{"id":11192,"date":"2026-11-14T02:10:00","date_gmt":"2026-11-14T01:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mentalnitrening.com\/?p=11192"},"modified":"2026-11-13T23:34:37","modified_gmt":"2026-11-13T22:34:37","slug":"the-mental-training-process-how-it-works","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mentalnitrening.com\/en\/athletes\/the-mental-training-process-how-it-works\/","title":{"rendered":"The mental training process: how it works"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The mental training process is a repeatable, measurable way of working on mental skills, parallel to physical training rather than a substitute for it. It runs over weeks, and a single conversation or a pre-match routine only ever touches part of it. The term is used loosely, so it often sounds like empty advice; the process behind it has a structure, and that structure is what this text explains.<\/p>\n\n

Physical training is repeated so the body remembers. The mental training process does the same for the mind. The principle is the same; what the eye can see differs.<\/p>\n\n

What is the mental training process?<\/h2>\n\n

When an athlete says, “I’m working on mental training,” they mean continuous work with a clear goal, specific techniques, and a way to track progress. It is training just like any other, and positive thinking before a match is only one small part of it. The founder of Mentalni Trening sums it up in an interview for Net.hr: “There are no shortcuts, only work.” (Net.hr, 2026)<\/p>\n\n

An episodic approach looks like this: the day before a match, you browse articles on motivation, find three tips, try to apply them, and fail because they haven’t been practiced. A process-based approach looks different: you practice techniques throughout the season, under controlled conditions, and use them when needed.<\/p>\n\n

Why mental skills need repetition: the mental training process is a schedule<\/h2>\n\n

Focus, composure, and self-confidence are skills the brain learns through repetition. It is the exact same mechanism as learning a new shot or how to read tactics: consciously and slowly at first, automatically later on.<\/p>\n\n

When an exercise is repeated in training before reaching competition, it reduces the cognitive load of decision-making when pressure is at its peak. An athlete who has gone through a breathing exercise ten times under physical load doesn’t have to stop and think about what to do when they feel tightness in their chest. The body knows what to do before the thought even forms.<\/p>\n\n

That is why mental training follows the same rule as physical conditioning: consistency. Five minutes of practice every day is worth more than an hour once a month.<\/p>\n\n

Common mistakes in the mental training process<\/h2>\n\n

The start determines whether the process survives the season. The most common mistakes come down to a poor schedule: starting out overly ambitious, measuring the wrong things, and leaving the process strictly on paper. Here is where it most often derails:<\/p>\n\n

Too much volume at the start. An hour of mental training a day sounds serious, yet rarely survives past the first week. Fifteen minutes completed every day is worth far more than an hour on Mondays.<\/p>\n\n

Measuring by results. Match results are the worst indicator in the first few months. Track routine consistency and anxiety levels instead; they shift before results do and give a much clearer picture of whether the process is working.<\/p>\n\n

Stopping after the first good game. Progress is assumed, the process is forgotten, and when the next bad game hits, there is no practiced technique to fall back on. A good performance is an argument to keep going, because real progress requires even more repetition.<\/p>\n\n

Comparing yourself to other athletes. For one person, pre-game anxiety is the main hurdle; for another, it’s focus\u2014and their processes will naturally look different. The only useful comparison is against where you stood a month ago.<\/p>\n\n

How is the mental training process measured?<\/h2>\n\n

Measurement is what separates a structured process from mere talk. Progress is tracked through concrete indicators; gut feeling doesn’t count. The three most common are:<\/p>\n\n

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  1. Subjective scales: the level of nerves or stress rated before and after training, for example on a scale from 1 to 10.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Routine execution: whether the athlete performed the planned routine before a match, and how consistently.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Performance under pressure: how the athlete behaves in practiced situations, from training to competition.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n

    Data is compared over time. If anxiety levels decrease, routines are executed more consistently, and performance under pressure is more stable: the process is working. If nothing changes, the approach changes. Measurement is also feedback: the athlete sees their own progress in the data; taking anyone’s word for it is unnecessary.<\/p>\n\n

    Practical Example: Pre-Serve Anxiety<\/h2>\n\n

    In working with young tennis players, pre-serve anxiety is one of the most common requests. This example illustrates the logic of the process, which is equally applicable off the tennis court.<\/p>\n\n

    First, an assessment: when anxiety blocks performance the most, what attention shifts to specifically, and what the athlete feels in their body. Next, a breathing exercise practiced at every training session for five minutes while anxiety is low. The third step is simulation: practice matches incorporating the exact pre-serve routine, followed by tracking how it went. The final part is measuring progress over several weeks (a pre-serve scale compared against the initial weeks).<\/p>\n\n

    For a football player, the same logic centers on the routine before taking a penalty kick; in esports, on the break between rounds. The technique changes, while the structure stays the same: assessment, practice in a controlled environment, application under regulated pressure, and measurement.<\/p>\n\n

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    What a week looks like: the mental training process in practice<\/h2>\n\n

    A week of mental training follows a repeatable schedule, just like a weekly physical conditioning plan. It is a structure repeated every week, regardless of what else is on the calendar.<\/p>\n\n