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Rink Pressure, Judgment, and Negative Energy · The Nadia Chapman Show

• 0:02
  Hi, welcome back to a new episode of the Nadia Chapman Show,
• 0:05
  The Figure Skaters Edition. This is Nadia.
• 0:09
  Oh, and today I want to talk about something that we don't talk about enough,
• 0:14
  but a lot of skaters feel it.
• 0:17
  Some coaches feel it. Some parents feel it.
• 0:20
  It's the look, the energy, the vibe at the rink, not always words,
• 0:24
  but that feeling, the side glances and the comparisons, the tension,
• 0:30
  the toxicity, the pressure from parents watching, maybe the way a coach looks at you after a mistake.
• 0:38
  And then suddenly you're just not skating anymore.
• 0:42
  You're performing, you're proving, you're wondering what people are thinking.
• 0:46
  And it gets into your head, I know.
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  So today we're talking about just that and how to navigate it, all right?
• 0:53
  Why it happens, why it affects you so much and how to stay grounded and confident
• 0:59
  and focus no matter what energy is at the rink around you. Let's start with this.
• 1:07
  Rinks have energy, good or bad. Every rink has its own culture,
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  its own dynamics, the unspoken rules.
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  And sometimes that environment you find yourself in feels supportive.
• 1:19
  And sometimes it just feels very tense, very judgy, very competitive in a way
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  that doesn't feel healthy.
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  And here's what happens. You know, you step onto the ice and instead of just
• 1:30
  focusing on your skating, part of your brain is scanning.
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  It's scanning the room. who's watching did they
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  see my mistake why didn't my coach look at me
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  like that or why does that mom over
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  there always watch me all these thoughts going through your
• 1:45
  head and now you're not fully in your body anymore
• 1:48
  you're in your head and performance drop confidence drop enjoyment drops so
• 1:52
  first let's understand why this happens because your brain is wired for one
• 1:57
  thing and your brain is wired for safety if you've listened to the Nadia Chapman
• 2:01
  show before we talk a lot about the way we think and what our brain does.
• 2:05
  And the brain is always trying to keep us safe.
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  And in environments where there's a lot of judgment, comparison and pressure.
• 2:12
  Like ice rinks, our brain reads that as pay attention, this matters.
• 2:17
  So it starts scanning, it starts analyzing, it starts trying to protect you. But here's the problem.
• 2:23
  The same system that's trying to protect you is pulling you away from your skating
• 2:27
  because you cannot be fully focused on what you're doing on the ice,
• 2:32
  your timing, your jumps, your movement. if part of you is focused on the people watching.
• 2:38
  So we need to shift this, okay? Not by pretending that it doesn't exist because
• 2:43
  it does, but by changing how you relate to it.
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  The looks, the vibe, the energy, it's not about you as much as you think. That's the good news.
• 2:52
  People are in their own world. Parents are thinking about their own child and
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  coaches are thinking about performance, pressure and results and other skaters
• 3:01
  are comparing themselves, not just you.
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  Everyone is carrying something all right
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  but when you're in it it feels like it's
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  about you and that's what pulls you in so here's
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  the powerful shift I want you to learn today stop making everything mean something
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  to you and maybe that is the writer downer for today stop making everything
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  mean something to you all right so a look guess what it's just a look.
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  A tone is just a tone.
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  An energy is just an energy.
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  And the meaning you give it, that's what creates the pressure.
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  So the meaning you give to the look, the tone, the energy is what creates the pressure you feel.
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  Now, let's go deeper. Because even when you understand that part, you can still feel it.
• 3:50
  All right? So what do you do in the moment?
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  You come back to yourself over and over again. You bring your focus back to
• 3:58
  your body, your breath, your skating, and you create what I call a bubble.
• 4:03
  So inside that bubble, it's you. It's your edges, it's you, it's your jump,
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  it's your work, it's your timing, it's your commitment.
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  Not you and everyone else, just you. And when your brain drifts,
• 4:15
  because it will, you gently bring it back again and again in that bubble.
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  You need to train your brain to do that. Now, for something even more powerful,
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  instead of seeing the environment that you're in as something that takes the
• 4:28
  energy from you, start seeing it as something that trains you.
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  All right. Because if you can stay focused in a ring that is busy and tense
• 4:37
  and stressful and distracting, competition will feel easier.
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  You're building mental strength, not in perfect condition, but in real ones.
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  And this is where your identity comes in. who you are on the ice,
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  no matter who's watching.
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  Are you the skater who gets pulled into everything? Or are you the skater who
• 4:56
  stays steady, grounded, and focused?
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  Because that's the decision, not a personality trait, a decision you make.
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  And for the parents listening, energy matters.
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  So even when you don't say anything, your body language, your reaction,
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  your presence, skaters feel it. So ask yourself, am I creating safety for my
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  skater? Am I creating pressure?
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  Because your child doesn't need to feel watched.
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  Your child needs to feel supported. And if you are a coach listening.
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  Skaters are reading you constantly, not just your words, but your energy,
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  your reaction, your expression.
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  You can create confidence or you can create tension without saying one single word.
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  And here's a perspective I want to leave you with. You cannot control every
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  environment. Whether you're on the ice or in the world, you cannot control every environment.
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  You can't even control the people you're around with. You cannot control every look.
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  You can't control the vibe. You cannot control the energy in an ice rink.
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  You cannot control the energy in a competition.
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  But you can control where you place your attention and where your attention
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  goes. Huh? Your performance follow.
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  Okay? So the next time that you step onto the ice and you feel that negative
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  energy, don't fight it. Don't even overthink it.
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  Just notice it and come back to yourself.
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  So back to your breath. Back to your body. because I'm telling you guys,
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  your superpower is not controlling the room.
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  You cannot do that. Your superpower is staying grounded within it.
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  If this episode resonated with you, please share with a skater,
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  a parent, or a coach who needs to hear this because this is the part of skating
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  that no one teaches, but we all feel it.
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  Everyone feels it. And if you're ready to build that kind of focus,
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  that confidence and mental strength. That's exactly what I do.
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  Until next time, stay in your lane, stay in your body and skate your way,
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  no matter who's watching.
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  You've got this. Thanks for listening.