Topic: The Zone - The 6th Sense?

[OSU Buckeye]

You lost me here as I don't write!  Let alone, writing in the zone!?   

[Babblelot]

Holy crap.

Maybe a better question is: Why are certain players more likely to get in the zone than others?

What are you talking about?  Do you think some people are more likely to get in the zone?  Maybe!? 

(Is that a rhetorical question? If not, it should be.)

Michael Jordan

I've gotten in the zone in three different sports: football, track & field and hoops. Inexplicable, freak, peak performances very rarely replicated, if at all.

MJ, Tiger Woods, Roger Federer!?   Are they more often in the zone or are they just that good?     I have been in the zone in volleyball and tennis.  I don't think I have ever been in the zone during basketball, though there have been some good ones.       

IMO, Jordan and Woods are that good, then have stretches of "peak performanc". In other words, the start off high, reach the zone for a stretch, then return to a high level.

For me, the zone is easier to understand with respect to sports other than tennis. I'll leave the explanation for Federer to someone else, but I imagine it should sound very similar.

Have you ever come out of a zone while still playing?  I haven't, once I was in the zone it didn't stop until I did. 

Yes, and I thought it spot on for the most part. It's obvious now where we differ, but to me, that is splitting hairs, since it's just two opinions. In totality, your explanation "floats."

[OSU Buckeye]

What?  My opinion "floats"?  And, I guess yours is concrete?  Please explain. 

[Babblelot]

What?  My opinion "floats"?  And, I guess yours is concrete?  Please explain. 

In totality, your explanation "floats," is what I said.

Translation: I read it, I nodded in agreement, I moved on to read what others posted.

[monstertruck]

I thought I'd resurrect this thread and fish around for further input on the subject.

I have several questions:

Do you do anything specific to increase your chances of entering 'The Zone'?

Once you are in 'The Zone', what do you do to remain in that state?

If you could do either, there wouldn't be a "zone".

Sorry Babs, I'm not buying the concept that it's some mystical state that cannot be induced and just happens willy nilly.  I'm thinking there has to be some sort of explanation as to how/why it all seems to come together sometimes.

Yeah, this is a tough one!?  I could say what causes it might be things like perfect amount of sleep, good nutrition, correct mental state, and...........yada, yada, yada!?   But, one of the times it happened to me was a Sunday eve after a Saturday of heavy drinking I think!?   Nah, I think it is closer to some mystical state rather than anything you can cause.  If you could bottle it then many people would reach this "zone" often. 

I choose to think of it all as a spectrum of performance........sometimes you are at the bottom of your performance spectrum likely due to stress or something.  Likely most often we are closer to the high end of our performance spectrum because we play so often and we know what to do physically and mentally to get our best results out of ourselves............well, depending on how hard our heads are!?  Sometimes, rarely, it all just happens right and we play amazing (the highest we are capable and highest on our individual spectrum) and then we label that we were in the zone.     Anyway, fascinating topic!   Lets delve deeper!    

This is the sort of input I was looking for.  Different examples of reaching the state of peak performance and the conditions leading up to and during it's occurence.
I also wonder about times of the day/month/year in addition to the physical factors you mentioned.  For example, I use a calendar to predict optimum fishing times for the year/month/day which is based on both solar and lunar positions.  More world-record fish have been caught at these 'optimum' times than at any other time.  Could human 'performance' be affected by the same forces?

[OSU Buckeye]

MT, I will have to look into this a bit more.  I know I can track down that info. for the 1 time I zoned (tennis) but the other (volleyball) may be much harder to get that info. for. 

[Pacer]

I like to think of it as selective concentration. In a match there are endless amounts of internal and external stimuli, thoughts feelings and or emotions. The ability to block all that out and focus on the task at hand is called a focus trance. I characterize it as a skill, which takes a tremendous amount of mental training.

[OSU Buckeye]

I like to think of it as selective concentration. In a match there are endless amounts of internal and external stimuli, thoughts feelings and or emotions. The ability to block all that out and focus on the task at hand is called a focus trance. I characterize it as a skill, which takes a tremendous amount of mental training.

You should have more to add on this what with your experience.  How many times has it happened for you? 

[Pacer]

I like to think of it as selective concentration. In a match there are endless amounts of internal and external stimuli, thoughts feelings and or emotions. The ability to block all that out and focus on the task at hand is called a focus trance. I characterize it as a skill, which takes a tremendous amount of mental training.

You should have more to add on this what with your experience.  How many times has it happened for you? 

To varying degrees it happens most of the time I play. Sometimes I can sustain it throughout a match sometimes I can't. I'm not neccessarly saying I play lights on can't miss tennis everytime I play, what I'm saying is I'm able to stay present. I don't focus on anything other than what I'm doing at the moment thus a focus trance AKA "the zone". I haven't mastered it, it's something that takes work. You'll find that you are able to play better because you aren't as distracted. The zone is essentially great concentration, you're body and mind are all in sync and focused on the task at hand, you aren't concerned with anything other than tennis at that moment. You aren't worried about winning you aren't worried about losing, you aren't talking yourself down and you're not talking yourself up, you're just playing tennis and all your concentration is on doing just that. If you put in the mental training, the zone will come to you more often than not.

