Trusting Your Training: Building Confidence Before Competition
Key Points
Confidence isn’t built on game day—it’s built during disciplined, consistent training when no one is watching.
Trusting your preparation matters more than chasing perfection; perfectionism increases anxiety and impairs performance.
Mental strategies like simulation training, process goals, and pre-performance routines build self-efficacy and resilience under pressure.
Mental performance coaching helps athletes reframe doubt, strengthen mindset tools, and translate training into game-day confidence.
What to Consider When Reading
How have your past training habits contributed to how confident you feel in high-pressure moments?
What mental routines or anchors do you already have—or could develop—to help you access your preparation when it counts?
When the lights go up, the crowd roars, and the moment finally arrives, athletes often ask themselves one question: Am I ready?
Every athlete knows the pressure that builds up just before a competition. Nerves spike, doubts creep in, and suddenly it feels like maybe you haven’t done enough. But here’s the truth: confidence doesn’t come from cramming at the last minute—it comes from trusting the foundation you’ve already laid.
Reflect on the times when you didn’t want to show up, but still put in the work. The early mornings when motivation was nowhere to be found, but you trained. The sessions you pushed through while juggling personal struggles or fatigue. That’s where confidence is built—in the consistency that marks discipline. Those “quiet reps” when no one was watching are the very moments that prove you’re capable.
Trust in training means believing that all those deposits of effort—big or small—accumulate into a bank of preparation you can draw from on competition day. You’ve done the work. You’ve built the discipline. Now it’s time to trust that process and step into the arena, knowing the outcome is dependent on the time and effort you have already invested.
Why Trust Matters More Than Perfection
Chasing perfection is like running on a treadmill that never stops—you’ll exhaust yourself without ever reaching the finish line. In sport, this “perfection trap” heightens anxiety, narrows focus, and often sabotages performance when it matters most.
Research in sport psychology backs this up. Perfectionism is linked with increased stress, burnout, and fear of failure (Flett & Hewitt, 2005). On the flip side, confidence rooted in preparation is one of the strongest predictors of success under pressure (Bandura, 1997). In other words: trusting the hours of disciplined training you’ve already put in is far more powerful than obsessing over flawless execution on game day.
U.S. track legend Allyson Felix nailed it when she said:
“I don’t focus on the outcome. I focus on the process and trust that the results will follow.”
That’s the shift champions make: moving from outcome-obsession to process-trust. When athletes embrace the messy, disciplined grind of training and let go of the illusion of perfect, they free themselves to compete with confidence, clarity, and joy.
The Psychology Behind ‘Trust in Training’
Athlete preparation confidence is rooted in self-efficacy—your belief in your ability to perform a task (Feltz, Short, & Sullivan, 2008). Building this doesn’t happen by accident; it’s developed through consistent, structured training and mental prep sport strategies, such as:
Simulation training – Rehearsing competition scenarios in practice (crowd noise, timing, pressure situations).
Process goals – Focusing on controllable actions (form, breathing, effort) instead of uncontrollable outcomes (winning, judging, mistakes).
Pre-performance routines – Rituals that anchor you in focus, like Serena Williams bouncing the ball exactly five times before every serve.
These tools remind athletes that the work is already inside them—they just need to let it out.
Real Life Examples: Lessons from the Pros
A powerful case study of this mindset comes from Michael Phelps. In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Phelps’ goggles filled with water during the 200m butterfly final—every swimmer’s nightmare. But instead of panicking or striving for perfection, he trusted his training. His coach, Bob Bowman, had deliberately rehearsed “disaster scenarios” in practice, including swimming blind. Because Phelps had prepared for imperfection, he kept count of his strokes, finished the race, and still won gold in world-record time (Schwartz, 2008).
That’s the shift champions make: moving from outcome-obsession to process-trust. When athletes embrace the messy, disciplined grind of training and let go of the illusion of perfect, they free themselves to compete with confidence, clarity, and joy.
Kobe Bryant also spoke often about preparation: “I’ve played with the flu, with a sprained ankle, broken fingers, a torn shoulder. Why? Because I’ve trained so hard that there’s no excuse not to trust that preparation.”
The common thread? Confidence wasn’t invented on game day—it was banked through years of preparation.
How To: Confidence in One’s Preparation
Here are five methods athletes implement to build trust in your training and bring that confidence to competition:
1. Bank the Evidence
Think of confidence like a savings account—you’ve got to deposit the work to withdraw belief in yourself. Keep a “confidence journal” where you log your best practices, milestones, and sessions you powered through when you didn’t feel like it. Serena Williams has spoken about journaling her progress as a way to “remind myself of the work I’ve already put in” during recovery from injuries (Clarey, NYT, 2013). When doubt creeps in, you’ll have the receipts.
2. Shift from “What If” to “I Am”
“What if I choke?” breeds fear. “I am strong. I am ready. I am prepared.” builds trust. Research shows that positive self-talk reduces anxiety and boosts performance under pressure (Hatzigeorgiadis et al., 2011). NBA legend LeBron James is famous for his affirmations—before high-stakes games, he repeats phrases like “I was built for this” to ground himself in belief rather than doubt.
