Heading into the postseason, few teams hit all individual and team cylinders to win. Make work our superpower. Simple works. As we approach the post-season, get players a leg up with proven behavioral edges. Give players specifics.
Sleep. The goal is to achieve seven to nine hours of restful sleep each night. "Regularity is king." Habits (like avoiding caffeine after noon) impact our sleep.
- 11 Stanford University basketball players
- Baseline measurements followed by 5-7 weeks of sleep extension with goal of minimum 10 hours/night
- Performance measures (speed, shooting accuracy) and sleepiness scoring
- Improved sprint times, 9% improvement in free throw and 3-point percentages
- Sleepiness scores improved
- Subjective improvements in physical and mental well-being
- Conclusion: better sleep led to improved athletic performance.
Freedom from alcohol. "Everyone does it." Baloney.
A single night’s alcohol use impairs hydration (alcohol is a diuretic), muscle recovery, healing, and can cause memory deficits for three days. Alcohol damages sleep. It limits absorption of key vitamins. It decreases endurance.
Teen girls are at even higher risk. Sports require both coordination and complex spatial processing. Studies showed decreased brain activity in relevant areas (by neuroimaging with functional MRI).
The New York Times shares classic information about teen alcohol risks. Aside from impaired judgment and driving risks, teen alcohol use predisposes to alcoholism and impairs brain centers responsible for learning, memory, and spatial relationships. "Just say no."
Nutrition. Carbohydrates should be over half the athletes diet, especially via fruits and vegetables, pasta, rice, and bread. Practice pregame meals PRIOR to competition.
Mindfulness. "The growing body of evidence suggesting the benefits of mindfulness on individuals’ and teams’ athletic performance could be meaningful for everyone from rec-league chuckers to the high-flying professionals." It's not a big time demand. Here's a link to short UCLA Mindfulness scripts.
Become more efficient. After caring for our body, make skill our priority. Shooting is a perishable skill that requires constant work. Exceptional players pay the price of unrequired work.
In 1973, in the second round of the playoffs, we played a team on a 17 game winning streak. No shot clock. No threes. "Get great shots." Our first possession, we made 22 passes before getting a great shot for a hoop. For the game, we shot 23 for 42 from the field and won by twenty. Quality shooting wasn't invented yesterday.
Summary (Exploit edges headed into the postseason)
- Adequate sleep is proven beneficial.
- Alcohol degrades performance.
- Pay attention to nutrition (quality carbs)
- Mindfulness fuels champions.
- Be efficient. Keep it skillful.
Lagniappe (something extra). Don't run onto the court and start jacking up threes.