Methods of mental self-regulation of horting athletes
To increase resistance to stress and expand the psychological reserves of a combat horting athlete, special methods have been developed. They can be conditionally divided into two groups. The first group includes various methods of mental self-regulation, with the help of which the athlete can independently influence his emotional, mental and physical state.
In the combat horting system, various methods of mental self-regulation are widely used as a preventive measure to combat stress: relaxation and breathing exercises, progressive muscle relaxation, spiritual and physical plasticity, autogenic training, meditation.
Relaxation and breathing exercises
When a combat horting athlete begins to feel excitement, anxiety, fear, that is, he experiences stress, this is always easily recognized by a change in breathing. Such changes in most sick people precede the moment of another exacerbation of the disease. But if you straighten your breathing, the feelings that caused its violation will also disappear. It will not hurt to control your breathing even for completely healthy people: on the one hand, in order to prevent possible diseases, on the other - to be able to calm down quickly.
What happens to the breathing of an athlete in a state of psychological stress? Feeling, for example, fear, the athlete most often holds his breath and breathes very superficially ("barely breathes from fear"). The lack of oxygen does its job, as a result of which anxiety increases, which leads to unpleasant consequences.
Some athletes react to extreme influences by increasing the depth and frequency of breathing (swallowing air). They can create a lot of problems for themselves with hyperventilation, because it can affect consciousness no worse than narcotic drugs, which, in particular, is used in some psychotherapeutic methods.
Relaxation
Combat horting athletes relax in different ways and with varying success. Some people relax when they listen to music, others consider working in the garden as a relaxation, and still others are favorably affected by a hot bath. Under certain conditions, any activity that an athlete does voluntarily and with pleasure really contributes to general relaxation and rest.
All common forms of relaxation, which are called relaxation in everyday life (occupational therapy, bibliotherapy, music therapy, laughter therapy, etc.) are just ways of rest. But numerous relaxation techniques of combat horting help to restore strength more effectively, disconnect from everyday worries and thoughts.
Relaxation is one of the defining components of athletes' auto-training. This is voluntary muscle relaxation. It usually has a double result: emotional tension decreases and a natural state of inhibition of the CNS occurs (the body prepares for sleep). Natural muscle relaxation is usually caused by positive emotions. We all know that when resting, a person relaxes his muscles, but when experiencing unpleasant emotions, he tenses them.
This connection between the muscular and nervous systems is used in the process of self-training of combat horting athletes. Muscle relaxation is accompanied by the removal of emotional tension. With the systematic use of relaxation, a conditioned reflex is established that helps the athlete maintain emotional balance in the event of emotional tension and avoid distress.
For athletes who want to master the relaxation technique, we can offer an example of classical relaxation. Learning relaxation takes 2–3 months. But in any case, you should not consider the hours spent as lost. Even not very perfect relaxation gives its result. But if a combat horting athlete has truly mastered the relaxation technique, this will not only significantly reduce the time it takes him to restore physical strength after training, relaxation, but also help to restore his psychological state as best as possible.
Improving health by performing stretching and poses occurs in parallel with an increase in the level of development of some volitional qualities. In addition, studies of the phenomena of static physical exercise positions have shown that the amount of endorphins released during their execution is significantly higher than even during a health run. For example, 25 times more antidepressant hormones are produced during autogenic training with elements of plastic surgery, and they are stored in the blood 2 times longer than during running. After breathing in plastic surgery positions, adrenaline harmful to the heart and blood vessels is released.
Autogenic training
A psychotherapy method such as autogenic training is a good way to relieve nervous and emotional tension and prevent the pathogenic effects of stress on the body. Autogenic training, an opportunity for a combat horting athlete to independently correct his emotional and mental state, is increasingly attracting people's attention.
The method of autogenic training was proposed by the German psychotherapist I. Schultz in 1937. Since then, it has spread to many countries of the world, including our country. The modern system of self-regulation - autogenic training - combines the positive aspects of other methods and allows you to achieve the restoration of mental regulation of nervous and physiological processes.
Autogenic training - a system of using psychophysical techniques, formulas of suggestion in order to improve health, restore psychoemotional balance, eliminate imbalance and disharmony of somatic, humoral and other processes.
The theoretical basis of autogenic training is the principle of reflex activity of the body, substantiated in the works of specialists of the National Federation of Combat Horting of Ukraine. It consists in the fact that each mental act ends with motor activity, and thought is a reflex inhibited in its motor part. So, if a singer hums something mentally, it turns out that his vocal cords vibrate, although there is no sound. The so-called ideomotor muscle movement occurs.
