"The Map" Part 5 - How to Recover Quickly from Match to Match

Your post-match routine is another area where developing simple routines can be beneficial.
At the end of any contest there is the desire to relax, celebrate perhaps, reflect on performances and identify ‘what went wrong’.

In order to make this period as productive as possible you can employ:

Physical Recovery Routines
You might include a stretching and icing pattern (particularly if you are prone to stiffness or chronic muscle or joint injuries) or the use of a cold bath immediately after a game. The following morning have a light run or a swim. The point of these activities is not only to aid recovery, but also to allow you to assess whether you have the usual post-match soreness or have strained or injured something.

Mental Recovery Processes

This includes thinking about:

• The things you enjoyed most about the game
• The things you did well
• Areas you might handle differently in the future.

It should always be positive and forward looking and where possible should involve a second or third person whose opinion and ideas you trust. This is best done a little while after the "heat of battle" when everyone can look at performance in a less emotional way.
A word to parents here: Never have a detailed conversation about how your son or daughter performed in the car on the way home from the game. Your conversation should focus on finding out how much fun your child had and reinforcing your support for them regardless of how they performed.

The Ritual

Players often find themselves dwelling on poor performances much longer than the good ones and this can have a very negative impact on development. Having a special routine whereby you celebrate the successes of the team – individual good performances or collective efforts – can help you ‘finish’ the day and thus move forward quite quickly so you can prepare for the next game in a positive, focused and enthusiastic manner.
This ritual may involve singing the ‘team song’; shaking hands and congratulating or commiserating with each of your team mates; or simply listening to the same favourite piece of music in the car on the way home. It is so important to move on after each game. Find some little ritual and I am sure this process will start working for you.

Remember: If you stay physically and mentally fit you give yourself the best chance of improving your game and achieving you goals.

"The Map" Part 4 - Staying Focussed on Playing The Game

There is a large mental side to cricket and it is often our thinking that gets us out or stops us bowling well.

There are a lot of distractions going on through the course of a game: In the middle, waiting to bat, waiting to field, taking lunch, tea or a drinks break. What is required is a set of routines or processes you can employ, almost without thinking, that will allow you more time and ‘brain space’ to focus on playing the game as well as possible.

These routines will vary from person to person but there are some fundamentals:

• Must be easily performed and repeated. You want to save your mental and physical energy for the game, so employing a complex or lengthy routine will be counter-productive. Where possible try and build on something you already do naturally.
• Must be completely within your control. Make it what you do, not what you and a mate do to get ready to play. He may be sick one weekend and then what? If you need some equipment then make sure you have that equipment in your kit, not something you borrow on game day. If you want to do some skipping every so often while you are waiting to bat, get your own skipping rope!
• Make it specific to your own personality, physical makeup and mental strengths and weaknesses. Some people respond better to images than words, some respond better to sounds. Experiment and discover if listening to a CD has a more lasting effect on your ability to concentrate than reading a note or visualizing an image. Is skipping a better mini activity for you to perform while waiting to bat than using a dot mat?
• Must not be disruptive or a source of distraction to your team mates. Remember you are playing a team game and the team will have its own warm up routines etc. Remember that these routines are designed to get the team ready to play, so they should be performed with 100% effort every time. Your own routines will be added to these so make sure you have the time to perform your routines as well as the teams. If you are doing something that may be distracting, take yourself away from the group when appropriate and work on your own.

Let's look at some examples.

Game day routines for a junior club cricketer
This guy will probably be playing a reasonably short game with quite a bit of coach input. Typically he might arrive at the ground, put his gear down in the change room or wherever the team is basing itself and then go out to the centre and have a look at the pitch as well as the outfield and the length of the boundaries.
Having done this he will take part in the team warm up, during which everyone does a few throwdowns, some target bowling and some fielding. Our fellow might concentrate on:

• His set up and initial movement during throwdowns.
• Working his front arm when target bowling.
• Bending at the knees and at the waist when fielding.

