PERIODIZED MENTAL TRAINING PROGRAMS: ADVANCING MENTAL TRAINING FOR THE 21 st CENTURY Bernie Holliday Center for Enhanced Performance United States Military Academy

MENTAL SKILLS TRAINING: THE GOOD NEWS…  META- ANALYSES & RESEARCH REVIEWS  WHEN DONE CORRECTLY  MAKING IT PERSONAL

MENTAL SKILLS TRAINING: GOOD IDEA, BAD EXECUTION  BAND-AIDS AND QUICK FIXES  BROKEN MAGIC WANDS  A WIDE VARIETY OF SHINGLES TO CHOOSE FROM  SCARY WEIRDNESS  SPINELESS

MY INTRODUCTION TO PERIODIZATION…

THE NEXT EVOLUTIONARY STEP IN MENTAL SKILLS TRAINING…  Bridging the gap between physical and mental training  Periodization as a MST backbone  Understanding  Acceptance  Utilization  Integration

THE K.I.S.S. APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING PERIODIZATION  BORN IN EASTERN EUROPE  SYSTEMATIC AND PROACTIVE  DIFFERENT NEEDS AT DIFFERENT TIMES  TRAINING CHANGES AS NEEDS CHANGE  TYPE OF TRAINING  VOLUME OF TRAINING  INTENSITY OF TRAINING

MST PERIODIZATION: A THREE-STEP APPROACH… 1.BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THE TEAM’S LONG-TERM TRAINING CYCLE 2.MATCH MST SKILLS TO MEET THE SPECIFIC DEMANDS DURING EACH TRAINING PHASE 3.SYSTEMATICALLY MANIPULATE THE VOLUME AND INTENSITY OF MST DURING EACH TRAINING PHASE

Peaking Competitive Preparatory Base MST PERIODIZATION: STEP #1  GET TO KNOW THE LONG- TERM TRAINING CYCLE, SPECIFIC TRAINING PHASE GOALS, AND THEIR DEMANDS

Peaking Mental readiness plans CompetitiveMSTskills PreparatoryMSTtools BaseFoundationskills MST PERIODIZATION: STEP #2  MATCH MST SKILLS TO MEET THE SPECIFIC DEMANDS DURING EACH TRAINING PHASE

MST PERIODIZATION: STEP #3  SYSTEMATICALLY MANIPULATE THE VOLUME AND INTENSITY OF MST DURING EACH TRAINING PHASE

VOLUME AND INTENSITY  Volume  Amount of mental training  Emphasis on mental training tool development  Intensity  Difficulty of skill  Complexity of skill  Specificity of skill  Consequences of failure  Emphasis on mental skill development

PURPOSE OF STUDY…  IS PERIODIZED MST EFFECTIVE?  DEVELOPING MENTAL SKILLS  INCREASING USAGE AND EFFECTIVENESS OF MST SKILLS  IMPROVE PERFORMANCE  ENCOURAGE A “PLAYING TO PLAY GREAT” MASTERY- ORIENTED MINDSET  ENHANCE TEAM COHESION

PARTICIPANTS

INSTRUMENTS

 Test of Performance Strategies  64 items  5-point scale per item  Practice and Competition  Self talk  Emotional control  Automation  Goal setting  Imagery  Relaxation  Activation  Positive thinking (competition only)  Attentional control (practice only) DOES PERIODIZED MST ENHANCE THE ACQUISITION AND USAGE OF VARIOUS MENTAL SKILLS?

 Sport Confidence Inventory  Trait self-confidence  13 items  9-point scale per item DOES PERIODIZED MST ENHANCE THE ACQUISITION AND USAGE OF VAROIUS MENTAL SKILLS?

 Performance Profiling procedure  Individualized performance profiles  Athlete selected 8 critical performance skills  Each skill is rated from 0-100%  Athlete self-ratings  Coaching staff ratings of athlete  Overall performance profile score  0 – 800 DOES PERIODIZED MST IMPROVE PERFORMANCE?

THE PROGRAM…  THREE MONTHS  SPRING TRAINING SEASON  TEAM WORKSHOP EACH WEEK  INDIVIDUAL MEETING EACH WEEK  FOUR DATE COLLECTION PERIODS  PRE-PROGRAM  MID-PROGRAM 1  MID-PROGRAM 2  POST-PROGRAM  FOUR TOURNAMENTS DURING THE FINAL MONTH

Peaking Recovery Routines Between-Point Routine Pre-match Plan Mental Readiness Plans Competitive Teamwork Factors Focus and Concentration Self-ConfidenceMentalSkills Preparatory Self-talk, Imagery Relaxation, Energization Goal Setting Mental training Tools Base Motivational Orientation Awareness Training Attitude of a Champion Foundationskills MST PERIODIZATION: STEPS 1 & 2

 Developed during pre- season collaborative planning meetings with coaching staff  Tailored to coaches’ feedback regarding team and athlete needs at various training phases throughout the spring season  Carried out during weekly team workshops and individual meetings

 MST volume and intensity were regulated during individual meetings  Adherence to periodization crossover principle  Personal needs sometimes trumped periodized skill development MST PERIODIZATION: STEP #3

Mental Skills Usage  12% increase in mental skills usage during competition  9.3% increase in mental skills usage during practice  11% increase overall

Specific Mental Skills Usage During Competition  23% increase in automaticity during competition  17% increase in relaxation during competition  14% increase in positive thinking during competition

Specific Mental Skills Usage During Practice  16% increase in goal setting during practice  16% increase in relaxation during practice  15% increase in automaticity during practice

Self-Confidence  6% increase in trait self- confidence

Performance Profiles  23% improvement in athletes’ self- ratings  15% improvement in coaches’ ratings of athletes

POST-PROGRAM INTERVIEWS…  Personalization is key!  During the fall season, for every hour of your competition…  16 minutes playing  44 minutes spent between points  Goal setting improves performance by at least 5% for most athletes  2003 record of 5-13  2003 record of 10-8 with 5% increase  Love affairs with goal setting  Everything was tied into their long-term goals  Weekly goals aimed at skill development and long-term goals  Individual meetings were more helpful than group meetings  The girls appreciated “My time”

WOES AND OH NO’S…  This all sounds great. Can you start tonight?  On-the-fly assessments  No true multiple-point baseline  Single-subject, repeated measures, multiple baseline, case study, blended quantitative- qualitative thing!  Descriptives for this presentation  Lack of a more systematic regulation of intensity and volume  No control group  Wed. address by Martens

LESSONS LEARNED…  Periodization is an effective framework for delivering MST programs, but is it more effective than other service delivery methods?  Periodized MST contributed to performance improvements, but to what extent?  Personalizing to the team, individualizing to the athlete, and goal setting contributed to the program’s success

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! HappyHalloween!!