Visualization is a critical performance tool used by many, including athletes such as Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, LeBron James, Serena Williams, Conor McGregor, and Ronaldhino. TV personalities such as Jim Carey, Oprah Winfrey, Will Smith and Jay-Z also credit their success to visualization.
Visualization is known to improve performance, increase skills and help with goal attainment. More than a mental exercise, visualization taps into brain functions that mimic the effects of physical practice, strengthening neural pathways and enhancing muscle memory.
Numerous studies were conducted whereby participants were asked to imagine participating in an activity while having their heart rates monitored and brains scanned via MRIs. By simply running through an event in their mind as if it was actually happening caused the participants’ heart rates to increase and brain activity to light up.
One of the most notable visualization studies is said to have been conducted by Dr. Jude Biasiotto at the University of Chicago 1996. Many believe Dr. Biasiotto’a study was based after a similar study conducted by Dr. Alan Richardson in the late 1960s.
Dr. Biasiotto took a group of university students and divided them into three groups. He tested each group before and after the study. Each group was asked to do one of three activities for 30 days.
- Group 1 – engaged in physical practice by shooting free-throws for 30 minutes per day.
- Group 2 – only visualized hitting free throws with eyes closed without any physical practice for 30 minutes per day.
- Group 3 – as the control group, did nothing for thirty days.
After the 30-day study, the results were as follows:
- Group 1 improved by 24%.
- Group 2 improved by 23%.
- Group 3 showed little or no improvement.
Group 2 who engaged only in visualization improved by 23%. By simply visualizing hitting free throws for 30 days caused the group to improve by 23% without ever touching a ball.
This study helped establish a core principle in neuroscience and psychology: mental practice activates neural pathways similarly to physical practice. In other words, the brain learns through vivid imagination, not just through physical movement.
Our brain does not know the difference between real of imagined. Visualization can be accomplished in two ways:
- By imaging your self doing the activity in 3-D and watching it unfold in front of you.
- By imaging your self as if sitting in a movie theater and seeing yourself doing the activity on a large screen.
In order to accelerate the outcome through visualization, watch this video and follow these steps:
- Get in a state of deep relaxation. Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths and relax. Once you are relaxed and settled in, imagine the numbers 3…2…1…flash before your eyes.
- See your self doing and accomplishing that which you are desiring.
- Create a vivid and clear picture with as much detail and sensation as possible.
- Feel the experience through all your senses. See it, hear it, smell it, taste it, touch it.
The key is to establish a consistent visualization routine. Just as we train to build other muscles through working out, we must do so mentally. Regularly practicing mental imagery can yield long-term gains, build resilience and muscle memory that lasts.
Exercise: Close your eyes for a moment and imagine sitting in a roller coaster. Experience the sensation of slowly inching up towards the top of the coaster, pausing for a moment and dropping down at high speed. Even if you’ve never been on one but have seen it in action, imaging yourself experiencing it will increase your heart rate as if you’ve actually experienced the drop.
“Watch your thoughts; they become your words; watch your words; they become your actions.” Lao Tzu.
