The Zone and Previsalization

So....." Being in the Zone" as referring to Sports,  is having to a point, so practiced your sport that it has becomes instinctive (without thought) and the Subconscious mind is allowed to take control and do the action.   Simple?  Remember that when you think and tell yourself what to do, the Subconscious mind is shut down. The "Zone" is the ability to go "Mindless" or be in a "Void" or " Absence of thought".

 "What is The Zone?  The Zone is intangible. It is that ideal - that place - that state of mind - where performing is easy, your actions are effortless, and your results exceed all expectations." This would be sufficent explaination by the author Jon Gorrie for his book "Performing in the Zone" as he described it on ebay.com. We are told that "Actors, musicians, public speakers, dancers, models, sports-people, entertainers, and singers -we're all performers. We all receive training, practise for countless hours, enter our performance environment, and sooner or later, for better or for worse, we get affected by the performance situation". His book suggesting we develop our abilities and after sometime our performance is a natural prefection of our ability. "We experience performance arousal - a phenomenon which can either get us into The Zone or cause devastating performance anxiety." the author  explains of the need to " control  your performance arousal instead of letting it control you" 

Things like Performance arousal or performance anxiety should not be underestimated but I think we need to understood the conflict and fear of  letting the subconscious mind take control and attempting to maintain control, while we ignore the efforts by conscious mind to regain control.  In the zone to me, means turning control over to the subconscious mind which does a lot more than just perform muscle coordination. The mind (subconscious) is always analysis the results and evaluating why they were not what we expected. 
      This is the last of 8 blogs on using the Subconscious and the action of visualizing your bowls delivery; before, during and after the delivery or shot.   Unless you normally read the last pages of a book ,to know the ending, and then go back to the beginning; will often prevent the development of an ability through steps of progress.  In wanting to develop you subconscious performance (or being in the zone) I suggest that you  go down the list of blogs and find the seven blogs on the Zone or the development of the Subconscious; and start at the first blog. One things about a book on this topic, as a lot material has been presented by a lot of people of other perfections of self, in Lawn Bowls like Golf we want to be One.

Another book I crossed in research on the net is by Ray Mackay Phd. In the Previous Blog  the last exercise presented, seem a bit simple-minded; but it works in becoming aware of your subsconscious self.  I  often use this method to teach how to add-on and take-off  weight when teaching Blind Students to Lawn Bowls. This is because the visually impaired who is learning to lawn bowls; does not see their bowl as it rolls up the green and often only see the image of a delay roll of their bowls in their mind. For this reason, even with visual Lawn Bowls students, the thought of wanting to remove weight or add-on; as to a physicial change, is as very strong direction given to the subconscious mind.

Many lawn bowlers on returning to the mat,  see, in their mind, the previous delivered  bowl rolling up the green as a memory; and believe they must do something physicially different to get the result and eventually change their routine. This is a mistake. Feedback was this analysis immediately after the bowl rolled and decisions made then. The subconscious mind knows what you want to now do and rather than have a physicial command to the muscles get into the habit of communicating to the subconscious mind what you decided. Think the action.

 However, the error of this as an exercise was that any verbal communication does not work with the subconscious mind. Language is a slow conscious communication and inhibits the subconscious mind.  In your understanding of the ZONE  Principle and how to put  yourself   " in the Zone" ; it is more important to get the subconscious mind involved in your actions and letting it do the shot.

 This applies not only at the time of delivery but also during the complete loop of delivery, analysis and feedback. Communicate what you are  Seeing,  analysing  and data you are collecting from the feedback to the subconscious mind and what is expected in the improvement of the next shot.  The subconscious mind follows these thoughts of the conscious mind and is always listening but I have found it is lazy and often have to be remained of our thoughts toward the new expectation.

      "Previsualization" is like a type of communication with  the subconscious mind  which will put us in the zone,  Just thinking of  what we expect is not enough, and as we  visualize the action and our expectation of the next bowl to be rolled, we reveal that we have confidence that it will be done. (by the subconscious mind)  Lack of confidence is a battle of conscious and subconscious mind over who has the control and we are always attempting to control or made changes in our routine to get that result. No, If you are losing balance during delivery, think why and the subconscious mind will stop that action from happening on the next delivery.