Once the toss is decided, if he is on the batting side he must keep track of wickets and overs and make sure he is ready to bat when called upon.
He may get his gear ready when he is 3 wickets away from batting, put his pads, box and thigh guard on when he is 2 wickets away and keep his helmet and gloves with him when he is next in.
Once he is in, his thoughts and actions between deliveries should form a simple routine:
Relax; self talk: “Watch the Ball like a Hawk – Move to the Ball – Control the Bat” Check the field for gaps.
Once he has finished batting, the player should take some time to sit quietly and relax, have some food and drink if he is going to have to field later in the day and then rejoin his team mates.
If he is a bowler, perhaps some extra energy food and water would be taken on board. At the change of innings he must do a stretch and bowl a few deliveries, focusing on rhythm, line and length. When called on to bowl, he should mentally go through his list of 'Must Dos', for example: ‘Run through the crease, keep my head still, big wrist flick’.
He should have a routine for between deliveries to help him ‘fine tune’ his action and implement strategies to each batsman. Even a junior cricketer’s game day is full of smaller routines!

Game day routines for a senior club cricketer
The senior player will probably be playing in a longer form of the game so he should also develop some ‘waiting’ routines for when he is not directly involved in the match.
If he is waiting for a lengthy period of time with the pads on, he may get a skipping rope out of his bag and do a couple of minutes skipping. Or maybe he will produce a golf ball and do some underarm rebound catching in the change room (as long is it’s not distracting other players!).
If he is waiting to bowl, he may do a mini stretching routine every 4 or 5 overs so he is ready when called upon.
At the end of a days play, the senior player should do a stretch and a warm down routine before he leaves the ground. This will reduce his risk of muscle soreness, particularly helpful if he is playing a couple of days in a row.

Remember – the reason you introduce a routine is so that you can focus more acutely on the really difficult stuff: batting and bowling! Your mind must be uncluttered and your body ready to perform. Routines provide the necessary organisation.

 

Some Information about Relaxation

Relaxation

Relaxation itself can be useful in a number of circumstances including:

• the promotion of rest, recovery and recuperation
• the removal of stress related reactions, e.g. increased muscular tension, etc.
• the establishing of a physical and mental state which has an increased receptivity to positive mental imagery
• the establishing of a set level of physical and mental arousal prior to warming up for competition

Mental Imagery

When combined with positive mental imagery it is useful in:

• developing self confidence
• developing pre-competition and competition strategies which teach athletes to cope with new situations before they actually encounter them
• helping the athlete to focus his/her attention or concentrate on a particular skill he/she is trying to learn or develop. This can take place both in or away from the training session
• the competition situation

How do I achieve relaxed muscles?

Progressive muscular relaxation involves the active contracting and relaxing of muscles. When a muscle is tightened for 4-6 seconds and then relaxed, the muscle returns to a more relaxed state. This process should be performed for the following parts of the body in turn - feet, legs, thighs, buttocks, stomach, back, neck, shoulders, arms, hands, jaw, face and eyes.

How will relaxed muscles feel?

J.H. Schultz in the 1930's noticed that patients in a relaxed state experienced one of two sensations: the feeling of warmth or the feeling of heaviness in completely relaxed limbs. During the relaxation process, concentration should be focused on one of these sensations. For the first few sessions, the athlete should alternate the focus between sessions to determine which one they prefer.

Can Relaxation have a Negative Effect?

In a competition situation an athlete will either be:

• Under excited; low in arousal; find it hard to "get up" for the competition; disinterested; etc.
• Over excited; high in arousal; over the top; nervous-anxious; scared of the competition; sick with worry; etc.
• Optimally excited; nervous but in control; looking forward to the competition but apprehensive; thinking positively; feeling good; etc.

If we were to use relaxation procedures with an over excited athlete, we might be able to reduce his/her arousal level to that of the optimally excited athlete. This would have a positive effect on his/her performance. However if we asked an under-excited athlete to use relaxation procedures it would only make it harder for him/her to "get-up" for the competition. The coach therefore has to know his/her athletes and how they react in competitive situations.

Relaxation Training

There are a number of relaxation techniques that have the following characteristics:

• procedures for first recognising and then releasing tension in muscles
• concentration on breathing control and regulation
• concentration on sensations such as heaviness, warmth
• mental imagery

Regardless of which technique is used, the following two conditions need to exist if the technique is to be learned:

• the athlete must believe that relaxation will help
• a quiet, dimly lit and warm room which is free from interruption

Centering

The Centering technique was developed by the Tibetan Monks over 2000 years ago. Centering requires you to focus your attention on the centre of your body, the area just behind your naval button. The technique has a calming and controlling effect, providing an effective way to manage anxiety.

