Pressure!

[ROBERT6500]

I'm with Ed all the way so far.Technique and compulsive practice of that technique comes first.Get to that plateaux of around 75/85 and then get into the psychology side of it. Until then technique and leaning to read the target your addressing is by far more important.Once there however the psychology side is very much needed.If you have ever watched the top shots grow through their stages of getting to the top you'll find that they started as we all do by missing most targets but bumping into one or two of them without understanding why. Then they start to hit consistently a certain type of target by doing the same thing every time in order to hit it. Then they apply that technique to another similar target but with a slight twist to get consistency and so on and so forth. All the time getting better technique and target reading skills.Once your up in the 80s then the main thing your are doing wrong is your mental preparation and routine to keep you focussed. But even total mental focus is useless without technique and target readability.Watch almost any top shot regularly and you will come up with the assumption that they are arrogant, miserable, unsociable bas***** that win every thing and it really pis*** you off about them because they get your hard earned cash every bloo** week.However, if you approach almost anyone of the top shots after the shoot maybe having a coffee or burger they are actually very nice people and no different to you or me.The only real difference between you and them is there concentration during the whole shoot, not just when in the stand. When out on the shoot though they have to stay in the zone/totally focussed which means not talking to anyone accept a chosen few who are almost always with them and they trust not to put them in a position of stress by talking about another top shot and there score or how many they have to hit to be in with a chance etc,etc. They are totally focussed both before and during shooting. What you'll find is that everything they do is as if they were suffering from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (O.C.D) because that's the the way you have to be to get to the top and stay there. They have a strict routine and stick to it, that way the chance of something they can't handle turning up is very slight.When I'm coaching a top shot that is going through a bit of a bad patch or indeed a good A or AA class shot and there are quite a few believe it or not, all I do is check the eye dominance and have a look at his/her technique/s, then look at his/her mental routine. If there are holes that have entered their routine I will fill it with something to keep them focussed permanently. Or I'll set up a complete mental routine if they have none which they must stick to.It only ever fails if there is an underlying problem like a death, bad divorce or health issue which I ask about at the beginning of the lesson so I know what I'm up against from the word go. /wp-content/forum-smileys/sf-wink.gif

 

[Salopian]

I think that the mind as a lot more influence than many of us realise in our shooting regime.What Sports Scientists are doing is unlocking that potential that is there, but also by observation and awareness they identify negative influences that we don't realise are at work. Once identified we can manage them.In answer to Nicola's question, detachment is the answer.When informed of a competitors score or improved performance, in your mindset you have to kick in that steely determination, 'Oh well done! I will just have to move up another gear'.When I am 'in the zone' you could set fire to me I wouldn't notice. If I have got my 'serious head' on I wear foam ear plugs and Peltor muffs and often dark shades. But I do this a few minutes before I am due to compete.Prior to that I am socialising, telling jokes, being a clown, this in itself can be beneficial as many competitors go to the stand wondering how I can be so silly and they then drop a target or two. Gamesmanship???But as previously mentioned the good competitors are normally very quiet spoken and focussed in the job in hand.I think mental awareness is very important as a finishing exercise, but skill and technique are the core subjects.

 

[psych4shooting]

The thread has grown and grown and had many sensible observations. I think it is safe to say that anyone at the top level or moving to the top level can benefit from sports science input of any aspect, be that mental or physical elements. But even for a newbie or an emerging clay shooter - the only way you are learning is from how your brain processes the information on shooting the target - so getting it right from day 1 will be as much mental as it is technical, especially in the reinforment of target memory transfer from short term memory to long term memory.

 

[ase 90]

Hi Phill.

I'm a fair shot and having lessons on a faily regular basis,and i'm just thinking is there an other side to this coin?

Hitting the targets is not a problem as my coach is a good one and i feel its just the concentration side that lacks.

Whats your thourghts please?

 

[psych4shooting]

Hi Phill.

I'm a fair shot and having lessons on a faily regular basis,and i'm just thinking is there an other side to this coin?

Hitting the targets is not a problem as my coach is a good one and i feel its just the concentration side that lacks.

Whats your thourghts please?

That is a great question, there is no simple answer, however as a good many posts within this thread have mentioned, there is a point where your scores will plateau.

The technical work with a coach takes you to a point where you can shoot every target, but not all the time, so you have the technical ability.

At, or even before that point, you need to be looking at the mental side of your shooting, not taking it apart, but understanding your mental strengths and your challenges within this.

There are many areas, concentration being one of them, but also your own internal pressure through fear of failure.

I do offer a Free Handbook which you can download from my site, that has some tips and ideas and acts as an introduction to the subject.

 

[ase 90]

Thank you Phill.

I've just applied for your hand booklet.lets hope it sinks in and gets me over this flat spot.

 

[psych4shooting]

Pleased to help, once you get your Handbook you can also get the monthly newsletter and much more too.

 

[Fauldsy]

Hi Nic when your at Owls Lodge on Saturday I'll give you the answer to your question to how you can take the good with the bad of knowing how well your doing and being told by others a score when you haven't finished the competition, What has actually happen in your mind is that you are now thinking and chasing a score which has made you subconciously doubt your ability and allowed nerves to creep in. It is very simple you can't get rid of Nerves, Don't even try, instead turn them into POSITIVE NERVES, It's good to have nerves, it means you want 'it' and have 'passion' for what your trying to achieve, so use them to your advantage.

