Nervousness

[F-100]

Hey people.

Well currently im having major stress in my head for the reason ive been playing bad in my schools volleyball team(im middle back and libero). The reason im playing bad is because i get nervous when i start playing against other people but at practice its like instincts, i just do the passes and they come out right but during the games i just get way too nervous and screw up.

Could you guys give me any tips to prepare better for games and how to let out all my stress.

Thanks

[tbarbera]

You need to know you can pass. If you pass well during practice you can pass well during games. Just know in your head that you can pass well. You have already told us (via your post) that you can pass well so bring the same confidence that you have in practice with you into the games.

Maybe you need to to get a really good warm-up in where you are passing tons of money passes. Then it will be in you head that you can pass well since you just did it.

-Tyler

[volleyballstud]

Perhaps your coach can do something for you. During practice, your coach should run more drills in which you're in game situations. Just be sure they change things up to keep you guessing. It's easy to pass when you have the same hitter hitting the same way every time and they're hitting right at you. Make sure they make you move everytime so you get accustomed to having to pass on the run.

[NewEnglandRT]

I like T.B.'s suggestion for having a good warm up.

Solving this issue is a personal one. For instance, having grown up an ice hockey goaltender I'm used to just sitting by myself and focusing on my internal monolauge (sp?) and visualizing my successfull play. In other sports (wrestling) as a team we would get the locker room hopping with loud music and start pumping each other up, getting that adrenaline going helped (not so much for the heavier guys who had later matches!).

There's lots of ways go shake what you've got. There are also volumes of books out there on this type of sports performance. What you've got isn't physical it's mental. Gotta git'cho mind right!

Try a couple different things, maybe before warm ups sit quitely and visualize passing and digging at your best.... maybe look at the other teams players and imagine passing/digging them in particular. Take a good warm up and have your partner get progressivley more aggressive and make you work building up your confidence level along the way and keep repeating to yourself... "I've got this, everyball is my ball, nothing drops!" when you get on the court just keep repeating it to yourself and remember how confident you feel practicing.

I don't know what kind of person you are or how to do it best, give that a shot and give us some feedback on how it worked out. There are at least two guys on here who are pretty competative liberos who can help you out more (tbarbera and coach manzi).

[louis09]

The nervousness will eventually go away.....with the more you play.. I was like that when I was 14 and 15 then the more games I played the less nervous I was...by the time I was in High School....playing a game was like walking.....I just did it. Only experience will help sir...and dont drink Caffine it will only make you jittery.