How To Make Affirmations Actually Work in Sport

In this episode of 'Defeat Is Optional,' Ronnie explores how limiting beliefs can impede athletic performance, especially on race day. Through personal stories the podcast details why affirmations might not help you,  the concept of limiting beliefs, and practical steps to overcome these limiting beliefs. Listeners are guided on how to identify and reframe limiting beliefs, supported by powerful affirmations grounded in truth and faith. Tips include revisiting past events to rewrite negative narratives and consistently practicing affirmations with genuine belief. The episode is aimed at athletes seeking to enhance their mental resilience and overall performance.

00:00 Introduction to Defeat is Optional
00:37 The Power and Pitfalls of Affirmations
01:35 Personal Story: Overcoming Fear and Anxiety
02:47 Understanding the Mindset for Winning
03:23 Exciting Announcement: Upcoming Course
04:14 The Concept of Defeat is Optional
05:27 The Importance of Belief Behind Words
05:59 Identifying and Overcoming Limiting Beliefs
17:23 Rewriting Your Narrative for Success
21:09 Effective Use of Affirmations
23:39 Conclusion and Recap

🎙️Defeat is Optional Podcast Fan Page

💊Train Harder, Recover Faster 10% OFF

🛍️Defeat is Optional Merch

📩Join Ronnie’s Inner Circle

Transcript

Ronnie Baker 0:00

Welcome to defeat is optional. The podcast where I'll give you the best mental tips to unlock your mind so you can improve your performance on race day. If you've ever felt stuck, doubted your abilities or struggled to bring your best on race day, you're in the right place. This isn't just about training harder. It's about thinking smarter. Here we'll break down the mental barriers that hold you back and build the mindset that propels you to victory because in your journey to greatness, Defeat is never the final answer. It's a choice. So let's get to work. Remember defeat is optional is not just a podcast. It's a way of life. GuYs, in this episode, I'm going to outline why affirmations are a great tool to but in all honesty, why you could be using them in vain. have you ever been extremely nervous before a competition or a tryout? Your hands maybe start to sweat. Your mind is running wild with thoughts of you potentially screwing up your big moment. You might stand there needing to do your warmup, but it's almost like you've forgotten how to move your legs. there's been situations, there's been times in my life where that's how I feel sometimes. So then you start to recite these affirmations you've written out or from a PDF that you downloaded from one of your favorite athletes, because I know that a lot of people talk about affirmations and saying the right things. And again, I am not saying that they're bad to do You start to say things like I am strong. I am brave and courageous. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me and you say them, but nothing happens. You still feel scared and really nothing's changed. I trust me, I've been in that situation, so I think we've all been there. And in fact, when I was younger, before my first basketball game of the season, I remember this so vividly because I was in elementary school. I was actually bumping up to this more competitive league. It was like a competitive YMCA league. And granted, guys, I lived in Anchorage, Alaska. So basketball probably wasn't as competitive as I thought it was.

Ronnie Cam 2 1:54

back then,

Ronnie Baker 1:54

But I remember the first game was like a Friday night. I remember being at school. I knew my mom, my parents were going to come pick me up from school because they were getting off work and I was going to go straight to the game. And I remember we were playing pickup basketball. This is crazy, like playing pickup basketball before the basketball game. I remember being so scared of being able to play in that league that I actually faked an injury so I wouldn't have to play that night. That's how nervous I was and just anxious about potentially embarrassing myself in front of, my teammates, my parents, my peers, everything. I just couldn't bring myself to face that fear head on when I was that young. And so my goal today is to provide you with the reasons why your affirmations are not helping you in the moment, how we can fix that problem and then give you a list of powerful affirmations to help you conquer any form of fear or anxiety and give you the confidence in yourself that you need to perform at a high level. So if you're listening to this episode, you're probably someone who's used affirmations, but have had no success in practice. Or you're looking

Ronnie Cam 2 2:54

for a way to calm your nerves on game day.

