We can all remember a Super Bowl when the quarterback crumbled under pressure, a basketball game when the crowd was able to influence a shooter’s free-throws, when distraction impacted the outcome of the final score. We have all been struck with performance anxiety; the feeling on the day of the big test.
Athletes, who perform under significant stress, must have a refined set of tools to overcome this pressure. Among many, they require the highest level of visual performance to process significant amounts of visual information in a short amount of time.
Under dynamic circumstances, athletes have to know where they are in space, determine where their teammates are, where the ball is, where the target is, and where the sidelines are, all in a small span of time. They are required to process large amounts of visual information at a constant and quick rate of speed.
When the visual system is strained, our ability to accurately navigate the world around us is compromised; the peripheral visual system shuts down, visual clarity may fluctuate, and our sense of reality often becomes warped. The more stress we endure, the more we are not able to act on visual information appropriately.
The good news is that, not only can visual burnout be managed in just a few simple steps, but there is also an opportunity to train your visual system, allowing you to enhance your performance on game day, no matter the pressure.
Wellness routines are fundamental in allowing the visual system to perform at its highest level, under the most extreme stress. Breathing exercises, relaxation, nutrition, and sleep are all prerequisites to proper visual health.
Another valuable tool to be used before, during and after competition is visualization. Visualization acts similarly on the body as the actual action of the event, increasing heart rate and muscle activation, almost as if you’re physically there performing.
Visualizing each aspect of the competition, from how you personally want to perform to the physical location, helps prepare you for the high stress event.
Bench Press World Record holder Julius Maddox has found a lot of success using visualization in his pre-competition routine, to understand that his body is in the correct position, to imagine the movements he needs to make for success, and to “see” himself accomplishing his goals. However, he reports that the physiological response that accompanies visualization, can result in the tightening of his muscles, which can throw him off his game.
Maddox is now working with Praxi to find a way to relax his body before, during and after visualization, and his competitions, to ensure his visual relaxation can allow him to perform at his peak without any drawbacks.
This is why visual relaxation and meditation are crucial components to any training program. Visual meditations can last several minutes, but they don’t need to last any longer than five seconds, making it easy to ground yourself, even in the midst of competition.
Individualized vision enhancement programs can also be designed to help athletes “build visual performance above demand” – meaning the training challenges the athletes visual system at a level above what they may need during high stress competitions. This helps to ensure competitors can automatically, quickly and effectively, manage their visual stress in the moment, leading to victory.
Including the visual system as part of a training regimen, allows for peak visual performance even in high stress environments. So the next time you find yourself in the championship arena, you will find improved confidence knowing you have all the tools you need for success.
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Praxi is Vision Therapy experience in VR and on mobile devices designed to relax your eyes and neuro-visual pathways to restore you to a rested and relaxed state of focus. Through various exercises, you will train your visual system, learning skills such as improving your focus, improving your reaction time, opening up your depth of vision, and increasing your peripheral vision.
