Guest Post: State of Flow: The Importance of a Calm, Confident Mind During Competition

Every athlete undergoes immense physical training; face weaknesses and improve strengths.

It is not possible to be at the elite level without this hard work. But when it comes time to compete, the individuals who truly shine have something unique that sets them apart. They are able to enter a zone that allows them to rise above others.

This is often called a flow state.

The big picture: To achieve a state of flow, you need to quiet your mind and eliminate distractions. It’s a difficult task if they are stuck in a negative past, or worried about a hypothetical future, or what others might be thinking of them.

• Only when an athlete is fully immersed in the present they can reach a level of calm while a flurry of activity happens around them. Your confidence increases and negativity disappears.

The opposite also appears to be true. When an athlete makes mistakes or digs a hole early in a workout, the extra stress and strain of catching up can be extremely costly. Their confidence disappears and distractions take over.

Remember me: Pat Vellner looked calm and collected waiting for the second and final interval to begin during Test 8: Intervals at the 2023 CrossFit Games in Madison. He called the crowd to a roar by waving his arms in the air, the stoic look on his face unchanged. Pure confidence.

As the second interval began, Vellner picked up where she left off in the first, showing off the smooth technique in the burpee box jumps that helped extend her lead heading into the rower. Barely breathing through his mouth, he completed the calories needed to move on to the next segment.

The camera panned to other athletes that he had clearly entered a cave of pain, from which there would probably be no escape until minutes after the work was done. In a test that destroyed most of the field, Vellner cruised to victory as if he were on a Sunday walk in the park.

In a recent episode of Talking about Elite Fitnesshe described his experience.

• This was the easiest training I’ve ever done at the Games. And I won standing up, recalled Vellner.
• This level of flow state is sometimes rare and what you always chase, He continued. You get a few of them in a career, and they’re cool.

Why is it important: It is well known how much mentality affects results during competition. There has been discussion about this among elite coaches, sports psychologists and effective athletes for years. From the book The Confident Mind by Nate Zinnser:

• When the fear of making a mistake is on your mind, you become cautious instead of assertive, reserved instead of intense, overly analytical instead of natural and fluid.

Vellner acknowledged the work was done in advance and gave credit to coach Michele Letendre.

• She was right about the burpees. That’s when the separation was made, smoothly and quickly. Vellner said.

The end result: How did Vellner manage to achieve his 7th career test victory, calmly walking to the finish while most competitors collapsed at the line?

He seemed to have kept his mind calm and confident and reached a state of flow. With the Rogue Invitational just around the corner, which athletes will we see use this superpower to their advantage?