India at Paralympics: The Zeal to Win

admin November 22, 2024 0 Comments

In our series, India at Paralympics, we addressed certain aspects that help our Paralympians and all other athletes realize their potential and attain success. Today, as we sum up this series of learnings from the inspiring stories of our Paralympians we look at a very special factor that is evident in every Paralympian and in every athlete who loves their sport and their country. Yes, we are speaking about the determination, the drive to win…the desire to see the work done till the end. 

This year at the Paris Paralympics, Preethi Pal became India’s first and the only athlete to win two medals in the track and field category. Hailing from a small village in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district, Preethi was born with weak legs and an irregular leg posture, making her prone to various diseases. She was called a “cursed child” by the villagers, but Preethi’s determination proved to be far more stronger than insults and challenges thrown at her. At 17, she was inspired by watching the then Paralympians make their country proud and realized that she too, could pursue her dreams. Going into the Paris Paralympics, once the ‘cursed’ Preethi was confident enough that she would achieve her dream. Before the Paris Games, her coach and mentor Fatima Khatoon took her to Gajendra Singh, an army man and coach-husband of para athlete Simran Sharma for intensive training, Preethi says about the encounter, “The coach took me in on one condition, that I will never say no to training. He changed my technique, gave me proper nutrition, and worked on my endurance and strength. The medals in Kobe gave us a lot of confidence.”

An amazing quality seen in the Paralympians, is that they do not rely on second chances. Life itself is the second chance that they have received. Some have recovered from fatal injuries before turning to the sport and for some who were born with unfortunate disabilities in their bodies, being able to play the sport is the second chance that they have gotten from Life. They believe in proving themselves at every chance they get, they never say Better Luck Next Time, as there might not be a next time. They go in for every challenge with a do or die attitude. This attitude can only come when three factors are combined…the passion for the sport, the love for your country and an unshakeable belief in self. 

Another aspect of this unwavering determination is that the fear of failure appears to be on the lower side when it comes to the Paralympians. Most of the Paralympians come from a place where they have endured many insults and stigma from the society, rejection and discrimination is something that they have known for a long time. As a consequence, they do not carry the baggage of ‘what will people say’ anymore. People have said what they will, and now it is their chance to prove them wrong. The only vision they have is of their Ultimate Goal. Another reason here, is the disheartening fact that the Para athletes are more prone to injuries and physical discomfort than their able bodied counterparts. There is a lot of uncertainty for when something might come up which might stop them playing. Hence, they fearlessly execute their game at every chance they get to do so. 

High Jumper Praveen Kumar was grappling with an injury just 3 months before Paralympics. This is the same athlete who performed a record setting jump of 2.08m  in the T64 category, winning the Gold. There were many instances of para athletes getting injured before or during the Paralympics, but one factor common for all of them, was that they never gave up. 

Now as India sets its sight on the next Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Zeal to Win is one factor that every athlete needs to imbibe in themselves. Remember why you started, know your purpose and do what it takes to fulfill that purpose. Second chances are a good opportunity to prove oneself, but one must rely on those for achieving their dreams. Believe every chance you get to be the last one and fight for it!

Rasika Kalgutkar, Sports Psychologist, Mindsports

India At Paralympics: Believing in Yourself

admin November 6, 2024 0 Comments

In the last installment of our Paralympics series, we delved deeper into the role that Motivation plays in helping Paralympians excel at their sports. The motivation to attain mastery in a sport and to achieve success remains a crucial factor in their realizing their sporting career. But have you ever wondered where this unwavering motivation, to keep going in spite of the hardships thrown at them by life, comes from? 

Trevor Jenifer, an American Paralympic Wheelchair Basketball Athlete says,  “For the entirety of my life, I’ve been stared at because I’ve been different. You know, kids have stared at me, parents have stared at me, and it’s just because I didn’t have any legs. And now we’re changing that perspective—you could stare at me, but now you’re staring at me because I’m a two-time Paralympic gold medalist, I’m a father, and I’m a full-time employee with the federal government. I want people to know that there’s life outside of my disability. I don’t let my disability identify who I am. All these other things do. So it’s not just about the sport—it’s outside of sport. We’re demolishing the stigmas that surround disability.”

