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Loosing mental focus


Muldune21

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Pre-match, get a good night sleep. Save the partying for after the match.

Don't skip breakfast. A nice balance of carbs and proteins are best. Unless absolutely necessary, keep caffeine to a minimum.

Stay hydrated. Take a few sips between every stage. If you start to get thirsty, you are behind the curve.

Keep your sugar levels stable. Every other stage or so, eat a granola bar, a little trail mix, or some fruit. Bananas work well for me.

Eat a lite lunch. A big BBQ sandwich will put anyone to sleep.

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Pre-match, get a good night sleep.

Really funny, but my first large OPEN match, I couldn't fall asleep for even a single minute the night before (talk about pre-match jitters).

​All night long I kept telling myself I'm going to have a real problem tomorrow, if I didn't get to sleep, soon.

Of course, it didn't work - made it worse - Never got a Single Minute's sleep All Night Long :((

​I didn't have a great match, because it was my first large OPEN match, but I don't think there was any detrimental

​effect from not getting ANY sleep the night before. Matter of fact, I wasn't even tired or sleepy during the match

(and I was 63 years old at the time).

​Strange but true tale from the Crypt :)

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Pre-match, get a good night sleep. Save the partying for after the match.

Don't skip breakfast. A nice balance of carbs and proteins are best. Unless absolutely necessary, keep caffeine to a minimum.

Stay hydrated. Take a few sips between every stage. If you start to get thirsty, you are behind the curve.

Keep your sugar levels stable. Every other stage or so, eat a granola bar, a little trail mix, or some fruit. Bananas work well for me.

Eat a lite lunch. A big BBQ sandwich will put anyone to sleep.

Hydration... it was high 80s Sunday. Drank six 16 oz waters during the match, two pops after and two waters on the way home... never had to pee. And yes, the last 2-3 stages out of 7 were, bad, worse and "I hope nobody was watching".

Bringing more water and some food next time. Fruit in a cooler sounds good.

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Relax and focus on the shooting. You have to keep your interest level high. Compete with someone on your squad. Be in it to win it, be it the stage, the match, your class, against a buddy, whatever. Competition keeps things lively. Drink lots of water, eat small snacks throughout the day instead of a meal at lunchtime.

Don't spend your time dwelling on creature comforts, if you wish the match was over already, then maybe you aren't serious about it. You have to be interested in the shooting to keep your focus.

Off the range, make exercise part of your life, drink lots of water, and work on your grip.

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Soo much of the match is waiting your turn. When you can be "off" while waiting and turn "on" when you're the in-the-hole shooter you might find your match stamina increasing. Less worry and more "butterflies flying in formation".

As others have mentioned, the more you can do to be "match fit" in being able to stand outside for 9-10 hours, possibly in weather, the better off you'll be.

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  • 1 month later...
On 6/21/2016 at 5:27 PM, Hi-Power Jack said:

Hydration

Nutrition

Exercising

Shoot on two different days (4 - 5 stages/day)

All these help to have the potential for better focus.  The term "better" being somewhat vague.  LOL....Days, weeks, months, years of doing them all in the correct order to help you to achieve a high level of energy in order to have proper focus.  Course, that is just a the physical level portion.  The building of your mental focus on each shot taken is about your trust you build in yourself, your equipment and knowing each and every shot required on that run, will be impacted by your diet. You can probably say "Champions hydrate to be Champions."   "Champions eat proper to be Champions" " Champions exercise to be Champions"  " Champions focus on being Champions".  What are you doing to work toward being a Champion?

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On 6/28/2016 at 3:49 PM, Dr Mitch said:

Relax and focus on the shooting. You have to keep your interest level high. Compete with someone on your squad. Be in it to win it, be it the stage, the match, your class, against a buddy, whatever. Competition keeps things lively. Drink lots of water, eat small snacks throughout the day instead of a meal at lunchtime.

Don't spend your time dwelling on creature comforts, if you wish the match was over already, then maybe you aren't serious about it. You have to be interested in the shooting to keep your focus.

Off the range, make exercise part of your life, drink lots of water, and work on your grip.

Excellent points....and a few advil never hurt either!  :) 

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For me I carry a 5hour energy and some kind of snack in my bag. Halfway through the day or when I start to feel like I'm losing focus I drink half of the 5hour and have a small snack usually a protein bar or some jerky.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I can remember attending a match that didnt provide shade nor water of any kind.  In south and central texas in the summer this is pretty rare but I remember it being miserable and wore out after the stage.  From then on I made it a point to bring my own food, drinks.  

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  • 3 weeks later...

Here in the desert it is most important to keep hydrated throughout the day.   Water is your friend.  

A 5 hour energy drink helps me get through the day.

A good breakfast is a must.  Doesn't have to be big but don't skip it.  Get to the range early and get all your stuff together so you don't have to worry as the day goes by.

Bring an energy bar with you or a protein bar. 

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  • 2 months later...
  • 5 months later...
  • 5 weeks later...

Hmmm, I have read to NOT drink much coffee, and several posts to suggesting include 5hr energy drinks before shooting. They are fully caffeine based! Not too sure that I get this. Caffeine is an energy booster. It is in essentially all pre-workout formulas, and sport drinks. Why is coffee bad? I can't imagine not having at least 2 good cups of coffee during breakfast

Edited by abb1
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In my 50's, I found the following helpful

 

1) rest whenever you can, make sure you have a seat when not taping / preparing for shooting

2) hydration and electrolytes are huge.

3) some caffeine is good, too much isn't. you need to learn your body to figure how much out.

4) stay warm/cool as necessary.

5) for me, I've moved to a ketogenic diet, and find now that I'm fat adapted my focus is much much better. Burning fat > carbs

 

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  • 1 year later...
On 6/22/2016 at 2:59 PM, vinceislander said:

Eat well, sleep well and hydrate well starting at least two days out, preferably three days out.

I have been able perform well and get my first stage jitters quickly under control by following those guidelines.

Good advice! 

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