Being in the best state pre-race is an important skill to develop. If you are too anxious your body will tense up and your motor skills will be less effective. On the other hand if you are too relaxed you will respond slowly to important cues such as the starting lights. You need to have just the right amount of energy coursing thorough your body for peak performance.
It is important to understand that everyone’s zone of optimal performance is different. Some drivers might like to hype themselves up with music or skipping whilst others prefer to lie in a dark place for five minutes to get themselves focused. It depends on what works for you.
A simple technique is outlined for you to try below:
Simple Technique One: The Centering Technique
The centering technique is a breathing technique designed to produce physical balance and mental focus. Centering involves a deep breath (from the stomach not the chest), an awareness of muscle tension, and a strong exhalation to relax the muscles. The use of self-talk ensures attentional control or mental focus.
The Centering Technique
Step 1: Whilst sitting make sure your feet are flat on the floor.
Step 2: Sit up in a straight position with your shoulders back.
Step 3: Expel the air from your lungs until you are unable to breathe out anymore,
empty your lungs in preparation for your first deep breath.
Step 4:Place your hand on your stomach.
Step 5: Take a deep breath through your mouth, breathe into your stomach
filling your stomach with air.
Step 6:: Focus on the physiological sensations of breathing, feel your
head getting lighter, and pay attention to your body filling with oxygen.
Step 7:Forcefully and fully expel the air from your stomach through your mouth.
Step 8: As you breathe out focus your attention on how you would like
to feel, for example you may say “focused and energized” or “confident and relaxed”.
Step 9: Keep focusing on your physiological response, feel your perspective
coming back into your life and your stress being released as well
as your relaxation increasing.
Step 10:: Repeat this process two more times and really
pay attention to the physiological changes that are taking
place within your body.
Step 11: Bring your focus to the task.
Step 12: Practice this technique 16 times EVERY DAY for TWO WEEKS!
If you do this it will become automatic. You will be able to
achieve a deeper state of relaxation and focus.
Leave your comments below and let me know how you
get on with this technique. Also let me know any techniques
that you find really effective for focusing your attention
and energy before a race.
Keep Racing!
Robin
www.f1driverssecrets.com
P.S. Don’t underestimate this technique just because
of it’s simplicity, it is powerful, effective and works really well!
P.P.S. Sorry not the most exciting picture in the world
but it definitely helps get the message about the importance
of energy levels!
I just read a super scientific and technical article (tough going!)
about concentration and motorpsort.
You can see the full article here:
http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/motor-sport-importance-concentration-levels-40839
Here are some of the MOST IMPORTANT points.
Concentration is important for making split second decisions at speed, where the margin for error is minimal. Improving concentration skills is not simply a case of trying harder to concentrate. It is a case of knowing what to concentrate on and focusing attention on these factors.
Concentration is defined as ‘the process by which all
thoughts and senses are focused totally upon a selected object
or activity to the exclusion of everything else.’
Concentration is a process that changes over time and that
maintaining the intensity and focus of concentration requires
effort. Understanding this is important because it means that
concentration can vary in both intensity and focus.
We can be focusing on the key parts of performance at
one moment, but be distracted the next.
The key skill is to be able to identify the relevant performance cues at each moment of the race.
A driver who pays attention to relevant cues for performance
and maintains this concentration will beat a driver that has
good concentration BUT is paying attention to the wrong cues.
You need to train yourself to pay attention to the correct
cues at the correct times.
Anger and frustration destroy your ability to pay attention
to the correct cues and ultimately leads to poor concentration
and decisions. You must know how to use your anger or frustration
instead of letting it control you and leading to bad decisions.
Anger can lead to unsuccessful performance and feelings of fatigue.
So how do you improve your attention and concentration?
There are a few different methods however the most simplest place
I have found to train attention and concentration is over at www.lumosity.com
There are some great training programs over at Lumosity website (scroll down to
the attention games to get started). The
site has a free trial that you can sign up to. There are brain
exercises on the site as well as a whole range of other exercises
for memory and other essential areas for motorsport.
Some of the benefits of doing brain training exercises are:
• Clearer and quicker thinking
• improved attention and memory
• Increased alertness and awareness
• Elevated mood
• Better concentration while driving
Let me know how you do.
And as always keep racing, persistence is the key!
Robin
f1driverssecrets.com
Music, inspiration and having idols to look up to are powerful
motivators to help you get to the top of motorsport.
