In the middle of competition season things really start to heat up in the gym. All Star Cheer is an evolving sport with a detailed scoring system (‘the scorecard’) designed to fairly assess different cheer routines to determine a winner. Our aim at Evolve is to focus on the strengths of our teams and highlight them in the routine to maximise the score. We love seeing our athlete’s progress throughout the year – they certainly learn new skills they didn’t have at the beginning of the season! While a lot of hard work has already gone into learning and refining the routine, small changes are sometimes necessary to maximise the team’s performance to incorporate the new skills learned over the year.
These changes can sometimes make it difficult for athletes to adapt and can be a source of anxiety for some. This short blog talks about different sources of anxiety and how to overcome this to perform at your best!In the middle of competition season things really start to heat up in the gym.
All Star Cheer is an evolving sport with a detailed scoring system (‘the scorecard’) designed to fairly assess different cheer routines to determine a winner. Our aim at Evolve is to focus on the strengths of our teams and highlight them in the routine to maximise the score. We love seeing our athlete’s progress throughout the year – they certainly learn new skills they didn’t have at the beginning of the season! While a lot of hard work has already gone into learning and refining the routine, small changes are sometimes necessary to maximise the team’s performance to incorporate the new skills learned over the year. These changes can sometimes make it difficult for athletes to adapt and can be a source of anxiety for some. This short blog talks about different sources of anxiety and how to overcome this to perform at your best!
Trust is the key
Anxiety creeps into our mind when we are unsure of our ability to achieve a certain skill, trust in ourselves, our team mates and coaches, all of which are crucial factors in cheer.
How to manage performance anxiety
If everyone is confident in themselves and their ability to perform their role, then the routine will fall into place. Positive self-talk and acknowledging you have your own strengths can help foster self-confidence. If you are feeling worried, talk to your coaches, they are there for you and want you and the team to succeed, but not at the cost of being stressed and anxious!
Competition time: Managing those backstage butterflies
One common type of anxiety is the feelings of doubt an athlete gets backstage prior to a performance. Our brain may seem like it is trying to ‘psyche’ us out, telling us to have negative expectations about ourselves. If we let this get to us, then this is probably going to be the case. This is where we need to try to practice positive self-talk, which can drown out the negative in our cognitive thought process. Focus on the situation at hand whether it is back in the gym, on the performance floor or warm up room to replace the anxiety and focus on what you can achieve.
“Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right” – Henry Ford, on the power of self-confidence
When the adrenaline starts pumping… breathe
Our perception of how our performance will go will increase our state of awareness and get the adrenaline pumping. When we are in this heightened state, it is easy to become anxious, especially if we are tense or feeling nervous about the competition. Self-confidence needs to be an active part of an athlete’s environment to encourage performance and the ability to handle change. The intensity of the anxiety is an individual aspect of dealing with the sport as we are all different and need our own coping strategies. When we are in this state one simple thing we often forget to do is breathe. A few slow, deep breaths can help get us back to a state of awareness, but not anxiety.
Staying in the cheer ‘bubble’
All Star competitions can be hectic! It seems like there are a million people going a million miles an hour in every direction. It is very easy to be overwhelmed in this environment and disconnect us from our team. Focus on your team and stay in your cheer ‘bubble’, everything else is a distraction. What matters is when you are with your team; it’s you and them and nothing else.
Anxiety not just for athletes!
Competition season falls on a busy time of year and can overwhelming for everybody. At Evolve, we try and communicate clearly with parents well in advance of competition day to give everyone enough time to plan their day, minimise confusion and hopefully take the stress out of competition time. We want it to be fun for everyone, parents included! We do our best to clarifying any questions before arrival so you can enjoy the time you are there and celebrate your child’s performance and amazing progression through the year! If you have any questions or uncertain about anything, please just ask!
If you’re interested in your child giving All Star Cheerleading a go, feel free to contact us to arrange a free trial class. We also have team placements for 2018 coming up in early December so this is a great chance to trial for free a few classes to see which suits your athlete best.
