More on peformance anxiety from knackered downunder.

Expecting to win and dealing with the accompanying pressures are part of the life of an elite athlete. But what happens when you’re among the elite, but don’t necessarily expect yourself to win?

That’s the dilemma facing Michelle Wie, the extraordinarily talented 17-year-old American golfer, who has set herself the target, so far unsuccessful, of competing against the men in a PGA tour event.

In an interview with ESPN, Kathy Whitworth – a veteran golfer who leads the LPGA Tour with 88 wins – says Wie’s desire to play in men’s tournaments may not be beneficial for her own career or development as an athlete because top sportspeople need to experience pressure and the belief that they will win.

Continue reading ‘overcoming pressure and winner’s belief’

The ability to be anxious is hard-wired into us. It is part of the natural survival mechanism that prepares us for fight or flight. In a recent issue of Peak Performance newsletter, sports psychologist Dr Costas Karageorghis describes how sporting competition promotes similar psychological and bodily responses because there is often a threat posed towards the ego and self-esteem. But look at the list of symptoms that Karageorghis ascribes to anxiety and it is clear how crippling the condition is in other areas of life where even straightforward as opposed to elite performance is required.

Here is just a list of cognitive symptoms of anxiety:-

Continue reading ‘don’t make me anxious’