[Babblelot]

I like to think of it as selective concentration. In a match there are endless amounts of internal and external stimuli, thoughts feelings and or emotions. The ability to block all that out and focus on the task at hand is called a focus trance. I characterize it as a skill, which takes a tremendous amount of mental training.

You should have more to add on this what with your experience.  How many times has it happened for you? 

To varying degrees it happens most of the time I play. Sometimes I can sustain it throughout a match sometimes I can't. I'm not neccessarly saying I play lights on can't miss tennis everytime I play, what I'm saying is I'm able to stay present. I don't focus on anything other than what I'm doing at the moment thus a focus trance AKA "the zone". I haven't mastered it, it's something that takes work. You'll find that you are able to play better because you aren't as distracted. The zone is essentially great concentration, you're body and mind are all in sync and focused on the task at hand, you aren't concerned with anything other than tennis at that moment. You aren't worried about winning you aren't worried about losing, you aren't talking yourself down and you're not talking yourself up, you're just playing tennis and all your concentration is on doing just that. If you put in the mental training, the zone will come to you more often than not.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that I've put fourth the necessary work in other activities. Indeed, there are times when I can "sustain it" for days. This pretty much punches holes in my explanation.

Thanks Pacer!

[OSU Buckeye]

I like to think of it as selective concentration. In a match there are endless amounts of internal and external stimuli, thoughts feelings and or emotions. The ability to block all that out and focus on the task at hand is called a focus trance. I characterize it as a skill, which takes a tremendous amount of mental training.

You should have more to add on this what with your experience.  How many times has it happened for you? 

To varying degrees it happens most of the time I play. Sometimes I can sustain it throughout a match sometimes I can't. I'm not neccessarly saying I play lights on can't miss tennis everytime I play, what I'm saying is I'm able to stay present. I don't focus on anything other than what I'm doing at the moment thus a focus trance AKA "the zone". I haven't mastered it, it's something that takes work. You'll find that you are able to play better because you aren't as distracted. The zone is essentially great concentration, you're body and mind are all in sync and focused on the task at hand, you aren't concerned with anything other than tennis at that moment. You aren't worried about winning you aren't worried about losing, you aren't talking yourself down and you're not talking yourself up, you're just playing tennis and all your concentration is on doing just that. If you put in the mental training, the zone will come to you more often than not.

Alright, now it gets very confusing for me!?  For me at 4.5 there is a very clear difference between my normal level of play and when I am in the zone.  Are you saying that this marginal difference in level of play isn't nearly as detectable in your game at 5.5/6.0 or whatever you are?  I suppose that is believable.   It still fits my 1st idea of the performance spectrum that our games ride up and down on.   

[pawan89]

I like to think of it as selective concentration. In a match there are endless amounts of internal and external stimuli, thoughts feelings and or emotions. The ability to block all that out and focus on the task at hand is called a focus trance. I characterize it as a skill, which takes a tremendous amount of mental training.

You should have more to add on this what with your experience.  How many times has it happened for you? 

To varying degrees it happens most of the time I play. Sometimes I can sustain it throughout a match sometimes I can't. I'm not neccessarly saying I play lights on can't miss tennis everytime I play, what I'm saying is I'm able to stay present. I don't focus on anything other than what I'm doing at the moment thus a focus trance AKA "the zone". I haven't mastered it, it's something that takes work. You'll find that you are able to play better because you aren't as distracted. The zone is essentially great concentration, you're body and mind are all in sync and focused on the task at hand, you aren't concerned with anything other than tennis at that moment. You aren't worried about winning you aren't worried about losing, you aren't talking yourself down and you're not talking yourself up, you're just playing tennis and all your concentration is on doing just that. If you put in the mental training, the zone will come to you more often than not.

hey thats exactly what i said. i feel smart now

[Pacer]

Buckeye: No, I'm saying that the heightened state of awareness known as "the zone" can be induced rather than being something that just occurs for no reason at all. There's a clear difference in my game when I'm able to block out all other stimuli and just focus on tennis, for one I'm more consistent. I think most everyone has zone moments during their play, it's just difficult to sustain throughout a match because it's difficult to block out everything around you. So IMO "the zone" can be induced if you've put in the mental training required. The pros are masters of the focus trance.


Pawan: I just looked at your post, we pretty much said the same things, pretty funny.

[OSU Buckeye]

Buckeye: No, I'm saying that the heightened state of awareness known as "the zone" can be induced rather than being something that just occurs for no reason at all. There's a clear difference in my game when I'm able to block out all other stimuli and just focus on tennis, for one I'm more consistent. I think most everyone has zone moments during their play, it's just difficult to sustain throughout a match because it's difficult to block out everything around you. So IMO "the zone" can be induced if you've put in the mental training required. The pros are masters of the focus trance.


Pawan: I just looked at your post, we pretty much said the same things, pretty funny.

So you say there is a clear difference for you.  So, how often would you say this clear difference happens to you?