Pole vault mental blocks: why elite athletes run through, and how to fix it

I work with pole vaulters at the high school, college, professional, and Olympic levels. Unfortunately, I see many pole vaulters who run through. They run down the runway, but never actually jump. Their body knows how to vault. They just can't.

It can be an embarrassing, frustrating, and sometimes humiliating period that can last for days, weeks, or months.

When working with a pole vaulter, I look at sources of stress. Pole breaks, hand slips, moving back steps too fast, bigger poles, and moving from bungy to a live pole are typical stressors that contribute to run-throughs.

Identifying sources of stress

More serious stressors that contribute to run-throughs are broken ankles, knee injuries, and concussions from being launched by the pole, missing the pit, or landing in the box. Sometimes there is no injury, but the experience creates enough fear and self-doubt to trigger run-throughs.

I also look at coaches as sources of stress. I have seen abusive coaches who throw chairs, spit water, shame, degrade, humiliate, ignore, and refuse to coach an athlete who is experiencing run-throughs. The athlete's brain now sees the coach as a threat and shuts down. Prolonged exposure to this kind of coaching can make run-throughs worse.

The brain on overwhelm

The athlete's brain is struggling to process too much information or stress. When it reaches a critical point, the part of the brain that knows how to jump shuts off and no longer allows the athlete to perform skills they can normally perform easily. The limbic system takes over. This is the part of the brain that assesses threats, regulates emotions, and activates the fear response.

Three key areas of focus

1. Athletes who don't get better have a very low level of self-awareness. They are unable to strategically observe themselves at the mental, emotional, physiological, and behavioral levels.

2. Athletes who run through tend to get emotional, shut down, get quiet, anxious, and easily overwhelmed. They cannot regulate their emotions and are highly emotionally reactive. They catastrophize and engage in a lot of "what if," "have to," and "don't" thinking.

3. They are not aware of the impact of the stressors pushing in on them. Recruiting, injuries, comparing themselves to other vaulters, issues with coaches or parents, and family stress may be present, but they have not made the connection.

Getting better

In addition to helping athletes develop emotional intelligence and improve self-awareness, I use two protocols to help the brain, body, and nervous system process and integrate upsetting experiences.

Eidetic Imagery. The process of reimagining scenarios where the athlete suffered a pole break, an injury, a pole launch, or missing the pit. We create a different outcome where they are safe. The limbic system needs a new target to focus on so it can realize that the athlete is safe now.

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). A remarkably effective trauma protocol that teaches the limbic system, nervous system, and body how to process trauma, horrific memories, and the images associated with them. It frees up the energy that has been going into managing the upsetting event and channels it back into practice, training, and competition.

Your run-throughs are your brain's way of crying for help. Listen to its message. Ask for help and support. It is a sign of strength.