Overthinking and ‘Negative’ Thoughts in Sport: How to Respond Differently
What is overthinking in sport?
Athletes often tell me that they overthink… a lot! But what does this really mean?
When we explore this further, you might notice that you're telling yourself what to do, and even more importantly, what NOT to do. Instead of allowing your natural instincts to take over. When you’ve played sport for a number of years or even decades, how you play becomes second nature. Just like driving a car, you no longer have to think about every move you make to put on your seatbelt, put the car in gear and use the pedals. You simply do it!
Overthinking can disrupt the automatic processes you've trained your brain to carry out for so long. In sport, this can often happen when you face setbacks or adversity. Your attention can become focused on what might go wrong, what you need to avoid or what you should be doing differently.
Suddenly, all of these thoughts start to pop up:
“That was terrible” “Don’t mess this up”
“What are you doing!” “Don’t lose this”
Instead of allowing you to respond naturally to what is happening in front of you, your attention becomes caught up in your thoughts.
Why trying to stop negative thoughts can make things worse
Think about the times when thoughts like these have shown up while you're playing your sport.
What have you tried to do to stop them?
Perhaps you've told yourself not to think like that. Maybe you've tried to replace the thought with a more positive one. Or perhaps you've tried to ignore the thought, hoping it won't affect you. How often does trying to get rid of your thoughts really help?
You may notice that the more you try to battle with, escape from or avoid your thoughts, the more they seem to come back… sometimes even louder.
This is where athletes often tell me that they “can't get out of their head” and end up making even more mistakes. The effort you're putting into trying not to think about something can actually keep your attention focused on it.
So, what if the goal isn't to get rid of your thoughts?
Are thoughts really “negative”?
As humans, we're constantly judging and evaluating our experiences. This can be useful. It helps us learn, make decisions and move towards our goals. However, when we judge and label our internal experiences (our thoughts and feelings), we often take a binary approach. We use words like good or bad, positive or negative.
You have thousands of thoughts every day. Some will be pleasant, some unpleasant, some useful and some less useful. Some might even contradict each o
ther. The content of your thoughts isn't necessarily the problem. What matters is how you respond to them and whether you become caught up in them.
The more important question is:
Am I allowing this thought to dictate how I perform?
Noticing your thoughts rather than fighting them
If your thoughts are starting to dictate how you play, it may be time to try something different.
Instead of fighting the thoughts you don't like, you can learn to notice them.
Noticing means becoming aware of your thoughts without judging them or trying to change them.
This creates a little bit of distance between you and the thought, giving you the opportunity to choose how you want to respond in that moment.
This isn't easy. If you've spent years trying to control or get rid of certain thoughts, responding differently
will take practice.
But you can start by becoming more aware of what shows up for you.
How to create distance from unhelpful thoughts
It isn't always easy to recognise the thoughts that show up when you're competing, particularly if you're used to ignoring or suppressing them.
A useful starting point is to make some notes as soon as you can after a performance.
What thoughts showed up?
When did they appear?
What did you do next?
This may feel uncomfortable because you're acknowledging something you've previously tried not to face. But becoming aware of these patterns gives you an opportunity to respond differently.
For example: “I'm not good enough” shows up every time you make a mistake. You feel bad about yourself, become worried about making more mistakes and become withdrawn for the rest of the match or competition.
The thought itself hasn't changed your performance. What happens next has.
You can begin to practise sitting with that thought without allowing it to control your behaviour.
Rather than: “I'm not good enough. I need to stop thinking this.”
Try: “I'm noticing the thought that I'm not good enough.”
This small change creates some distance. You're noticing a thought, rather than treating the thought as a fact.
What to do when overthinking shows up before or during competition
Remember that thoughts come and go
NOTICE the thought as it arises: “I’m not good enough”
ASK yourself: What matters right now?
RESPOND: You can have the thought and still make the next pass, play the next ball, hit the next shot or make the next run.
The aim isn't to feel completely confident or positive before you act. It's to learn that difficult thoughts can be present without having to control what you do next.
If the thought comes back, that's okay. Notice it again, create some space and return your attention to what matters.
You don't have to be ruled by your thoughts
Overthinking isn't something you need to eliminate completely.
Thoughts are a normal part of being human, including when you're competing.
The skill is learning how to respond when those thoughts show up.
You don't have to stop the thought.
You don't have to believe the thought.
You don't have to feel confident before you act.
You can have the thought and still choose your next action.
Learning to respond differently to your thoughts isn't something you have to figure out on your own. In sport psychology sessions, we can explore the thoughts and patterns that tend to show up for you, understand what happens when you become caught up in them, and develop ways of responding more flexibly when it matters.
The goal isn't to become someone who never overthinks.
It's to become someone who can notice what's happening in their mind, refocus on what matters and keep performing anyway.
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