Ronnie Baker 2:56

And I'll tell you that winning starts in the mind first. This is one of the biggest. Misconceptions, people overlook this all the time, but winning doesn't start at training. Winning starts in your mind. And if you can get your mindset right first, then it amplifies your training to help you compete at a high level. I believe that we can help you mentally understand the concept behind affirmations. Then you'll be that much closer to the winner's circle. I want to take a break here and tell you guys about something exciting I've got in the works. But first, I've got to ask these questions. Are you an athlete that works hard but continues to underperform in the game? Are you slowly losing passion for the sport that you once loved? Are you thinking about giving up because you don't feel like you were made for the sport? I can tell you I once was that athlete, but it doesn't have to be that way. If you're ready to take this even further, I've got something coming soon, guys. It's a seven week course designed to help you not only overcome limiting beliefs, but also build the mental confidence you need to dominate in your sport. We'll dive deep into how to identify, challenge, and rewrite the narrative that have been holding you back. So keep an eye out because it's coming soon and you don't want to miss it. Now back to your regularly scheduled podcast. Remember, defeat is optional, is a mental concept in itself. It's understanding that there is no loss physically that can take you out. That every setback is an opportunity to learn and grow. And not only that, because Christ has given you the free gift of there, honestly, there's really no losing. When it comes to the kingdom of heaven. so you've already been granted the internal prize. You can't lose. All right. That's why this stream my life. I live it by quote. Defeat is optional, So I'm hoping this episode will encourage you and give you the techniques. You need to start powerfully exclaiming affirmations and actually believing what you're saying. That way you can change the chemistry of your mind and have confidence moving powerfully into competition. All right, so let's get into it. I'm gonna tell you guys a story. So just a few years ago, I was introduced to the world of personal development. And there were so many books I was recommended to read books like as a man, thinketh master key to riches, think and grow rich. those were a couple books that stood out to me, but there were also two books that I really pinpointed and the first was a book titled hung by the tongue and another was the power of positive thinking and I remember reading these books and to sum them up. They're both about basically watching what you speak over your life, because whenever you're talking your words have power, and I 100 percent agree with that, but I also believe that when you want to change your circumstances in life, you can't change them with mere words, you have to change them with beliefs behind those words and action, okay, because you can sit here and say something over and over again, but until you put, Okay. The pedal to the metal until you put the work in, nothing is going to change. So how do you do that? How do you go about using these words powerfully? So today we're going to be talking about limiting beliefs. And the reason why affirmations don't work is because of limiting beliefs. And a lot of you guys potentially may have limiting beliefs, and we're going to uncover them. a limiting belief is a thought that False or negative thought about yourself that can restrict your athletic performance. So limiting beliefs are reasons why you you seem to fall into coming short in your goals, You're putting in a lot of work and what's required to win, but the limiting beliefs keep you from reaching your God given potential. Essentially limiting beliefs are lies from the enemy. things. Basically you have bought into that are not true about you yet. You've decided to believe them and it's hindering you from performing at your best. This was eyeopening to me when I understood that the doubts and the limiting beliefs that I had, that I believed were just lies from the enemy. And. At the end of the day, the enemy is going to do everything he can to stop you from reaching your potential, your God given potential, accomplishing your purpose in life. And he does that subtly by telling you lies, and when you believe that lie, it becomes a limiting belief. When you recite affirmations and you don't feel any change, it's because they only work when they're backed by true belief. If you don't fix the root issue, this limiting belief and affirmations are like basically putting a bandaid on a gunshot It's not going to help. You're going to need more attention than just dressing your wound. So it's not going to fix the problem whatsoever. The whole idea is that if we change the belief, then we can start to see the success we envision ourselves having actually come to life, the reworking of our belief in our subconscious mind. Combined with faith, that is taking action consistently, that is what produces the desired results. The Bible says to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. And we do that by discovering the truth. We not only transform ourselves, guys, but we transform how we perceive challenge and struggle. So whenever you start to have faith, you take action, you start to have these results. Limiting beliefs be knocked off. You start to believe the truth, then that is when the results change. That's when you start to see yourself progressing and all the work that you're doing basically catches up because I feel like if you're working super hard and you're doing all the right things. there's a thing in your brain that once you unlock the your mindset, once you unlock and get rid of the limiting beliefs, it's almost like you're training your mind catches up with your training and then boom, it's like it happens overnight. It's like you get faster overnight. You've already been that fast, but your brain has been holding you back. Okay, so how do we get rid of limiting beliefs? How do we get rid of these limiting beliefs so we can unlock our true potential and our best self on and off the track? Because if you're not performing well on the track, there's probably some areas in your life where you're underperforming as well. So how do we get these limiting beliefs out of our head? How do we conquer the lies of the enemy with the truth? The first and foremost, the most important step is to recognize and identify the limiting beliefs we have. So step number one, tip number one, is identifying the limiting beliefs we have. And once you identify the lie that you've been believing and accepting as truth because the lie is not real, you're accepting it as the truth. You're making it real for you. And I've done that. And I'm going to get into some of the lies that I believe, right? So if you believe the lie that you don't have the ability to win or that you're not talented enough, or that because you had one bad performance, that bad performance is going to keep happening, Those are lies. Those are limiting beliefs that a lot of people have. The biggest question that you need to ask yourself when you're going to attack these limiting beliefs is what is the story I've been telling myself about why I can't seem to perform up to my true potential on race day? Okay, you have to ask yourself that question. What's the story that you're telling yourself that you're believing? That's not allowing you to get to or perform to your true potential on race day or competition day or game day, whatever sport it is that you do. I like to talk to track and field athletes, but this can apply to anyone. What is that story that you're telling yourself now? I don't want you to just write something down or think something. The first thing that comes to your mind, put it down, do that, but also sit in that for a second. Really think about what am I telling myself? What's the story that I'm telling myself? What's the narrative that I'm telling myself that's allowing me or not allowing me to perform at a high level, whether that's in practice, whether that's at a meet competition, what is that story? Okay. So once you think about that really think about it, write it down. And the crazy thing is that when you're talking about limiting beliefs, when you're actually trying to uproot limiting beliefs, they can be like an onion, An onion. Anybody cut, I cut an onion last night and, I was literally crying. They say that if you put a piece of bread in your mouth, that apparently it keeps you from crying. I don't know. I've tried it. I've eaten a lot of bread because of it. And I'll be honest with you. It doesn't help. So if anybody's got any tips out there for eliminating crying when you're cutting onions, let me

