Imagination, or imagery practice, is a powerful way to enhance a sports performance because it recruits various senses. It is the senses of sight, sound, smell, touch, taste, and vision that create the emotional hooks necessary for an efficient mental movie. The more senses you are able to incorporate into an imagery session, the more powerful the image will work in your favor during competition.
“Imagery is one of the greatest tools used in sports psychology to enhance performance. This is done by enhancing motor skills and muscle memory and it is also used for motivation. Studies have found that practicing imagery, along with regular training, enhances muscle memory and sports skills faster and further than regular training alone. In a competitive world where only the slightest improvement can be the difference between a champion and a runner-up, we need to take all the opportunities that we can to become elite at what we do.”
Steven Roy Mann, sports psychologist and Martial Arts teacher
- In the video: the full film of the ascent of the first 9c in the world. Adam Ondra on “Silence”
