Muscle tension (tightening up)

Tightening is residual tension in muscles that ought to be relaxed at that phase of the movement. It comes from the link between emotion and body: fear and anxiety reflexively raise muscle tone. Unlike working tension, tightening does not help — it gets in the way, drains energy and breaks technique. It is often unconscious: the athlete only notices the result, the stiffness and the fatigue.

Wooden legs in a runner, a locked shoulder in a thrower, cramped hands in a shooter — these are the classic examples. Tightening is one of the physical causes of inconsistent results: the body is free in training and seizes up at the competition. It is closely tied to fear of making mistakes — the more an athlete fears missing, the more they tighten, and the technique falls apart precisely where lightness is needed.

The level of somatic (bodily) anxiety that produces tightening is measured with state questionnaires in the tests section. They help separate the physical component from the mental one and choose where to put your effort. A test result will tell you whether relaxation work should come first.

The best tool against tightening is Jacobson's progressive muscle relaxation: tensing and fully releasing muscle groups in turn teaches you to feel the difference. The "shake it off" technique also helps: briefly shaking out arms and shoulders before an attempt. A selection of practices is in the exercises section.

Tightening is the bodily side of muscle tension; it works against an optimal performance state and is released through relaxation. It deepens inconsistent results and is fed by fear of making mistakes. A sport psychologist can help you unpack your own patterns of tightening.