From Sequence to Flow — Cognitive Script Training for Experienced Athletes (Part 1)

 Introduction – The Hidden Structure of Automatic Behaviour

Our sports performance is often guided by automatic behaviours, whether in training, racing, or competition.
As our career grows, our behaviours naturally form routines. Years of experience and repeated contexts shape our body and mind to be ready for action.
This automatic behaviour supports performance biologically and stabilises mental focus psychologically.

This article explores how we prepare mentally when nervousness arises and how we can create an optimal mental condition for performance.
Many athletes share personal “tips” or methods to repeat their peak performance, but these vary widely. It’s difficult to find a universal model.
I’ll explain a structured way to build your own method here. This is a logical framework to help you find your original practice.

 

Flow Is Not Accidental

Elite athletes often say, “I was in flow,” after outstanding performances.
We tend to think this state belongs only to professionals or elite athletes, but that’s not true. Flow is accessible to everyone if we learn how to build it.

Flow is not luck. It emerges from experience and the right sequence of preparation.
When we consciously develop mental structure and awareness, any athlete can experience this powerful state of focus and calm.

There are three key stages:

1. Sequence practice
2. Routine and automated behaviour
3. Mindful sequence (meta-cognition and mindfulness)

 

#1: The Sequence Practice – Building Cognitive Order

The first stage is sequence practice, which is consciously planning and remembering the order of actions.

Example:
A new athlete learns their warm-up steps, listens to the coach, puts on spikes, goes to the start line, to tackles the challenging situation.
They must think about each step carefully. This is the cognitive stage, focused on awareness and learning to follow the ordered thought steps.

At this point, the athlete’s preparation is fragile. They can’t yet regulate their thoughts, emotions, or bodies under pressure because they lack reference experiences.
The mind has structure and is able to follow order, but little emotional stability.

 

#2: The Routine – Automation Through Conditioning

With repetition and experience, the sequence becomes routine. So, behaviour that runs automatically to prepare for the performance and aim for a goal.
The athlete no longer thinks consciously about every step. Neural connections between context and behaviour become strong.

Example:
When you begin foam rolling, stretching, and jogging, your body temperature rises naturally. Blood flow increases, heart rate lifts, and the sympathetic nervous system prepares for action.
These processes connect the brain, body, and environment.

At this stage, you’ve created a psychophysiological loop:

• Cognitive expectation: “It’s workout time.”
• Behavioural routine: foam roll → activation → running.
• Physiological readiness: sympathetic arousal.
• Emotional motivation: dopamine and endorphin reward.

This is excellent for consistency, to reduce stress and prepare the body. While it carries a risk.
A rigid routine can become unresponsive to new conditions. The athlete may perform well, but not reach flow, because behaviour has become mechanical.
There is no conscious harmony between body and mind.

 

#3: The Mindful Sequence – Meta-Cognition and Flow

The final stage returns to sequence, but now through awareness rather than instruction.
The athlete recognises their automation. This is not to follow or control it, but to harmonise with it.

This is meta-cognition, which means the awareness of what you’re doing while you’re doing it.
When in flow, you no longer think of details like “lift your knees” or “push harder.”
Instead, you simply know, “I am doing this.”
Action and awareness merge. Body, mind, and environment act as one.

Flow requires:

• Clear goals
• Feedback
• Balance between challenge and skill

A common mistake: Young athletes often copy others’ routines without awareness. They may achieve results, but without understanding their own sequence, they cannot sustain flow.
The key is to listen to the body’s rhythm. The “voice of the body.”
When body and mind align, movement becomes smooth, unbroken, and effortless.
Both conscious and unconscious systems cooperate. This is true flow.

Part 2 is about the actual method of flow. Please click the link below to read.

From Sequence to Flow — Cognitive Script Training for Experienced Athletes (Part 2)