Interesting podcast about choking

W

westcoast

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Just finished listening to this podcast about choking from the podcast series "The Hidden Brain".

The host, Shankar Vedantam, interviews Sian Bielock- a cognitive scientist who studies choking in performance situations- mainly in athletics and academics. The interview goes into detail about why it occurs and how to decrease the severity and frequency of it.

If you are into podcasts- well worth listening to and obviously connected to pool (although not specifically discussed).

hiddenbrain.org

You 2.0: Overcoming Stage Fright - Hidden Brain Media

The pressure. The expectations. The anxiety. If there’s one thing that connects the athletes gathering for the Olympic games with the rest of us, it’s the stress that can come from performing in front of others. In this week’s episode, we talk with cognitive scientist Sian Beilock about why so...
hiddenbrain.org hiddenbrain.org
 
Poolhall60561 said:
Very timely topic with Simone Biles situation.
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I was thinking the same.

I hope she acknowledges she is the one most to blame for the pressure she feels

Gymnastics is hard as shit. Even harder when your strength:weight ratio goes to shit and you have millions of dollars.

As they say in the real world: I'd reckon you're being a bit of a pussy, Ms. Biles.
 
Black-Balled said:
I was thinking the same.

I hope she acknowledges she is the one most to blame for the pressure she feels

Gymnastics is hard as shit. Even harder when your strength:weight ratio goes to shit and you have millions of dollars.

As they say in the real world: I'd reckon you're being a bit of a pussy, Ms. Biles.
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Wow, woman chooses not to dance for your pleasure and she is.....
 
Black-Balled said:
I was thinking the same.

I hope she acknowledges she is the one most to blame for the pressure she feels

Gymnastics is hard as shit. Even harder when your strength:weight ratio goes to shit and you have millions of dollars.

As they say in the real world: I'd reckon you're being a bit of a pussy, Ms. Biles.
Click to expand...

She didn’t bow out because of pressure.
 
Whether you subscribe or not, there have been extensive forays into occult, mind kontroll, and all manner of active psychology. My take is the pressure is sold as an economic filter and added as required.
 
Poolhall60561 said:
Very timely topic with Simone Biles situation.
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You can say what you want about her and make any number of excuses for her quitting like she did, but at the end of the day she quit on her team and her team mates. The hero's in this scenario are her team mates who stepped up and performed well enough to still get the Silver medal.

Personally I think the sudden fame, fortune and celebrity status had something to do with Simone not being ready to perform when she got there, and she knew it. I suspect if the whole story ever came out it would be very revealing. She may have missed practices while making all those commercials (and the money that goes with it!) and doing all those interviews for the media. It makes a big difference in your mental attitude if you show up ready to play, or are playing catch up at the last minute. That could put you in a tailspin.
 
westcoast said:
Just finished listening to this podcast about choking from the podcast series "The Hidden Brain".

The host, Shankar Vedantam, interviews Sian Bielock- a cognitive scientist who studies choking in performance situations- mainly in athletics and academics. The interview goes into detail about why it occurs and how to decrease the severity and frequency of it.

If you are into podcasts- well worth listening to and obviously connected to pool (although not specifically discussed).

hiddenbrain.org

You 2.0: Overcoming Stage Fright - Hidden Brain Media

The pressure. The expectations. The anxiety. If there’s one thing that connects the athletes gathering for the Olympic games with the rest of us, it’s the stress that can come from performing in front of others. In this week’s episode, we talk with cognitive scientist Sian Beilock about why so...
hiddenbrain.org hiddenbrain.org
Click to expand...
Once again, the difference between the champions in any sport and the also-rans is who handles the pressure the best. The great players elevate their game when it's all on the line and the lesser players find a way to lose. I've been observing this behavior all my life in pool, tennis, golf and the other major sports as well. I'm no scientist but I'm not a guy in a diner either. I think what makes a champion is something in-breed at a very young age. It has to do with what kind of upbringing they've had and how it affected them one way or the other. Some great athletes have come from very humble beginnings and had to fight their way to the top, overcoming all kinds of adversity. Watch out for these guys and girls. They will be hard to beat. The bottom line for me is who are the most dedicated athletes, willing to go the extra mile to make it to the top, and stay there! There's never a lot like that! How many Shane's in pool have we seen in the last fifteen years? I can think of a few, but they don't come from this country.
 
