Meditation is a state of being. It is awareness of the way of life. It has no purpose or goal. If it's practiced to achieve a goal it can create more stress (What if the goal is not achieved). By practicing meditation everyday, change in the way of our thinking and living will come gradually over time. Change not only in sports but the way we interact with everything around us in our daily life.
11
Mindfulness has replaced thoughtfulness, just as the concept of Progress has been replaced by the idea of innovation for innovation's sake.
2
Blinding in this type of study is impossible, so the study of meditation is beyond the realm of scientific objectivity. This is not to say meditation may benefit individuals who find it useful, but a truly objective study without subject or researcher bias is just impossible.
"The other group was taught mindfulness meditation, which involves paying close attention to breathing and to the present moment."
"Mindfulness - Breathing and the Present Moment" The American religion of Athletics is quite limited, it's true. May they transecend!
"Mindfulness - Breathing and the Present Moment" The American religion of Athletics is quite limited, it's true. May they transecend!
1
I coach 5 & 6th grade youth football, and we teach our boys good breathing techniques and mindfulness from the first practice each year. Of course, getting a 5th grader to stop watching the birds, balloons, airplanes, clouds, etc. is a task in itself.
2
I wonder if it's not the other way around...people who are aware of their resilience or otherwise more naturally resilient seek out and/or perform activities which lead to self restoration. If the difference was that the men who were performing the activities more often on their own were the most resilient, maybe its because, once they were shown mindfulness/relaxation as a tool, the resilient ones were more likely to actually use it.
7
Why is it that people who teach mindfulness don't play football? Because it doesn't work. Similarly, if you are working in a stressed filled environment and practice mindfulness to manage it also does not work. You have to change your environment and then practice mindfulness. Now it may work provided you do it for years.
To answer your question, only a tiny fraction of people play football (or have the huge body and talents that make it possible) and only a tiny fraction of people teach meditation. It is no surprise that the groups do not overlap, especially when you consider that anyone young enough to play football is unlikely to be old enough to teach meditation.
And certainly it helps to reduce a stress filled environment. But there are many studies that indicate that meditation helps people reduce dysfunctional effects of a stressful life. And there is plenty of antidotal evidence (I do not know if there are any proper studies.) that mediators also act to reduce the stress in their environment, causing an interaction effect.
Your blanket statement that meditation does not work is contrary to many scientific studies as well as 3000 years of history and experience.
And certainly it helps to reduce a stress filled environment. But there are many studies that indicate that meditation helps people reduce dysfunctional effects of a stressful life. And there is plenty of antidotal evidence (I do not know if there are any proper studies.) that mediators also act to reduce the stress in their environment, causing an interaction effect.
Your blanket statement that meditation does not work is contrary to many scientific studies as well as 3000 years of history and experience.
15
As a young cop (40 yrs ago), I had the good luck to be nudged from my off-duty martial arts training into meditation practice at the San Francisco Zen Center.
I was working the graveyard shift at the time and assigned to a poor and crime-ridden section of the City.
There's not enough space here to fairly describe some of the changes that I know meditation brought to my performance as a cop.
While always "doing the right thing" is next to impossible in the policing job, I know that I acted (and reacted) with a "quieter" mind--enabling me to better assess each situation and make choices that seemed most appropriate--for what the job called for, what people expected, and for my own sense of "right."
While this is only anecdotal--there was no experimental design, I offer it as something that seemed true over a lot of years.
I was working the graveyard shift at the time and assigned to a poor and crime-ridden section of the City.
There's not enough space here to fairly describe some of the changes that I know meditation brought to my performance as a cop.
While always "doing the right thing" is next to impossible in the policing job, I know that I acted (and reacted) with a "quieter" mind--enabling me to better assess each situation and make choices that seemed most appropriate--for what the job called for, what people expected, and for my own sense of "right."
While this is only anecdotal--there was no experimental design, I offer it as something that seemed true over a lot of years.
42
totally agree Jocko - decades ago - after meditating to a clear mind - I was strolling around London's Soho after midnight - an empty street - a few punks sitting on an kerb - one leapt up, stood blocking my path, and put his face a few inches from mine and screamed like a madman for about five seconds - clearly hoping to put the fear of god into me
but - having a clear empty mind from meditation - I simply gazed at him calmly, and quietly said to his face six inches from mine - 'do you have a problem ?'
wha' ... !?!?!? He looked confused - this was not the response he expected.
