Last Updated 31-01-10

The survey questions (other than the first 5) were all related to some form of sport science or other, including:psychology, bio-mechanics or performance analysis.  This guide (which will build up over the next few months) will give you the reasons why the question was included and perhaps identify areas that can help improve your game.

Concentration ( Discussed by Alan Warriner-Little, ITV 4- (30-1-2010) with particular reference to Adrian Lewis.

Question 17 - Does your mind wander during a game?

inthemadhouse.co.uk were contacted by a player who was having concentration issues, his related to constantly calculating his average "in play" and is a similar scenario to Lewis vanishing into "Jackpot Land" or wherever his mind drifts off to during a match. Some of the advice we gave him was:

Step 1- Develop a pre-shot routine (see below)

Step 2 - Maybe try giving yourself a cue word, so as soon as you start adding up your average or whatever, say the word to bring your mind and focus back to the middle of the 60 bed. Perhaps use “focus” as your cue or whatever will put your mind back on the job. The second thing is that once you have thrown don`t get tempted to start counting. I would suggest some sort of relaxation technique whilst you are waiting for your next throw. Try a simple one like counting your breaths; it is a useful one to do as you are constantly breathing! As you are doing this plan your next throw. Imagine yourself going up to the oche getting yourself set and then throwing the dart into the 60 bed. Use your cue word if anyone or anything is distracting you. When it is your turn again repeat step 1 and away you go again.

Pre-Performance Routine (Discussed by Chris Mason, ITV4 - (30-1-2010)

Question 9 asked - Which best describes your throw?

The first thing is to get into a pre-shot routine, which you should go through each and every time you throw a dart. It is the same concept as the tennis player bouncing the tennis balls before a serve or Beckham lining up for a freekick. My advice would be to get yourself set to throw. Make sure your grip and stance are just how you like them and then focus on the smallest target available, try the middle of the 60 bed, or even a hole a dart has made in the 60 bed, depending on what you are going for of course. Really focus in on this area and perhaps even visualise your dart landing in there

Question 6 asked - Which of these apply to sport science?

 It can help with condfidence.

Yes it can in numerous ways. For example, A player can teach himself relaxation techniques as well as ways to remain focused and concentrate on the match. Players lose matches because they are fighting obstacles such as; lapses in concentration, nervousness, self doubt and self condemnation.

It can cure dartitis.

It could help. Dartitis is caused by anxiety and doubt. This is mainly somatic anxiety which is tension in specific muscles and cognitive anxiety caused by over analysis or specific negative thoughts. Mental techniques similar to the ones mentioned above could help players overcome this affliction.

 Sid talks about it, understackers.

Yes this is one element of the bio-mechanics of darts. Some people may argue darts a simple game and is not rocket science but as Phil Lanning discovered it now is! (http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/other_sports/darts/article1034943.ece). A dart player wanting the best possible dart is no more surprising than Beckham wanting custom made boots to help put more spin or speed on the ball. It is one of a number of ways a player can gain a small advantage over his opponent.

It can turn a duffer into a Champ

Sport science or any of its elements is not a miracle cure. It can however, when applied in the correct way, assist in performance enhancement.

Quote:

Every small improvement you can make, such as, innovations, tactics, training, equipment will lead to an accumulation of tiny advantages that you will have over your opponent-they are like collecting cards in a card game. You might not know they if you have the best hand until the day of the game, but if you keep collecting cards, the odds certainly improve. (Matthew Pinsent- Olympic Gold medallist- quoted in "What Sport tells us About Life" by Ed Smith)

It`s a load of nonsense

It is an integral part of modern sport. It is rare to find any professional sportsperson or team not applying some form of sport science to help achieve an advantage.

It can help you concentrate

Yes. A good recent example of this was when Gary Anderson was distracted by the "creaking stage" in Dublin.  He had no strategy in place for any such eventuality and proceeded to aim for the treble 20 as he had lost focus so much that  he forgot he was still trying to get a double to start the leg. Methods to aid concentration include simple relaxation breathing techniques and muscle relaxation techniques. Anderson could "practice" a scenario when he is distracted by another player or the crowd and work out what is best for him. One answer may be to walk off the Oche all together, set him-self again, and throw when he is relaxed again and ready. On the other side of the coin it will be interesting to see if Andersons opponents try and exploit this weakness in the up and coming tournaments- watch this space.

Question 11 asked - Do you encourage yourself during a game?

Self talk is very important; it should be positive and rational in nature. Athletes should use self talk to restrict the thought process and to alter maladaption (in other words turning negative thoughts into positive thoughts). Self talk should also be employed to provide self reward and to increase effort.

Question 12 asked - What about negative thoughts?  (e.g.: I call myself 'rubbish')

The negative self talk of players during the current World Championships has been picked up by Sky. Negative self talk occurs when a player perceives that there are discrepancies between intended and actual behavior (i.e., between goals and performance. They experience cognitive interference, particularly in the form of self-defeating thoughts and negative self-evaluation (Hatzigeordisis and Biddle, 2008). On the whole, it appears, negative self talk has a detrimental effect on performance. For example one study demonstrated a link between golfers using negative self talk and poor performance in areas such as accuracy and consistency (Harvey et al, 2002).