Matt Anderson Olympic Tips For Mental Health

As mere mortals, we frequently generally tend to imagine that medal profitable athletes have all of it discovered and that, someway, the fame and fortune and the adulation of the group makes them full. Matt Anderson, who’s an Olympic bronze medal volleyball participant and thought of to be probably the greatest on the earth at his craft is aware of that this isn’t at all times the case, and is right here to let you know that everybody can undergo self-doubt, melancholy, and nervousness even when issues are wanting high-quality and dandy to these on the surface.

M&F sat down with Matt Anderson for a frank and courageous dialogue in regards to the psychological challenges that he’s confronted in his stellar profession, and we got here away with some invaluable suggestions for a way anybody, at any degree of sport, can be taught the identical classes that he has.

Matt Anderson is on the boys’s indoor volleyball squad for Staff USA. He’s a three-time Olympian and took dwelling a bronze medal on the 2016 video games in Rio de Janeiro. Earlier than that, Anderson was a 2015 World Cup winner, and he’s additionally loved victory in a number of CEV Championship League finals all through his profession.

Success got here comparatively rapidly for Anderson, who was scouted for the boys’s U.S. nationwide crew throughout his time at West Seneca West Senior Excessive College in upstate New York. He skilled laborious, and by the point he reached his second yr, Matt Anderson had picked up an expert provide and signed a contract with the Hyundai Capital Skywalkers within the Korean League. What adopted was a whirlwind of intense play and journey. Not solely did he dwell in South Korea, however he additionally hung out enjoying in Italy earlier than volleying the ball over in Russia.

All of it sounds just like the profession of an athlete that has the world at his toes and, for probably the most half, that’s true, however similar to the remainder of us; detrimental ideas can threaten the possibilities of us reaching our full potential. Having moved to Russia, the place his membership gained a bronze medal in that nations Championship, he was additionally named MVP within the Russian League, however, with all of that success, 2014 proved to be a tough yr as Matt Anderson felt on the time that he had underperformed. This is able to be the yr that the participant wanted to placed on the brakes for the sake of his psychological state.

“I felt lots of strain actually residing on me,” says Anderson. “I used to be actually the all-star of the crew and arguably enjoying my greatest volleyball on the time, too,” he says with the good thing about hindsight. However the back-to-back competitions and the fixed journey ever since first beginning out with Staff USA in 2009 had lastly taken its toll. “I’d go to the fitness center, and I’d simply take into consideration dwelling,” he recollects.

Then, when Anderson lastly did get dwelling, he admits that he turned ashamed of himself as a result of he felt like he hadn’t given his all on the court docket. These damaging emotions, coupled with the truth that he was nonetheless attempting to course of the loss of life of his father in 2010, meant that the participant had so much to unpack, and wanted a while and area to lastly do the work for his personal wellbeing’s sake.

Happily, after a number of weeks of digging deep inside himself, Anderson was again on the court docket earlier than the tip of the identical yr that he’d left, in 2014, and though he’s nonetheless engaged on his psychological well being to today, the favored participant is again to his medal profitable greatest. Listed here are three necessary suggestions that assist Anderson to persistently preserve his head within the sport:

1. Making Errors Is Half Of The Course of

An skilled athlete should come to phrases with the errors and laborious realities of defeat however fortuitously, these negatives could be become positives. “Even on the highest of my accolades as a participant, I nonetheless battle with confidence,” shares Anderson. “I believe that’s a part of the perfectionist mindset that I’ve, and I’m at all times specializing in what I did fallacious versus what I did proper.” The Olympian says that being a profitable volleyball participant provides him confidence when getting into a room so when issues don’t go properly on the court docket, he takes it laborious and it impacts his very identification as an individual. However he’s additionally realized methods to cope with sporting losses. Anderson says that with each loss comes knowledge and an opportunity to pause, replicate, and glean details about the place issues went fallacious, so that he doesn’t make the identical errors once more.

2. Keep Constant By Embracing Change

Athletes discuss incessantly about protecting their coaching constant, and this implies sticking to an iron clad routine, however irrespective of who we’re, getting older will carry change. Now aged 36, and with a spouse and two youngsters (aged 3 and 1), Anderson is aware of that his days can not revolve round simply his personal wants. In consequence, he’s tailored his schedule to get probably the most that he can from each sports activities and household.

Now coaching for the 2024 Paris Olympic Video games, Anderson, and different members of his crew with the identical duties, are being supported by their coaches to satisfy a number of time calls for. This permits gamers to assault coaching with the extraordinary power and motivation required to carry out on the highest degree with out feeling below strain to provide extra time to their households.

“Our teaching employees was onboard with giving us one massive coaching (session every day) in order that the blokes who do have households could be with them,” shares Anderson. This can be a break from custom, the place gamers would beforehand have accomplished two coaching periods per day.

Now, the champion volleyballer has his head properly and really within the sport due to the tradition of embracing change, and continues to be placing in a hundred percent of the work required. Anderson explains to M&F that he’s on the court docket for round 9am, however earlier than that he hits the fitness center at 7.30 a.m. to provide himself a extremely good warmup, going by way of any stretching and mobility work that could be required to organize him for the day. He leaves the court docket at round 12pm however hits the fitness center as soon as once more for no less than an extra hour with a purpose to carry weights. Embracing change is a good way to forge real looking routines that may be adhered to in the long run. “I additionally attempt to sneak in some date nights with my spouse occasionally,” says the balanced athlete.

3. Don’t Overthink (Shield Your Circle)

As a perfectionist and an overthinker, Anderson, similar to many people, could be the sufferer of overthinking. Once we fail to simply “go for it” our fixed questioning of ourselves can result in micro-adjustments that derail our efficiency. That is one thing that Anderson has struggled with previously, and has a way that will are available in helpful as taught to him by the late, nice, sports activities psychologist, Dr. Ken Ravizza.

“He talked so much with (psychological) footage,” shares Anderson, who says that Ravizza spoke of the sector of play as a circle and that overthinking creates a distracting mound throughout the circle. Anderson goes on to elucidate that with this psychological train, you’ll be able to embrace overthinking every time you might be outdoors of the circle, however as soon as inside it you could depart these pointless ideas on the surface, the place they belong. “Don’t carry your s**t into the circle,” Ravizza informed Anderson. It was a light-weight hearted approach of constructing an necessary level and it nonetheless massively helps the participant to today. Maybe the following pointers might be invaluable to you too.