                          I will briefly go back a few blogs to compare the  Archery's athletic who are in the Zone. After they have developed the correct techniques for shooting the bow, they just has to find a void in thinking where they can allow the subconscious mind to do its thing, for a split-second, because it is in that micro second  that the bowstring is released and the arrow is let fly unknown it happen. (Time and time again for all 144 arrows toward the gold spot).
        There is the exception, In the instinctive  archer or bow hunter, which does  not using a sight, or any technical aiming aids; they do not stand on a shooting line, bow strung, arrow ready to let fly and drop mental into the zone.  The instinctive shooter has learned to throws the arrow with his bow. His action and the mind's control of it; is not much different than the baseball player throws a baseball. Both athletics have  incorporated into their subconscious, the action of throwing. Actually, an instinctive archer is also throwing  his arm outward like the baseball player during his back swing; and both   uses a visualisation of where they intends the ball (or arrow) to go.  He thinks it and he does it... Or better ."He thinks and It happens because of the subconscious mind".

      In the previous blog there was an exercise to development of  the feeling of knowing when the subconscious mind is in control... Communicating with the subconscious mind has several levels and to identify the subconscious mind's presence will often to the new student seem like a strange feeling of "out-of-body" or in "the Absence of Mind" Zone. Once you know what these feelings are, you accept to be there and you feel it without worries. If you are in the Zone, you know it and lucky if you are not distracted or forced out of the zone with a thought.

 Everything we do in Bowls is being watched and communicated to the subconscious and  like the horse and rider combination; during a riding competition, where one is doing the work and the other is doing the instruction; we must be in balance with our subconscious mind. Our subconscious mind, knows what and how to do that bowl delivery, but also we  need to know how to relax and let it happen and that we have correctly instructed and told the subconscious of  our expectations, 
  These blogs have been about the conscious and subconscious mind... Others call it The zone of Perfection.

         You have just rolled a great bowl which draws to the head and stops short. You need to add a bit. Yes you can use techniques like longer step, wrist flick, more swing to increase that extra weight., but with the subconscious mind it is more "What Happen ?"  "Why?" and "Ok, you can do it...Do it"

 This is where visualization is involved..When we left the mat, after the delivery, we were thinking of what happen and what we will want to correct. Now back on the mat ready to bowl we do a quick instruction to the subconscious of these instruction of improvement needed for a better bowl.  we incorporate these thoughts with the pre-visualization and let the subconscious mind do it.

    .Visualizing the Bowl roll involves a state of mind  which allowing the subconscious to see what  we visualize as to how our bowl will roll (imaginary).This thought is a communication which direct the subconscious to roll the bowl to the spot wanted. We the roll in our mind before we do it  and we know with  "Confidence" that it will happen...

   "Previsualization is a routine of seeing the action in a visual thought in your mind a few times before we deliver the bowl to the green. A more detail thought is an instructions to tell the subconscious how the bowl will roll and what changes we need to make to correct our previous error. However, it is also a method of transferring control to the subconscious mind, at the end of the actual though image, and not knowing  that it has happen..Here we see (in the mind) the bowl rolling up the green, roll pass those frontal bowls and roll up and fall over at the jack. And we do it a second time to be sure of the instruction and even to add corrective thoughts to that image.  By the third imaginary image we are not aware the bowl has been delivered and now we see that the bowl has been rolled by the subconscious.

 Where it become important, is that we are staying in the Zone. (not taking back control from the subconscious mind) until the delivery is finished. Yes, we want to be able to stay in the zone for the total few micro-seconds of the delivery.  From the back swing to the roll and release.

 If we have our routine down pack as to rolling our bowl, all we need for the subconscious is a point of transfer.  This  third visualization of the imaginary bowl defines that transfer.  For beginners, it is necessary to see it,, 1 time, see it again, 2nd time, and 3, see it happening.

     We all make mistakes and the discouragement of a mistake is a change of mind set.  As I watched Ryan Bester's World bowls Single final I learn that the determination of trailing by several points is a big Zone motivation booster for him. With the subconscious, the more the task seems impossible, the more it amazes you in that it can do it perfectly. Ryan seem to allow his opponent in a few game to get a jump of points on him. Sort like giving an extra load of work to the subconscious mind to do.

  . In poker we hear the term "A tell" meaning an action or twitch which tells something about the player's thought.Update Oct 29th 2023 This Toe-tapping Tell is seen in the Australian National lawn Bowls Singles Final by Cody Parker Western Australia in the Youtube Video. Same action to tell the subconscious the distance..   In the petanque video , on youtube, the shooter, who is practicing a takeout shot, can be seen to visualize (or Previsualize because his action is before doing his actual shot) and perfirns a mental action where he imagines his action of the throw and the takeout  actually hitting the target; in his mind as he is recalling the memories of previous shots. his shot by his left foot . This "tell" can be seen as a swing arm, a toe tap, a eye movement or just a finger.

