Sports Psychology - is your mental preparation holding you back?

One of the most interesting seminars at the USEA Convention featured Equestrian Sport Psychologist Daniel Stewart. He talked about the importance of turning negative thoughts into positive ones. For example, saying “I’m going to jump clear” is positive as opposed to the negative “I’m not going to have a rail down”. They basically mean the same thing but in the mind, having positive thoughts instead of negative ones is a more effective way  to succeed. The seminar was very entertaining and informative, covering all aspects of sports psychology and relating them to riding: how to build confidence, the power of mental images, how to manage stress and how to specific goals and not lose focus.

Here’s the video of the Sports Psychology Seminar, courtesy of the USEA.