The Super Mental Training Book by Robert K. Stevenson Read Free Book Online Page A

Annacone's employment of a mental training strategy, described how "he tries to go outside his body and watch himself sitting in the chair, breathing." The purpose is to help Annacone relax, who observed that once this is accomplished, "then I can think about the job at hand."
    What Ashe did in 1975 seems practically identical to what Annacone did in 1984, only the names given to each are different. Ashe was either "meditating" or "concentrating," whereas Annacone was "visualizing"; Reilly, in fact, says that Annacone "went into his yoga bit," providing yet another name for the same practice. The names assigned to this practice of clearing the mind and relaxing are, of course, unimportant. The important thing is that you try out a mental preparation technique, perhaps one such as used by Ashe and Annacone, giving it an honest trial. If the technique works for you, you are now a mentally tougher and more formidable competitor; if the technique does not work, you have not really lost anything.
    Linda Bunker and Robert Rotella, in their book Mind, Set, and Match (1982), offer several visualization techniques for tennis players to try. One of the techniques they suggest is for you to make a self-instruction audio tape, which you are to play "over and over each night to let the good thoughts sink into your head." A sampling of the good thoughts Bunker and Rotella recommend you put on the tape are:
    I am hitting very well; I hit my volleys in front of me with a firm wrist, putting them away in the corners. Most of my serves go in unreturnable, but a few miss by inches. I play one shot at a time the best that I can hit each ball.
    Bunker and Rotella believe that "you will perform on the tennis court as you picture yourself performing." To perform well, say the authors, you should picture successful shots; the visualization tape helps one picture such shots. According to Bunker and Rotella, mentally experiencing successful shots can be done using external imagery or internal imagery. With external imagery you view yourself making good shots; with internal imagery you "feel" yourself hitting the ball well. The authors suggest that you mentally "feel your grip, feel your backswing begin and stop, feel your weight transfer through the ball contact, feel yourself hit through the ball and finish."
    Mind, Set, and Match contains mental preparation techniques, self-awareness tests, concentration exercises, etc. similar to those found in other sports psychology books. Bunker and Rotella do not provide testimonials of any tennis players who have specifically used the mental rehearsal techniques presented in their book; but, one can assume that the techniques are helpful because they resemble what many tennis players have used with great success.
    A good article on applying imagery to tennis, "Mental Imagery: A Practice Technique You Can Use Anywhere," appeared in the December, 1985 issue of Tennis magazine. The authors of this article, Steven J. Danish and Eve E. Ellis, lead you through an imagery session whereby, after you get into a state of relaxation with eyes closed, you picture a top pro hitting a shot you wish to perfect. The example Danish and Ellis provide is that of Chris Evert hitting deep ground strokes. After seeing in your mind how Evert hits the ball, "your next step," say the authors, "is imagining (Evert) and yourself hitting forehands next to each other." From this external imagery vantage point Danish and Ellis direct you "back inside your own body, feeling the shot" (internal imagery). They advise you to practice the internal imagery until you get to the point to where "you feel comfortable and confident with this shot" (this step should take you 5 minutes or less). After accomplishing this, you may terminate the session by opening your eyes.
    Danish and Ellis suggest that "one way to practice imagery is to wake up early and do it for 10 minutes." They also recommend you use the technique before playing a match. Again, the