Ronnie Cam 2 11:00

know.

Ronnie Baker 11:00

But basically limiting belief is like an onion because it has many layers, right? There could be many layers to the lies that you're Okay, so that's why I want you to really sit and think about what's the narrative, what's the story that you're telling yourself that you're believing that's prohibiting you from being the best that you can be all right, because if you've been believing one lie I guarantee you that you're probably believing multiple and they're prohibiting you from being the best athlete you can be. And if you're stumped, that's okay. This is probably something you've never thought about until now. Yeah. Like the thing is, sometimes when we go to look at ourselves internally, it's really hard to see our bad spots is called a blind spot. And that's why when you have a coach, your coach, if you do a start or if you are running, a rep, he can see something that you might not be able to see he or she, right? They can see something that you may not be able to see, and that's that's what's called a blind spot, and they can help you correct that, and that's obviously what a coach is, right? If you haven't really thought about that, think about it, and I'll give you, some of my limiting beliefs that I struggle with, and here were a few of mine, guys. Number one was I'm getting older, and because I'm older, it's going to be harder to run fast. Guys, I'm 31 years old. I've been running track for a long time. And since I was in middle school and I'm a little bit older than most of my peers that are still competing. There's no one. I don't believe that there's anyone in my graduating class from college that's still a professional now that's in the sprints as far as 100 meters, right? So a lot of the guys that I came out of school with that were pro, they don't run anymore. And so I had a limiting belief that as I got older, it'd be harder for me to run faster, which was prohibiting me from running faster because I was believing a lie. number two, my start has gone downhill and I don't think it's good enough to put me in a position

