Slow Time Down To Improve Sporting Performance

Whether it's tennis, football, rugby, boxing or any other reactive sport, the great players all seem to have more time to react. When you watch Roger Federer, he seems to have all the time in the world to get into position and make his shot. Muhammad Ali was lightning quick in this prime and was able to react that little bit quicker than his opponent, which lead to amazing success in the ring.

All great athletes have one thing in common; the ability to slow down time which allows them more time to react. Physically they're in great shape, but it's their mental ability to slow time down that gives them a huge advantage over their competition.

Imagine if you were playing your game at normal speed while everything else was happening in slow motion. You'd be quicker, faster and have the ability to read what your opponent is about to do next. If you had this ability, wouldn't this have a massive impact on your sporting ability?

Speed and time are both relative. When a fighter pilots jumps into his jet he flies at ludicrously rapid speeds and when he jumps straight into car afterwards, it feels like he's moving at a snail's pace! The only thing that has changed here is his mind's perception of time. His mind and body had to adjust accordingly to this speed and therefore when he gets in his car, his perception of the speed is relatively slower than it usually is.

Think of a few experiences where time seemed to go really quickly. You were probably enjoying yourself or having amazing fun and time went by in the blink of an eye. There are others situations where time seems to drag on. While doing some of the things you don't enjoy, time seems to pass very slowly. Nothing has changed, there's still 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in an hour, however your mind allows you to perceive time in a different way. With this being said, you have the ability to speed up or slow down your perception of time, by re-programming your mind.

How to slow time down
Close your eyes and take a deep breath in and out as slow you're breathing down. Visualize a vivid movie in your mind of the event or game you'll be playing in. Seeing everything playing out the way you want it to play out. Play the movie double the speed of the 'real time' event. Notice everything moving rapidly from the start all the way to the end of the event.

Now step inside yourself in the movie so that you see everything playing out through your own eyes. Double the size of the image, make it more colourful and double the speed of the situation. See everything playing out faster than normal speed and notice everything playing out successfully in your mind. Turn up the volume of the sounds around you and notice the feeling you have in side your body. Notice where these feelings start and where they go to and spin them around faster.

Repeat this process from beginning to end at least 10 times for 10-15 minutes. Each time running the event faster and faster in your mind.

By following this mind programming technique for 10-15 minutes every day for 3 weeks, you'll train the unconscious part of your mind. When you train this part of your mind you create a new habit. This new habit is as automatic as brushing your teeth or tying your shoelace. Now when you enter the event or game situation, your mind has been trained for everything to play out rapidly. When the event plays out in normal time, you'll have the perception of everything playing out a little slower. With this added time you're able to use your skills to increase your performance.