In sports, ability is often measured by muscle mass and physicality; however, sometimes the strongest athletes are the ones quietly fighting something invisible – their own mind. Mental blocks are present, to some degree, in every single sport, yet athletes are still often overlooked for their mental strength.

A mental block is a psychological “block” against the body, which prevents athletes from performing to their best physical capability. This inability to perform to one’s full potential often takes a drastic toll on an athlete’s mental health, often leading to confidence problems, or even at the most extreme level, result in the athlete quitting the sport altogether.

Mental blocks are not a “one size fits all.” Some athletes know exactly where theirs is stemming from, whether it’s an injury, a prior failure or something going on in their life outside of the sport. Other athletes cannot even begin to pinpoint a cause.

Varsity gymnastics coach Kristyn Campos shares what she has found to be some of the common root causes of mental blocks for her athletes.

“A lot of times I find the mental block is a stem from something outside of gymnastics – it’s a school overload, it’s family issues, it’s needing to work, it’s tests and it’s relationships. A lot of them have come to me, and someone hurt them along the way. They told them something that triggered their self-concept,” Campos said.

In gymnastics and other sports, mental blocks are very common, especially for those who have been in their sport since they were young. Like anything else, athletes grow a connection and love for their sport, so even just the idea of under performing or letting people down can trigger a block.

In other cases, an athlete may not know or be able to even begin to recognize a trigger for their mental block. Senior diver and former gymnast Ellysen Enriquez touches on the unexplained nature of her blocks.

“Mental blocks are hard because you can’t figure out why you’re having them. You can’t even explain them to anyone else because it’s all just in your head,” Enriquez said.

It is very common for an athlete to want to ignore a block, or simply try to push themselves through it. Getting to a high level in any sport takes dedication, perseverance and most importantly, a passion for the sport. With such a deep connection to the sport, many athletes cannot come to terms with letting their sport, team, parents, friends or even themselves down.

Senior gymnast Lauren Deacy touches on her fear of letting anyone down, and the effect it had on her mentally.

“All of the pressure came from myself and the fear of letting my team and coaches down, [however] putting pressure on myself to go for [a] skill only made it worse and made it so much harder to get myself to go,” Deacy said.

The impact of mental blocks extends far beyond simply under performing in the sport or letting people down. Many high level athletes love and are so committed to their sports that their mental health ends up revolving around it. Oftentimes, when performance starts to slip, an athlete’s mental health does as well.

Deacy explains her struggle with her mental health during the height of her mental blocks, and how it was consuming other aspects of her life outside of gymnastics.

“I remember sitting in class, thinking about having to go to practice [later] and [it would] make me nervous just from the thought of having to tumble. It felt like I was constantly thinking negatively about myself, and it would make me super anxious all day long. It also affected me at home because I would tell my parents about it, and they understood that I was struggling and would always ask me if I wanted to take a step away from gymnastics or take a break because they hated seeing me constantly upset with myself,” Deacy said.

Senior baseball player Ryan Yednock explains a block he had during his junior year preseason, and the effect it had on his confidence.

“I can’t explain to you how or why this happened, but I got a case of what is called the ‘yips’. This was probably the lowest point in my [baseball career]; I could pitch just fine when I was on the mound, but when it came to playing catch or throwing to a base, I simply could not do it. I had instances where I looked like a cartoon character literally throwing the ball straight into the ground; it was by far the most embarrassing and bizarre sports experience of my life and I was questioning if I should even play baseball,” Yednock said.

A common theme among these athletes struggling with blocks is the contemplation of quitting the sport.

Senior tennis player Gabby David touches on her consideration for quitting tennis in the height of her mental blocks.

“When I was having consistent mental blocks, I honestly considered quitting the sport as a whole just because it was taking over my whole life… it caused me to become severely self-conscious, overthink everything going on in my life and isolate myself from those I love because I was so in my head,” David said.

It gets to a point regarding mental health in sports that it is no longer worth a mental toll. Many athletes find themselves falling out of love with their sport, and even coming to terms with the reality of quitting. Campos explains the harsh reality that she has had with a few of her athletes.

“I can try to push them but sometimes that push is that we’re done with the sport…sometimes the ultimate answer is that this is not for you anymore,” Campos said.

Similarly to how every mental block is different, the way to get past them varies among athletes as well. While for some, quitting the sport is ultimately the answer, other athletes have found ways to push themselves past them.

David explains her approach to getting through her mental blocks.

“For me, it was most important that I just push myself and play through to find myself again,” David said.

Enriquez holds a similar belief and approach to her own mental blocks she’s faced in both gymnastics and diving.

“I just stick around for it [and] try to push through it. [I have to] think about the long term benefits of sticking through it – if I quit right then, I’m never gonna get better,” Enriquez said.

For some, independent motivation is the answer to getting back to their peak performance. Deacy, however, has a very opposite belief and approach to mental blocks.

“Holding your fears in and not talking about how you feel will only make things worse; I believe that if I didn’t talk to anyone about how I was feeling, I wouldn’t have gotten over any mental blocks,” Deacy said.

It is very easy to watch a sport, or look at an athlete, and underestimate the great amount of work – mentally and physically– that it takes. Playing a sport is defined by much more than the obvious physicality of the athlete. The invisible mental side of every sport is what makes it so difficult, and rare, to play at high level.

“To do a sport at such a high level you have to come to the terms with the fact that sometimes your going to fail and sometimes you’re going to be stuck mentally, but what you do with that, and what you do to get past that is what makes the best athletes, the best,” Enriquez said.