#65 - Unconscious Sabotage

One of the most frustratingly powerful negative forces in swimming (to avoid) is unconscious sabotage. This is definitely the one to avoid at all costs! Unconscious sabotage causes a swimmer to 'self-destruct' during the pressure of a race, through making a host of major and uncharacteristic errors that were simply never there during training. This is certainly not fun, as there's absolutely nothing you can consciously do at the time to change the situation, as the problem is not conscious, it's sub-conscious (or below our normal conscious awareness).

The only way to stop it is to prevent it happening in the first place. Self-sabotage occurs when your subconscious mind has accepted a powerful negative thought which creates a mental 'program' for your body to follow during the race. For instance, a mental program such as "I can't beat (John/Sarah)" - one such as this can cause a swimmer to completely lose rhythm right at the vital time when they may have been on the brink of victory. This is unconscious sabotage, and it can become a recurring habit over time if not watched carefully. I have seen swimmers who had been going through this for years, before they made the mental changes necessary to break the pattern.

Classic signs of this can also be a severe lack of faith in your own ability, a major obsession with worrying about the 'uncontrollables' before races, and of course, losing from a winning position. This sabotage is generally brought about if you allow your mind to focus for too long upon failure and all the things that could go wrong - as this sets up a powerful blueprint for the body to follow on the day of the meet. The good news is that your subconscious mind is programmed by your everyday conscious thoughts - so this mean that you actually have control over what goes IN to your subconscious. You have the right to CHOOSE whether you are going to think about success in your next race, or how you are going to 'bomb out' - and this choice separates the winners from the wannabees.

If you experience self-sabotage it takes a steady diet of daily visualization, affirmations and positive thoughts on a daily basis until the results begin to turn around - for more info on this you can also go to tip #2 and tip #3. Probably the most effective way to avoid sabotage is to generally avoid negative thoughts in the first place. Choose to disregard momentary doubts and negative comments from others, and focus purely on what you want to do - or better still, what you are GOING to do.

Remember - what you choose to focus upon, expands. Ensure you choose every thought wisely, especially leading up to a meet - choose thoughts of power, strength, confidence, energy, fun and motivation. Your thoughts become your habits, and your habits become your results.

The Mind controls the body, and the mind is unlimited.
The best of success, Craig Townsend

More Mind Training Tips for Swimmers

Motivation & Sport Psychology for Swimmers

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