Ronnie Cam 2 12:49

to

Ronnie Baker 12:49

I was one of the best starters in the world and I felt like over time I just my start wasn't right and I was kept Picking at it and picking at it and picking at it trying to make it perfect and so I started to believe this lie that it just never was gonna be good and I was never gonna be in a Position to win because my start was just so bad This could be you, right? Number three was, I'm working so hard in training and making sacrifices, but I feel like I'm getting no return. I feel like I'm getting no return. So these could be a couple of limiting beliefs that maybe you have as well. Maybe this is something that you've been thinking about. These were stories that I was telling myself that were prohibiting me from one, training efficiently in practice, and two, competing at a high level, really for the last three years. I have such a soft spot for this because I see it all the time. I see athletes that are, have great potential that are, have cr crazy athleticism, but when it comes to the track meet, they don't perform well. They can kill it in practice. They get to track meet doesn't happen, and they're wondering and they're spiraling in their. They're wanting to quit and they don't think the sport is for them and all these things and guys, I want to tell you, I'm being very vulnerable right now. These were things that I was thinking as a professional athlete who made an Olympic team, who was the third fastest guy ever to run and still is in the 60 m dash top 20 in 100 m. I struggled with this myself, so that's why I'm so adamant about helping you guys. Really break through here because I don't want you to be hindered in your performance. I don't want you to be working hard and then not see the results that you're putting in. Okay. So how could I have developed these things? As an NCAA champion, a collegiate record holder, all these things that I just talked about. And. It's because the lies of the enemy are subtle And if you believe them, they start to weave their way into basically your mind. And once they're buried in your subconscious guides, your subconscious is this part of your brain that kind of runs your brain on autopilot. Once, once these thoughts get into your subconscious, it's almost like you will produce actions in your life based on these subconscious beliefs without even thinking about it. Sub means before. Right before consciousness. So in the subconscious, before it actually reaches your conscious thought, you're already taking an action. That's going to. Make that subconscious lie true. It's going to produce a result for you that you don't want because it's already embedded in a conscious that you're not aware of. Okay. I know that's deep fall and fall stay with me. But the subconscious, it drives all of your thoughts and that leads to your feelings, which leads to your actions. So most times these limiting beliefs form. After an event, typically after a poor performance, right? Or maybe if you've been injured or you've been sidelined for a while, these limiting beliefs can crop up there, So think about when you're going through, Hey, what's the narrative? What's the story that I'm telling myself? Think about, Hey, when was the last bad performance I had? What were some of the thoughts that I had about that bad performance? Have those thoughts leaked into my subconscious? Have I been believing bad things because of that performance? For me. It was the Olympic games in 2021. And what we do is we tell ourselves stories that are usually not true based upon the events and how we perceive them. And they shape our outlook on life. So for me these beliefs these limiting beliefs that I just went over with you guys, I started to have those after 2021, after the Olympic games, because after the Olympic games, when I placed fifth, I was. I was in a place where I was grieving I was pretty depressed, because of just the outcome of it, and I started to believe all these lies about myself the start, maybe I wasn't doing enough, maybe I wasn't paying attention to the details enough, and that's why I placed fifth, and I just wanted to tell you guys that, Identifying the lies was the first step on my journey to getting back to being an authentic Ronnie Baker on the track. And once I did that, I started to run faster. I broke the 10 second barrier this year again for the first time after three years, which is something that was unheard of. I would, every time I stepped on the track beforehand, I'd run nine seconds. It took me three years to get back to that. And that's because I had to really identify these limiting beliefs and work on them, guys. I'm gonna read you a scripture. In John 8, 44, Jesus says this about, he says this specifically about Satan. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. So don't buy into these limiting beliefs. You can't buy into these lies because at the end of the day, the enemy can only do one thing. He can lie to you. And if you believe the lie, that lie now becomes true for you and you start to act it out and live it out. But it's actually not true. Okay. So once you've identified these beliefs, you'll want to revisit that event. Around which they were formed, and start to rewrite the narrative of that story to, reframe what actually happened. And the problem is that most people try to get rid of the it from their head altogether. And here is why that never works. And it also why it's detrimental to try and do because this event that happened is actually there for your the Bible says that everything works out for the good of those that love, love Christ, right? The reason the greats become great is because they got beat first, and they use the negative experience to grow. But if you're fighting to get rid of that experience, if you're trying to throw away, That experience, you're throwing away your seeds for growth. You're literally throwing away the thing that you need to get better. So just like God uses all evil for good, like I said, you gotta take the seemingly bad circumstances and use them for your good too. Number two is that you can never get rid of a thought. You can never get rid of a thought. And that's why you can go back and you have to rewrite the story in your brain. Because you cannot get rid of that event in your head. It's going to always be there. You need to rewrite the story of your brain. So revisit that moment. And this is what you're going to do. This is tip number two. When you revisit that moment, you're going to remember all the good things that happened. And then you were then when you remember the bad, ask yourself, how am I going to change and get better so that doesn't happen again, revisit that event. Where are these limiting beliefs started to happen and started to form in your subconscious. When you get there, the first tip is to remember all the good things that happened. For me, making an Olympic team was a dream of mine. That was a good thing. I made my first U. S. outdoor team. That's a good thing. I PR'ed at the meet. That's a great thing. I went to the Olympics. I PR'ed again. Amazing, right? I had a really cool experience and even though I was there and it was the COVID Olympics, I was in the village, man. I got all this awesome gear. Like it was amazing. I started to remember all the good things that happened, all the good things that I did. And then I started to think about, okay, what were the bad things? I didn't place how I wanted the four by one didn't make the final. The medal that I for sure thought I was gonna get, I thought I was gonna get two, for sure. I was like, you know what? We're definitely the fastest team here in the four by one. We just got to get the stick around. Guess what? It just didn't happen. And so I was even more distraught, but I thought, okay, what were some of the good things that happened? or what was some of the bad things? What can I learn from Because the bad circumstances are the best. The way that you grow. No one that is great ever has just had a smooth ride. The whole time they never had any battles, never had any adversity, So when you find the bad things, you ask yourself, what am I now going to work on so I can master that one area in my life? It could be that you're listening to this podcast right now, working on your mind. That's a good first step. those were my two tips. So how do we stay determined when you're battling you back? How do you stay determined? How do you keep working? How do when you're battling something mentally, especially getting rid of something in your subconscious, it takes time. It's not just gonna, it's not just gonna go away. You have to continue to take action, and when the negative does come up, this is the cool part, is that because you're aware of You can recognize the lie and you can combat it with truth. So once you've gone through and you've asked yourself what stories am I telling myself? You've written down some of these limiting beliefs. You've gone to the event, back to the event where these limiting beliefs started to come up. And you started to remember the good things about them. And then you started to remember the bad things and how they're going to help you be better. To use those to be better. Now, whenever this happens, you're at practice. This negative thought comes up. This limiting belief comes up. Boom. Now you know how to recognize it. You recognize that, hey, this isn't an attack from the enemy. This is a lie from the enemy that he's trying to get me to believe. So now you have the tools. Now, here's where the affirmations come in and they start to make sense and actually work for you. Okay. Here is why, because you, again, you now understand the root issue and you know exactly what you're attacking. You know exactly what you're attacking. Sometimes when you're using these words as weapons, they're weapons. But if you don't know what you're striking you're attacking,

Ronnie Cam 2 21:29

then they're useless.