I’ve attached some cracking and inspirational footage of racing
over the years.
You can make your own inspirational movie with music that gets
you fired up so easily these days. It is a powerful method and I
fully recommend it.
Are you going to be next?
One area that is not often spoken about when talking about performance is sleep!
However this is a crucial area of any top driver to get right as it affects so many
different parts of your performance.
Energy drinks like this do not improve performance. They just hit your pleasure center and make you feel good! There is no true substitute for sleep.
Getting enough sleep is equally as important as getting enough food and water, however many drivers forget this simple fact.
A recent study investigated the effect sleep deprivation had on reaction times. The action studied was simply pressing a button when the sound of a beep was heard.
The study found that reaction times of simply pressing the button dramatically decreased as sleep loss increased. A sleepy person is extremely unpredictable on this task whereby they are hearing a beat every ½ a second and then pressing the button. A well rested person is stable, predictable and does not struggle with this task at all.
As the sleepy person begins to miss beats they begin to overcompensate for these missed beats by pressing the button faster and more often, this results in an extremely strange and erratic pattern of results when compared to the regular stable presses of the well rested person with 8 hours sleep. If lack of sleep is causing erratic results on pressing a button, imagine the potential effects it is having on your driving where split second and accurate reaction is essential!
Quick reaction times are an essential part of being a great driver.
Being the quickest on the grid to react can get you the best start
or out of a sticky situation.
So how do you improve your reaction times?
Exercise One:
An excellent and fun way to improve your reaction times
is with the use of a Z-Ball.
This ball bounces in random and unpredictable way and
is loads of fun when played with a partner or in a group.
You can get a Z-Ball from Amazon.
Exercise Two:
Racquet sports such as squash and table tennis are also
fantastic ways to improve your reaction times as well as
hone your hand-eye co-ordination. The quick response
required makes this fantastic.
For an added element of difficulty and to integrate your
brain into the exercise try this:
Each time you hit the ball you must call out the make of
a car. For example:
hit 1: “BMW”
hit 2: “Toyota”
hit 3: “Ferrari”
hit 4: “Cadillac”
With this exercise you are being forced to think and act at the
same time. You must see how long you can go with this.
Fantastic training!
If using car makes is too easy you can list anything, for example
world cuisines, people’s names, countries.
Leave your comments below and let me know how you get on.
Keep Racing!
Robin
Physical fitness affects areas such as concentration,
decision making and reaction time; all key elements
for a top driver.
The physical and mental side of racing are completely
intertwined. You cannot separate them. If you are physically
at your peak you will have a greater chance of being
mentally at your peak too, this means you will be able to
concentrate for longer periods, make better decisions and
have lighting quick reaction time on the track.
Have a look at this short clip about the physical and mental
training of an F1 driver (try to ignore the horrible narrator!)
It is essential ot incorporate mind and diet into your
physical training regime. This will ensure you are in peak
physical and mental condition and get the most out of your
body and car for awesome motor sport success.
Drop me an email in the box to the right or leave
a comment below and let me know any questions you
have in regards to the physical, mental or dietary side
of motor sport.
Keep Racing!
Training Your Senses To Become A Better Driver
We looked at training you auditory sense in the last post.
In this post, it is all about the sense of balance and kinesthetic.
Most people believe there are only 5 senses. This is incorrect there are 6. The forgotten sense is our sense of balance.
Balance for a driver is essential. Here’s how to train it up:
Technique One For Training Balance and Kinesthetic Sense:
Loads of the top drivers are able to competently ride a unicycle. Being finely tuned into
the balance of keeping it up and learning to read how small changes can have big effects. Think
about how useful this is for driving a car, being able to notice all the small changes,
picking up on them and fixing them. You need to train yourself to have this
kind of awareness!
Mika Hakkinen on unicycle
You can pick up a unicycle here:
(These unicycles are fine for use for both kids and adults, big and small)
Now learn how to ride it and practice, practice, practice. Next time you are on the track pay attention and notice how you are able to gather information and feedback from your body more accurately.
Technique Two For Training Balance and Kinesthetic Sense:
Master the wobble board.
Live on the wobble board to train and heighten your sense of balance. Be constantly improving it. Stand on it while watching TV or for a real challenge stand on it while playing a video game (preferably a driving game!)
That’s it for now.
