The Yips and Twisties: How Cognitive Impairment Can Lead to a Complete Loss of Skills in Athletes

The Yips and Twisties: How Cognitive Impairment Can Lead to a Complete Loss of Skills in Athletes

Professional athletes operate with a high degree of mental and physical prowess, but that isn’t always the case. Major athletes can run into an unexplained loss of skill with absolutely no notice. This unexplainable occurrence is known as the yips or the twisties, though it goes by various names in different sports circles. In this article, we will explore this unusual occurrence and what athletes can do to overcome and avoid these challenges.

Cognitive Impairment and Loss of Skills

In sports psychology, this is a fairly well-documented occurrence. However, it does raise more questions than it generally answers. A high performing athlete can suddenly find themselves operating on the same level as a beginner suddenly and without warning. Skills that at one point could be performed seamlessly now become nearly impossible to pull off. As you will learn later this is not under the conscious control of the athlete and serious measures must be taken to restore their abilities.

 

The yips can occur at different levels and times periods. In general, a disruption occurs within the cognitive process of performing a skill. As a result, athletes can suddenly lose their ability to carry out movements or stunts that they have practiced continuously throughout the years without issue. If not addressed early on this could be catastrophic for an athlete’s career.

In some cases the anxiety and fear of the yip itself can fan the flames of perpetual poor performances and unexplainable errors. As their skills continue to deteriorate so does their mental health. 

 Examples Involving Major Athletes

A highly publicized example of the yips can be seen with 24-year-old gymnast Simone Biles. In an earth shattering decision, the former gold medalist and world champion, made the decision to withdraw from several events in the Olympics citing a need to protect her mental health. This announcement would come to the surprise of millions of viewers and left many confused on why one the greatest gymnast of all time would choose to “sit out”. On her personal social media, Simone Biles shared a video explaining the twisties and how gymnasts can suddenly lose their spacial awareness, which can result in poor performance and serious injury. 

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons, a #1 pick in the NBA draft, is another athlete that was recently struck with mental health concerns that compromised his ability to play. In this year’s playoffs, Simmons caught a bad case of the yips which could be seen in his inability to shoot free throws and make effective plays. This would be extremely evident in a crucial play where former Rookie of the year would pass up a wide open lay up to distribute the ball to a teammate that was in a worst scoring position. His team would eventually get eliminated from the playoffs by a lower seeded Atlanta Hawks with Simmons’s career and future with the team up in the air. 

Ironically another Philadelphia 76ers guard and #1 NBA draft pick Markell Fultz would have a similar issue with the yips. Coming off of an amazing college career, Fultz was a can't-miss prospect who'd inject scoring into an already promising Philly lineup. Just 3 months into the season, Fultz's jump shot was hopelessly broken—the form so bad it'd look out of place on a playground court, let alone an NBA floor. Rumors of an apparent shoulder injury would float around but NBA trainer Drew Hanlen would finally pin his client's shooting issues on the yips—a frightening diagnosis but one most observers had long suspected. Fultz would be benched and eventual traded to the Orlando Magic. 

Chuck Knoblauch was a prime example of this and acts as a historical reference after he began to experience issues during his career with the Yankees. His play began to deteriorate, causing him to make continuous errors. Over time, these errors spread, leading him to struggle with accuracy and certain moves that were not previously a problem.

Though he has since reinvented himself, Rick Ankiel is another prominent athlete that was struck with the yips during his time with the St. Louis Cardinals. A once talented pitcher, he spontaneously lost his ability to pitch with any real degree of accuracy. Though he did enter the minors and find a new path with a new athletic focus, Ankiel serves as a prime example of this unexplainable condition.

How Athletes Can Overcome This Issue:

Recent studies show that the main culprit of poor decision making, technical break down of skills and premature physical fatigue is cognitive fatigue. 

When the brain gets overwhelmed and overstimulated it can no longer efficiently process the information its receiving from it’s senses. The body then slows down it’s functions to perserve the resources we need to sustain life. 

 Overthinking can lead to cognitive fatigue, leaving athletes struggling to do what they have trained to do. For some, simply wondering “what if” on the field can lead to a paralyzing onset of cognitive fatigue that can deteriorate skills and lead to further psychological damage. Unfortunately, as the condition worsens, the fear of failure often grows for athletes creating a snowball effect of other issues. 

 

Being consumed by thoughts of doom or paranoia can be crippling, but it isn’t the only way that something like this can occur. Mental health both on and off the field plays a significant role in how athletes perform. Traumas, personal issues, and family dysfunction can all lead to negative thinking and added pressure during performance.

 

To overcome this, athletes must focus entirely on their mental health. Reclaiming their initial talents might take time, but athletes can move past this. The best way to approach this is by staying ahead of it. Successful athletes have a game plan for maintaining their mental health during performance—and they have a unique ability to stay present in the moment. Many athletes have adopted meditation and other mindful practices that are geared towards helping them to quiet the useless mind chatter associated with a fear of the future.

 

Though the yips can seem like a career-ending occurrence, this is not the case. Athletes can overcome this and go on to have long successful careers. However, it does require a healthy amount of grit and an intense focus on improving their mental health. To find success, athletes need to get out of their comfort zone and educate themselves about mental performance. They can also reach out to sport psychologist and/or a mental performance coach who can steer them in the right direction. 

 

Simone Biles is an excellent example of this. Sometimes, even major athletes simply need time to step back and reclaim their focus. By pulling away, they are able to dedicate their attention on the task at hand and can improve their performance with time.

The Takeaway

Performing in major athletic spaces is not without its challenges. Success and longevity is often dependent upon mental health. As long as athletes can commit to focusing on the moment and avoid mental fatigue, they can find a way to reclaim their performance and start to succeed once more. Being in the moment requires a clear mind and a healthy body. Eating the right foods and focusing on mental acuity can work wonders when it comes to boosting athletic performance. It is certainly better than the alternative, which is why more athletes are working to better serve their mental health and performance.

 

About Neuro Beast

The Neuro Beast Method offers a clear and effective way for today’s athletes to gain an competitive advantage over their opponents by optimizing the way their brains work! 

Our mental performance program is designed to improve sport specific cognitive functions like attention, reaction time, memory , inhibition and cognitive flexibility as well as combat the negative effects of mental fatigue. 

The Neuro Beast Method gives athletes the cognitive and emotional infrastructure needed to be successful in today’s competitive sporting environment. 

Get Wired to Win! 



For more information please call 

727-225-0048