He started to tremble - increasingly - until his whole body shook like a flag fluttering in a breeze - he looked like he was about to collapse, he couldn't take it - he stumbled away and sat back down next to his mates. I continued on my way - without a look back. No problem.
Years later - coming out of BBKing's Blues Club on the South Side of Chicago about 1am with my female partner - in the empty streetscape a big young black guy stood - he approached us and said 'wanna give me some money ?' - I smiled and calmly said to him 'sorry man ...' - we kept walking - without a look back. Again no problem.
So my understanding - with a clear mind from meditation you will just - do the right thing - without a thought - it's just natural. It's when the busy mind gets you all uppity with fear and confusion that predators can get you. Absent that - they part like the Red Sea for Moses.
but - having a clear empty mind from meditation - I simply gazed at him calmly, and quietly said to his face six inches from mine - 'do you have a problem ?'
wha' ... !?!?!? He looked confused - this was not the response he expected.
He started to tremble - increasingly - until his whole body shook like a flag fluttering in a breeze - he looked like he was about to collapse, he couldn't take it - he stumbled away and sat back down next to his mates. I continued on my way - without a look back. No problem.
Years later - coming out of BBKing's Blues Club on the South Side of Chicago about 1am with my female partner - in the empty streetscape a big young black guy stood - he approached us and said 'wanna give me some money ?' - I smiled and calmly said to him 'sorry man ...' - we kept walking - without a look back. Again no problem.
So my understanding - with a clear mind from meditation you will just - do the right thing - without a thought - it's just natural. It's when the busy mind gets you all uppity with fear and confusion that predators can get you. Absent that - they part like the Red Sea for Moses.
10
awesome offering Jocko, thanks vm.
2
@Frank
It frees us to experience intuition, freedom from fear, anger.
5
It is nice that more research is being done on the benefits of meditation on different aspects of life. This is one of the reasons why I like Transcendental Meditation: there are hundreds of studies around the world showing a large range of benefits in areas such as insomnia, depression, PTSD, ADHD, autism, and addiction. Of course, there is a profound increase in peace and clarity of mind so important for optimal performance in sport: http://www.tm.org
6
Football is about as far away from the intent of mindfulness as you can get. Mindfulness is about seeing things the way they are and accepting them, showing loving kindness and compassion. Sad to see such a beautiful practice used to improve the performance in such an anger-filled, dangerous sport.
5
Mindfulness applies to football just as it does every other human activity. Are football players forbidden from experiencing acceptance, loving kindness and compassion? I would welcome you to interact with some football players about this; you might be surprised. Confused people can be found most anywhere, but their presence in an activity does not change the activity itself.
21
apparently mindfulness should also be used to judge others?
3
Mindfulness doesn't have any intent. If you're mediating toward a goal or to achieve certain results, or because it makes you feel superior to others, you're wasting your time. Plus, mindfulness is not a finite resource. All of those nasty football players aren't going to use up your supply.
1
As the parent of a high school and Ohio St collegiate record holder who threatneed to quit a lot I disagree. I really enjoyed the personality tests and team building classes required when I was stationed and worked as a civilian at NSA (No Such Agency). My athlete never complained about stress. The complaints were teammates jealous drama and pettiness. Coaches pitting athletes against each other using the excuse competition is great internal training. Like everyone keeps saying when a talented athlete wipes out the East NCAA region then walks away to go be happy that's not good!!! I had a desperate parent ( I knew from high school) admit to pretending to be my friend to get his child into Ohio St to copy my child. Meditation won't solve the desperation for success in sports!!
2
That's a good point. Environment matters. Years ago their was a documentary* about trying to use meditation in a prison in India. The instructors agreed to give training to the prisoners on the condition that the guards first went through the program--e.g. it would've failed if the guards kept acting they way they always had. (*Doing Time Doing Vipassana)
3
Interesting that the NYT weekly health quiz reference stated that the athletes were doing yoga, and tried to present yoga and mindfulness meditation as synonymous. That seems disingenuous, and I don't see yoga mentioned in the reference article. One can do mindfulness mediation without ever setting foot in a yoga studio.
6
In this country, yoga is something you do on a sticky mat.
