Sheil Douty's Softball Tips on Successful Game Preparation

Sheila Douty's Softball Tips on Successful Game Preparation

When it comes to preparing for competition, softball's Sheila Douty must be doing something right. The veteran star first-baseman knows the secret to success as she has helped lead Team USA to nearly 20 gold medals in international competition over the course of her career.

Two of those golds came at the 1996 and 2000 Olympics, where Douty proved to be one of the key components to American domination. At the 1996 Games, she had the highest batting average on the team at .393 and led all U.S. players with 11 hits and nine RBIs over the course of the tournament. Her third homerun of those Olympics was a game-winning blast versus rival China.

Douty talks about the process she goes through prior to each game in order to best prepare herself, both physically and mentally, for success.
Keys to successful game preparation

Tip #1: Begin to mentally prepare yourself the night before a game."Game preparation is like a ritual to me and I feel it is definitely a factor in how well I perform in a game. I like to visualize the night before as I drift off to sleep. I picture myself at the plate hitting all types of pitches, perfectly."

Tip #2: Prior to leaving for the field, begin relaxing and visualizing, mentally preparing for competition."About an hour and a half to two hours before we leave for a game I start to get ready. I try to be fully dressed and ready to go at least 45 minutes before the departure time. At this time, I find myself a quiet place to lie down and visualize. I visualize hitting, fielding, what the field looks like, the crowd. I do relaxation breathing exercises."

Tip #3: Begin to focus and take things seriously once you're at the competition site."When we get to the field I am serious. I don't joke around much before or during a game as my concentration is too focused."

Tip #4: Get a good warm-up in."My preparation at the field is usually just for warming up. I jog, stretch, do a few agilities and sprints, throw a few balls, field a few grounders, and spend some time on the tee warming up."

Tip #5: Right before game-time, visualize situations and scout the competition."The last thing I do is to visualize different pitches and "dry swing" for each one. I also try to watch the other pitcher warming up so I know what she is like on that given day. Because of the way things are set up at certain tournaments, this is not always possible. At the very least I watch enough to pick up her release points on different pitches."