Have you ever felt as if you’ve lost all of the recent, positive progress you’ve made in your performance? 

If you are an athlete or performer, then you are going to experience lapses and plateaus in your performance, no matter what your sport, experience, or skill level may be. These lapses may bring out feelings of frustration, but not all hope is lost in this scenario. Let’s talk about what this looks like and why it’s a sign of improvement.

 Finally, it seems as if everything is finally clicking. You’ve learned new skills, developed useful habits, and started to experience a nearly effortless flow in your performance. You seemed to have discovered the right recipe of what tends to work well for you, and you’ve noticed a massive difference in your performance upon utilizing these newfound techniques. Everything seems to be coming together; you feel like you can take a sigh of relief and enjoy your performance with ease. After overcoming some past performance struggles, you think it’s all smooth sailing from here. This is an amazing discovery and position to be in, but it does not mean that your performance struggles are over, whether they are typical or new. After some time, it appears as if you’ve hit yet another roadblock in your performance, making no forward progress, and you feel discouraged as a result. It seems as if no matter what you do or how hard you try, you’re stuck at the same level or beginning to repeat old mistakes. Now what?

The beauty of sport and performance is that it includes never-ending learning and progression. Where there is progression, there are performance lapses. Although Olympians and clinicians have extended success and knowledge, they never stop progressing in their sport, even if it seems as if they have fully mastered all aspects of their performance. The reality is that circumstances change, difficulties arise, and sometimes, old habits begin to resurface as a result. Oftentimes, performance digresses before it improves. Plateaus make it seem as if you’re stuck at the same exact skill level over a period of time, but its presence can be an indicator that a breakthrough is well on its way. Lapses and plateaus are all a normal part of sport performance; they must be approached in a way that keeps athletes connected to their performance rather than on the brink of quitting altogether. Although a lapse is difficult to overcome, it is a sign that progress and improvement are right around the corner. Sometimes, we perform worse before we perform better by unintentionally leaning on past knowledge and skills during the development of new techniques. Once the adjustment is made to properly develop and practice the new skill, progress will follow. Mistakes will be made and learned from, positive habits will be instilled, muscle memory will be reinforced, and effective practice over time will yield significant progression.

Where there is progress, there is also a degree of struggle. It is completely normal to digress a bit and fall back into old habits. Performance may even feel as if it is at a stalemate at times. Progress is never-ending, and efforts made towards becoming a competent athlete must be practiced diligently. If you start to experience a dip in your performance, know that progress is coming up next. Push through the difficult days and know that they do not define you as an athlete, performer, or person. A breakthrough is on its way, and the difficulties are only a temporary, valuable learning experience. You may even find yourself handling certain, difficult situations in an improved manner along the way. Someday, you will look back and remember what once was an issue was ultimately surpassed, thus allowing your performance to advance and flourish.

Take some time to think about where your performance currently is and where it used to be. If you are currently experiencing a performance plateau, reminisce about your last breakthrough. Remember to practice efficiently, take care of yourself, enjoy the journey, and be accountable without being harsh towards yourself. The lapse or plateau is temporary and diligently working through it will only benefit you in the end. If you would like to further discuss this topic, please reach out!