![]() But often mental skills were equally effective at influencing finishing times as mental toughness, according to the study. Confidence and constancy were better predictors of performance than control, mental skills or hardiness. Hall also parsed the data to see which components of mental toughness most influence performance and what role mental skills and “hardiness” play. Rather, it influenced finishing time, meaning without mental toughness, finish times would have been slower. Mental toughness didn't ensure runners met a goal time, Hall clarified. And competitors with high confidence and constancy (defined as a mix of concentration, determination, acceptance of responsibility, and stability of attitudes) were better at maintaining motivational thoughts and feelings than their less confident peers. Here’s why: Study participants with high levels of confidence and control reported feeling significantly less physical discomfort during the race. Still, he said, a single-digit number can have a significant effect on finishing times, whether you race ultramarathons or 5-Ks. ![]() “Mental toughness may have different cultural elements that were not captured well by the ,” Hall wrote in a summary to study participants. The competitors in the five other events were primarily from Britain, North America or Australia, while Comrades’ entrants were largely South African. The mental toughness questionnaire used in the study was developed in the U.K. In fact, higher “confidence” in this race correlated with slower race times, possibly because overconfident runners failed to adjust their race plan and suffered accordingly.Ĭulture could also have influenced the findings. The high heat and strong winds at this year’s race likely played a big role in the variance, Hall said. Mental toughness’s effect on finishing times at that race was 3%, Hall said. Interestingly, of the six races included in the study, the Comrades Marathon was the only event in which the mental-toughness contribution wasn’t 14%. “ can mean differences of hours in the finish time, depending on the degree of mental toughness an individual has,” Hall said. (The second part of the quote: "The other half is physical.") That might not sound like much, but in an email to Runner’s World Newswire, Hall said it provides empirical data on what we’ve known for years: The fitness must be there, but the mind is paramount to performance, which of course is what Berra was getting at. Hall found that mental toughness greatly influenced subjects' finishing times, and that among the variables influencing performance (fitness, weather, and nutrition), mental toughness accounted for 14%. Play icon The triangle icon that indicates to play Hardiness is a personality trait tested in previous research. Mental skills are actions like goal setting and refocusing. ![]() Perceived effort, discomfort levels, use of mental skills and hardiness were also measured. The sample included 539 men and 167 women from multiple countries ranging in age from 22 to 69.įor the study, Hall used a previously established tool to measure three components of mental toughness: confidence (self-belief), the sense of being in control, and constancy (concentration, determination, acceptance of responsibility, and stability of attitudes). Hall surveyed 706 ultramarathoners at six international events, including the Marathon des Sables in Morocco and the Comrades Marathon in South Africa. ![]() But Hall noted that there was little quantifiable evidence supporting the notion that mental toughness has a direct effect on race times, so he set out to see if he could put a number to it. Previous sports psychology research has found a clear association between mind and performance, and few people doubt that in a race between two equally fit runners, the tougher-minded athlete would prevail. candidate at Staffordshire University in the U.K. Baseball may be 90% mental, as baseball great Yogi Berra proclaimed, but in distance running, the mind accounts for only 14% of racing success, according to new research by John Hall, a performance psychologist and Ph.D.
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