flow
going with the
How mindfulness can help players keep their heads in the game By ELIZABETH FONTAINE HILDEBRAND ’92
T
There are no two ways about it: Football is intense. It’s a passionate, adrenaline-filled, complex dance, constantly moving from one complicated play to the next. Players need to perform at extraordinary levels, showcasing their power, speed and durability. But in as much as it is a game of physical strength, America’s favorite sport requires a great degree of mental toughness to maintain focus, tolerate pain and make strategic choices under mounting pressure. “A good football player is one who is both physically and mentally tough, but sometimes the mental part is the harder of the two skills,” said Westminster’s Head Football Coach Scott Benzel. An increasing number of coaches like Benzel are employing a practice to help their players and gain a competitive edge: Mindfulness. Mindfulness may be getting a lot of media attention these days, but it’s more than just a selfimprovement buzzword. Contrary to popular belief, it is not synonymous with meditation; instead it is the act of being fully engaged in the present moment and paying attention purposefully and non-judgmentally. A 2010 Harvard study, in fact, shows that people spend 46.9 percent of their waking hours with their minds wandering, thinking about something other than what they are presently doing. Mindfulness exercises teach people to reel their minds back to the here and now to be actively involved in a current activity. And in the sports arena, that level of mindfulness allows for emotion regulation, impulse control and letting go of that last play. “Anyone who has ever participated in football knows how emotional it is,” Benzel said. “So much of what happens on the field is unscripted. Plays are designed and rehearsed, and after the ball is snapped, execution needs to occur. But sometimes, the plays don’t go as planned and aren’t successful. By teaching our players to let go of that bad play, they can move on and focus on the next task at hand.”
14 w w w.w e s t m i n s t e r. e d u
