How Tough Are You?
"Mental toughness can take you to the top, and mental weakness straight to the bottom." --- John Schiefer
I've been reading some research on mental toughness. The researchers asked nationally ranked athletes in various sports to define "mental toughness" as well as give some attributes. I'll be writing about that research in the next few days, but until then I thought I'd ask you:
- How do you define "mental toughness"?
What are the most important qualities that make up a "mentally tough" athlete?
I think it will be facinating to read the answers readers of this blog come up with so please post someting. The more contributions the better so feel free to pass this posting to anyone you know who might be interested in responding. Or better yet, link this blog to your blog or website.
I can't wait to read what you come up with!
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I guess as a starter, I'd define mental toughness as finishing something way past your preconceived limits. Or finishing something you had no business starting. X-Terra Sport course was my first triathlon. It's still up there as my toughest race ever! Enduring difficulty. A tolerance for frustration on the course. That's my a start...
Larissa says
Mental toughness is overcoming discomfort, boredom, and self doubt. Its the ability to lay aside your negativity and to demolish any thoughts or outside stimuli (negative comments from others, lousy weather, even comparing yourself someone else) that try to tear you down.
Mental toughness is riding into the wind and not giving up, running in sub zero weather and staying positive, racing when the odds are stacked against you, smiling when you cross the finish line -even if you're last, knowing when to stop and accept a DNF and live to race another day, believing in yourself even when no one else does.
Dan Caulfield says
Recently, I have inclined to a softer idea of mental toughness than I am used to reading or hearing about. In the popular conception sports psychology tends to be about pushing through obstacles, ignoring the negative, overcoming pain and adversity. We don’t usually hear, from the common voices of little league coaches, fathers, school teachers, solidly grounded advice that would truly allow us to dwell in the moment. While the “spiritual” disciplines have provided bountifully to the work of depth psychology it seems very little of that has trickled down to the psychology of sports performance. As a student of psychology and a competitive athlete I was surprised to watch my high ideals degenerate over the years into a few shades of dominance and submission. That is, the desire to dominate over opponents and my own mind. It would seem that with too-fixed ideas about good and bad (thoughts, emotions, sensations, and even winning and losing--in the small sense) we miss out on the opportunities for the richest and deepest transformations. These transformations would leave us as not only better performing athletes but more integrated human beings. It seems that it is a tough job that is asked of the sports psychologist. He must constantly balance the true psychological needs of the athlete with the athletes desire for an immediate winning result. I am increasingly curious whether a long term depth approach for talented athletes would, in the end, better serve their needs and goals. In this curiosity I have begun my own athletic pilgrimage, examining ideas such as synchronicity, dreamwork, and the unconscious--I am largely working with the ideas of Carl Jung. I am undergoing a three year experiment to train for a world championship event. If you can offer insight, I would appreciate it if you could visit me at goldenscarab.org. Sportsminded is shaping up to be a fantastic blog, by the way. Keep up the good and responsible work!
Comm's says
I have tried to live a life of mental toughness. In some areas I do well and others terrible.
Some would say my medical dnf at IMAZ was a testament to mental toughness, just getting through the bike with what I had. I see it as failure but in that failure a test to expand that envelop I already have, hopefully expanding it and making me stronger in the long term.
I am terrible with say background noise. While its not a problem for me to run in 115 degrees or ride for 6 hours, its hard for me to sit quietly without stimulus from a radio or tv, mostly with voices on a low setting. not music. Give me a book and I'm okay.
Mental toughness i think has more to do with bringing an Iron Wil, passion, vision and determination together at a focal point to overcome adversity or obstacles. Some of these are physical but run the whole gamut of emotional, intellectual and spiritual.
Motivational Researcher says
Who is John Schiefer?