Alayna Musson, April -Some people, including myself, get nervous before and during tournaments. Especially the bigger ones like the State and National tournaments. There are some ways that you can calm your tournament anxiety with simple things you can do 30 minutes to an hour before THE tournament. Here are just a few:
- Read- Reading helps your mind get into a whole different world instead of the one your currently in. It helps to not think about what your score is going to be and you get in your own head to overthink it. So read a book and escape to another world before you shoot.
- Music- Listening to music helps you calm your thoughts so you can just focus on the lyrics. Upbeat,encouraging, and cheery songs are the way to go so you can help motivate and stay upbeat about your flight. Just let the music flow through your ears. #DontStopBelievingByJourney
- Be Alone- Stepping out of the room so there are no other people around to distract youis a good way to calm yourself Just focus on your breathing and once your ready, step back on to the range, and shoot your best.
- Talk, but off topic things- Right before the big tournament talk with your friends about other things besides the tournament. You can talk about things like your weekend, school, plans, etc.
- Square Breathing- I know a lot of people have never heard of square breathing but this is something you can do a few minutes before the tournament. All you have to do is focus on breathing and counting. First you breath in for four counts, hold for four counts, breath out for four counts, and hold for four It’s very simple, and you can repeat these steps as many times as you need. This has helped me outside of archery in other situations as well.
- Prepare- Shoot outside of your normal team practice for extra practice so you are even more prepared than usual. This will help you build your confidence to shoot better.
- Confidence- Just giving yourself your own confidence boost will help calm your
- Don’t let one arrow get the best, Reset and shoot again.
- The #1 most important thing is SLEEP- Get the best night of sleep before the
These are just a few things that can help you or others before a big tournament. They can help you focus, breathe, and clam down so you can have a good flight.
