Comments on: How to Become a Better Athlete – A Geek’s Story

By: mrdude

mrdude — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 11:42:57 +0000

I’m sorry for you you learned this so late. Good thing you finally learned this though…

I’ve learned this lesson at around 13 of age, but I do have an athletic body, so I needed both to reach the top

By: awsomenesswithgirls

awsomenesswithgirls — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 20:48:45 +0000

im not a geek, infact im popular, and good with girls, but was never very athletic, thankyou, i will try this, even though im probably not even focusing on the ball in the first place, no wonder i can only pitch and play qb

By: christine

christine — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:38:52 +0000

Good article. Thanks for posting it! I am currently a Div.I college track athlete but I originally struggled with sports especially track. You have hit the nail on the head with the honest secret to success in athletics. Thinking is good at practice and before competing but once a race starts a clear mind is key. Its hard to clear your mind but necessary. More than meditating, having a one track mind is important. I was taught in high school different tricks for every distance of running. I had a great coach who recognized that I was kind of a head case when it came to athletics so he tried to teach me ways to not over think a race. some techniques: short sprint hold your breath, mid distance concentrate on the girls pony tail in front of you try to keep it at the same distance or get closer till the kick, or if there is no one to pace yourself off of find objects at a distance like a scoreboard and concentrate on getting closer. If you start thinking go faster go faster or marking how far you’ve run so far it doesn’t help. My high school coach said in a pre race talk he use to give, something along the lines of: the mind is weak and the body is strong. If you let the mind decide it will let the feelings of fatigue and pain slow you down but if you can shut out the thoughts for a brief time, the body can take so much more then the mind is willing to give. so shut your thoughts out the best you can and let the body show you how far it can be pushed.
I think he was right. It worked for me anyway. It goes for all sports that if you over think and tense up there is no way you’re gonna preform well. Glad to see other people agree.

By: kwt23

kwt23 — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:56:02 +0000

well written article. you should try putting it up on Knols. It is a good lesson. Another lesson or tip is that you should start your sport early. I just finished high school and enjoy playing basketball. I realized i like basketball just like 2yrs ago! I always think that if i was dribbling the ball when i was 4yrs old (like all cinderella-story athletes) i could’ve become something. Should i give up? I don’t know…

By: Marco

Marco — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 23:22:07 +0000

I am also a geed and am really glad you published this. Im 14 years old and each sports season I try a sport, but none ssemed to click. Recently I started analyzing people’s sports technique as I do with many other things.. Your article will change my life because I now relize its not all technique that matters its letting go and changing your mind.

By: Greg

Greg — Wed, 16 May 2007 13:44:54 +0000

Apologies,

“What you have done is removed the ball” should read

“What you have done is mentally removed the ball” …..

By: Greg

Greg — Wed, 16 May 2007 13:43:11 +0000

As a soccer coach, I’ve seen that it can be difficult for children with parents present, because they feel intense pressure to please their peers between the ages of 7-12.

These are the golden years of learning sport. But the pressure can destroy the enjoyment, which in turn removes the confidence, which then removes the ability to perform well.

From a golf perspective, what you have done is removed the ball from the swing, which is correct and correctly set your own expectations, which may have been too high previously.

Most poor golfers try to hit the ball instead of performing the swing. Nick Faldo perfected his swing for over 3 months, without hitting a single ball! Then went on to win the open with a precise consistant swing.

“Swing it slow and watch it go. Swing to fast, and you’ll come last!”

By: libsys

libsys — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 03:22:08 +0000

“A snap decision can be better than mulling things over when facing quick quizzes, according to a new study that gives insight into the brain’s higher-level processing.”

http://www.livescience.com/humanbiology/070109_trust_instinct.html

Apparently, going with your gut often works better than protracted rumination even in purely intellectual persuits….

By: Ted

Ted — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 01:14:49 +0000

FWIW, over thinking keeps a lot of geeks from getting laid.

By: aikidoka

aikidoka — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 20:28:22 +0000

Great comments. I’ll second the gist of the article: You CAN get good at a sport even if you’re older or a geek or whatever. So get out there and find a sport or activity that helps you improve your fitness. The benefits extend to your whole life. Another good book is George Leonard’s _Mastery_.