You've been waiting for this day for weeks, maybe even months. You can finally get back into training and make a comeback. But returning is more difficult than expected. You repeatedly struggle with self-doubt and are afraid of getting hurt again. Self-confidence and security just seem a long way off. Your comeback suddenly becomes a fight. But it doesn't have to. In this article, you'll learn which mindset can make your return to green grass easier and how you can come back even stronger.
Your comeback starts long before you even set foot on the training ground again. It starts with the moment you accept your injury. This is the only way you can regain your mental lightness. Without acceptance, you're fighting your current situation all the time. You keep asking yourself why this had to happen to you now, of all people, whether it wasn't just a misdiagnosis and how you can get back on the pitch next week. And if you do manage to escape from this thought, there is still a permanent dark cloud floating above you, which clouds your mood. You have a long and difficult time ahead of you.
At least that is what your ego is trying to convince you, because your ego has no weaknesses and it is certainly not prepared to admit weaknesses. It will therefore do everything it can to fight against your current situation. That is exactly why acceptance is such a big help for you. Acceptance disarms your ego and helps you regain your inner peace. By the way, it is also the only reaction that helps you in this situation, because you are already injured and can no longer do anything about it. As much as you wish, you can't turn back time, so accept your injury, with all the consequences.
Only now are you ready to pick up your head again, look ahead and prepare for your comeback, and set goals for yourself. However, that doesn't mean that you should just wait and do nothing. With the right mental strategies, you can make your healing process much easier. It starts with setting goals. Don't just set yourself one big goal - your comeback on the soccer field. It's better to opt for many, small goals. Each step forward brings you closer to your comeback and can be a sign that you're on the right track. But to do that, you also have to take these small steps.
You can even go one step further and actively help your body heal. What was dismissed as an esoteric practice for years has now been scientifically proven several times. Meditation and mindfulness training can speed up your physical healing. Regardless of whether you are actively concentrating on healing your injured body areas or simply focused on the here and now, in both cases, you help your body fully dedicate itself to internal healing processes. At the same time, you also use your injury break to intensify your mental training.
In summary, the process is therefore quite simple. You accept your injury and thus create space for positive change. Based on this, you can ask yourself the question again and again: “How can I make the best out of the situation now?” This makes it easier for you to deal with your injury break and also to improve in areas that are not affected by your injury.
So far so good. So you have now reached the end of your forced break and want to get back to your former form. What you need first and foremost is patience. Yes, you read that correctly. Exactly what you feel like the least right now will help you the most. Most mental difficulties following an injury are just the result of impatience. After all, you've waited long enough and want to be in top shape again as soon as possible.
But it is precisely this attitude that often means that you either have the feeling that it is not going fast enough or that you are increasing the intensity of your training sessions so quickly that you injure yourself again or are struggling with overload reactions. So be patient. Even if you keep seeing other players who get back on the pitch surprisingly quickly after the same injury as you had, remember that you probably have a different starting position. Comparing yourself to other players rarely leads to positive thoughts, so stick with yourself and give yourself the time you need. Patience is always rewarded and saves you unnecessary self-doubt.
But what about the fear of hurting yourself again? How do you clear your mind so that you don't just go into every duel with 80%?
There are two simple solutions to this.
REACH YOUR FULL POTENTIAL ON THE PITCH! With the B42 app for soccer players.
#1 Focus on what you want
Let's take a quick look at what fear really is. Basically, you can simply remember the following sentence: “Fear is nothing more than the acceptance of unverified facts and facts.” What evidence do you have that you will get hurt again as soon as you get involved in the next intense duel? Usually none! That fear only exists in your head. Perhaps you have injured yourself in a similar situation in the past and your head concludes that this event must now automatically repeat itself again.
But you can remember one thing in this context: “Your past doesn't define your future.” Think about how often you've been afraid of something and how often this anxiety scenario has actually happened. Your head is playing tricks on you and even worse, it keeps focusing on the worst outcome of your future. The more you think that you could get hurt again, the higher the chance that it will happen too.
“What you focus on becomes your reality.” (Jen Sincero)
Once you recognize how your fear really comes about and that there is no evidence for it, then you take the wind out of your sails and consciously focus again on the positive outcome of your next actions.
#2 Focus on the moment
The easiest way to let go of your fears is to stay in the here and now. Your fears are only concerned with possible scenarios for the future, but that future hasn't happened yet. What counts for you is the present moment. This is where your mindfulness training over the past few weeks or months will benefit you again. The more mindful you are, the more you are in the here and now and the less the past or future matter.
You're 100% focused on your next move, the next duel, the next pass. That is all that matters. The more often you train this state off the court, the easier it will be for you to recall this state later in training and play.
Last but not least, it's about regaining trust in yourself and your body. Once again, it all comes down to your focus and perspective.
After an injury, you suddenly notice every little pinch in your body. Any unfamiliar feeling puts you on alert, especially when it comes to areas of your body that have just healed. But what about all the areas of your body that feel good? What about all the moments when you feel good and all the movements that you can perform completely pain-free? Once again, your head is tricking you.
You're so focused on potential pain in your freshly healed areas of your body that you don't notice anything else or even think you're feeling pain that isn't there at all. So instead, consciously pay attention to everything that gives you self-confidence and security by asking yourself the right questions.
You can once again gain even more confidence through targeted mental training. Take 5-10 minutes, find an undisturbed spot and close your eyes. Imagine you're back on the pitch, back in the game, better than ever before. See for yourself how you can give everything in your imagination again, how you can design your game with ease, how your body easily masters the demands of the game and how you can get everything out of yourself again with confidence. Each of these mental training sessions will give you more confidence, because your head can't tell whether this is really happening now or whether you're just imagining it. The more this vision grows within you, the closer you get to your strong comeback.
As is so often the case, your success starts in your head even in the event of a comeback. However, once you understand the game of your mind and use the right strategies to consciously focus on what gives you security and self-confidence, then you will definitely be able to come back stronger than ever before. Or as they say: “The comeback is always stronger than the setback.”
Be fearless. Be focused. B42
B-42 — Your key to successful team management
.jpg)
