If you were to play at 10:00 am?

January 22, 2023January 22, 2023 badmintonandy

Pack your bag the night before

If I am playing a match at 10 am then I would likely be up around 6.30

This will give me time to shake off the lethargy, clear my head and do some mobility and activation.

Then after that, I would look to have my bag ready and packed the night before so that I can concentrate on having a good breakfast and my travel to the venue.

I would aim to arrive about 1.5 hours before the game so that I don't have to rush. I can assess the hall, see how the shuttle is flying for the other matches, do some more mobility, talk with my coach to reiterate tactics and mindset then start my proper warm-up and into the match.

It would depend on how long it would take to get to the hall

I would like to get to the hall about 45 minutes before my match so I’m not there for too long.

So I would hope to eat an hour and a half before I play so it gives it enough time to settle in my stomach but also not too long away that I feel hungry before playing.

Just make sure that I do a good warm-up and have a good hit before playing. Then 5-10 minutes before get some songs on and just try and focus on the game up and coming.

I like to be consistent

For me I like to have a consistent sleep pattern and I think that is important (especially from what I have read) - I think for full-time athletes . Going to bed earlier and waking up earlier is better for players, so for me its 9:30pm sleep , wake up at 6:00am, that is my routine.

Then eat as I would normally. I think earlier is easier for me but later would be harder as would have to think more about when I was to eat.

For younger athletes, it is about trying to help them firstly to understand the importance of sleep hygiene - the importance of limiting screen time before bed, consistency in sleep times where possible etc. I think from there things get easier.