The Power of Visualization with Kids

It was another hot summer day at the Kaslo Sk8park, but not your average sunny day. My son, Gwyn was working on improving a specific trick on this particular day – down the one slope, across, and up the next incline where he would lift his front wheel off the ground and continue from the incline with a catwalk. Each time, he would manage two full revolutions of his pedals to then return to normal riding position. I pulled him aside and asked if he wanted to try something that would improve his ability to keep his front wheel in the air. “Sure,” he said shrugging his shoulders. I asked him to close his eyes and envision himself on his bike, back up on the highest platform where he would normally begin his descent toward the catwalk. I asked him to keep his eyes closed and take a nice deep breath while he looked around at the mountains, the lake, and the trees that surrounded him. Then I asked him to take another deep breath, and when he was ready, to see himself dropping down into his descent and up the other side. When he got there, I guided him in pulling up on his handlebars and counting the rotations of the pedals as he cruised across the smooth concrete surface; 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 full revolutions! Then, I directed him to put down his bike and jump up and celebrate, do a silly dance, while everyone around him clapped and cheered. I even got him to include some celebratory music to this part of the visualization. He had a big grin on his face with his eyes still closed. Next, I instructed him to open his eyes when he was absolutely ready, and to go back and do what he had seen in his visualization. Without hesitation, he opened his eyes, and was off. Back up to the upper platform, down the descent, up the incline, front wheel up; 1,2,3,4,5 full revolutions, when his previous best was 2! Yesss!! Next, I did the same thing with my other son, Elliott. His previous best was 1/2 a revolution. After the visualization, he went straight out and cranked it 3 times around to also wheel in with a big smile and feeling super proud of his new record. Not long after, he went on to top that with 5 full revolutions as well! Next, I did the same thing with two skateboarders, Ben and Ishmanai. I had been watching them both as they floundered to land two different skateboard tricks over and over again, each time not even coming close to completion. One by one, I sat with them, and got them engaged in the visualization process, seeing and feeling their bodies in fluid motion, seeing the skateboard flipping through the air, and seeing and feeling their feet landing perfectly on the board surface. I got them to do it 5 times with their eyes closed, and once again instructed them to open their eyes when they were absolutely ready, and to go out and do it. Ben’s very first attempt was so close, and was better than he has ever done before! He kept trying over and over, and it was clear that he was on the verge of being able to land a trick that only moments before, he had been so far from completing. Ishmanai was up next. Upon opening his eyes, he rolled across the smooth pavement, placed his feet in place and –bam!- landed the trick!! I challenged him by calling him back, as even though he had landed the inverted ollie kick-flip, there was room to make it more fluid. After seeing himself land the trick 3 more times visually, he set out again. He didn’t land it this time, but after about three more attempts, I watched him close his eyes for a brief moment, push off, set his feet in position, snap his board up into the air, kick it perfectly into the air into a 180-degree rotating flip, and land with both feet perfectly planted on the board. He looked up in surprise with a big smile on his face. He had done it! Or should I say, we had done it? Another fine day at the Kaslo Skatepark, but as I said, more than just an average day. These kids learned something that will help them excel for the rest of their lives. Live Life to the Fullest! Lifecoach BrodiernLiving Fully Life Coachingrn250 353-2189rnwww.lifecoachbrodie.com