player potential.”

Angel Lopez, USPTA Master Professional, PTR Certified, Angel Lopez Tennis Academy

 

How to Build Mental Toughness

Posted on January 11, 2019 by in The Second Edition of The Tennis Parent's Bible

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

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HOW TO BUILD MENTAL TOUGHNESS

Players who are confident have a mentally tough aura about them. They are extremely intimidating because their confidence is obvious to all. It’s evident in their body language and facial expressions.  So, how can your athlete develop radiant confidence?

First of all, your athlete starts by reading about it. Then they gain it on the practice court. Mentally tough competitors earn this impenetrable wall of confidence by preparing properly. Mentally tough players are much more than just mentally tough. They are mechanically sound, emotionally unflappable and physically fit enough to thrive in third set warfare. Yes, they’re mechanically tough, emotionally tough and physically tough.

Below is a checklist of components that need to be developed by your child’s coaches.  Remember, it is your job as the CEO to assist the coaches in raising athletic royalty. 

Developing Mental Toughness Checklist:

Stroke Mechanics:

  • Develop reliable fundamental (primary) strokes.
  • Develop a tool belt of secondary strokes.

Mental:

  • Organize & rehearse your child’s top 7 patterns of play.  (Generic Strategies)
  • Rehearse patterns of play used to pull different styles of opponents out of their game. (Stylistic Strategies)

Emotional:

  • Organize their between point rituals & changeover rituals (both internal & external.)
  • Pre-set protocols to handle performance anxieties.

Athleticism:

  • Build the speed, agility and cardiovascular requirements needed to endure two separate three-set matches a day.
  • Build the strength and stamina required to close out six matches in a 3-5 day (64 player draw) event.

 

My students have won close to 100 National titles to date. Each one had a parent and an entourage of great coaches who were very involved in organizing and implementing their developmental plan. Most often, these champs worked their deliberate, customized organizational plan for 2-3 months before becoming National Champions.

 

Special Note to Parents: A partially committed parent is simply a hobbyist. That’s fine – tennis is an incredible hobby that teaches many life lessons. However, a hobbyist parent should be satisfied with raising a hobbyist tennis player and not expect champion results. In today’s game, it’s unfair to expect your child to become a champion without parental commitment.