Il metodo in dettaglio

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Nei prossimi mesi realizzeremo MELA, dedicata alla parte mentale della performance. MELA farà due cose: misurerà in modo oggettivo lo stato mentale dell’atleta e lo allenerà con esercizi mirati. Ogni sessione unirà ciò che l’atleta farà (risposte, tempi, errori) a come reagiranno il suo cuore e il suo cervello, grazie a un sensore cardio e a una fascia indossata sulla testa.

Misurare lo stato mentale

Con due test brevi e non invasivi, lo Stroop Test e il Reaction Test, MELA scatterà una fotografia dello stato mentale dell’atleta in quel preciso momento: quanto sarà lucido, pronto, concentrato e sotto controllo.

Stroop Test

Sullo schermo compariranno nomi di colori scritti in un colore diverso dalla parola. L’atleta indicherà il colore, senza leggere la parola. Il test misurerà la capacità di ignorare le distrazioni, bloccare la risposta istintiva e decidere in fretta senza perdere precisione.1

Reaction Test

L’atleta dovrà rispondere il più rapidamente possibile alla comparsa di uno stimolo. Il test misurerà la prontezza, la regolarità delle risposte, il controllo dell’impulso (le risposte anticipate) e la tenuta dell’attenzione fino alla fine della prova.2

A cosa servirà

Stato psicofisico

I dati comporranno un quadro dello stato psicofisico e mostreranno se l’atleta è in una condizione mentale ottimale o se presenta segnali di stanchezza e affaticamento.2,3

Prevenzione degli infortuni

Un atleta mentalmente affaticato reagisce più lentamente e controlla peggio i propri movimenti. Lo stato mentale entrerà nella valutazione del rischio infortunio e supporterà la prevenzione: lo staff avrà modo di intervenire prima che il problema si veda in campo.3,4

Un riferimento personale

Ogni test sarà confrontato con lo storico dell’atleta stesso. Più test si faranno, più sarà facile riconoscere subito una giornata "no" e gli effetti di carichi, trasferte e poco sonno.2

Dati oggettivi per lo staff

Allenatori, preparatori e staff medico avranno un indicatore misurabile dello stato mentale, da affiancare ai dati fisici e di carico.

Stato mentale

Lucido
82%
Pronto
74%
Concentrato
66%
Sotto controllo
78%

Schema illustrativo

Confronto con lo storico

Storico dell’atleta

  1. Carico
  2. Trasferta
  3. Poco sonno

Schema illustrativo

Un test fatto una volta fotograferà un momento. Lo stesso test ripetuto con costanza diventerà uno strumento di allenamento.5

Allenare le capacità mentali

La mente si allena come il fisico. MELA proporrà esercizi guidati che lavoreranno sulle capacità mentali che fanno la differenza in gara. Gli stessi sensori dei test mostreranno all’atleta, in tempo reale, l’effetto di ciò che sta facendo. I test periodici permetteranno di verificare nel tempo i progressi.

MELA per disciplina

Ogni sport chiede alla mente cose diverse. Ecco come MELA si adatterà alle esigenze di ciascuna disciplina.

Riferimenti scientifici

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  2. 2Basner M. et al. (2011) — Maximizing sensitivity of the Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) to sleep loss

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    Citato in: Reaction Test · A cosa servirà · Hockey su ghiaccio · Atletica · Tiro a volo · Oltre lo sport: piloti di velivoli da caccia — Torna al testo

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  10. 10Staiano W. et al. (2023) — Brain Endurance Training improves endurance and cognitive performance in road cyclists

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  11. 11Saunders T. et al. (1996) — The effect of stress inoculation training on anxiety and performance

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  14. 14Martin K. et al. (2016) — Superior inhibitory control and resistance to mental fatigue in professional road cyclists

    Martin K., Staiano W., Menaspà P., Hennessey T., Marcora S., Keegan R., Thompson K.G., Martin D., Halson S., Rattray B. (2016). Superior inhibitory control and resistance to mental fatigue in professional road cyclists. PLoS ONE.

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  15. 15Holmes P.S. et al. (2001) — The PETTLEP approach to motor imagery

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  16. 16Toth A.J. et al. (2020) — Does mental practice still enhance performance? A 24 year follow-up and meta-analytic replication and extension

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  17. 17Hatzigeorgiadis A. et al. (2011) — Self-talk and sports performance: a meta-analysis

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  18. 18Blanchfield A.W. et al. (2014) — Talking yourself out of exhaustion: the effects of self-talk on endurance performance

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  19. 19Rupprecht A.G.O. et al. (2024) — The effectiveness of pre-performance routines in sports: a meta-analysis

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  1. 20Bühlmayer L. et al. (2017) — Effects of mindfulness practice on performance-relevant parameters and performance outcomes in sports: a meta-analytical review

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  2. 21Naderi A. et al. (2020) — The effects of a mindfulness-based program on the incidence of injuries in young male soccer players

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  3. 22Ivarsson A. et al. (2015) — It pays to pay attention: a mindfulness-based program for injury prevention with soccer players

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  4. 23Mann D.T.Y. et al. (2007) — Perceptual-cognitive expertise in sport: a meta-analysis

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  6. 25Vestberg T. et al. (2012) — Executive functions predict the success of top-soccer players

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  8. 27Williams A.M. et al. (2002) — Anticipation skill in a real-world task: measurement, training, and transfer in tennis

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  9. 28Öztürker M. et al. (2025) — Impact of mental fatigue on tennis players’ attention and groundstroke performance

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  10. 29Van Raalte J.L. et al. (1994) — The relationship between observable self-talk and competitive junior tennis players’ match performances

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  11. 30Guillot A. et al. (2013) — Motor imagery and tennis serve performance: the external focus efficacy

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  13. 32Robazza C. et al. (1998) — Physiological arousal and performance in elite archers: a field study

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  14. 33John S. et al. (2011) — The effect of mindfulness meditation on HPA-axis in pre-competition stress in sports performance of elite shooters

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  16. 35Caldwell J.A. et al. (2009) — Fatigue countermeasures in aviation

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  17. 36Mansikka H. et al. (2016) — Fighter pilots’ heart rate, heart rate variation and performance during instrument approaches

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  18. 37Jha A.P. et al. (2010) — Examining the protective effects of mindfulness training on working memory capacity and affective experience

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    Citato in: Oltre lo sport: piloti di velivoli da caccia — Torna al testo