Improving Consistency in Gymnastics
The sign of an elite gymnast is the ability to perform consistently despite the pressures of competition and physical demands of constant training.
Gymnastics is a mentally challenging sport because it requires strength, coordination, courage, focus, and confidence.
Gymnasts need to have a high level of confidence to take risks that can improve their score, but could result in serious injury.
Each event in gymnastics has its own unique mental game challenges.
Though gymnasts compete in a team atmosphere, ultimately, gymnastics is an individual sport… To add to the mental game challenges in gymnastics, you need to execute your routine while under the scrutiny of judges and spectators.
To succeed, you must be consistent at a high level.
This takes:
- concentration
- determination
- endurance
- fearlessness
- confidence
Kohei Uchimura is a 24 year-old Japanese gymnast known for his consistency. Uchimura has won consecutive world all around titles (2009, 2010, 2011 and 2013) and the gold medal for all around in the 2012 Olympics.
Uchimura is considered by many as the greatest gymnast of all time due his consistency and ability to precisely execute his difficult routines.
Kevin Mazeika, the head coach of the U.S. men’s gymnastics team acknowledged Uchimura’s amazing ability and consistency,
“He’s [Uchimura] able to do incredibly difficult things and just make it look easy.”
Uchimura began learning the sport at the age of 3, but it’s his commitment to hours of repetition during training sessions that aids his confidence and consistency.
“I never had lucky charms. All I believe in is practice.”
Uchimura credited his training regimen for producing his consistent results and belief in skills,
“I have practiced so much for this, so I think it has genuinely been through my own abilities that I have been able to make it to this point and not through luck. I don’t think my natural talent is much different to other gymnasts. It is a matter of how I train, and how I think about my training. I also give a lot of thought to my routines.”
Even German Gymnast Phillip Boy recognized the value of Uchimura’s repetitious training regimen,
“He’s [Uchimura] a very special gymnast. Everything he’s doing, it looks beautiful. And he makes no mistakes. He’s really kind of a machine. It’s amazing.”
It is not just repetition that has benefited Uchimura’s consistency, but a precision focus on himself, his abilities and what he needs to do to perform optimally,
“I always do my own things, I don’t think about rivals.”
Keys to Improving Consistency in Gymnastics
- Repetition – You can increase your level of confidence by habituated technical skills through focused, disciplined practice.
- Training – You should practice to mimic what you feel in competition. In practice sessions, you want to do a lot of “pressure sets” to mimic the feelings you have in competition.
- Focus – You must focus on “your own stuff.” By staying focused on your abilities and the things that you do well, your confidence will soar allowing you to take more risks and meet new challenges.
For more information and tips about how to improve the mental game, check out The Confident Gymnast workbook program.
Related Articles:
- Are You a Choker or Clutch Performer?
- Are Your Working Harder in the Gym, But not Scoring Better?
- Improving Concentration in Gymnastics
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Improve Your Consistency With Sports Psychology for Gymnasts
Sports psychology for gymnastics helps serious gymnasts like you to uncover the beliefs and attitudes that keep you from performing to your potential. You’ll learn mental game strategies to overcome performance plateaus, lack of consistency, and perform at your peak more often.
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