The Science of Imagery

“The key is not the ‘will to win’… everybody has that. It is the will to prepare to win that is important” Bob Knight

Imagery is a scientifically proven method for putting your mind to work on the results you want to get from basketball mental game training.

An interesting thing about the subconscious mind is that it can’t tell what is real and what is not real.

Depending on how well you can imagine something, your subconscious will behave as if it is happening and will begin working to create that reality in your life.

Imagery in Sport and Science

Creative visualization, or “guided imagery,” is practiced by many elite athletes.

An exciting sports psychology study by Dr. Blaslotto took three groups of basketball players and recorded each group’s free-throw accuracy percentage. He then took group one and had them practice free throws for an hour a day. The second group visualized the practice for an hour a day, and the third group was the control group meaning they did nothing.

After the study period, group one, not surprisingly, had increased their free-throw accuracy by 24%. Group three (who did nothing) did not see any gains. Group two (who visualized their practice) increased their free-throw accuracy by 23%!

Here you have it. It is backed by research. Visualization or “guided imagery” can improve performance.

Your brain is continuously making neurological connections, and those connections are pushing you, and the universe around you, to perform specific actions.

If you gain control of those connections and create the ones you want, you can have more control over the actions and results you create in your life.

Imagery gives you this control.

Thoughts trigger reflexive responses in the body. When you think of performing a technique on the court, you will be ready to do that. This has to do with activating neurons that trigger an entire neural network.

When you plan to execute a skill, you have created a strong enough neural pathway so that if neurons are activated by the thought of taking on the activity, the entire neuron network involved with that activity is firing.

This means that the same neurons are firing that would normally be activated by actually DOING IT.

This continues to strengthen the network involved with the activity, which will allow you to become more proficient in that activity even when you are visualizing yourself doing it.

Practice Imagery

It is necessary to practice imagery regularly.

The idea is to prepare your basketball mind to react to anything that can come your way.

If you tell your brain your plan in a thousand words, it will get bored in the mid-way. But visualize it as a picture, and it will respond differently.

Take advantage of my FREE Guided Imagery Audio – Text Mental Game to 33777 and get your free Guided Imagery Audio. This will help you Elevate Your Game NOW!