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_The Free-Throw
"Got It" The other day I went to the court and, as usual, I began with some “on” work. What I usually do is hold an awareness of my own presence, and also sideline or "dethrone" my cognitive mind, and that usually frees up my higher mind to take the shot. But I had just eaten a good-sized lunch (which I don't often do) and my body was a little heavier than usual. So, accessing my own presence was somewhat obstructed. I shifted to the “below the belt” method where my cognitive mind was focused exclusively on my legs, calves, feet, etc.; and this was working pretty well but still I was shooting below my usual mark of 80%. Then I shifted to the “got it” method. The key to mastering this method, and every other method, is sensitivity and being able to match your feeling with your mind-body response. As I became focused on the feeling of having made the basket, and stayed centered in that feeling, my whole body-mind began to shift toward a state of certainty---certain that I was going to make the basket---and I could feel the way that that certainty translated into the actions of my body. It was as if all the various muscles (involved with the shot) conspired to fulfill that feeling of having already made the shot, having "gotten it." That feeling of certainty became a “higher unifying principle” upon which all my movements of my body were aligned. Then, in that state of certainty, of feeling---and knowing!---that I had already made the shot, I hit one basket after another. When I remained sensitized to the unifying power of the feeling of having gotten it, I kept hitting. I would say, “got it” just as the ball was released from my hand, accompanied by the feeling of certainty that I got it; and this was followed by (and confirmed by) the actuality and the subtle thrill of seeing the shot go in just as I intended. “Got It” and Micro-Moment I often play basketball at a few local courts in upstate, New York. Sitting around after a game I said to some of the young players, “I may not be the best player but at least I can beat anyone here when it comes to free-throws.” (I sometimes like to challenge teens because they are so intent on winning and trying to prove themselves, especially with someone three times their age.) After that statement the best player on the court decided to meet my challenge. I indicated that it would be best out of ten and he would go first. He hit four or five in a row, then missed, then hit a few more, then missed. He got eight out of ten. Then I was up. I missed the first shot—but made the next nine in a row. The method I was using that day was the micro-moment method. With this method you must become very attuned to that micro-moment which comes between a) the moment when you know whether or not your shot is going to go in and b) the moment where you release the ball. There is actually a moment when you know you are going to miss the shot yet the ball is still in your hand, and still under your control---and, if you are sensitized to that moment you actually have time to make an slight but crucial adjustment in your shot (usually in your legs). The easiest adjustment to make is in terms of distance: if you sense that the ball is going long, you collapse your thigh muscles ever so slightly; if you sense it is going short, you add a little push with your calf muscles. When looking at the “Got It!” Method (“GIM”) and the Micro-Moment Adjustment Method (“MAM”) we could say that the “Got It!” Method is more advanced. With MAM, you make slight adjustments to your shot when you realize it’s off; with GIM, the body-mind is harmonized around a “higher unifying principle” so that your shot is “on” before you take it. Therefore, you need not make any adjustments for a shot that is going to miss because, if you do the method correctly, every shot is going to make it. With MAM you are attuned to the micro-moment (and your cognitive mind is focused there); with GIM you are attuned to the elated feeling, and of having already made the shot (and your cognitive mind is expanded and harmonized as a result of that attunement). |
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