Leo-tai and I were discussing a national competition
which we’d just watched together.
“Have you ever noticed,” he mused, “how
sometimes, even when an athlete’s performance seems
to be going really well, that it’s almost as if some sort of
stress takes hold of their entire game and everything
starts going downhill for them?”
How interesting I thought: he’s so right. Why is it
that big leads and strong advantages all seem to crumble
and disappear under pressure sometimes? No player is
immune to it; even great champions sometimes fall
victim to it. In the end, even they will admit that at one
time or another, they too have “choked.”
“So what causes it,” I asked, “and what can be done
to fight it 먹튀사이트? What about the guy in the tournament? Did
he just suddenly become afraid of losing?”
“In a way, but not exactly, because a choking
episode begins when a competitive situation threatens
the athlete’s ego,” said Leo-tai. “It’s a little like having a
fear of failure-but choking goes beyond the fear because
choking is the actual physical response that’s triggered
by the psychological threat to the ego. Choking is more
than just having a fear of failure-fear is in your head.
Choking happens when performance is actually affected
by the nervousness, stress, and worries about looking
bad if things go wrong. It’s very different from the fear
of facing a dangerous or life-threatening situation.
These are subtle distinctions, but big differences.”
“Yes,” I admitted, “but I’m not sure that I can tell
the difference.”
“Perhaps that’s because the physical symptoms
brought on are so similar. But remember that their
causes are different. Nervousness and stress in either
situation will affect an athlete’s breathing pattern to the
point where the delivery of oxygen to the brain and
muscles suffers, and he begins to feel anxiety. As an
ineffective breathing pattern kicks in, his performance
begins to suffer just when he needs his skills the most,
just when the pressure’s really on. However, choking is
actually caused by an ego that’s worried about looking
bad, not by any real or perceived danger.”
“So what could that champion have done?”
Leo-tai shook his head. “His mistake was that he let
his fear of looking bad take hold and gain momentum,
bringing on the nervousness and anxiety that caused the
actual choking reaction. What he needed to do was to
start using focused breathing, thus beginning to reduce
anxiety on the spot. As one uses focused breathing, one
is able to begin to relax. Oxygen fills the body,
reanimating the muscles and causing anxiety to subside.
Suppleness returns, bringing renewed confidence with
it. Feel the relaxation as you exhale; as you begin to
bring anxiety under control, things begin to get better
for you.”
Leo-tai switched off the TV.
“In these cases, one must use focused breathing to
help bring you back into control, back into the present,
and to allow yourself to feel the pressure subside . . . But
Daniel-san, remember: since choking springs from your
ego, it’s not enough to address the physical symptoms
alone, although it’s OK to start with them. As soon as
focused breathing begins to help, you must also take
control back from the ego.”
“Go on,” I said.
“To do this, momentarily pick a focus point in your
immediate environment and fix your eyes on it as you
continue your focused breathing. This will help shift the
focus away from yourself and to refocus on the particular
task at hand. The outside focus helps us to reduce the
ego focus-which is really what is causing all the
problems in the first place . . . Once an athlete really
understands what causes choking, he can set out to shut
it down so that he can immediately begin to refocus on
the challenge at hand, and keep it from getting worse.
Once you see choking for what it really is, you can avoid
the experience by using this strategy. Learn to leave
your ego outside of your event, or it will always end up
getting in the way.”
Remember: Performance choking is caused
by an ego that is afraid of looking bad. You must
learn to leave your ego outside of your event.