Ronnie Baker 21:30

Okay. So when you recite affirmations and you don't feel a change, it's because you don't know what negative beliefs. That you're coming up against, and you're hoping that your empty words without any heart behind it will help you feel better. And the key is to identify the belief that you have, the limiting belief that you have and use the word to change that specific thing. So now when you do this practice, I want you to feel the words. I want you to feel the words, not just say them. I want you to connect them to the truth you know about God's promises. All right? Connect those affirmations to the truth that you know about God's promises. Before we wrap this up, it wouldn't be fair if I didn't give you guys some of my affirmations. You may be able to use Some of these, but making them specific to your limiting belief is going to be much more powerful. Okay. So if you're ready, prepare your mind, think about how you're going to transform your mind to think more positively and get rid of the limiting beliefs you have about your performance and realize that with God's help, you are already victorious and you can conquer any lies the enemy has thrown at you, or is trying to make you believe right now. This can change right now. Okay, so here we go. Here are my affirmations. He gives power to the faint, and to them that have no might, he increases strength. This is actually not even an affirmation. This is really straight from the Bible, This next one says, Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. The next one is I will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on the when those obstacles are in the way of your success. Remember Psalm 37 7 says I will not fret. I am still before the Lord. I wait patiently for him and entrust myself to him. So, remember those things. Here's another. Here's a few more. I am unstoppable in the pursuit of my goals. I embrace challenges as opportunities for growth. I radiate confidence and resilience in all that I do. These are Some powerful affirmations that you guys can use. And I would personally, what I do is I take a lot of the words and things that I say, and I take them straight from the book of life. That is the Bible because it is the one true thing. The one thing on this earth that we know is true, completely true. Okay, so just to wrap up, I know that you guys are probably feeling more confident, you're excited and knowing that the bad performances are about to stop now that they're almost behind you and the poor performances. And the limiting beliefs are starting to break and you are starting to run without the chains around your mind. I feel like once you actually train your mindset the right way and get your get again, get the mental piece, the brain runs everything that you do literally. Everything. The only reason that you're able to work out at a high level is because your brain is literally operating your whole body. Okay. So this is the, again, the brain is the most powerful tool that you have. And so I'm excited that these lies, these limiting beliefs are going to be falling off of you guys. You're going to be able to run a little bit more free. You're going to feel lighter. You're going to compete at a high level. So let's just recap what we learned and then we'll get out of here. So a limiting belief is nothing more than a lie from the enemy. And we all have them. We all have them. Even me, an elite athlete, been training and running professional for eight years, have had two contracts, made an Olympic team. I've had them too. And you have to realize that they're not true and they hold no power over you unless you allow them So our first step is to ask ourselves, what is the story I've been telling myself about why I can't seem to perform up to my true potential on race day? What is the story I'm telling myself that's allowing me not to perform up to my true potential on race day? That's the first question you gotta ask, the first tip, the first step. Then you gotta write that down, and really think hard about it, and recognize the layers that could be deep rooted in this limiting belief, okay? Then once you've identified it, reframe that story and change the narrative

Ronnie Cam 2 25:14

in your mind.

Ronnie Baker 25:14

lastly, make some powerful affirmations that will now be effective because you've identified where these words will have power in your mind, and you aren't just saying words just to say words. Christ's words were powerful, not only because he was God, but because he truly believed them in his heart. And he knew what he was attacking. He knew the enemy. understand guys that affirmations don't work unless you get rid of limiting beliefs. And once you get rid of living beliefs, these words will start to have power in your life and it'll start to change your life. If you're continuing to put in the hard work and you have that belief, things will change. I promise you, because it's happening in my life right now, guys, right now. So I'm so glad you guys came loved. Just hanging out with me. First of all, tell a friend about it because I meet here every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday at 6 p. m. on YouTube, on Instagram. I think that you get a better viewing experience on YouTube. It's just cooler that way. But If you don't like that, Instagram is great too. All right. So yeah, guys, I hope this helped. I love you guys. Share this with a friend. If it helped you, and I will see you guys Peace.