jay helfert said:
Once again, the difference between the champions in any sport and the also-rans is who handles the pressure the best. The great players elevate their game when it's all on the line and the lesser players find a way to lose. I've been observing this behavior all my life in pool, tennis, golf and the other major sports as well. I'm no scientist but I'm not a guy in a diner either. I think what makes a champion is something in-breed at a very young age. It has to do with what kind of upbringing they've had and how it affected them one way or the other. Some great athletes have come from very humble beginnings and had to fight their way to the top, overcoming all kinds of adversity. Watch out for these guys and girls. They will be hard to beat. The bottom line for me is who are the most dedicated athletes, willing to go the extra mile to make it to the top, and stay there! There's never a lot like that! How many Shane's in pool have we seen in the last fifteen years? I can think of a few, but they don't come from this country.
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Shane was playing in a 9-ball tournament at Shooters Olathe 13-14 years ago. During an early match, he missed a thin cut where the ball is off the rail 1-2 inches not far from the side pocket and the cue ball is near the other side rail, a shot he had to shoot with a bit of speed. He missed the shot, still went on to win the match. With quite a wait until his next match, I saw him practicing on a table on the other side of the room, and watched him set up the shot he missed, dozens and dozens of times.

During his next match, that very shot came up again. He drilled it in center pocket, smiled to himself and kept on shooting. I was likely the only person watching the match that knew why he was really smiling. Ah, yes, the wonders of practice and repetition.

Will Prout
 
ibuycues said:
Shane was playing in a 9-ball tournament at Shooters Olathe 13-14 years ago. During an early match, he missed a thin cut where the ball is off the rail 1-2 inches not far from the side pocket and the cue ball is near the other side rail, a shot he had to shoot with a bit of speed. He missed the shot, still went on to win the match. With quite a wait until his next match, I saw him practicing on a table on the other side of the room, and watched him set up the shot he missed, dozens and dozens of times.

During his next match, that very shot came up again. He drilled it in center pocket, smiled to himself and kept on shooting. I was likely the only person watching the match that knew why he was really smiling. Ah, yes, the wonders of practice and repetition.

Will Prout
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Hi Will hope all is good😀😀

Best
Fatboy
 
Ģüśţāṿ said:
This is the real reason. It's difficult to perform when you cannot be in the proper mental state.
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I get that...but she knew going in..if medication was the problem...so why not give her spot to someone who doesn't need the medication? And if she isn't going to compete, why is she still there? Have to remember...this isn't an event her sponsor etc paid for - this is paid for by us, so she is taking an extended vaca on our dime. She has been repacked by an alternate, get off the stage!
 
I'll never forget the first time I had a match called for a TAR broadcast.

I sat in the stands thinking to myself what a disaster it could turn out to be. How I could easily go out there and choke my brains out under the lights and cameras, with JJ in the booth no less. But I told myself, self, this is why you play, this is why you practice, this is why you compete. If you can't go out and do this you should go home and sell your cues.

From the time of at least the first Olympics back in ancient Greece, the pressure and stress of competition has always been part of the deal for everyone who chooses to participate. Maybe you'll fail, maybe you'll do OK, or maybe you'll shine. But at the bare minimum you go out there and do the best you can.

Lou Figueroa
 
Every entertainer worth their salt will tell you that they are always nervous before going on stage, even after thousands of performances. The one who risks it all to step into the arena is the one to be admired, not the one who backs out. But this is the era of being politically correct where telling the truth is verbotten.
 
I think Suni Lee, the all around gold medalist, knew how to handle the pressure. When asked what she did to calm herself she said she kept saying to herself, nothing more, nothing less cause her 'normal' was good enough!
 
The part that I don't understand is this wasn't Simone's first rodeo. She's competed hundreds of times and this is her third Olympics. She was full aware of the pressure and expectations that come with competing in the Olympics. For her to say, "It's not fun anymore" is a cop out at the highest level. I think Jay nailed it. No matter how great she is/has been, she knew deep down she didn't do what was needed to properly prepare for competition. Lack of preparation and self awareness to the fact can debilitate self confidence. Even the announcers commented, "She's not 'herself'". She should have removed herself from the team the instant she realized she wasn't ready (should have been LONG before getting on a plane to Japan) and allowed someone else to properly prepare to compete. Champions do not quit on their teams in the heat of the battle.
 
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