Overcoming nervousness in BJJ Competition

[BigDeadFreak]

Although I have very little competition experience I know what you mean about ego. It's not so much that I worry directly about what other people think it's more that I feel as though I will be a failure if I loose. It's a mixture of how other people see me, how I see myself and not wanting to feel inadequate.

 

[Allan san]

I used to feel nervous because I was cheating myself when it came to my pre-tournament camp training. I would take off more time just because I wanted a nap to last 3 hours instead of the intended 50 minutes. I always knew in the back of my mind that I didn't train to my potential. Now that I am honest with myself and train every chance that is available to me without interfering with my marriage or my body's signals, my confidence is through the roof and I compete at a much more relaxed pace.

"Under pressure, we do not rise to the occasion, we sink to our training."

 

[Russky]

I continue reading the book I mentioned. I wish I had more time for that. Anyway, the second part of the book talks about relaxation technique through Autogenic_training. This is not exactly to overcome the competition nervousness, but rather to get more energy resources from your body.

When you train/compete the fatigue you feel is mostly because your brain gets tired. If you can learn how to give your brain some rest you can train more and refresh yourself when needed.

The technique he is describing is the following:

Lay down on your back, close your eyes and start telling yourself:

My palms are relaxed, i feel warmth in my palms.

With that you are trying to imagine something that makes your palms warm. Hot shower, fireplace, sunshine. Anything you can lively imagine until you feel that warmth and relaxation.

Then you continue the same with your arms, shoulders, feet, legs, body, neck, face.

Next you say:

My mind is blank, I am not thinking about anything

With that you are trying to visualize nothing. Since this might be difficult ;-) he recommends imagining TV screen turned off. It should be all one uniform color when you reached perfect relaxation and state of Hypnagogia.

Rest for some time and then start waking yourself up.

To get good at this he thinks one needs a few weeks of consistent practice. However, for me it worked well from the first try. Really helps to recover after practice and feel fresh again.

 

[mattemate]

Assassin grade hashish.

 

[HtomSirveaux]

When you train/compete the fatigue you feel is mostly because your brain gets tired.

this is beyond retarded

With that you are trying to imagine something that makes your palms warm.

Now that I can do...

 

[ijustwannasurf]

assassin grade hashish.

squuuaaad

 

[Ongy]

Personally I've only competed 4 times, including once at brown belt. I played a lot of football (soccer) when I was younger as a goalkeeper - if you messed up in that position then there would be no one to bail you out and you would concede a goal. I always felt immense pressure every game that I played for my team. Competing in BJJ has always felt comfortable to me in relation to that - if I fail then I have only let myself down

 

[monsieur_jj]

In my limited experience, I can say cross training with a different team out of town or out of the country helped me with my nervousness, it made me confident rolling with people that i dont know

 

[BigDeadFreak]

In my limited experience, I can say cross training with a different team out of town or out of the country helped me with my nervousness, it made me confident rolling with people that i dont know

I think that really makes a difference, not only with confidence but also with rounding out your skill set. It's easy to get stuck in a rut rolling with the same people all the time; they know your routines and you know theirs so you can easily end up in a stalemate. Going to a different dojo can force you out of your comfort zone. It can also show you how good you are as you get to beat up a whole new room full of people

 

[gdjiujitsu]

Good stuff Stephan. Most people underestimate the importance of being mentally prepared for competitions. One of the biggest mistakes competitors make is "Focusing on the outcome", which I have done it myself. Anytime you focus on things that you can not control, like the outcome of the tournament, it will lead to muscle tension, anxiety and most likely not performing to the best of your ability. I'm not saying that you can not win being anxious, but you might have a hard time being your best self on the mat.


I made a list of the "Top 10 Mental Mistakes BJJ Competitor make and how to avoid them" on my channel http://www.youtube.com/thebjjmentalcoach. Take a look when you guys have a chance, really good info there

Take care,

Gustavo Dantas

 

[SteelHammer]

The best thing to do if you're nervous is to remember the main reason to do bjj to begin with: chokin' bitches out

 

[Chungungo]

In general, the reason why people are nervous in competitions, is their own ego.
Most care about the way people will percept them if they lose.
Once you have drilled mentally, and understand that your perfofmance is just one in many to come, you will be able to grow in the sport, working with a long term plan.

That´s genius, I have high nerves and lazyness (not sure if well written) but I am going to compete again, have zero ego but I don´t want to let down my coach hahaha though the important is to have fun and learn.