The coach calls a play you've practised a hundred times – and you no longer know where to run. Your passes are late, the ball feels strange. That's a blackout. And it happens to really good players too.
What's happening right now
When tension gets too high, your brain goes into alarm mode. Pulse up, vision narrows, thinking slows. Your knowledge isn't gone – you just can't access it easily. That's why shouting at yourself to concentrate doesn't help.
You can do this right now
- Exhale slowly – twice as long as you inhale. This slows down the alarm in your body.
- Look out: Find a fixed point, for example, the crossbar or the hall clock.
- One word for your next task: "hands", "tempo", "back". Just one.
- Just make the next action simple. A safe pass instead of a risky one – you'll get back into the game first.
Exhale for twice as long as you inhale
When: When your pulse races: just before the throw-off, before the 7-metre throw, or right after a timeout.
- 1Stand firm. Feel your feet.
- 2Breathe in calmly for 4 seconds.
- 3Breathe out for 8 seconds, as if through a straw.
- 4Two more times. Count silently.
Out of the game
You're playing left half, three attacks go past you. In the next defence phase, you exhale slowly twice, glance at the sports hall clock and tell yourself "legs". In attack, you safely play the first ball to the middle. By the second ball contact, you're back in it.
When it happens more often
Then a fixed pre-game routine and an anchor word you already use in training are worthwhile. The more often you practise it, the faster it will work in the game. And if blackouts are significantly affecting you outside the hall too, talk to someone you trust.
Remember this
A blackout doesn't mean you're bad. It means: too much alarm. Exhale, look up, one word – then the simplest next action.