PCS Coaching

What are YIPS and how can we overcome it?

Have you ever been riding a technical section that you have aced a thousand times before and then this one time just froze?

Freeze, choke, mental blank

These are all terms for a spectrum of psychoneuromuscular movement disorders during a specific task. There is a nickname for this… and we call it the YIPS.

The YIPS is a pretty difficult thing for coaches to help in athletes. The condition can be very puzzling and enforce tremendous mental stress on an athlete.

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Anxiety, pressure and self consciousness sometimes leads an athlete to consciously control a well learned skill,  therefore negatively impacting the athletes performance. Some may call it overthinking or feeling uncoordinated and then being unable to complete the skill that previously they could do without thinking.

We have all felt this at some point in our MTB journey… but what can we do about it? 

Research suggests pre-performance routines, imagery, meditation, pre-race customs and more drastically cognitive behavioral therapy may play a part in the road to alleviating this problem. One of the biggest factors however is how others perceive you and the associated feelings of embarrassment or failure.

The YIPS can take all the fun out of your cycling. While you might perform well in practice, when it comes to race day the YIPS kick in and your performance completely goes out the window. After going through this back and forth it tends to take a toll on your mind and you question your ability, technique and eventually your level of talent.

Getting to the root of these feelings is always the gold standard in treating this condition. Making sure that you are well rested, hydrated and in a positive mind frame prior to the activity are all additional steps to reduce YIPS. Bringing in psychologists and other therapists may be required if the cyclist is unable to break out of the YIPS caused by a recent crash.

Skills Coaching may be the answer!

If you are finding that you’re unable to overcome the YIPS, skills coaching may be helpful. A good skills coach will be able to go over the problem with you and break it down into sections that are manageable. This gives you the confidence and refines your skills doing the specific movement. Building your focus and composure may be the key to bringing back the muscle memory and alleviating the anxiety.

Yips can happen to anyone and its important to keep things in perspective.

Many people have fears when it comes to mountain biking on really technical terrain and this requires both physical and mental strength through training body and brain. Trusting that you are a capable and able to push out of your comfort zone is just as important as realising that even though there may be people who are judging you, the fact that you are out there giving it a go and giving it your best, far outweighs any embarrassment of attempting the task in the first place.

Finding your “Flow State” can really help to alleviate YIPS. You know the feeling of getting into the flow and relaxing, feeling like you’re flying through sections. This is another strategy to try if your are feeling like the YIPS is stopping you.

I would love to hear if you have ever been hit by the YIPS and what you found helped snap your mind and body out of it. We have a private Facebook group which you can find here : (4) Ride Faster – The Mountain Bike Training Group | Facebook This group is for cyclists at all levels to chat about anything cycling related. I chime in here and there and give tips and tricks that i have found helpful with my athletes along the way. Anything goes in the group, so don’t be shy and share your experiences. Maybe you will even make a few new cycling buddies along the way!

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High Performance Mountain Bike Coach

Donna Dall

My speciality is helping serious and recreational mountain bikers break through plateaus to attain higher levels of performance so that they can get fitter, faster, stronger and win more races!

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