Slowtwitchers - thought you’d find this new study on the use of self-talk in runners from Journal of Applied Sports Psychology of interest: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10413200.2020.1735574?journalCode=uasp20 Participants saw improvements of 6, 9 & 12% in their results.
We did a brief video clip about some of the application here if you prefer that format: https://youtu.be/lgsm-RXLqyA
Hope it’s helpful. Stay safe out there.
-Coop
Thanks for posting this.
The positives effects of positive self talk have been around a while.
We used to have monthly meetings w the athletes at the OTC when I was coaching swimming there and one of our “turning point” meetings was where I brought this up to them after having read a book on this topic (I cant remember the name right now).
It really became powerful stuff for us as we prepped for the trials and the oly games. A little of what this vid is missing though, is to first really develop a keen ear to listening to yourself. How you react to a tough set? or a competitor who just got faster? etc etc etc.
We had a few months of some really personal and fun conversations about their mindset.
Anyways, like everything, it take practice. But I would say, in terms of value, right now the way the world is, it is as important as ever to consider this another great avenue for athletic improvement. good luck! and now more than ever, be kind to yourself and believe that your body hears your mind when it speaks to you.
daved
Absolutely Daved. Thanks for your comments. The reflection piece is so very critical. I don’t know if you were able to access the study link but it takes a deep dive into that component and you are so right. The study participants also didn’t use the “same” self-talk strategies but rather were provided with a personalized approach that was developed over time for each of them.
Thanks for the comments. We’ll likely be doing more on this topic in the future if folks find this brief video clip helpful.
All the best and thanks again for your experienced-based comments.
Hey look, Im happy to have your input and ideas.
Much like triathletes using state of the art equip and tools, the swimmers did the same thing.
We actually did a ton of “new” and innovative stuff there. That was about 20 year ago now, but the most meaningful and probably one of the most memorable exchanges with all of us, coaches included was to attack this feedback loop.
And I think triathletes are super interesting bc of the different approaches. The need for positive feedback for me, for example, isnt before the swim or during. Im a swimmer. I love it. For me it hits me once on the bike and people start flying by me. I had to really keep myself focused and positive bc having a couple hundred athletes blow by you in the first 3 hours of racing is super tough. Then you have the runners who are just positive self talking all day looking forward to that run!!
ok blah blah Im talking too much… fun concepts!!
daved
Indeed. Good stuff.
We’re working on an fMT (functional mental toughness) opportunity assessment at the moment based on our research that will be helpful along those lines. Hoping to have the beta version ready in the coming weeks and will try to remember to provide a link here on Slowtwitch for those interested.
I would be interested in that!
keep up the great work
daved
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I’d be interested for sure. Thank you in advance!
Interesting. I’d like to have access to the full article, but looks like it costs US$44. 
I assited a conference last fall from a Sports psychologist. His subject was about sense of self efficacy, and self talk.
Simple, brilliant and useful.
Louis 
Might just be me but I’ve never found any value in positive self-talk. Either I’ve got gas in the tank to execute an interval, not get dropped, or catch someone up the road, and if I don’t, my mind knows that any “encouraging” self-talk is straight coddled bs. I much prefer getting out as many f’s and s’s as I can during negative training sessions, directed primarily at myself (especially if I cramp during a race- nothing can draw out as many curses and grunts)!
Louisn - we have a website set up for when I speak at various events and have included them there if you’d like. Just go about halfway down this page and you’ll see links to the various studies, including this one: https://drbradfordcooper.com/insights/
You’re not alone Mikeridesbikes - the self-talk literature goes deep. In this little video clip, I mention a couple of the core areas (instructional vs. motivational). Sounds like motivational is of little value to you so you might benefit more from the instructional aspect as a good starting point.
That’s a really good point about instructional self-talk. The biggest impact there has been reminding myself to maintain good form or position in all 3 sports. Of course when the train starts coming off the tracks, that all devolves into a curse-fest, but its especially helpful early on to hit pacing goals.
Thanks all. As for the Functional Mental Toughness (fMT) Assessment, we’re digging in to have it available to the public as soon as possible - hopefully by mid-summer? Will post something once available.
We discussed it on IMTalk podcast yesterday w/ Coach John and Bevan so if you’re linked into that one, you’ll hear a bit more. In terms of the self-talk, we touched on it but not to the extent of the video above as our discussion was more broadly about fMT.
Take care
-Coop