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This mental game video is getting into the zone.

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Now, the zone is the state where basically you're going to be performing at your optimal.

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So, it's one of those states that we want to try to get into is frequently as possible.

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It's described as kind of the flow state or, you know, unconscious or any of those key words that help you feel what it's like to just kind of be automatic.

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So, I was talking with Dr. Lindy's Lee about this and she's got some great ideas on it.

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She doesn't have a ton of stuff that you can research yet, but she will be coming up with, you know, programs and things like that, and I'll be sure to link them whenever they do come around.

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So, as far as getting into the zone or getting into this flow state, there's kind of the spectrum that we look at versus automatic versus cognitive.

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So, cognitive is basically when I'm thinking my way through a process.

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So, if I were to time I choose and I was seeing myself that song or basically, you know, doing one loop over the other cross.

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If I'm thinking my way through each step, that's going to be more cognitive.

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If I'm just doing it well, I can, you know, carry on a conversation or my body is just kind of going in what we call automatic.

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That's going to be more this zone or this flow state.

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Now, there are two big causes or two big barriers to reaching the flow state.

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First one is going to be anxiety and the second one is going to be its cousin frustration.

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So, anxiety is basically any time that your body is in a arouser elevated state.

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So, when you're on the range, you're in a relatively calm state and that's when you're doing all your practice.

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And then you get on the golf course and your blood starts pumping, you start releasing some hormones.

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And basically, you reach this state of arousal and that's going to make you more and more cognitive.

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So, any tips that you can do or any tricks that you can use in order to minimize the stress on the golf course.

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So, whether that's breathing, whether that's meditation, whether that's the most common one,

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which is having a pre-shot routine to basically make the whole process seem very automatic.

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Any of those things are going to help keep your arousal level down, which will make it more likely for you to get into that flow state.

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So, the second one is frustration.

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And now, this is the one that as a golf instructor, I have to deal with more than anything else.

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Yes, people definitely get anxious on the golf course, but frustration is going to come primarily when there's this gap.

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And the gap is when there is a difference between my expectations and my performance.

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So, if I go on to the golf course and I expect that I'm going to shoot 120 in top every shot,

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I can actually get into the zone while playing terribly.

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The problem is, if I go on to the golf course and I think I'm going to shoot 80 and then I'm topping every shot,

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this creates this frustration, which makes me more and more cognitive, which takes me further away from the zone.

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So, one of the tricks that I like to use is using tests on the range to paint realistic perspective or realistic perspective of your performance ability.

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So, if I'm on the range and I'm hitting 7 iron after 7 iron after 7 iron and I'm hitting them all great.

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What my brain is going to do is it's going to look at this and be like, oh my goodness, I'm awesome.

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When I got on the course, I'm going to shoot 65.

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I get on the course and I have 1 bad 7 iron and now I start to get frustrated because my expectations are different than my performance.

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So, when you're on the range, you want to do things that help test your skill level so that you can get an accurate picture of where your game is.

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And this can go both ways.

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I could either overestimate or I could underestimate my performance ability and both of those will make it harder for me to perform a maximum.

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So, a common one especially as Linda described that she sees with a lot of her female clients is that they will typically underestimate their performance ability.

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And as a result, they'll look at a shot and they'll lay up on say a par five where maybe 5 out of 10 they could actually hit the green.

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But they're just they've conditioned themselves that I'm not very good and I'm not going to do very well.

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So, I'm just going to play it safe.

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So, either extreme of either my performance is way worse than my expectations or my performance is way better than my expectations is actually going to make it harder and harder for you to reach this state of zone.

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So, the biggest piece of advice I can give you if you're trying to get into this zone state.

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I am by no means a licensed sports psychologist, but I talk a lot.

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I talk with a number of them in order to get information for you for this site.

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The two biggest pieces I can give you is to have as clear a process as you can.

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So, develop a really solid pre shot routine because that will help make things a little bit more automatic.

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Have a post shot routine which helps you manage emotions because that will help keep the frustration levels down.

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And then third, when you're practicing, do tests in order to see where your performance actually is so that you can have realistic perspective.

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And the better you can stick to kind of those three rules, the closer you're going to be or the more frequently you're going to find yourself in the zone.