If you ever get to see footage of Teun de Nooijer and Jamie Dwyer carrying the ball flat knack it always seems absolutely effortless; they just seem to flow down the turf. Flow state, often described as being "in the zone," is a psychological phenomenon characterized by intense focus, deep enjoyment, and a sense of control during performance activities. This state was first identified by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1990), who defined it as a state of optimal experience where individuals are completely immersed in an activity, leading to improved performance and creativity.If you are fortunate enough to be in the audience to watch a virtuoso cellist deal to the solo piece of Gulda’s Concerto for Cello and Wind orchestra you will again witness phenomenal flow state live.

In sports, flow is associated with heightened awareness, increased energy, and diminished perception of time and self-consciousness. According to Jackson and Csikszentmihalyi (1999), athletes in a flow state often report feeling as though they are performing effortlessly and are fully engaged in their activity. Research into flow in sports performance has shown that achieving this state can lead to enhanced motor skills, improved concentration, and greater perseverance in challenging situations (Nakamura & Csikszentmihalyi, 2002).

Jackson and Csikszentmihalyi (1999) wrote:

"Some call it a natural high. Others refer to it as being "in a zone". Whatever the label, flow is that elusive and desired state of consciousness that athletes, coaches, and psychologists have tried to understand, harness, and employ to their benefit"

The Nine Dimensions

According to Csikszentmihalyi (1975), flow is associated with individuals reporting nine dimensions:

1. Challenge-skill balance (i.e. athlete perceives his or abilities match the demands of the situation)

2. Clear goals

3. Unambiguous feedback

4. Merging of action and awareness

5. Concentration on the task at hand

6. Sense of control over what the athlete wants to do.

7. A loss of self-consciousness (i.e., concern for self disappears)

8. Transformation of time (i.e., time can speed up or slow down)

9. An autotelic experience that is intrinsically rewarding.

Autotelic Experience: This condition literally captures a sense that the performance activity was an end in itself. The joy of performing a work for an audience is the essential goal.

The challenge-skill dimension is critical for achieving flow, as outlined by Jackson and Csikszentmihalyi (1999). For athletes to enter a state of flow, they must perceive that their skills are adequate to meet the demands of the task at hand. Coaching practices and the structuring of training can greatly influence this perception by either enhancing the athlete's skill levels or adjusting the perceived challenges. Below are several ways coaching and practice structure can affect the challenge-skill balance, accompanied by relevant research evidence.

Coaching Practices that May Enable Flow Development

Individualized Coaching

Individualized coaching involves tailoring training to the athlete's specific needs, skills, and goals. By personalizing feedback and setting appropriate challenges, coaches enable athletes to progress at a pace suited to their capability. A study by Vezina and Morrow (2018) highlights that individualized coaching led to enhanced athlete motivation and improved performance. Personalized training allows athletes to build confidence in their skills, which can facilitate entry into flow states, as they feel equipped to handle the challenges presented to them. This can’t be generalised skill honing alone, it needs to be more directed and nuanced than that.

In his book “ The Art of Practice “ by Laido Dittmar, a world-class Cirque de Soleil performer in explaining important aspects of skills practices and self-imposed glass ceilings poses this question to coaches and performers.

The first 90% of learning a skill usually progresses rapidly but it’s the last 10% that creates trouble for us.It can often take 3-4x as long to mster the final 10%. Why?

Incremental Skill Development

Coaches can design practice sessions that emphasize incremental skill development, systematically increasing the complexity of tasks. This gradual increase ensures that athletes continually perceive that their skills match the challenges they face. Research by McCarthy et al. (2018) shows that progressive skill acquisition strategies lead to improved athlete performance. By gradually introducing more complex drills and incorporating variations, coaches help athletes build resilience and self-efficacy, which is essential for cognitive engagement and flow.

Dittmar (2022) observes

If you want to reach the next level and maintain the need to adapt which drives progress, move onto a more complex new task or variant of the core task-skill. Spend less time rehearsing the 90% you already have in your skill bank.

Setting Clear Goals

Establishing clear, attainable goals helps athletes understand what is expected of them and how they can achieve it. Clear goals can help athletes gauge their skill level against the demands of a task and adjust their efforts accordingly.According to Weinberg and Brink (2019), goal-setting significantly enhances performance by providing direction and focus. When athletes have clear goals, they are more likely to experience flow, as they can more easily align their skills with challenges set before them.

There should be a small set of overarching goals e.g.

• ball carry down left channel at maximal speed with perfect control with one right - left elimination and throw a forehand pass to the high guard position

  • carry ball on forestick at maximal speed

    • carry ball on forestick at maximal speed down constrained left channel space

Creating Challenging but Achievable Tasks

Coaches play a pivotal role in designing practice tasks that are challenging yet achievable. Striking the right balance is crucial; tasks that are too easy may lead to boredom, while tasks that are too difficult can result in anxiety. The Yerkes-Dodson Law supports this notion, suggesting that optimal performance occurs at a moderate level of arousal (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908). Research by Jackson et al. (2001) emphasizes that tasks should align with an athlete's skill level to create a conducive environment for flow, thus reiterating the importance of adequate task construction in coaching.

Here the progressive resistance model is worth thinking about.

Ensure the necessary body movements underpinning a skill are practised in parts then in unison; do this at progressively faster speeds. Create spatial impingements then time constraints e.g. with marker cones, figure-based obstacles, passive defenders, active defenders then short-sided game scenarios.

Fostering a Supportive Environment

A positive and supportive coaching environment encourages risk-taking and experimentation. When athletes feel safe and supported, they are more likely to test their skills against challenging tasks. Studies by Côté et al. (2010) show that a supportive coaching environment enhances self-determination, which is crucial for intrinsic motivation. When athletes are intrinsically motivated, they are more likely to enter flow states in challenging situations because they perceive their skills as adequate to meet those challenges.

