Mental Skills Philosophy

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  • LR1955
    Super Moderator
    • Mar 2011
    • 3355

    #16
    Stokes:

    Secret stuff only given to CIA Snipers? Ok.......... Since you disclosed that this type of thing even exists on an open forum, I expect a few black helicopters to pay a visit in the near future. He, he, he.

    Much of my current training involves mental skills / enhanced performance / psychological skills so I try to stay up on the current research and theories involving such improvement. For years, psychologists have tried to find ways where an athlete can control his heart rate, among other things, and do so on demand and in a very short period of time. So far, no such luck. And, for the most part, heart rate had little or nothing to do with success or failure. This includes shooting sports. You will not be able to change your heart rate significantly enough, on demand, in very short periods of time. And, if guys think heart rate is the key to successful shooting, go to the firing line sometime in a completely rested state; dry fire until you are very comfortable with your position; put on a blind fold and shoot your string for score.

    Before guys go out and get books on self-hypnosis, I recommend they talk with a clinical hypnotist. You will be surprised at how few times their professional attempts change behavior or intrusive thoughts. If they could do so, many mental illnesses would be cured, no one would fail in their attempts to quit smoking or drinking, etc. And, their protocols take months and even years before they see any significant change.

    Lanny Basham is a motivational speaker. He won an Olympic gold in small bore in the 1970's because he changed how he viewed himself, his training, and his sport. His lectures and book are a story of this change and its successful results. The book and tapes intend to transfer his experienes into daily life. His information on goals setting and accomplishment, is very good. However, the rest of his information becomes pretty vague as he tries to transfer it towards all activities and all walks of life. And, a-lot has changed in the understanding of mental skills since the early 1970's.

    Take this one from Stokes to the bank. "I used to spend countless hours making sure my loads were perfect, my rifle was tuned to perfection, all my equipment was the best that could be had. I've finally learned that my wisest use of time is in mentally training myself to shoot tens and X's."

    From my work, the problem here is that most people do not know how to think / what thoughts to be put in their head, that they trust will work to some substantial degree, no matter the conditions. And it really isn't as simple as repeating a phrase when doing something. Basham likes using positive self-talk. My experiences show that positive self-talk is more positive self-lying unless you are at the very top end of the sport, and self-talk has meaning to that particular sport. Guys know if they are good or not and no matter how many times they may repeat some positive self-talk phrase, they sill know they suck if they really suck or are good if they are really good. When Basham started using positive self-talk, he was already a National champion and had competed at the Olympic level. He was not only good, but he knew he was as good as any Olympic level competitor. What self-talk does, though, is to shift attention from some sort of distractor and this is normally good. If it shifts you from attending to something significantly related to your success though, then such talk is probably not useful and may be adverse.

    If I told you guys anything more, I am sure that someone from the CIA would pay me a visit I would not like. He or she or it would probably have to cut off my head and lock it in a safe at night.

    Actually, there isn't a one size fits all with the performance enhancement stuff. Shot gun approaches to its use won't work out too well although they won't hurt anything, either. To really focus a mental skills program towards someone, it takes interviews and perhaps some testing. These days, attentional focus issues, controlling arousal levels, and what we know as situational awareness are things that are of importance. At least these are the things I deal with when I get involved in the training of folks.

    Good stuff, Bob. I am pretty sure this year you will make your High Master.


    LR1955

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    • #17
      I'm not so sure the tapes work as designed or work because they require you to concentrate on mental control, I don't really buy into the hocuspocus stuff, but I do buy into paying attention to mental control. However, my firend does buy into it, and I can't argue with his national records.
      Bob
      PS I have several of Larry Bashams books and video's. There is something there.

      Comment

      • LR1955
        Super Moderator
        • Mar 2011
        • 3355

        #18
        Originally posted by stokesrj View Post
        I'm not so sure the tapes work as designed or work because they require you to concentrate on mental control, I don't really buy into the hocuspocus stuff, but I do buy into paying attention to mental control. However, my firend does buy into it, and I can't argue with his national records.
        Bob
        PS I have several of Larry Bashams books and video's. There is something there.
        Bob:

        Sounds like some sort of guided imagery script. Relaxation techniques, clear the mind, then focus on what is important. This type of thing can be very beneficial.

        LR155

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        • #19
          Yes, exactly what it is. But just listening to the guy is, well spooky, I can't imagine the process that approved funding this guy, it must not have had oversight.
          Bob

          Comment

          • LR1955
            Super Moderator
            • Mar 2011
            • 3355

            #20
            Originally posted by stokesrj View Post
            Yes, exactly what it is. But just listening to the guy is, well spooky, I can't imagine the process that approved funding this guy, it must not have had oversight.
            Bob
            Bob:

            I have written a couple of guided imagery scripts for some fellows. They are kind of nuanced as good ones are made specifically for the individual based on what ever things the performance psychologist / advisor / coach / etc., and the individual found to be most effective. Just note that not all of them are intended to relax although all I have seen or dealt with are intended to allow the person to give as much attention to one thing as possible.

            In the case of High Power where there is no need to physically exert yourself, the relaxation is more done allow you to focus your attention than anything else. And apparently, this one is doing what you need so no need to change it.

            Look up 'Centering' under some sort of sport psychology web site and it explains things a bit more than I have time. Nothing real complex.

            You may want to do some reading about visualization too as most athletes use imagery and visualization as part of their training program. It is a bit different than running a script while you are competing. This one is done at home and many use it in their training program. Although I am sure I have the abbreviation wrong, run a search using PTTLEP and you will find the latest on imagery.