When we read this statement, the question that pops up first in your mind is, how does one develop such a strong sense of identity even when one is deemed to be different from the rest of the world? This strong sense of identity comes from an equally strong sense of self worth and belief in one’s abilities. In psychological terms, we call it Self-Esteem. In simple words, Self-esteem is how you feel about yourself, and the value you place on yourself. It’s based on your beliefs and opinions about yourself. Self-Esteem is a crucial factor when it comes to sport as it has an impact on the athletes confidence, their performance, their body image, their social relationship and on many such factors. 

Kapil Parmar, a visually challenged but tremendously cheerful Indian Paralympic medalist, experienced repeated abuses from his fellow villagers when he first started para-judo eight years ago, but it only fueled his drive to do something meaningful with his life. On September 4, Parmar, 24, became India’s first Paralympic medalist in judo, winning bronze in the men’s 60kg (J1) category at the Paris Games. “When I decided to start para judo in 2017, some people of my village taunted me about how I would play the sport as I can’t see but you always move ahead because of these taunts only,” Parmar told PTI in an interview.

Self-esteem starts developing from childhood and is affected by one’s upbringing, their life experiences, their achievements as well as their setbacks. One must always work hard to build a positive self image for themselves. Now this becomes even more challenging when one is born with a disability that hampers their daily functioning or when one loses one or more of their abilities to unfortunate incidents. Yet our Paralympians have proved to us that it might be tough but not impossible. When one strongly believes in their abilities and in the effort that they are putting in, in mastering a particular task, no disability can stop them from realizing their full potential. 

Let’s have a look at what learnings we can take away from our Paralympians and how we as athletes can enhance our self-esteem – 

• Prepare, Don’t Compare – You are your biggest competitor, and you must always strive to be better than yourself. By comparing ourselves with others we tend to reduce our self esteem by putting a negative filter on it.
• Recognise your Strengths – We all know what we are bad at, but it is rather more important that we know what we excel at. Our strengths are the steps that help us up the ladder of success. 
• Call it ‘Areas of Improvement’ rather than ‘Weaknesses’ – Our own mindset plays a role in determining whether we get better or stay stagnant. When you believe that you can always improve upon a particular aspect, growth is bound to happen.
• Set Realistic Goals – Dream Big, but when you prepare a roadmap to achieve those goals, set targets which are realistic and achievable in your current time frame. 
• Use Positive Self- Talk – Make a list of positive self-statements and read them to yourself every morning and night, or everytime you feel low on motivation.
• Solve the Problem – When a problem situation arises think, “How can I make it better?” Or “How can I contribute towards solving this problem?” rather than feeling sad about why it happened to you.

Self-esteem is an integral part of one’s identity, and athletes must take special care that they do not let their self-esteem go down, even in the face of setbacks. It is in those difficult moments that we need it the most. All individuals are different and unique in some way or the other, however, it is up to us how we make sense of our identity. Just like our Paralympians, we need to hold our heads high as we face the challenges that come. 

To learn from our Paralympians and get more glimpses of their journey, follow our blog series India at Paralympics! 