Let me know how you are going with the training of your senses.
robin@f1driverssecrets.com
Keep Racing!
Robin
www.F1DriversSecrets.com
Training Your Senses For Heightened Driving Experience
There are a few different techniques that you can use to train your senses. We looked at training
visual sense in the last post. 
In this post, it is all about auditory.
Technique One For Training Auditory Sense:
Listen to a piece of classical music. Listen carefully the full way through (say a 4 – 8 minute piece).
As you are listening attempt to pick out each instrument you can hear.
Write them down. Really listen for each instrument you are able to pick out.
The reason for this is that your car is like an orchestra of sound, tires, engines, gears…
being able to pinpoint and differentiate these sounds heightens your driving sense and
awareness whilst in the car.
You can download some classical symphony music here to get started right now!
Technique Two For Training Auditory Sense:
Turn the TV down to a point where you are forced to strain to listen to it.
So it is just above barely audible and you really have to concentrate on what is being said.
Make sure the room is silent and it is just you and the TV. When you are comfortable at that l
evel, turn it down a little more. Once again this exercise is serving to train your ears
to tune in and pay attention to what is going. Powerful stuff when you transfer
these skills to the car.
The Process
We are in the process of creating a full sensory experience of driving! This stuff is
going to explode your results so stick with me whilst I show you a few more full sensory 
techniques to get you driving quicker!
Any questions?
Email me: robin@f1driverssecrets.com
Keep Racing!
Robin
Lewis Hamilton knows that a race car is far too quick to drive
at the conscious level. You must engage all your senses and
pre-program responses. Get to understand your car inside and
out. It is possible to do this from taking information in through all
your senses. True there is no substitute for perfect driving practice.
But how do you enhance that perfect driving practice? Increase
your awareness of how you take in information while driving.
Next time you’re out on track practice this:
Step 1:
Drive two laps just paying attention to your auditory sense…
what do you notice? Listen to the engine, the gear change, the revs.
Step 2:
After completing those two laps, stop the car and make notes
about your experience, get all the information from that sense.
Step 3:
Then drive 2 laps just paying attention to your visual sense, picking
the cues and markers, collecting information from the track, just
through the sense of sight.
Step 4:
After completing those two laps, stop the car and make notes about
your experience, get all the information from that sense
Step 5:
Drive two laps just paying attention to the feel of the car, feel the
acceleration and braking points, noticing everything to do with
your kinaesthetic sense.
Step 6:
Again: After completing those two laps, stop the car and make
notes about your experience, get all the information from that sense.
Most drivers just drive around using all their senses for each lap,
but when you break it down, deconstruct this experience and then
reconstruct it, your experience of driving that same track is greatly
different, more powerful and enhanced. It’s about becoming
aware and engaging all of these areas to decrease reaction
times and improve lap times.
Have questions?
Contact me: robin@f1driverssecrets.com
Keep Racing!
How to Train Your Visual Sense Like Lewis Formula 1!
As we know driving a race car is far too quick to be done at the conscious level,
making decisions and thinking aboutthings, it is all done so quickly it is
at the reactionary level.
One of the areas that is so powerful for the quickest drivers is being able
to accurately judge and guess distances for example judging
the braking points.
Just like anything with practice your visual sense and you ability to judge
distance can be practiced and improved.
Two Methods To Improve Your Visual Sense
Method One
So for example maybe you are going to the shops. Pick a point and guess how many
steps away it is. Then count out the number of steps you took to get there (don’t cheat!) and
see if you were close.
As you get better at this you will get more accurate and you can transfer
this new skill to the track.
Method Two
This one is a lot more fun… and just as effective!
A lot of the top F1 drivers can drive remote control cars really well.
Why is this? Sure remote control cars are a lot of fun and maybe
there is that attraction to cars that go fast but in reality it is
fantastic for building up your visual sense. Think about it. If you set up a track
that you have to drive a remote control car around you have to get the distances
exactly correct using different angles for that car to successfully complete a lap,
this is awesome and so much fun for
training your visual sense.
(about the picture.. .sure Bourdais is no longer in F1 but how
good do you have to be to get there in the 
first place!)
Here is a good solid entry level remote control car that is
perfect for training up the visual sense:
Or if you are in the USA this one will get to you quicker:
So that’s it pretty simple (and fun) stuff.
Leave your comments and let me know your thoughts.
Keep Racing!
Robin
F1 Drivers Secrets
