The Mental Side of Throwing

It’s all about the mental game. You hear this all the time.

“Well, Coach, I visualize my technique.”

That is very good, but visualization is just one aspect of the mental side of throwing. You read about the killer mentalities of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. The ‘dog mentality’ of first one in the gym and last one to leave. A major factor of training is always showing up. An athlete must work day in and day out even when they do not want to. Rain or cold weather cannot be the deterrent to you getting better.

You tweaked your ankle? Let it rest, but why can’t you bench or do some light accessory work? You must work around things to continuously get better even during the tough times.

I reflect back to 2022 when I threw 19.77M at Princeton and struggled that year outdoors. I was healthy the whole year. I went to South Carolina and suffered a brutal pec injury. I could not throw pain free or train normally for about 14 months. All my strength levels were down and my throwing repetitions were at their lowest. But, after 6 weeks of throwing and 3 weeks of full throwing I was in lifetime best shape. How?

My process changed. What I thought I needed wasn’t what I needed and things I couldn’t do because of my pec forced me to find new ways to get better. If only I knew these new technical thoughts and had this mental approach back in 2022, I would have had a much better year. Something was unlocked that was not just physical. The mind is powerful and can unlock a lot of the physical things you are trying to do with the right understanding.

I think the mental side must be continuously refined and reflected upon. My worst competition in college was 17.08M at the Harvard-Yale-Princeton meet my freshman year in 2019. I still remember warming up with my fists clenched while listening to music. Talk about too tight. I never clenched my fists or let the moment get bigger than me again. I paid attention to the details. These details can make or break in your development, but also for those reaching their ceiling. It is all in the details at the top.

Your competitive nature and mentality is a combination of what you were born with and what you have experienced. Is it nature or nurture? Pressure makes diamonds and nothing forces adaptation like being forced to accept it. High-pressure meets where you need a big throw on round 6…that will make or break you. It will also teach and prep you for future situations like that.

An athlete must consider why they have such tendencies like:

• throwing less in meets than in practice

• why at big meets does their technique feel off,

  OR even positives like:

• why they tend to rise to the occasion when they need a big throw.

  
  

  *The negatives can be refined to be improved, while the positives can be refined to be even more lethal. 

My throwing career has seen many last round personal bests and important marks. I think my junior year of high school out of the twenty meets I had, over fifteen saw my best marks on round 6. I think that is a combination of my competitive nature and the forced pressure to get a big throw out there. It was instinctive. Last one best one and I have nothing to lose! I turned many bad days into good days and many okay days into great days because of one throw. But, I also needed to improve this because at bigger meets you needed to get into finals, put the pressure on other athletes by throwing far in the prelims, and make every throw count.

These are attributes I consistently think about and work on improving. It can also help your distance. I need to recreate the pressure of round 6 on round 1. I need to not back off the throw or get tight on round 1 like I feel I usually do. These are just a few examples of things I’ve pondered to execute better.

In my younger years I knew one thing for certain, most of my worst practice days came after my best meets, and some of my best practices came after my worst meets. When things go awry, it forces you to be scrappy and go back to the basics to throw far. Sometimes big meets lead to a bit of pompousness that after waltzing into practice, you get humbled very quickly.

How does this apply to other athletes at the high school or college level? You need to think about everything.

• Your routine.

• How you prep for the competition.

• What music you are listening to?

• Does it make you tight and clench your fingers like me?

• Do you get extra nervous and changes you from practice?

There are strategies that can combat these issues. It will not always solve them, but they can certainly improve them. Visualizing, recreating pressure in practice, focusing on your mental process for meets, etc. are a few examples to hone in on these specific areas. Everyone is different, but if you are not actively thinking about all aspects of your training and your mental approach…then you will never fully maximize your potential.