Barcelona - Sanchez Casal Tennis Academy "Mental Toughness" Day Three

The last three days was pulled together by Lorenzo Beltrame with the 'importance of rituals' session that started on court this morning. Looking at the 'between points' situation that makes up for around 90 per cent of a match, Lorenzo and colleague at the Human Peformance institute Jessica. The development of rituals between points is seen as a process that has for components. The intergartion of the routine into the match is taken very seriously by the HPI and is seen as crucial in developing the Ideal Performance State. The between points ritual has to be rehersed regularly if it is to become habitual.
We spent the rest of the morning revisiting the course as a whole and looking at the most effective ways of introducing the programme to our players.
The importance of writing in the whole IPS process is one that was stressed repeatedly. The thought that is written by hand rather than typed or spoken, is said to be far more powerful in both changing the thought process and for memory. Will be very interesting to hear Rob Clowes take on the primacy of the written word. It is certainly the first time I've heard it introduced in sports coaching. Looking forward to seeing some results by trying this out over the next year.