Peak Performance.....

When referring to peak performance, we don't mean just good or really good - we mean "best of your life" good. Athletes who have experienced a "peak performance" have discussed their experiences with sports psychology researchers, and they reported the following: (a) They had a feeling of ease and effortlessness. Things came easy. They didn't feel the need to force anything. (b) They had a feeling of "flow" or "fluidity". (c) The activity they were doing seemed intrinsically enjoyable. They were having fun. (d) They experienced a loss of self-consciousness. They weren't thinking too deeply about anything.

The objective of the "When I'm Unstoppable" exercise was to increase your awareness for what you are thinking and feeling when you play your absolute best. Becoming more aware of what this state of mind feels like will help you "try to get yourself there" more often.

Optional bonus section: Science!
A few of you wanted to know the scientific reasons behind some of the concepts that we have been talking about. If that is you, please read on. Otherwise, this will bore you to tears and you should save yourselves now.... Most sports psychologists think that people experience less neural activation in the prefrontal cortex (the part of the brain that is responsible for planning and conscious thought) when they are in a peak performance state. In other words, in sports requiring some element of skill and precision, an fMRI (a brain scan that measures neural activity) will reveal less neural activity in the prefrontal cortex when athletes are at their absolute best than when they are playing average or below average. A few studies exist that support this hypothesis. Here is a link to a PBS special about one golf putting study done at Arizona State that provides some support for the idea that too much "left brain" (i.e. prefrontal cortex) activation can be bad for performance. This is the "most consumable" format for this type of study that I could find for you. If for some reason you want to see actual neuroscience and psychology research articles I can provide them for you....