You cannot have the rude and ignorant coaching masters players and tellig them to “ act their age “ . Instead, encourage them to push the boundaries of skill development. If the same ignorati had a shred of exercise science grounding they would realise they need to adjust their approach and support and encourage their roster to lern new skills and have the confidence to bring them on game day.

10,000 hours

The "10,000-hour rule," popularized by Malcolm Gladwell in his book "Outliers," posits that approximately 10,000 hours of deliberate practice are required to achieve elite performance levels in various fields, including sports. This notion has spurred considerable debate among sports scientists and psychologists, leading to arguments both for and against its validity.

Arguments For the 10,000-Hour Rule

Deliberate Practice Matters

Research consistently emphasizes the importance of deliberate practice over accumulated hours of practice. Ericsson et al. (1993) argue that it is not merely the number of hours spent practicing that contributes to skill development, but the quality and intentionality behind that practice. Deliberate practice focuses on improving specific aspects of performance, which can lead to mastery over time. For instance, studies in various domains, including sports, indicate that elite athletes typically engage in structured, focused training regimens (Ericsson, 2006).

Many successful athletes have reported similar trajectories regarding their training hours. For example, research conducted by Côté et al. (2009) demonstrated that athletes in sports such as hockey and soccer often reach 10,000 hours of practice by the time they achieve elite status. These findings suggest that the 10,000-hour mark can serve as a practical guideline for understanding the dedication required to excel in sports but this does make it a guaranteed success template for all.

AThe framework provided by the 10,000-hour rule is beneficial for aspiring athletes and coaches. By promoting the importance of sustained effort and deliberate practice methods, this guideline encourages athletes to engage in focused and structured training to maximize performance outcomes (Rummens et al., 2019).

Arguments Against the 10,000-Hour Rule

Critics argue that the 10,000-hour rule oversimplifies the multifactorial nature of skill acquisition and elite performance. Research by Hodges and Starkes (2000) indicates that innate talent and genetic predispositions play significant roles in determining athletic success. These inherent differences can lead to variations in the hours required to reach elite levels, challenging the idea that consistent practice alone can account for top-tier performance.

Not all elite athletes conform to the 10,000-hour model. For instance, a study by Baker et al. (2003) found that elite athletes in certain sports might reach high performance levels with fewer practice hours due to unique physiological advantages, exposure to competitive environments, or high-level coaching from a young age. This variability undermines the notion of a standardized practice hour threshold.

Another significant critique is the emphasis on practice quantity over quality. Macnamara and Hambrick (2016) conducted a meta-analysis suggesting that deliberate practice explains only a modest portion of performance variance among athletes and that other factors, such as mental toughness, motivation, and access to resources, are equally critical in achieving elite status. This challenges the assertion that 10,000 hours alone guarantee success.

References

Baker, J., Côté, J., & Abernethy, B. (2003). Sport-specific training, deliberate practice and the development of expert perceptual–motor performance. The Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 15 (3), 12-29.

Birrer, D., Röthlin, P., & Morgan, G. (2012). Mindfulness to enhance athlete performance: Theoretical considerations and possible implications. Sports Medicine, 42 (12), 955-966.

Côté, J., Baker, J., & Abernethy, B. (2009). Practice and play in the development of sport expertise. In J. L. Starkes & K. A. Ericsson (Eds.), Expert Performance in Sports: Advances in Research on Sport Expertise (pp. 95-118). Human Kinetics.

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience . Harper & Row.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior . Plenum.

Ericsson, K. A. (2006). The influence of experience and deliberate practice on the development of superior expert performance. In K. A. Ericsson, N. Charness, P. J. Feltovich, & R. R. Hoffman (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance (pp. 683-703). Cambridge University Press.

Ericsson, K. A., Krampe, R. T., & Tesch-Römer, C. (1993). The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance. Psychological Review, 100 (3), 363-406.

Hanin, Y. L. (2007). Positive and negative emotions in sport. Athletic Insight, 1 (2), 1-13.

Hodges, N. J., & Starkes, J 5. Hodges, N. J., & Starkes, J. L. (2000). Variability in practice and the role of task characteristics in the acquisition of sport skills. In J. L. Starkes & K. A. Ericsson (Eds.), Expert Performance in Sports: Advances in Research on Sport Expertise (pp. 75-93). Human Kinetics.

Kremer, J. & Moran, A. (2008). The role of the flow experience in sport: A review of the literature. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 20 (2), 218-233.

Macnamara, A., & Hambrick, D. Z. (2016). Deliberate practice and performance in sports: A meta-analysis. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 11 (333), 333-350.

Nakamura, J., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2002). The concept of flow. In C. R. Snyder & J. L. Sullivan (Eds.), Coping with stress and the challenge of individual life: Perspectives and applications (pp. 190-206). New York: Wiley.

Parsons, R. (2013). The Relationship Between Flow and Performance in Sport: A Review of the Literature. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 8 (1), 179-190.

Rummens, J., DeZutter, J., & Vansteenkiste, M. (2019). The 10,000-hour rule and its implications for the development of expertise. Sport & Exercise Psychology Review, 15 (1), 34-48.

Swann, C., Keegan, R., Piggott, D., & Duckworth, L. (2012). The role of organizational climate in facilitating athlete flow. Journal of Sports Sciences, 30 (6), 569-580.

Swann, C., Moran, A., & Piggott, D. (2015). Conceptualizing and operationalizing flow in sport. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 8 (1), 63-88.

Weinberg, R., Butt, J., & Cumming, J. (2010). Group cohesion and flow in team sports . Journal of Sports Sciences, 28 (6), 835-843.