 That short twitch of his toe, is his thought during the visualizing of the coming action of the thrown ball  instruction to the subconscious and the thought back to himself . (we also see that he does the communication (Twitch) several times)  He is like the rider on the horse, where he  stays  in control but also allow the action to be done as it is wanted. This same  sort of action is done in the predelivery action of Lawn Bowls atheltics like Karan Murphy the Australian Singles World Bowls Champion.

 We talked about confidences and I will tell you.. the subconscious mind has a big ego. It can not accept it did a mistake, so when it make a mistake and at these times, we see how it sometimes gives us the wrong conclusions.   This is important, because doing it "Instinctive" is letting the subconscious do it. But it can be a problem when the mind (subconscious) does not have enough information. We said that we have become overconfidence, but in the following example the mind created a gathering of information it needed from memory.

  I was helping Alex, from Montreal prepare for the World Petanque Championships and build more in the Zone with concentration.  It was important he know the limitations of the total concentration on his ability and skill.
 He was doing Petanque takeout, which is the normal practice (carre every 3 of 4)., So, I asked him if he had a Cochon (jack of petanque) and walked up and placed it behind the ball he was shooting to take out.  He first thought that this practice would be to takeout the ball without moving the cochon. A sort of  shot where he hits hit target ball on the left or right side; which is harder and often practice ".No" I told him (and his subconscious mind listen) as I explained. "You know the cochon is behind the ball, shoot just over the top of the ball,  and take out the cochon.  You can do it". (Alex was confidence the yellow jack (cochon) was behind the target ball, which he had been shooting. So after a few tries he made the shot and his takeout shot went over the top of the target ball to hit the yellow cochon behind it. (as in phot right )
    One problem,  I had not placed the cochon there and it was in my hand.  In his frist two attempts he was too high and he knew it. On the 3rd shot he knew that his shot had succeed in just  passing over the petanque ball and hitting the jack (if it had been there).  He was sure he had seen the jack fly to the left and went to where he thought it was and began to look for it.  After a few minutes I showed him the jack in my hand and explained.  
  "The subconscious mind had seen the shot done several times before and always the jack fly left or right,  in a different direction when it was hit...  so when the shot was done correctly, it (the subconscious mind) convey to the shooter (Alex) that it had seen the cochon fly to the left.  Although it had not. Alex was so amazed when he realized what had happen and the jack was in my hand (I showed and explained it) that he sat down  and interrupted his practice.  A big lesson on not accepting all the information that the subconscious mind transmit to you.  Don't get lazy by not doing the post-delivery analysis.  That year Alex placed 3rd or 4th in the world at the World Petanque Competitions.
 .                   Confidence is good,  but when in the zone and allowing the action to happen, always go back to your routine of analysis and feedback.  The need for this is that it is both necessary for an athletics's development and the subconscious mind needs this awareness of expected correction or errors which were made.

. In the indoor match between Australia and New Zealand if you watch the video you will see the tell (pre armswing) of the auzzie. 2010 BCIB - PBA Indoor Challenge Singles video
  Same with seeing distance, we calculate distance by the subconscious feeling  the tension of the muscles of the eyes being focus on the bowl or jack at a distance.  But the subconscious can not say 25 meters unless you have a method of calculating  the distance..  Like how far is  the jack within  the boundaries (for a long jack) or  how far over minimum distance is the jack?  You can actually visualize yourself walking from the hogline to the jack and counting the steps and develop it very actually. Or on a long jack you can watch the player behind the jack coming to the head and count their steps.
  If the conscious mind does not do these calculation then the subconscious mind will not do it.  Stay in control.. otherwise being over confidence and begin making mistakes.
    In closing,  I suggest if you have read all the 8 blogs and are interested in this strong force in your bowls development, you do not abandon any part of your present routine.  Build upon it by defining and feeling the involvement of the subconscious .  Check out other aspects of our sport.. Crown Bowls is very much instinctive and with  quite a non-flat effect on the bowl roll.  Blind bowls should be tried. Go to the club and after standing on the mat and line pull you hat down over your eyes and get into the previsualization and roll the bowls.  Learn, adapt and improve.  
   Thank you for following the blogs...  If  the chance arrives I will attempt to do another two or three of follow-up nature.. But by chance I saw the book of "in the Zone" and want to read it.
   A last thought    "If I know all this,  why am I not a top of the line athletic ?   Well, maybe one day I will say hi.. because I am also still working on all the aspects of perfection.   But I do have national gold.  but not in bowls... Not yet.