In India, yoga is meditation. [Actually it is samadhi, the next step that is unfamiliar to most people.]
Meditation has a specific physiological definition (and while "mind" is part of that, it is not the whole).
Meditation as well as pranayama and the other practices in yoga all have an effect on the "underlying physiology" (the physiology that actually controls the chemical balances that are the field of modern medicine), so it should be no surprise that it has helped people in all human endeavors.
"Patanjali's Yoga Sutras," written by a physician 2,500 years ago, has the deepest description of this, and it can all be verified personally (with a little bit of dedication:O).
In India, yoga is meditation. [Actually it is samadhi, the next step that is unfamiliar to most people.]
Meditation has a specific physiological definition (and while "mind" is part of that, it is not the whole).
Meditation as well as pranayama and the other practices in yoga all have an effect on the "underlying physiology" (the physiology that actually controls the chemical balances that are the field of modern medicine), so it should be no surprise that it has helped people in all human endeavors.
"Patanjali's Yoga Sutras," written by a physician 2,500 years ago, has the deepest description of this, and it can all be verified personally (with a little bit of dedication:O).
4
Dr. Jha & her colleagues' work has implications for managing perceived stress for all of us! By stress I mean the internal & external demands we experience & our uncertainty about having internal & external resources to deal with the demands. I have such gratitude for Dr. Jha's research and it's benefits for so many. Once again research findngs point to the power of intention, attention, & relaxed alertness!
5
The topic of stress is both intriguing and depressing. Society has seen an increase in stress and in particular, amongst the younger generation, where stress is now an everyday part of a student's life.
As confirmed by the A.P.A, the average student today will demonstrate more levels of anxiety than a child pyschiatric patient would have in the 1950's (American Psychological Association). This alarming statistic has brought about methods to target and treat this stress and reduce the influence it has in one's life.
In her article, Gretchen Reynolds discusses how a simple mindfulness and meditation-like act for 12 minutes a day can not only alleviate mental based stress, but also ease physical stress. The experiment was tested on Division 1 college football players who would both feel the pressure of strenuous summer workloads and their changing status in their respective football teams. These stressfilled players were taught meditation methods and encouraged to pursue them. It was discovered that "the more an athlete had practiced relaxing, the less his mood had tended to decline" (Gretchen Reynolds).
As a teenager, balancing the demands of sport and academics, I can understand the need for an outlet for stress. I have previously used running and reading as methods to handle my stress levels, but, on the basis of this article, I plan and encourage others to allocate time for mindfullness and meditation in order to preserve sanity and create a stress free life for all.
As confirmed by the A.P.A, the average student today will demonstrate more levels of anxiety than a child pyschiatric patient would have in the 1950's (American Psychological Association). This alarming statistic has brought about methods to target and treat this stress and reduce the influence it has in one's life.
In her article, Gretchen Reynolds discusses how a simple mindfulness and meditation-like act for 12 minutes a day can not only alleviate mental based stress, but also ease physical stress. The experiment was tested on Division 1 college football players who would both feel the pressure of strenuous summer workloads and their changing status in their respective football teams. These stressfilled players were taught meditation methods and encouraged to pursue them. It was discovered that "the more an athlete had practiced relaxing, the less his mood had tended to decline" (Gretchen Reynolds).
As a teenager, balancing the demands of sport and academics, I can understand the need for an outlet for stress. I have previously used running and reading as methods to handle my stress levels, but, on the basis of this article, I plan and encourage others to allocate time for mindfullness and meditation in order to preserve sanity and create a stress free life for all.
17
MIND OVER MUSCLE - The Mental Gym was created by Major Nory Laderoute, former Director of Physical Education Training for the Canadian Armed Forces Combat Training Center and I, in 1974. It teaches athletes relaxation and visualization to enhance sports performance, and is has been used by thousands of Olympic athletes worldwide. http://thoughttechnology.com/index.php/accessories/mind-over-muscletm-bi...
What Major Laderoute and I learned while working with 24 Military Biathletes in Val Cartier in 1978, was that RELAXATION before and during VISUALIZATION is the NECESSARY PRECONDITION for visualization to work!
• Twenty four Military Biathletes were randomly assigned to two groups. One received real GSR2 Biofeedback while the other received ‘Fixed Tone’ GSR2 (they had been made to only turn on a low tone and not vary whatsoever).