Rasika Kalgutkar, Sports Psychologist, Mindsports

India at Paralympics 2024 : Motivation

admin October 22, 2024 0 Comments

In the first part of our Paralympics series, we reflected on India at the Paris Paralympic Games and its revelation of resilience – the ability to bounce back from setbacks. As much as resilience helps athletes overcome their challenges, motivation also acts as a fuel to keep pushing forward consistently. It is the drive that keeps them going to reach their highest potential. As Canada’s Para-canoeist Brianna Hennessy
has profoundly put:
“The Paralympics means so much more because everyone here has a million reasons to give up, and we’ve all chosen to just go on… It’s a bigger picture than the medals, it’s a bigger picture than our country’s flag. It’s all of us coming together on that world stage and representing something greater than ourselves.” – Brianna Hennessy (Para-canoeist)
This quote strongly expresses the motivation of para-athletes and how it’s not just about personal or national glory but also about representing a shared human spirit that inspires millions. It is the drive that keeps them going beyond the limits set by others, and even at times, the limits set by themselves. In this blog, let’s explore the drive that keeps them going – what we commonly call ‘Motivation’.
Motivation is the drive to participate and persist in a particular activity. It is a factor that can be improved and developed through various techniques and strategies. However, it becomes important to identify the root source of motivation for any athlete. Playing a sport to win medals, to win scholarships, to stay fit, to enjoy the sporting experience are some of the sources of motivation for athletes. Like any other athlete,
our Indian para-athletes also are motivated by a variety of factors. Mariyappan Thangavelu, who recently won a bronze medal at the Paris Paralympics 2024 has often spoken about how he could support his family financially through para-sports. Raised in poverty, his childhood experiences motivated him to uplift his family despite the limited sources. His mother, a vegetable seller, has been his source of motivation and inspiration.
Manasi Joshi, who lost her leg in 2011 due to a road accident. During her rehabilitation period, she found her passion for badminton. She has often spoken about breaking barriers with regards to how society views people with disabilities. She believes that accepting challenges and having a strong self-belief are some of the motivating factors that drive her to work for inclusivity and empowerment through sport.
Bringing a change in societal views by redefining what it means to live with a disability, Manasi has a deeper motivational source in her sporting career.

Navdeep Singh who narrowly missed out the podium finish at the Tokyo Paralympics 2020, made a strong comeback by winning a Gold at the Paris Games.

Although he was facing challenges, his experience in Tokyo became a turning point as well as a fueling factor to prove his true potential. He channeled his setbacks into motivation to achieve greater heights.
Thus, our para-athletes have a purpose that fuels their motivation to achieve their goals. Drawing inspiration from them, let’s explore how athletes can work on their motivation levels by using certain techniques and strategies :

● Identify your purpose – Having a purpose that is beyond winning medals or recognition helps sustain motivation. This could be a deeper purpose such as contributing to your country’s success, overcoming societal barriers etc. During tough times, such deep purposes help athletes remain focused and
motivated.
● Set clear, achievable goals – Break down your long-term goals into smaller, manageable goals which helps create a sense of accomplishment thereby improving your motivation levels.
● Review your progress – Maintain a log of your daily tasks and track your progress throughout. This can be a great motivator along with giving you a sense of fulfillment.
● Use Mental Imagery – Visualizing helps block your distractions and stay focused on your performance thereby motivating you to give your best.
● Feedback – Ask for feedback from your coaches and support staff members. This will help you get a better understanding of how much you have progressed and where your efforts need to be exerted.
Thus, by identifying your purpose, setting achievable goals, reviewing progress, utilizing mental imagery, and seeking feedback, athletes can cultivate motivation and reach their potential. The remarkable stories of our para-athletes remind us that motivation is an essential factor for success.

As we have explored resilience and motivation pertaining to Paris Paralympics 2024, we will tune into more such mental factors. Keep following our blog series “India at Paralympics 2024” for more updates.

Kiran Salunkhe, Sports Psychologist, Mindsports

Mental Toughness In Athletes

admin December 22, 2023 0 Comments

The importance of mental wellbeing has been emphasised for a long time now, we are more aware of its impact and need to strengthen our mindset. If you look up the internet, you’re bound to find tons of definitions and meaning of the term, but what does mental toughness really mean?

After a long search, we were able to choose the most apt definition for it- Mental toughness is a measure of an individual’s ability to be resilient, have confidence, remain competitive, and overcome adversity in their life.

Tom Brady, quarterback of the New England Patriots highlighted the importance of mental toughness, “Football is so much about mental toughness, it’s digging deep, it’s doing whatever you need to do to help a team win.”

