Practicing Smart to Improve Mental Preparation
Practice, practice, practice… This is what separates great hockey players from good players.
That doesn’t mean just showing up to practice. That is NOT enough. Too many hockey players think that they will play great hockey just because they practice five days a week.
Practicing requires a particular mindset to hone your skills.
It requires practicing smart…
- If you go through the motions in practice, you will show little improvement in games.
- If you want to skate faster, then skate faster during skating drills in practice.
- If you want to improve your shooting accuracy, then focus on your shooting accuracy in practice.
- If you want to improve your defensive skills, you will need to hone those skills in practice.
You won’t find a magic bullet to developing your physical game.
Skill development requires practicing smart.
Practicing smart consists of the physical act of repetition, the mental act of focusing and patience required to keep pushing forward when you don’t see immediate improvement.
If your efforts are just good enough during practice, then good, not great, will be what shows up during games.
There is no ON/OFF switch in hockey. You cannot practice one way and hope to play at a much higher level on a consistent basis during games.
If you want to be a consistent performer, you need to practice smart like a peak performer.
Focus and practice contributed to Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson’s historic goal that pushed Team USA to victory over Canada in the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics to win the gold medal.
Team USA last won the Olympic gold in 1998 while Canada won the gold in the last four Olympic Games. The gold medal game between Team USA and Canada ended in a 2-2 ties in regulation and then a scoreless overtime period.
It all came down to a shootout to decide the winner and it was Lamoureux-Davidson’s goal that was the difference-maker.
The interesting point is that Lamoureux-Davidson practiced her game-winning move thousands of times so it was merely a matter of executing what she practiced.
LAMOUREUX-DAVIDSON: “I worked on it thousands of times on tires. I butchered it hundreds of times and shot pucks at tires, and I mishandled pucks thousands of times doing that, just working on hands. And I’m just glad it worked out today.”
Practicing smart is the key to excellence on the ice.
Improvements are made over time and not by just performing the skill correctly over and over.
Each failed attempt provides feedback on both what not to do and what to do better next time. The act of physically performing the skill is only one part… You want to focus and intensity to each drill and scrimmage.
Even more importantly, you must not be deterred by mistakes. That is where mental toughness comes in. Mental toughness keeps you trying one more time, rather than giving up.
Be a peak performer… Start practicing smart!
How to Have Smarter Practice:
Write down one skill you want to improve during the upcoming week.
Identify the moments you can work on developing this skill (shoot-arounds, certain drills, scrimmages or extra work after practice).
Focus on specific objectives each day to improve your practice including high focus, more intensity, letting go of mistakes, and good communication.
After each week, evaluate your progress and set new objectives for the next week of practice.
Related Articles on Hockey Mental Game:
- Playing Smart Hockey
- Your Mindset and Finishing Hockey Games
- Tips for Positive Practice Habits in Hockey
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