Autogenic training can be carried out in the following way.
Sitting (head tilted, hands on hips) or lying on your back, slowly repeat the following verbal formulas several times:
"I relax and calm down", "my hands relax and warm up", "my hands are completely relaxed, warm", "my legs are completely relaxed, warm, still", "my torso relaxes and warms up", "my torso is completely relaxed, warm, still", "my face relaxes and warms up", "my face is completely relaxed, warm, still", "a state of pleasant (complete, deep) peace".
At the initial stage of training, it is recommended to practice 4–5 times a day for 4–5 minutes, repeating the formula 2 to 4 times in a row.
If, after regular training, the sensations begin to manifest themselves clearly, instead of repeating these 12 formulas, you can limit yourself to 7 basic ones, and for practicing auto-training you need only 4–5 minutes a day.
The pinnacle of perfection is the ability to do with only two formulas: the first and the last. For autogenic training in this variant, no more than 1 minute is needed, and with very high training - 15–30 seconds.
It is recommended to end psycho-muscular training with the following formulas: “my whole body is resting”, “I have rested and calmed down”, “I feel good”, “I will gladly get down to business”.
After that, it is necessary, without haste, to take a deep breath, stretch your whole body well, exhale, stand up, do a few simple exercises and get down to business.
With the help of autogenic training, a combat horting athlete can learn to significantly develop and strengthen willpower, manage their feelings, mood, control the activity of internal organs (change the rhythm of cardiac activity, depth and frequency of breathing, etc.). If desired, with the help of autogenic training, you can get rid of many functional disorders of the central nervous system - obsessive fears, ideas, thoughts, overcome sleep disorders.
In society, in various medical practices, autogenic training is used in the treatment of alcoholism, various forms of neurasthenia, in the initial stages of hypertension, angina pectoris, and in some skin diseases.
Meditation
Numerous schools have been arguing for centuries about what meditation is. Is it self-hypnosis, maybe autosuggestion, or something mystical. Obviously, it is the first, the second, and the third. But they are all united in one thing - it is a special state of the psyche.
In our domestic space, meditation has long been known as “smart doing.” Sometimes it is called contemplation, there is also a Western version - trance.
From the Greek language, the word meditation (meditatio) is translated as concentrated thinking. Most meditations require immobility, but there is also dynamic meditation, meditative running, meditative dancing, and meditative singing. Meditation is based on the ability to control attention, most often in a state of immobility. In this case, the flow of any information into the brain, except for specially selected ones, stops.
Real meditation is preceded by long-term preparation - acquiring skills in various types of concentration. This can be concentration on a point, one's own breathing, repeated moments. So, if a person sits down to meditate, he must concentrate on something, that is, narrow the consciousness. Meditation is an expansion of consciousness. The beaten, narrowed consciousness enters the space with a soft ram and, after overcoming the first resistance, fills it. A person must be in this space, hold it, establish control over it. The most famous schools that teach meditation techniques were created by Eastern teachers.
The most common type of meditation is concentration meditation. First, concentration is carried out on an object or phenomenon (on a point, breathing, sound). There should be a single source that attracts attention. It is necessary to get rid of nervousness, calm emotions, relieve physical tension. For this, there is a concentration of consciousness on an object or process, after which meditation occurs.
In addition to concentration meditations, there is perception meditation. It is fundamentally different, its essence is “just sitting”. A person is completely immersed in his sensations, embracing them all, without exception. This is the most difficult form of meditation. A person who is engaged in it must be fully aware of himself, see and feel what is happening in his inner world: “From the shore of consciousness to observe the movement of the river of thoughts”. This phrase is the essence of this type of meditation.
In Ukraine, meditation has been known for a long time. Basically, it is concentration meditation. Christian prayer practice is to some extent a meditative practice. Concentration in this case occurs through the repetition of the words of prayer. In Christianity, the criteria that apply to the concept of "meditation" in Eastern and occult schools apply to the so-called "intelligent" prayer.
Its practice is closely connected with the entire liturgical, dogmatic life of the church. In general, Christian meditative practices are similar to Eastern ones. The aforementioned "intelligent" prayer, or calming prayer, was practiced in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Meditation brings into the life of the one who practices it, the harmony of combining the inner world with the outer.
"Horting Encyclopedia"
Eduard Yeromenko
© 2014