Improve your mental game while you brush your teeth!

At some point you will contemplate how to improve your golf.

You will think about your weaknesses and then set about trying to improve that aspect of your game.

I am willing to make a large bet that your focus has been on your technique, how to. Maybe trying to fix a slice or hit more fairways, make more putts, that kind of thing.

You may or may not have contemplated how the mental side of the game affects you. Most people, when asked “how much of your game is mental” will answer with a high number like 70% but will then spend 100% of their practice time on the swing!!!

Golfers are mental!

My point here is this. Golf is a simple game and we know loads about the swing and technique. Hitting great golf shots consistently is not that difficult. Stand in a balanced and stable position, control the club face with a good grip, swing the club on plane and the ball is on its way.

So before you say “it’s not that simple”, from a technique point of view it really is. So what is stopping golfers performing to their best?

Answer: the mental game, or to be more specific, tension and stress.

Now here is the bit that interests me. What is it and how can it be improved?

If you look at all the websites and magazines they will all tell you “stay in the present” or words to that effect.

So what the hell does that mean? I was definitely there when I missed the putt on the 18th, I was present! I was really concentrating and focussed on making the putt but it missed.

The promised land that we are all looking for is the ability to play a golf shot with no interruptions from our self, no fear, doubt or tension. To almost be on auto pilot, to trust!

It’s not easy. From my own point of view my mind is busy and their can be lots of mental chatter when I’m trying to hit the ball. What we want is quiet. To be able to make your decisions and then execute, with the end result being a free flowing movement.

Those bad swings or missed putts will come predominantly from tension at some point in the swing. I need to mention at this point that technique does absolutely matter but it must be married with good mental skill. If you keep working on both aspects then you will improve much faster. The mental game and physical game are NOT mutually exclusive!

So here’s how you can improve your mental game.

Next time you brush your teeth just pay attention to where you mind is and what you are thinking about. When I first did this I noticed that I was thinking of what I needed to do that day, things to remember, ideas popped into my head. Brushing my teeth was secondary and as a result I couldn’t wait to get done so I could move onto the next task. My electric toothbrush has a 2 minute timer and I would struggle to get to 2 minutes!

What I do now is to focus on the action of brushing my teeth and nothing else. For 2 minutes I am committed to brushing my teeth. I pay attention to the feel of the brush and which part of the mouth it’s in and all the other detail associated with it. I use this time to train myself mind to focus on one thing.

Brushing my teeth is a whole new experience. It’s almost meditative!

Hopefully you brush your teeth twice a day so that’s 4 minutes of mental training per day that you can complete. It absolutely will help your golf.

Why? Because you are training your brain to focus on the task at hand, to be present, to flow. All those other thoughts that can just seem to pop in are disruptive to your golf swing but this is a way to make the mental muscle stronger.