Articles for sport parents to help their young athletes manage those pregame nerves to play their best with confidence.
What Do Pregame Jitters Mean? Summary: Pregame jitters are the nervous, jumpy feeling athletes get before competition — racing heart, sweaty palms, a knot in the stomach. They’re a normal sign that the body is gearing up to perform, not a sign that something is wrong. In most cases, jitters … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Do Your Sports Kids Get Nervous About Competing? Some young athletes believe they can’t be successful if they’re nervous. But this isn’t always true. Those who get nervous believe there’s nothing they can do to control these feelings. As a result, they often perform tentatively and don’t do well. They … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How to Perform Freely We received an email from a young athlete what is feeling nervous… “I have a figure skating competition next week and I was wondering if there are some tips to help me for the competition. I get really nervous for no reason. And I do really … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Do Your Athletes Have Pre-Game Jitters or Anxiety? A sports parent asks: “My sports kid gets especially nervous before some games and seems to kind of psych himself out before the game even starts! Is there anything I can do?” Pregame jitters are a common source of anxiety for players. … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Helping Sports Kids Overcome Pregame Anxiety Just before a game, your kids may say they’re feeling jittery and will look distracted, over-excited and tense. They may have sweaty palms and a pounding heart. In many cases, such feelings are pregame jitters or “butterflies” that actually help kids perform better. These … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Instilling Mental Toughness in Sports Kids Parents and coaches, preparing kids mentally for games is one of the best ways you can help them feel ready at game time. Why? Because kids who possess mental toughness often have higher confidence levels and perform better. First of all, understand it’s best … Read Sport Psychology Tip
High Expectations in Youth Sports Parents, it’s easy to hurt your sports kids’ confidence before a game by saying or doing things that you think will help your athletes. You may think that you’re boosting kids’ confidence, but in reality, you might cause them to feel more expectations. For example, … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Over-Coaching Young Athletes Many parents we talk to are guilty of this mental game no-no before their athletes enter competition… Over-coaching your young athletes. When you over-coach kids just before a game, you fill their heads with information they really don’t need at that moment. Just before a game, kids … Read Sport Psychology Tip
What Sport Parents Should Avoid Lisa Cohn here from KidsSportsPsychology.com. I admit it. I said and did all the wrong things with my first young athlete, especially before a game. Long before we got in the car, I’d start talking about the last game. I’d talk about how big the … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Anxiety in Youth Sports Nearly 20% of the population suffers from anxiety, and young athletes are no exception. In fact, kids who have mild anxiety might experience high anxiety in stressful sports situations. Parents and coaches, you can help identify when sports kids are suffering from anxiety- and determine how … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Are You Helping Or Hurting Sports Kids Before Games? Just before a game, sports parents can significantly boost their kids’ confidence and focus—or they can rattle kids’ nerves. The hours or moments before a game begins can make or break your kids’ experience… If you spend a lot of time … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Pre-Game Stress In Youth Sports Are your sports kids stressed before games? Do you know the signs and causes of stress in young athletes? Stress can really undermine kids’ confidence and success. And that hurts their performance and happiness. We talked to Debbie Mendel, a stress management expert and author … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Overcoming Pregame Jitters Most top athletes and coaches are aware of the importance of a calm mind and relaxed body for kids to reach peak performance in sports. And so am I… If your athletes are tense, worried about outcomes, or bring stress from life into competition, they will under … Read Sport Psychology Tip