            One reason why you will go places in High Power is because you are willing to spend the time on the mental side of that specific sport. You have to train the mental skill as thoroughly as you train the physical skill. Most guys try the mental stuff in practice but not while competing. The guys who use it during practice and in competition are not only the upper ten percent of those athletes who use mental skills, they are also probably in the top ten percent in their sport.

            LR1955

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            • #21
              I have to agree, you first have to visualize that you can hit it. The worst thing to go up against, aside from unforeseen wind is actually thinking that you cannot do it. Nothing is tougher and harder to overcome than that. You just have to be familiar and know what you are going to do so as you can go and take and pick the shots that you are going to hit.

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              • waynemac
                Unwashed
                • Dec 2016
                • 6

                #22
                Interesting...
                I shoot benchrest. Not a very physical game, but it requires your gun handling to be pretty good. The game I shoot is called UBR. It's score shooting, and the goal is to hit a little dot for a score of 11. That corresponds to an X, and of coarse there are 10, 9, 8 rings as well. Wind reading in this, is the MOST critical of any other shooting sports you'll play. Components have gotten more, and more expensive, and so I don't practice at the range anymore. I sometimes have a morning commute of an hour and it's all interstate, early in the morning, and so I shoot a match in my mind as I drive. I've shot so many matches I have all the little nuances in my memory, and so I drive and shoot. I see the wind flags, I've got a 2-2.5 MPH wind coming from the 10:00 zone and holding steady. My rifle's in tune, and perfectly zeroed so I hold a little shallow in the 9 ring and touch the 1.5 OZ. trigger. I see the cross hairs move up in recoil, feel the butt stock touch my shoulder, then I grasp the trigger guard and slide the rifle forward to inspect my perfect eleven. I work the bolt, insert a fresh round and close on it, then settle the rifle in the rest in preparation for the next target.

                This all started after I read a story about an Airforce pilot who was shot down and captured, then put in a small cage. To keep his mind from going to mush, he played 18 holes of golf every day... in his head. After he was released, and went back to civilian life, he played his first game of golf since his capture... the best game he had played to that point. His best game... made so from all the practice he had did during his incarceration.

                I'm convinced it works. I normally shoot at least 2 matches a month during the season and have been in the top 3 or 4 where ever I shoot. I'm curently ranked 3rd in modified class for shooter of the year and 5th in unlimited class. Please feel free to look that up on the Ultimate Benchrest site.

                In closing, please understand it's not my intention to brag, just qualifying my point. The surface has just been scratched, and there's potential for much more as we delve into the mental game.
                Try it, it can be a game-changer if approached with an open mind.

                Wayne
                Last edited by waynemac; 01-13-2017, 10:48 PM. Reason: Proof reading

                Comment

                • Texas
                  Chieftain
                  • Jun 2016
                  • 1230

                  #23
                  Originally posted by lijaco View Post
                  I have to agree, you first have to visualize that you can hit it. The worst thing to go up against, aside from unforeseen wind is actually thinking that you cannot do it. Nothing is tougher and harder to overcome than that. You just have to be familiar and know what you are going to do so as you can go and take and pick the shots that you are going to hit.
                  I do much better on live targets than paper. Because of a 300 Win Mag which kicked me all over a mountain, I do have to think about not flinching, but I find I concentrate on moving targets much better than stationary except for live game which takes the center focus and everything else seems to fall into line. Definitely a mental game once one learns how to shoot properly.

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                  • ShooterScott
                    Unwashed
                    • Dec 2016
                    • 9

                    #24
                    I equate it a to like golf, once you get the basics down and practice a ton, it comes down to mostly mental. I know if my mind isn't clear and my breathing relaxed chances are I'm not going to perform as well as I usually could.

                    Also, not to get into a lot of woo woo, but I know in Japanese archery they speak a lot about the mental side and focus. For whatever that's worth.
                    Love shooting over anything else -- full time manufacturer worker, part time blogger

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                    • LR1955
                      Super Moderator
                      • Mar 2011
                      • 3355

                      #25
                      Originally posted by ShooterScott View Post
                      I equate it a to like golf, once you get the basics down and practice a ton, it comes down to mostly mental. I know if my mind isn't clear and my breathing relaxed chances are I'm not going to perform as well as I usually could.

                      Also, not to get into a lot of woo woo, but I know in Japanese archery they speak a lot about the mental side and focus. For whatever that's worth.
                      SS:

                      I think the mental side and focus is true in any activity where a person must direct something towards a target of some sort. I think that archery may be the most studied of the martial sports.

                      LR55

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                      • drewthebrave
                        Warrior
                        • Aug 2016
                        • 208

                        #26
                        "Baseball is 90 percent mental.
                        The other half is physical."
                        - Yogi Berra
                        I think this also applies to marksmanship.

                        Comment

                        • LR1955
                          Super Moderator
                          • Mar 2011
                          • 3355

                          #27
                          Originally posted by drewthebrave View Post
                          "Baseball is 90 percent mental.
                          The other half is physical."
                          - Yogi Berra
                          I think this also applies to marksmanship.
                          DTB:

                          Forgot the 2% luck.

                          LR55

                          Comment

                          • Johnny555
                            Unwashed
                            • Nov 2020
                            • 3

                            #28
                            Sometimes it is really hard for me to keep calm and don't get furious, but I have started practicing meditation and it really helps me to control myself

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