Tanya

 

[** Pending Removal **]

Great Tan, always wanting to listen and learn. Thanks for the kind offer.

 

[Salopian]

Bloody Hell Nicola! You listen? That will be a first. :smile: :smile: :smile:

 

[** Pending Removal **]

If you knew me, which you don't , then you would know that I not only listen to all people for at least the first 10 minutes to see if they have anything interesting to say.....or to sell....you should never miss an opportunity....someone might have the bright idea that makes you loads of money. That has been my business motto for 40 years!

Please don't confuse it with not being scared to fight my corner, or others corner when necessary! Or the fact that I do not take crap from anyone no matter who they are....(wink).

If you are sensible you learn something new every day (laughs).

 

[jake.keeling]

This must be the best thread I've found on here, you're all talking about that little thing that makes choke talk, gun fit talk etc obsolete, the real difference between good and champion!

 

[Darkside]

An interesting one this. I spent a year spending more time/money on the mental side of shooting/sport in general with Henry Hopking who is at the absolute pinnacle of the area in my eyes.It certainly helped me break bigger scores consistently (and win the british sportrap, classic and a few other bits and bobs) and is a fantastically interesting area to learn about.I look at it this way; until you get to being pretty good (high 80s at sporting) your better off spending your time working on technique. I see the mental game as the icing on the cake if you will. Until your pushing for national teams kind of area I see shooting as 90% technical 10% mental. When you progress up the ranks I believe the % changes to the other way round!

Ed, I can't really disagree too much with that, but, would it not be better for someone approaching the mid 80's (or any level for that matter) to have at least some insight/coaching on the "mental" side, to prepare them, help them to avoid making mistakes or at least be able to understand and identify the misstakes as they make them?

 

[EdSolomons]

Id say not specifically, as it will be too in depth and in my mind, largely wasted. You will no doubt be taking a degree of tuition, and the better ones are able to go into the necessary mental aspects as part of the service that they provide you with. That is one of the reasons I would reccomend a decent coach who has experience of top level competing and winning; they know the stumbling block and sticking points better than anyone else, and will have developed ways to get themselves and their clients to overcome them.

 

[Henry]

I'd agree with Ed that for many people with low or sub 80's averages (sporting), working on the mental aspects of their game may be detrimental. It might be a distraction which knocks their scores south. They would be better advised to spend another year of solid technical coaching.

However there are a few points to mention. The training that Ed has experienced with me has been high level in depth training over a prolonged period of time. That is what he was ready for. He wasn't needing to focus so much on the technical so he would commit to mastering what I was trying to teach on the mental. So from that perspective it would be immoral of me to give similar style of training to someone less technically able (though I rarely see the words "moral" and "Ed Solomons" in such close proximity )

But I've had two interesting phone calls today relevant to this thread - one was with a OT shooter who's scores vary from 14 - 23 ex 25. To keep this in balance with the sporting numbers, a 23 is a 92% average and a 14 is a 56% average. They shoot low 20's for the first few rounds and it then dips as the pressure mounts. They panic with the nerves rather than work with them. So technically I know this person can shoot. They're struggling with consistency and possibly pressure. It's easier to measure this in trap compared to sporting as target difficulty of course varies stand to stand.

The other person is a newer sporting shooter with an average around 80% but says he needs mental training now. Because I know he's getting technical coaching from a good source, I am happy to work on simple basics. Not to the level that Ed had, at this stage. But just some basics. As @Darkside mentioned, just to better understand what they are trying to do. I would hope that as a coach, appropriate level information is delivered to the student; and that is really key. The objective would be to get them shooting a consistent mid 80's as a first stage, with a combined on-going support of solid technical and mental coaching. Then they can step up to something more in depth later next year which wouldn't have a negative impact (which it would now).

This is also one of the reasons my work with sports people is mostly 1:1 and not in groups. What is appropriate to one person could be wholly inappropriate for another, based on what I teach. But there may be some useful high level information on other areas you can get from groups or books. So I'd always encourage looking around. But just be clear on what you're getting!

The final thing I'd add is "support". A key factor is the support that a student gets from their coach; be that technical, mental or other. A shooter working their averages up through the 80's needs on-going support. This is either them committing to a series of sessions or the coach committing to providing a long term support relationship for them (preferable). That way the coach ensures they don't get overwhelmed and they ride out the problems ahead. Mastering the technical and mental aspects to get through into the 90's is not a smooth ride. But just having a single hour or day of coaching is a near pointless exercise in my opinion.

 

[sscottsmith1234]

After many years of shooting on and off I now have an average of mid 80's and can hit most targets. Now I am where I am i'm finding that the mental side of the sport is coming into it much more than ever before. I recon that if I'm not on the game I can miss 5-7 targets just for silly lapses in concentration or the wrong atitude towards a target,(taking a low 90 score down to a mid/low 80).

I have shot with the same gun for around ten years now and very seldom change cartridges or chokes, apart from the odd experement, so i have taken the variables out of my game. Meaning I know I can just concentrate on the central area that I need to now - my mind! Easier said than done!

 

[EdSolomons]

There you go Darkside, that pretty much replies to the message you sent! I can pass Henrys etails on to you if you wish, I would highly recommend him.

 

[Darkside]

Think I've got his details, Brain Training, right?

 

[EdSolomons]

That's the man! Got a page on facebook, link on my profile I think

 

[Darkside]

Liked it days ago.......