A lack of mental toughness is the biggest enemy of athletes. Lacking mental toughness causes athletes to give up, give in, tank the match, and give less. The level of your athletic success is in direct proportion to your level of mental toughness. To be mentally tough, you must be willing to do what most athletes don’t do. It can be simply put that “Mental Toughness sets apart good and great athletes when physical, technical and tactical skills are equal”.

Lets dive deeper into the topic to understand its elements and break down some myths about Mental toughness.

Many athletes believe they are born with mental toughness, so you either have it or you don’t. Well this is partially incorrect, chances are you may be born with and yes, it’s an important factor to succeed. However it’s not an either-or situation, you can most definitely work on building and strengthening your mental toughness. 

Some athletes—like those who have overcome adversity in their life and have grown used to rebounding—do seem to be mentally tougher than others. Two athletes that come to mind are Michael Jordan and Greg Norman; they both overcame adversities. 

And one aspect of mental toughness is the ability to handle challenges.  Mental toughness is an attitude, and you are the only one who can create your own attitudes.

If you are the one responsible for your attitudes, you can deconstruct the way you think about yourself or your ability to succeed. By changing the way you think, you will change the way you feel about yourself which changes the way you act, train and compete.

Another common myth we tend to have is, mentally tough athletes never fail. This couldn’t be more wrong! Mental toughness is a skill, a habit you develop to help yourself in times of adversity. And the process of strengthening never ends, you keep working on yourself and cultivating the skill. Everyone fails, has setbacks and loses from time to time, however what sets mentally tough athletes apart is how they react and deal with the failure. Instead of wallowing and feeling bad for themselves or blaming it on others, they introspect, they seek advice, take that lesson as a learning and move on. They try new solutions, look for better ways and ensure they overcome the challenge next time around. 

Let’s discuss a few qualities you can easily identity in a mentally tough athlete, remember,  you can always work on improving these throughout your journey: 

1. Remain persistent: Mentally tough individuals push through the tough times, they work on reaching the end goal no matter what the circumstance. They understand that failure is a part of success and there is no way around it, you learn from it and continue.
2. Pursue excellence not perfection: Athletes that possess mental toughness have a goal, but they focus on the techniques necessary to reach it. Athletes with a strong mental toughness recognize that peak performance is a marathon, not a sprint. They get closer to the end result with each step they take along the way.  Athletes with a strong mental toughness recognize that failures are inevitable and that they are important turning points on their road to success.
3. Never afraid to take risks: Athletes that are always ready to take risks and open to challenges understand the importance of being out of their comfort zone. Athletes that are mentally tough tackle obstacles with excitement rather than fear and anxiety. They know that it’s okay to occasionally fall short of expectations and that it’s worth taking a chance to reach perfection. They refuse to settle for mediocrity and that sets them apart. 
4. Look for solutions rather than excuses: Mentally tough athletes will look for solutions and answers to their problems rather than using it as an excuse to move ahead. Instead of playing the blame game, they take responsibility for their performance, go back to the drawing board, right the ship and try again.
5. Focus on improving performance:  Looking to improve their performance and keep growing is the sole focus of mentally tough athletes. Instead of focusing on the past or dwelling on failures they look to move ahead. They expend energy on things they can control and work on. Mentally tough athletes focus on what they can do in the present moment to overcome the challenges of performance and give them the best opportunity to succeed.

Now that we have understood the importance, identified qualities and busted some myths about mental toughness, let’s look at 2 ways you can work on improving it:

Build that habit: 

Mental toughness is a habit. You cultivate it and continue till it becomes a part of you. Mental toughness isn’t about getting an incredible dose of inspiration or courage. It’s about building the daily habits that allow you to stick to a schedule and overcome challenges and distractions over and over and over again.

Here are the basic steps for building a new habit : 

1. Start by design your key habits
2. Focus on small behaviours, not life–changing transformations.
3. Develop a routine that gets you going regardless of how motivated you feel. Make it enjoyable for yourself so you look forward to it.
4. Stick to the schedule and forget about the results.
5. When you slip up, get back on track as quickly as possible.

