Reset Routine for Athletes
Reset to Compete: How Athletes Can Block Out the Noise and Perform with Composure
Introduction
As a former elite athlete and coach at the highest levels, I know sport is a game of mistakes. Mistakes will happen, so how can we respond in a way that fosters growth?
At the highest levels of sport, physical skill often separates only a few degrees of performance. What truly gives an edge is mindset — the ability to stay calm, confident, resilient, and composed under pressure. As hockey players, or any athlete, you’ll face mistakes, critics, distractions, expectations, and internal doubt. How do you block out the noise and stay locked in?
That’s where a Reset Routine comes in. The idea is to build a small, repeatable mental reset you can use in the heat of competition to clear your head, refocus, and move forward. CEP Mindset calls this approach the ABC Reset: Accept → Breathe → Commit.
In this post, I’ll explain how you (or your team) can adopt a Reset Routine tailored to your sport, and I’ll give you a step-by-step action plan to implement it. Use it to strengthen your confidence, your resilience, your emotional control, and your mental consistency.
The Philosophy: Why Reset Routines Work
Blocking the Noise
Every athlete knows what it feels like: a bad play, a negative comment, your own self-criticism — these intrude, build up, spiral. You try to suppress or “ignore” them, but that often backfires: the more you push it down, the louder it becomes.
Don’t use Don’t
In his book Hockey Tough, renowned sport psychologist Dr. Saul Miller (who I was fortunate enough to work with) introduces the “pink elephant” analogy — one I’ve carried with me as a player, coach, and mental health professional.
The idea is simple but powerful: the more you tell yourself “don’t think of the pink elephant,” the more vivid and intrusive that elephant becomes. On the ice, it plays out the same way. As a former professional coach, my players’ pressure thoughts on themselves were often: “Don’t lose the puck, don’t lose the puck.” And I’d ask them afterward, “So, what happened?” Almost every time, the answer was the same: “I lost the puck.”
That’s why my golden rule is this: don’t use “don’t.”
Instead of fighting thoughts or fears, lean into them. Acknowledge what shows up without judgment, then deliberately clear it from your mental field of play. It’s less about suppression and more about acceptance — and that shift creates the space for focus, composure, and performance.
The ABCs: Accept, Breathe, Commit
Accept
Instead of fighting off mistakes, nerves, or distractions, call them what they are and let them be. When you resist, they only tighten their grip. But when you name it — “I’m frustrated,” “I’m nervous,” “I can’t stop thinking about that last turnover” — you take away its power. You’re not pushing it down; you’re letting it float through your mental bubble and move on. I also call this Name it to Tame it.
Breathe
Next, bring your body back under control. A deep belly breath, a box breath (inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4), or even a long exhale can reset your nervous system. Breathing slows your heart rate, loosens tension, and signals to your body: “I’m back in control.”
Commit
Now, shift your attention forward. Decide how you want to show up in the very next moment — calm, aggressive, composed, confident. Lock it in with a small action or “anchor” like tapping your stick, adjusting your gloves, or squeezing your fist. That physical cue ties your mental reset to your body and reinforces your intention.
Example
Picture a hockey player who just lost the puck on a breakout. Frustration spikes. Instead of spiraling, he skates back, silently acknowledges, “I’m frustrated, I want that play back.” He takes two steady breaths as he regroups in position. Then, with a quick tap on his shin pad, he commits: “Next shift, I’ll move the puck with confidence.” He’s reset — and ready.
When you regularly practice this, you develop composure — staying calm when things go sideways. You cultivate resilience, because every mistake becomes a moment to reset rather than spiral. You reinforce consistency and character, because your mental habits reflect who you want to be as an athlete and teammate.
Reset Routine in Action: For Hockey (or Other Sports)
Here’s how a hockey player (or any team sport athlete) might apply a Reset Routine in a game:
- After a turnover, bad shift, or missed opportunity, you might skate to a safe area (on the bench, between whistles).
- Accept: You acknowledge to yourself: “I’m frustrated. I’m replaying what I should have done. I feel tightness in my chest.”
- Action (associated cue): You tap your tape, spray water, or tap your stick — something symbolic of letting it go (this is your cue to let it go).
- Breathe: You take 3 deep belly breaths (inhale 4s, exhale 6s) or box breathe (4-4-4-4) while loosening your shoulders.
- Commit: You close your eyes (if possible) and imagine how you want to play the next shift (aggressive, calm, smart). You might grip your stick or touch a mark on your glove as your anchor.