• Stand with your feet shoulder width apart, arms hanging loosely by your side
• Close your eyes and breath evenly - try to keep the tension in the upper body to a minimum as you breath
• Inhale deeply from your abdomen (your stomach will extend) and be aware of the tension in your face, neck, shoulders and chest. As you exhale let the tension fall away and focus on the feeling of heaviness in your stomach
• Continue to breath evenly and deeply and focus your attention on the centre of your body, the area just behind your naval button
• Maintain your attention on that spot and continue to breath evenly and deeply, feeling controlled, heavy and calm
• As you breath out think of a word that encapsulates the physical feeling and mental focus you want e.g. "relax", "calm"

Meditation for Relaxation

A number of people involved in sports psychology believe that meditation can be useful in getting maximum performance from an athlete (Syer & Connolly, 1984). Engaging in meditation helps reduce stress before an event and with experience the athlete can learn to relax different muscle groups and appreciate subtle differences in muscle tension. The technique includes the following steps:

• Lie down quietly on your back in a comfortable position and close your eyes.
• Deeply relax all your muscles, beginning at your feet and progressing to your face.
• Breathe through your nose and become aware of your breathing. As you breathe out, say the word "one" silently to yourself. For example, breathe in . . . out, "one"; in . . . out, "one"; and so on. Continue for 20 minutes. You may open your eyes to check the time, but do not use an alarm. When you finish, lie quietly for several minutes at first with closed eyes and later with opened eyes.

Maintain a passive attitude, permit relaxation to occur at its own pace and expect other thoughts. When distracting thoughts occur, return your concentration to your breathing. Try to practice a relaxation technique once a day.

Self Hypnosis

This is one of the most popular self-hypnosis techniques employed by athletes. It aims to help you distance your mind from the here and now and place you in a setting that you associate with relaxation and inner calm. This script could be recorded as an MP3 file - where there are 3 full stops (...) leave a pause for a few seconds and remember to speak clearly and slowly. The following script is an adaptation of a script published by the London College of Clinical Hypnosis.

Firstly you need to relax, put on some very relaxing music or sounds of nature, sit or lie down in a position that you find comfortable in a place where you are unlikely to be disturbed. Look up at your eyebrows and begin to concentrate on the sounds around you... maybe the distant sound of a car driving by or the hustle and bustle outside on the street... then concentrate on the sounds of the music, feel it flowing over you as if it were the tide going in and out, in and out... now begin to pay attention to the sound of your thoughts... concentrate on your breathing. Take deep breaths in and out... in and out... listen to your heart beat... become aware of your eyelids and feel them blinking quickly and notice that you have a strong desire to close your eyes... allow your eyes to close and feel a deep sensation of relaxation. In a few seconds, you will imagine your favourite place of relaxation... maybe somewhere you have been before, a beautiful garden, a deserted beach, a summer meadow or somewhere you can imagine you would feel relaxed... and now... just imagine that you are standing on a balcony... and there is a long set of stairs in front of you... leading down from this balcony... there are strong stairs... with wide steps... and a handrail on each side... the stairs are well lit... and you can see them clearly... In a few seconds' time... you can count down from 10 to one... and with each descending number between 10 and one... you will take a single step down the stairs... and with each descending number you will become more and more calm, more and more relaxed... each step down from the balcony will take you deeper and deeper... into your wonderful state of relaxation... and as you slowly descend these stairs... you are going to experience a sense of ever-deepening relaxation... throughout your entire body... You will feel the stairs under your feet and when you eventually reach step one, you can pause and wonder where you might go next... again you feel very tranquil and this tranquility is accompanied by a sense of anticipation... you will then step off... and when you do so... you will find yourself in your favourite place of relaxation... and enjoy... this beautiful place... Provide yourself with only positive and beneficial suggestions. For example, relating to increasing your self-confidence, attaining peak performance in an upcoming competition, or mastering a specific sports skill that has perhaps proved elusive to you. If, at any time, for any reason, for example in case of emergency or any situation where full attention is required, by opening your eyes, you will be fully alert.

To take yourself out of your relaxing place in a gradual manner, simply count up slowly from one to ten, on reaching the number eight, open your eyes, and at the number 10 you will be fully awake and alert. As you stand up, have a stretch and notice how good you feel.