Mental toughness comes down to your habits. It’s about doing the things you know you’re supposed to do on a more consistent basis. It’s about your dedication to daily practice and your ability to stick to a schedule.

Focus on long term goals: 

As the saying goes, “it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”A key aspect of mental toughness is the ability to set long-term goals and accept reasonable completion times for your tasks. Developing a concrete plan that moves short-term goals toward long-term objectives is the only tried-and-true method for success. The structured nature of long-term goals promotes discipline and consistency in daily actions, crucial elements of mental toughness. Long-term goals act as powerful motivators, propelling individuals forward through the inevitable ups and downs, fostering the sustained commitment essential for the development of mental toughness.

Mental toughness is rarely innate; it is made up of disciplined habits that anyone can enact in their daily life. Your habits are what determine how mentally tough you are, and you are in charge of them. Remember that daily mastery over minor challenges is the very essence of mental toughness.If you aren’t practising mental toughness exercises behind the scenes, you can’t expect to be mentally tough during championship moments.

Fight and show yourself that you are capable of overcoming every obstacle you face in the process of achieving your goals.  Soccer great Mia Hamm said it best, “I am building a fire, and everyday I train, I add more fuel. At just the right moment, I light the match.”

Jinal S Mehta

Intern, Mindsports

THE MIND BODY CONNECTION

admin September 28, 2023 0 Comments

SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY INVOLVES THE CONNECTION BETWEEN MIND AND BODY AND THE UTILIZATION OF THE CONNECTION FOR ENHANCING PERFORMANCE.

While talking to one of the cricketers, he mentioned that he gave 100% in his practice sessions. He also focused a lot on his physical fitness so as to do well in this season and get selected for India team.

However, he was unable to explain what went wrong as he did not get selected and his ultimate dreams to get selected for India team came crashing down. When asked to explain where he felt short in spite of doing so much of practice and fitness training, he said that he did everything and tried to implement all the techniques and suggestions that his coach had given while playing matches. But a very important thing that he shared with me was when he was playing matches, he was constantly worried about the opponent team being very strong and their victory last year……..

There he is and in fact all those who are into sports……

We generally think of sports as being more physical. And hence there is so much of time as well as money that we invest in getting the best facilities for any player. However, the fact that sports is also a mental game is not yet accepted by many and therefore has not been recognised as a tool to enhance sports performance.

A sport is a combination of mind and body……..

Do you play cricket or for that matter any sport without thinking about

• the opponent…..
• without thinking of what will happen if I do not perform as per my potential….
• without any anxiety or tension….
• without fear of failure….
• without getting distracted….
• without having any negative thoughts about your victory…….. and so on and so forth.

I think the answer for all these would be a big ‘NO’……

So there you are….. Our statement that it’s a connection of body and mind is absolutely true. It is next to impossible to keep your mind away while you are playing and it being your mind is going to distract you and try to have an upper hand.

Therefore, we as sportsmen need to attend to our mind as well as our body and train both of them equally to work effectively so that we will definitely be successful in any game that we play.
Once you agree to the connection of mind and body to your sport, you yourself will start getting answers to many of your failures and setbacks that you experienced in your sporting career.

So, I will surely be back with more and more articles on Sports Psychology and how it works and most importantly what you need to do to achieve the deserving success….

All the best and keep reading!!!!!!!!!

Mugdha Bavare
Sports Psychologist

LIFE LESSONS FROM SPORTS

admin September 22, 2023 1 Comments

Image Copyright: Chanut Is Industries | Dreamstime.com

The movie Sachin – A Billon Dreams opens with Sachin echoing his father’s words, “Cricket is going to be just one chapter in your life, what will stay with you forever is the human in you, when people will tell me, more than a cricketer, you are a good human being, I will be happier as a father.”

The God of Cricket turned 50 this year with 24 long sporting years behind him, and in these years, the man has stood out to the world for his attributes that go beyond cricket and the world of sports. His down to earth nature, his discipline, his dedication and his respect for the people, the game and country are unrivalled, and for everything the man gives the entire credit to two things – his upbringing and to the sport.

