A Lot Can Happen In The Final Quarter

It’s the final quarter, the time when games are won or lost.

I was recently exchanging text messages with a client who has had a really tough year, both physically and emotionally. She was feeling quite discouraged about her health journey to date and wrote “this year’s been tough, but 2020 will be my year”. This sentence gave me pause, as I realised we are only three quarters of the way through the year. We still have a whole quarter to go and, as any sporting team will tell you, the final quarter is where games can be won or lost. I quickly messaged back: “Don’t give up on 2019, we still have 3 months to make a difference. Let’s get to 2020 feeling amazing!”.

No matter what your health and fitness status is right now, if you are willing to put in a bit of effort, there is still plenty of time to finish strong (as a point of interest, in 2004, Nth Melbourne headed into the final quarter 40 points behind. They scored 58 points against the Sydney Swans in the final quarter to win 118 to 112. Now that’s a comeback!).

Let’s head into the sheds for our final pep talk, using some tried and true sports psychology coaching methods before we head out into the final quarter of 2019:

1. Focus on A Minimum of 3 positives For every negative

Athletes know when they are not playing well. Footballers don’t need to be told not to drop the ball, or to stop missing tackles. What the team needs to hear is what they are doing well in order to affirm that behaviour and send the players back onto the field with a positive mindset. The same goes for us in our health journeys. We know what we are doing wrong, so rather than focussing on our negatives, we need to give ourselves credit for what we are doing well. Start by writing down 3 things you are doing well, followed by one change you need to make. As an example: “this week I walked for 10 minutes every evening, I had 3 alcohol free nights and I got to sleep before 10:30 every night. However I did sleep in and miss training twice, so will make that change this coming week”.

2. Play to Your Strengths

Last week my family and I were lucky enough to attend the Rugby World Cup in Japan. Japan has been the surprise team of the tournament, playing out of their skin! In their exciting win against Ireland, they utilised the home ground advantage and played with an intensity that had the crowd on their feet. They didn’t worry about the fact that Ireland was stronger in their technical aspects of the game, they used their strengths and pulled through.

The same goes for us with regards to our health journey. Work out what your strengths are and focus on them, rather than pushing for something that doesn’t come naturally to you. If you enjoy working out with others, then find a training group that works for you (such as Fit My Day). If you don’t enjoy running, then you don’t need to run. Work to your strengths and make your strengths work for you.

Don’t push your weaknesses, play with your strengths.

3. Always Have A Game Plan

All successful sporting teams approach every match with a solid game plan and contingencies for a whole range of different outcomes for every situation. They have numerous coaching and support staff to analyse the opposition and set the game plan.

Likewise, you need to have your game plan set for your health journey in the final quarter of 2019. Work with a professional to develop your training program and have it diarised into your week. Have a nutrition plan set and ready to be actioned. Get your support crew around you to keep you on track and manage any opposition that may come in the way of your health and fitness journey.