3. Anchor to Rituals
From lacing your shoes the same way to blasting your favourite playlist, rituals create familiarity in high-stress moments. Rafael Nadal’s meticulous pre-serve routine (yes, the bottles too!) isn’t superstition—it’s a confidence anchor. Sports psychologists call this a pre-performance routine, and research shows it reduces anxiety while sharpening focus (Cotterill, 2010).
4. Simulate the Storm
Train for chaos so competition feels like déjà vu. Michael Phelps famously rehearsed “worst-case scenarios,” like swimming blindfolded, so when his goggles flooded in Beijing, he didn’t panic—he trusted his training. Athletes can do the same: practice under a countdown clock, let teammates yell distractions, or wear competition gear in practice. If you can stay calm in the storm, the real thing feels familiar.
5. Detach from Perfect
Perfection isn’t real—mistakes are part of the game. The key is trusting that you’ve prepared enough to recover quickly. Gymnast Simone Biles has said, “I’d rather do a decent routine I’m confident in than chase perfection I’m not ready for” (NBC Sports, 2021). That’s the confidence sweet spot: embracing the flaws, knowing you’re resilient enough to handle them.
Psychology Backs These Five Methods Up!
These five strategies aren’t just motivational tricks — they’re rooted in sport psychology. Bandura’s (1997) research on self-efficacy shows that confidence grows when athletes recognize mastery experiences, which is exactly what happens when you “bank the evidence” in a journal.
Positive self-talk has also been proven to reduce anxiety and sharpen focus, with Hatzigeorgiadis et al. (2011) showing consistent performance gains when athletes shift from “What if I fail?” to “I am ready.”
Pre-performance routines, like rituals, help regulate attention and lower stress under pressure (Cotterill, 2010), while simulated chaos mirrors what psychologists call stress inoculation training (Meichenbaum, 2007), helping athletes stay calm in real competition.
Finally, research by Flett, Hewitt, and Nepon (2016) links perfectionism to burnout and anxiety, showing that confidence thrives not in chasing flawless performance, but in trusting preparation and adaptability.
How a Mental Performance Coach Comes Into Play
Even with the best training plan, athletes sometimes struggle to silence doubt before competition. That’s where a Mental Performance Coach (MPC) comes in. MPCs bridge the gap between physical readiness and mental confidence, offering tools that help athletes trust the work they’ve already put in.
For example, an MPC might guide an athlete through evidence-banking exercises, reminding them of consistent practice sessions, lifts, or races that prove they’re prepared. They also teach athletes self-talk reframing—turning “What if I’m not ready?” into “I’ve done the work, I am ready.” Research shows this kind of cognitive restructuring reduces anxiety and enhances self-belief (Hatzigeorgiadis et al., 2011).
They also help athletes design pre-performance routines that act like mental anchors. Whether it’s Serena Williams bouncing the ball five times before a serve or Michael Phelps listening to the same playlist before races, coaches help refine these rituals so they reliably boost focus under stress (Cotterill, 2010).
Finally, MPCs use stress inoculation training, simulating chaotic competition scenarios so athletes learn to respond calmly. Think: practicing free throws with crowd noise blasting, or running drills with unexpected distractions. Over time, athletes develop confidence not only in their preparation, but also in their ability to handle whatever comes their way.
At the end of the day, confidence isn’t about chasing perfection — it’s about trusting the sweat, discipline, and preparation you’ve already banked. As Michael Phelps once said: “You can’t put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.” When athletes learn to trust their training, they step into competition not hoping they’re ready, but knowing they are.
References
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. W.H. Freeman.
Clarey, C. (2013, August 26). Serena Williams on the comeback trail. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/26/sports/tennis/serena-williams-on-the-comeback-trail.html
Cotterill, S. T. (2010). Pre-performance routines in sport: Current understanding and future directions. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 3(2), 132–153. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750984X.2010.488269
Feltz, D. L., Short, S. E., & Sullivan, P. J. (2008). Self-efficacy in sport. Human Kinetics.
Flett, G. L., Hewitt, P. L., & Nepon, T. (2016). Perfectionism, worry, and rumination in health and mental health: Implications for understanding the stress–distress relationship. In F. M. Sirois & D. S. Molnar (Eds.), Perfectionism, health, and well-being (pp. 121–155). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-18582-8_6
Hatzigeorgiadis, A., Zourbanos, N., Galanis, E., & Theodorakis, Y. (2011). Self-talk and sports performance: A meta-analysis. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 6(4), 348–356. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691611413136
Meichenbaum, D. (2007). Stress inoculation training: A preventative and treatment approach. In P. M. Lehrer, R. L. Woolfolk, & W. E. Sime (Eds.), Principles and practice of stress management (3rd ed., pp. 497–518). Guilford Press.
NBC Sports. (2021, July 28). Simone Biles explains decision to withdraw: “I have to focus on my mental health.” NBC Olympics. https://www.nbcolympics.com/news/simone-biles-explains-decision-withdraw-i-have-focus-my-mental-health
Schwenk, J. (2016). How Michael Phelps won gold with his goggles full of water. USA Today.