• They were given 6 words of instruction: DO MENTALLY WHAT YOU DO PHYSICALLY.
• After 6 weeks, the group with ‘Fixed Tone’ GSR2 mutinied – presented as a group of 12 and said: “This is fixed against our group”! Either we quit – or give us the real GSR2’s so we can compete with the successful group.
• Not only had the real Biofeedback Groups shooting improved markedly, but their time on the track was over 10% quicker. When we gave the second group real Biofeedback – their performance equaled the firsts!
pA - you say "was there no control group'? We saw no improvement until real BF was used!
What Major Laderoute and I learned while working with 24 Military Biathletes in Val Cartier in 1978, was that RELAXATION before and during VISUALIZATION is the NECESSARY PRECONDITION for visualization to work!
• Twenty four Military Biathletes were randomly assigned to two groups. One received real GSR2 Biofeedback while the other received ‘Fixed Tone’ GSR2 (they had been made to only turn on a low tone and not vary whatsoever).
• They were given 6 words of instruction: DO MENTALLY WHAT YOU DO PHYSICALLY.
• After 6 weeks, the group with ‘Fixed Tone’ GSR2 mutinied – presented as a group of 12 and said: “This is fixed against our group”! Either we quit – or give us the real GSR2’s so we can compete with the successful group.
• Not only had the real Biofeedback Groups shooting improved markedly, but their time on the track was over 10% quicker. When we gave the second group real Biofeedback – their performance equaled the firsts!
pA - you say "was there no control group'? We saw no improvement until real BF was used!
6
Was there no control group in the study? Maybe they all would have done better regardless.
6
There were two control groups: one that received no training and a second group that did relaxation exercises (as distinct from the test group's mindfulness meditation).
Great study, Dr. Jha. I am glad to see that you are investigating the benefits of meditation in athletes who are known to struggle in class and in other aspects of their university experience due either to the education they have received or due to the intensity of the stress they carry. As William James said "voluntarily bringing back a wandering attention, over and over again, is the very root of judgment, character, and will. . . . An education which should improve this faculty would be the education par excellence."
6
There is a book that I recently read about applying mindfulness and meditation to football players. It is titled: Mindful Quarterbacking: A Playbook for the Quarterback's Mind. It was outstanding! Thanks for this article, I'll be sure to share it!
2
Thoughts come and thoughts go, rarely talking of Michelangelo. They are usually more like kvetching seniors at an uncomfortably fly-ridden barbecue in unbearable heat (no ageism just an analogy). But kvetching thoughts can be like flypaper and the mind can get stuck. It just stays focused on the annoyance and the annoyance becomes a threepenny opera with a full musical score and lots of rumination. The mind has become that part of town you just don't want to venture in after dark.
So, what's a mind to do?
Meditate.
Then suddenly it's just a thought and not a looming dire wolf about to gobble up your serenity.
Thoughts come and thoughts go. Let them go. Breathe.
So, what's a mind to do?
Meditate.
Then suddenly it's just a thought and not a looming dire wolf about to gobble up your serenity.
Thoughts come and thoughts go. Let them go. Breathe.
12
Seems like the data ultimately suggests that football, a violent game that threatens the health of both mind and body, should be relegated to the past like the gladiatorial contests of ancient Rome.
28
A fullback was running down field,
When to an impulse he did yield --
He sat on the loam
While chanting an ‘om,’
As inner peace on him congealed.
When to an impulse he did yield --
He sat on the loam
While chanting an ‘om,’
As inner peace on him congealed.
57
Bravo, Mr. Torkildson - brilliant!
4
If the ability to sustain attention and maintain focus drops significantly as a result of intense athletic activity, why is it surprising that, in addition to often poor academic preparation and support, athletes at colleges with top sports teams, so often struggle academically?
Every coach and higher education (and high school) leader should consider the merits of this study and what benefits their athletes can get from taking 10 minutes away from practice, to meditate.
Every coach and higher education (and high school) leader should consider the merits of this study and what benefits their athletes can get from taking 10 minutes away from practice, to meditate.
12
I wonder how they controlled for the variation in practicing the mindfulness techniques. Did the mindfulness techniques lead to better ability fo focus, or were students naturally able to maintain focus more likely to practice the techniques. It would seem that a better test would've been to force one entire random group to all do the same mindfulness practice during the experiment.
5