Why out of the blue speak about Sachin? What is it that always makes us think of that golden era? They say change is the only constant in life. All of us have seen huge changes in our lives in the past few years owing to the Pandemic, changes that will have long echoing effects on our lives, especially of the younger generation. For almost two years, with their schools closed, these younger ones were locked in their homes, forced to sit in front of talking screens, without any contact with the outer world. The effects of such a detachment are seen widely today. Learned experiences from the environment shape children’s lifetime behaviour and go a long in determining their success. School is the primary place to develop social competencies and life skills, such as self-confidence, friendships, empathy, participation, respect, gratitude, compassion, and responsibility, and this generation, nevertheless the smartest till date, is somewhere lacking these essential life skills.

But why are these life skills being talked about now? Why are they so important?

Any skill is an ability to carry out a particular activity, which can also be learnt. For example, the skill to bat or bowl in cricket or the skill to play a guitar. In our lives too, all of us need certain skills to live with as less difficulty as possible. By that logic, Life Skills are abilities that we can develop to live a good and fruitful life. Every moment during our lives, at times without even realizing it, we rely on things we’ve learned to help us manage our daily life and have an impact on our physical and emotional health. Be it going to school every day or giving exams or simply going on a vacation. Respect, Perseverance, Self-Esteem, Decision-Making are some examples of life skills we require in our day-to-day lives. Life Skills help us gain confidence in communication as well as in cooperative and teamwork skills, they also help us discover innovative ways of thinking and problem-solving, and teach us how to socialize, make new friends, and recognize the effect of one’s actions and behaviours. They give us the courage to face the struggle in order to achieve our goals and the strength to deal with any kind of circumstance that comes our way.

All said and done, how do we really inculcate these skills in our kids? The kids today are busier than the adults. A lot of schools include a life skills education module, but can we really learn these hands-on skills from reading the texts? Life Skills are not learnt from textbooks, they are learnt on the field. So, what do we do? There is a simple answer…Sports. Having been an athlete myself and as a psychologist, I feel Sports are one of the best ways to teach children Life Skills. Sport need not always mean competition. Sports, at times, can just be fun and games. They are a good opportunity to teach children numerous abilities and soft skills. Through sports children are not only equipped to deal with challenges that might come their way, but also become prepared cognitively to learn, solve problems creatively and make decisions. The structure of sports is such that it inherently teaches children values that are essential throughout life. For instance, attending regular practice sessions, following the drills, keeping up with your training routines, habituates children to managing their time appropriately and builds a foundation for self-discipline. Another excellent example is the rule of shaking hands with your opponents at the end of every match, no matter the result. This simple gesture, so subtly and aptly, instils the value of respect in these young minds that it is bound to reflect in their lives outside of sport too. The best lesson I learned from sports was of resilience, no matter how bad the failure was, there is always a new day which you can make the best of, and it has helped me keep going in toughest of the times throughout my life.

Learning can happen at any age, however, Late Childhood or the Pre-teen years of a child are considered to be very crucial for their overall development. This is a phase of their Physical, Cognitive and Social growth. It’s the beginning of them becoming independent individuals, for e.g., They start dressing up by themselves, can use different objects independently, understand time and other events in context. This is a time when they need to be provided with the right direction and guidance as they begin to move away from the protective shells of home, to help them grow into better and well-adjusted individuals of the society, and as they gradually excel in the sport of their choice, they also build a positive sense of self, and ultimately a positive and resilient approach to life.

Sachin, a naughty, mischievous boy grows up to be called the God of Cricket. The Master Blaster while telling the anecdotes of his coaching days under Achrekar Sir, says that it was cricket that molded him into the focused and determined individual that he is today. Sachin is just one but the most apt example of how sports can shape your life beyond the competitive experiences. In a game sometimes you may win, sometimes may lose, but with sports you always win…at life.

Rasika Kalgutkar,

Sports Psychologist, Mindsports