- You step back into the play, aligned in mind, body, and purpose.
Over time, this sequence becomes almost automatic. In moments of stress (tight game, big crowd), instead of spiraling, you calmly toggle to your Reset Routine and reenter the game with clarity.
Step-by-Step Game Plan for Athletes & Coaches
Here’s a structured plan you can follow over 4–6 weeks to adopt a Reset Routine in your practice, training, and competition.
| Week | Focus / Goal | Action Items | Notes / Metrics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1: Awareness & Design | Understand your noise & design your cues | 1. Begin journaling daily: record moments you felt distracted, anxious, frustrated in practice or games. 2. Identify recurring “pink elephants” (negative self-talk, fear of mistakes, expectations). 3. Brainstorm potential action cues (e.g. tap stick, spray water, hum under helmet, clap once, squeeze glove). 4. Choose 1–2 breathing techniques (e.g. deep belly, box breathing) to experiment with. | At week’s end, you should have a rough draft of your Reset Routine (action cue + breathing method). |
| Week 2: Practice in Low Stakes | Use your Reset Routine in practice or scrimmages | 1. Before or during practice, simulate “reset breaks”: pause, run your Accept → Breathe → Commit sequence. 2. After mistakes in drills, pause and reset instead of dwelling. 3. Reflect post-practice: how many resets used? Which ones felt natural, which felt awkward? | Keep a simple log: “Used reset X times; felt effective Y/10; felt awkward Z.” |
| Week 3: Integrate Under Moderate Pressure | Use in higher pressure scrimmage / practice games | 1. In scrimmages or intra-team games, consciously use the Reset when performance slips. 2. Coaches can cue: “Reset!” when performance drops, as a team culture signal. 3. In film sessions, highlight moments where a reset could have applied. 4. Adjust your cues or breathing method if needed. | Track: number of times reset used, how quickly you reset, perceived impact. Aim for faster resets. |
| Week 4: Competition Trial | Use resets in live games / matches | 1. Before games, mentally rehearse your Reset Routine (visualize using it after a mistake). 2. In games, intentionally apply when shifts go poorly. 3. After the game, in your mental cool-down or journaling, note how often you reset, what value it gave, and where you missed opportunities. | Compare your emotional states (frustration, composure) with prior games. Did resets reduce dwell time on errors? |
| Weeks 5–6+: Refinement & Habit Building | Solidify and adapt over season | 1. Continue consistent use in practice and games. 2. Periodically reflect (weekly or biweekly) on what cues or breaths still work or need tweaking. 3. Share with teammates or coaches — make it part of team culture (e.g. “reset breaks” in timeouts). 4. In offseason or mental training periods, expand—add more totems, anchors, evolve introspective elements (e.g. post-game reflection on identity, confidence, learning). 5. Reinforce internalization: your reset should become automatic under pressure. | Measure: decrease in negative dwell time after mistakes, improved emotional control, better composure metrics (self or coach rated). |
Tips & Best Practices
- Keep it brief: The Reset should take ~10–15 seconds (or shorter) so it’s usable in real time in a real game, practice, in between shifts, etc.
- Personalize it: What works for one athlete might not for another. Your cue (spray, tap, etc.), breathing style, or anchor should feel natural and meaningful to you.
- Be consistent: Use the Reset not just in games but in practice, drills, and even outside sport. The more you use it, the stronger the neural pathway.
- Embrace mistakes: The Reset is not to pretend mistakes don’t matter — it’s to prevent mistakes from turning into spirals. It helps you learn from errors faster and preserve confidence.
- Use a totem or anchor: Something tangible (a knob on your stick, finger tap, wearing a bracelet) can help you “lock in” your commitment step.
- Coach / team culture integration: Coaches can encourage or cue resets, teach them to the team, and make mental performance a regular part of training (not just physical).
- Link to character & mental health: This is more than performance — it builds resilience, emotional control, composure, and helps protect against burnout, negative self-talk, and poor mental health for athletes.
Closing Thoughts & Work with Barb
If you want to elevate your mental performance, especially in hockey (or any competitive sport in Canada, USA, or beyond), you need tools to stay composed and bounce back. The Reset Routine offers exactly that. Over weeks and months, it becomes built into your nervous system: when the noise comes, you don’t get derailed — you reset, refocus, and compete.
If you’re a coach or team leader, teaching this as part of your culture helps your athletes grow not just in performance but in character, mental health, resilience, and togetherness.