THE FLOW STATE - ARE YOU FINDING IT?

By Coach Lisa Spink

I am sure you have all heard of the elusive phrase of "being in the zone" - that crazy place in sport where everything is calm, effortless, painless, perfect- it is that sweet spot - once you have experienced it all you want to do is feel it again.. It might contribute to why we all get hooked on sport because we just want that feeling of "being in the zone" again.
 
There is heaps of research going on in this area - they are calling it "Flow" now and it is in all walks of life not just sport...
 
But most interesting to us is how do we get into flow - previously we have had no control over it, sometimes we are in flow and sometimes we aren't when we are training or competing. Neuroscience is finding one of the main ingredients to "Flow" is focuss..
 
And here are some ways the research is suggesting we get and maintain focus to get into "Flow"

1. Have clear goals - that doesn't mean those big goals standing on podiums singing national anthems, it means bite size goals that are very CLEAR - no grey. For example not just completing the swim set, but completing the stroke count, the breathing pattern the RPE everytime - small goals every time you push off.
2. Immediate Feedback Loop - we can't wait to go home download the data to see if we are on track - Flow needs immediate feedback, ie was the stroke count what we want,  was the breathing pattern right, did I hit the target time/ intensity. 
3. Challenge/Skill Ratio - to get into Flow we need to be in the middle of  the mental states of boredom and anxiety. Most research in flow is saying it is most prominent when we are challenged by 4% above our current prowess.

 
So here is a start for us to unlock our physical performance through some easy mental skills which are equally easy to implement. So many times I hear elite athletes and coaches talk about race day being 90% mental  - getting in the zone - flow. If that is the case we better start training some mental skills before the big dance. So it's time to start practising these skills to improve our performance. Practise in training and in competition.... 
 
Coach Lisa Spink