Focus Friday: It Matters How We Train
Welcome to Focus Friday from Mental Flex! Whether you’re gearing up for a tournament, match, or showdown this weekend, we’ve got the mental strategies and competitive edge you need to crush it.
Quality Over Quantity
Years ago at a baseball camp, a coach drilled into us the importance of quality reps over sheer quantity. He argued that mindlessly grinding through thousands of half-hearted swings or throws wouldn’t make us better—it’d just ingrain bad habits. “Take 1,000 piss-poor reps, and you’ll get really, really good at being piss-poor,” he said. That stuck with me.
I’ve watched teammates—and athletes in every sport—waste hours on autopilot: hacking at balls in the cage, lobbing serves on the tennis court, or whacking drivers at the range just to say they “put in the work.” They chased quantity, checked boxes, and wondered why progress stalled.
The science backs this up. Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000-Hour Rule from his book, Outliers, is often misused to justify endless grinding, but the real secret lies in deliberate practice—focused, intentional reps that target weaknesses and demand full engagement. Most athletes leave growth on the table by skipping two things:
- Perfect reps > Pity reps: Sloppy, rushed practice hardwires mistakes. Ten flawless swings with a coach’s feedback beat 100 mindless hacks.
- Mental reps: Visualization isn’t woo-woo. Replaying perfect technique in your mind (10 physical reps + 100 mental reps) reinforces neural pathways without physical fatigue. Yet most athletes never try it.
If you want to help reduce your anxiety before competition, try these three things:
🔍 #1: Audit Your “Why” Before Every Rep
Ask: “Is this rep intentional, or am I just here to feel busy?” If your focus drifts, reset. Quality demands presence.
🧠 #2: Double Your Output with Mental Reps
After drilling a skill physically, close your eyes and rehearse it perfectly in your mind 10-20 times. Cement the feel, timing, and outcome. Mental reps are free gains.
⚖️ #3: Chase “Perfect 10s,” Not “Empty 100s”
End sessions when quality dips, even if you’ve hit 50% of your usual volume. Better to walk away with 10 elite reps than 100 forgettable ones. Your brain remembers the last thing you did. Make it count.
- Trevor Conner, Founder of Hearts & Minds
Want to up your mental game? Book a free 1:1 call with Trevor, our founder, below!
