Modern Sport Psychology Meets Ancient Philosophy

Elite athletes seek out the most recent, finest know-how from activity psychology authorities, as properly they need to. But how about the wisdom of Stoic philosophers from historical Greek and Roman moments?

Alabama Crimson Tide football mentor Nick Saban performing his coaching factor.

Supply: Carol M. Highsmith/Wikimedia Commons

Those people wonderful thinkers from two millenniums back have huge affect on thriving athletics icons this sort of as Monthly bill Belichick and his New England Patriots, Nick Saban and his University of Alabama Crimson Tide football staff, and former Big League Baseball supervisor Joe Maddon. That is not to point out other extraordinarily profitable persons outdoors activity, which includes Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Hip-Hop artist LL Interesting.

According to a Sports activities Illustrated short article, many athletes and coaches ended up turned on to Stoicism by The Obstacle is the Way, a e-book published by Ryan Vacation (2014), and his litany of other titles introducing viewers to the wisdom of Zeno, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, and other Stoic philosophers.

A Stoic Sampling

Look at this pearl of knowledge: “We need to corral not only unnecessary steps, but avoidable thoughts, also, so pointless acts really don’t tag along after them.”

Sounds like a little something that might have dropped from the lips of such present day-working day psychology icons as Steven Hayes or Russ Harris, pioneers in the improvement of Acceptance and Motivation Schooling (ACT), an method broadly utilized in today’s sport psychology earth.

But it didn’t.

It was written—and practiced—by Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius 2,000 yrs ahead of the introduction of present day sport psychology, and carefully parallels ACT teachings.

How did someone from that extensive back conjure up these modern day wisdom?

Aurelius—historically, remembered as the “Philosopher King”—trained himself by means of the self-support approaches of his working day, the created is effective of his Stoic predecessors, and contributed his own scribbles of knowledge.

What is Stoicism?

In accordance to “The Day-to-day Stoic,” yet another greatest-seller authored by Vacation (2016), Stoicism was established in the 3rd century BC in Athens, Greece, by Zeno of Citium, and elaborated on by a long lineage of Greek and Roman philosophers, such as Aurelius.

Individuals great thinkers establish virtue as the key to existence gratification and performance. Virtue, in this article, outlined by self-management, courage, justice, and knowledge–what Stoics termed the 4 cardinal virtues. Stoicism asserts that our perception of exterior points results in most lifestyle challenges, not the external things them selves.

All that mirrors the ACT method. So does the Stoic teaching that we cannot count on nearly anything over and above what Greek Stoic Epictetus named “reasoned choice”—how we select to correctly react to functions further than our command. These types of “reasoned choice” is important to profitable performance in sports and other endeavors.

Effective use of “reasoned choice” is, possibly, what fueled the unparalleled good results of the New England Patriots and the Alabama Crimson Tide football team. It is what present day-day psychologist Russ Harris phone calls a “choice issue,” these crucial times during complicated situations that need laser-centered consciousness, allowing for for helpful decision making. Like a baseball hitter selecting to swing at a pitch, a quarterback’s reaction when having blitzed, or a surgeon when something goes incorrect for the duration of an operation.

Both of those Stoicism and ACT emphasize that unworkable emotion and considering can interfere with reasoned selection and effective reaction to external occasions. Stoics determined three vital disciplines to prevent that inside of stuff from disrupting optimal general performance, in accordance to Vacation, these disciplines are:

1. The “Discipline of Will” (How we offer with the factors we are not able to change and attain clear and convincing judgement.

2. The “Discipline of Perception” (how we see and understand the planet around us).

3. The “Discipline of Action” (the conclusions and steps we take—and to what finish).

These three disciplines bear a striking resemblance to the “Three Pillars” of what ACT terms “Psychological Flexibility” or in sports activities terminology, “mental toughness” and “resilience.” The Three Pillars are:

1. Currently being open up to inner knowledge (not acquiring caught-up in unworkable views and feelings, and other factors we do not regulate).

2. Currently being existing (currently being in the moment and aware).

3. Doing what matters most (accomplishing these matters that guide to fulfillment and accomplishment).

Not Educational Brain Game titles

Historic philosophy—Stoicism or otherwise—was about dwelling efficiently, not an about-intellectualized pursuit as it often exists in today’s lecture rooms. Stoicism was, and is, a disciplined skill demanding day by day follow and coaching, just like expertise in sports activities and other performance endeavors.

Reaching Psychological Overall flexibility, psychological toughness, or whichever you want to connect with it, by using up to date methods this sort of as ACT, is no various. A powerful argument can be built that Stoicism is the philosophical foundation of ACT and other fashionable-working day psychology idea.

Checking out the Stoicism-Activity Psychology Connection

Let’s begin with the Aurelius quote cited before, “we ought to corral not only unneeded actions, but avoidable views, too, so useless functions never tag together immediately after them.”

The “Philosopher King” acknowledged that a lot of of our ideas can consequence in behavior that sales opportunities to unproductive and negative outcomes. Contemporary ACT theory would describe all those actions as “unworkable” simply because they transfer us absent from what we worth, or what the Stoics contact virtues.

Making use of what Stoicism terms “reasoned choice” and what ACT phone calls a “choice place,” we can figure out people “unnecessary thoughts” and not enable them make the pointless functions that can end result from ineffective believed (and emotion. We can pick, alternatively, much more workable behaviors that direct to far better success.

A hockey participant, for instance, could decide on to engage in productively, instead of retaliating with a counterproductive punch due to the fact of anger, and the tag-along thoughts, in reaction to an opponent’s adhere to the experience.

Dedicated Action, Not Emotion

Preserving the retaliatory hockey participant in mind, take into consideration this quotation from Greek Stoic Epictetus: “If you don’t desire to be a sizzling head, never feed your pattern. Attempt as a initially phase to continue being calm.”

ACT teaches that when unworkable thoughts tutorial conduct, both the affect of that emotion and the unproductive habits are strengthened. It is like feeding a tiger cub. It will get bigger and larger about recurring feeding and finally devours us.

Experienced the hockey participant picked out to go after the puck as an alternative of throwing a punch, he may well have scored a purpose rather of shelling out five minutes in the penalty box. When an professional baseball hitter gets upset over a questionable umpire phone, as a substitute of throwing a scorching-headed tantrum, they will phase out of the batter’s box, consider a deep breath, reset themself, and phase back in.

“Present” consciousness and the “discipline of action” enabled the hockey and baseball players to get what ACT practitioners call “committed action,” ways that lead to effective results—valued actions. Keeping serene ends nicely. Sizzling-headedness does not.

Allow Virtues and Values Clearly show the Way

Here’s one more piece of wisdom from Marcus Aurelius: “Those obsessed with glory attach their properly-becoming to the regard of many others, those who appreciate satisfaction tie it to emotions, but the a single with real knowing seeks it only in their personal steps.”

Folks who thrive on impressing other people, or seeking enjoyment, are subsequent a rocky, unpredictable path of potential misery since they look for gratification from unstable sources. We do not immediately regulate other people’s reactions, or our personal thoughts, so in search of these uncontrollable is like chasing a balloon with an untied nozzle. It flies all about the place as we try to catch it. A annoying, fruitless, endeavor.

The Stoics and ACT teaches that committed actions based on personal values—virtues—is the most effective pathway to prosperous living. Valued actions we can handle, as a result main to steadiness and tranquil.

“Control the controllable” as several sports individuals say. Complete fully commited steps, really do not get snagged on unworkable feelings and thoughts that distract us from what is significant.

As Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) advises in the film Best Gun: Maverick, “don’t think, just do.” Stoics and athletics psychologists concur.