Yips and loss of figures
When the body knows how to move, but the head is no longer following, some athletes may experience periods of resistance to initiating a movement, especially in technical and acrobatic disciplines. This creates a vicious cycle that can lead top athletes into a difficult-to-control downward spiral, leaving physical and psychological imprints. However, it is possible to assist these athletes in regaining their form and sensations. Yips and loss of figures:
Yips and loss of movement
Athletes often encounter a phenomenon called yips or loss of movement in technical and acrobatic disciplines such as diving, gymnastics, trampoline, as well as in activities like pole vaulting, shooting free throws in basketball, or aiming in archery. Suddenly, they become unable to perform a dive, execute a twist, complete a pole vault, or release the rope, even though they had previously mastered these techniques flawlessly. Acrobats lose their spatial orientation, basketball players miss their shots, pole vaulters lose their momentum, and shooters' arms tremble. It feels like falling into a black hole or experiencing a blackout, leaving athletes and their coaches perplexed. "I've had nightmares about it several times," confirms Marine, a trampolinist. "Every time I approached the springboard, I felt stomach ache and sweaty hands."
Destabilization
Marine, while practicing synchronized trampoline, lost her spatial orientation in the air due to a simple white square on the gymnasium wall that resembled a canvas, which had previously destabilized her.
Deprived of her sensations, the trampolinist crashed during the world championships a few days later. Initially considering it a temporary malfunction, she experienced another setback during training in November. "During a session, I got 'lost' in the air," she explains. "I couldn't perform the expected movement, and negative thoughts took hold of me. Fear of falling and getting seriously hurt started to consume me. I would go to training with a knot in my stomach, get on the trampoline, but then refuse to perform. It felt like I had forgotten how to execute my tricks."
Jade also faced difficulties after a negative training experience. "I had to attempt a new movement on the 3m springboard for the major international competitions in 2021, but I kept postponing it because I didn't feel confident," Jade explains. However, there came a point when I had to go for it. I climbed up without much confidence, executed the dive, but lost my orientation in the air, opened up at the wrong time, and landed flat on my back in the water. Luckily, it was more fear than harm, but for several weeks, I couldn't bring myself to repeat the dreaded movement. I was stuck because I was afraid of making another mistake and, this time, hurting myself."
Loss of sensations and confidence
Similar to Marine and Jade, many athletes have experienced this loss of feeling and a crisis of confidence. Sometimes these episodes are isolated and temporary, while others struggle continuously. On the path to the Tokyo Games, Kevin admitted to fearing pole vaulting on multiple occasions. The memory of trampolinists like Fabrice, a gifted athlete who became the European champion and World Cup winner in 1993 but had to end his career prematurely due to recurrent loss of movement, weighs heavily on everyone's mind.
Motor simulation and visualization
Motor simulation, particularly in optimizing the return of athletes from injuries, proves effective in supporting athletes who face temporary or lasting resistance to initiating movement. The findings of neuroscience scientifically explain the positive effects of this approach.
When athletes mentally simulate a movement in their minds and then physically perform the same movement, they activate common areas in the brain. These include the motor and somatosensory zones responsible for sensations. Through motor simulation training, athletes
are able to train not only their mental representation of the movement but also enhance their actual performance. When an athlete encounters difficulty in initiating a movement, coaches and professionals tailor an individualized program to their specific needs, considering their experiences, resources, emotions, and the nature of their sport. They integrate different components of motor simulation and refine others as the athlete progresses.
Once the movement is rediscovered, the work of motor simulation continues to reinforce the achievements. It is crucial because lapses in performance can quickly resurface due to fatigue, both physical and mental, as well as stress or pressure. The ultimate goal of support is to ensure that athletes become self-reliant, internalizing the processes with occasional updates when necessary.
Causes of loss of movement
Various factors contribute to the manifestation of these behaviors, making it challenging to pinpoint a single cause. The reasons are diverse and closely tied to the athlete's personal, emotional, and sporting history, as well as their individual development.
In sports like gymnastics, diving, trampoline, or figure skating, each practice session presents opportunities for falls, injuries, or witnessing such incidents among training partners. Each of these episodes is stored in the athlete's memory and can have a profound impact. At a certain point, a triggering event such as another fall, an injury, or the pressure of an upcoming competition can evoke fear and create a blockage that persists over time, or even indefinitely.
The athlete finds themselves unable to perform a specific movement, despite their body's ability to execute it. The mind fails to follow suit. When such a disorder emerges, it becomes crucial for the athlete and their coach to revisit the basics, starting anew with fundamental elements, relearning the foundations, and rebuilding the athlete's connection with their body and their sport.
Coaching and techniques
To overcome the resistance to initiating movement, coaches and professionals can offer support and practical techniques. One such approach involves addressing traumatic memories and conditioning the nervous system to recognize that those memories no longer pose a threat. Athletes also need to understand that their inability to initiate movement does not reflect mental weakness or lack of effort.
Other potential solutions include cognitive-behavioral therapy, which aims to identify and address unwanted behaviors, emotions, and thoughts through the learning of mental skills. These skills enable athletes to improve concentration, transform inappropriate thoughts into more constructive ones, manage anxiety, and reclaim their sense of control over movement. The implementation of these strategies requires competent professionals and a collaborative effort involving the athlete, coach, and support team. It is a process that demands time, patience, and a calm environment.
Rebuilding
Gradually, athletes can reconstruct their movements by starting with basic elements repeatedly. It is common for them to face moments of discouragement, which is where our role as supporters comes into play. We must restore their confidence, offer reassurance, provide encouragement, and stand by their side.
To overcome her downward spiral, Jade chose to work with an innovative approach based on motor simulation, primarily involving visualization, observation, and verbalization. By visualizing the problematic dive in her room or training space and associating various sensations, she managed to not only conquer her fear but also regain her technical prowess swiftly. "It's incredible that even when I visualize the challenging dive in my room, I still experience stress and sweaty hands," Jade reveals. "But thanks to this work, which instilled confidence in me, I no longer let fear hold me back. Instead, it propels me forward. I question myself less when I step onto the springboard, and I feel more connected to my movements."
Next read: https://mentalaccelerator.com/resource/lucidity/what-is-proprioception