Be prepared for both mental and physical endurance 💪

Here’s how a Ninja Warrior Course is Designed to Play with Your Emotions

https://twitter.com/LamarElimbo/status/1640876041773146113?s=20

Our inner child loves to climb things.

And with all those playful colours and exposed bars, the course looks like a jungle gym.

Making the athletes and the crowd want to participate and play.

Photo by Andrew Valdivia on Unsplash

Studies show that performing in front of a crowd boosts our ability to skillfully perform a task we’re adept at.

A process known as social facilitation.

The reverse effect occurs when we feel insecure about our ability to perform.

Lights and heights at night = major adrenaline rush.

Illuminated reflective materials like metal and water boosting its effect.

Triggering the flight or fight response, perception of time slows. Theoretically making athletes even more agile.

Constant momentum is often a key factor in the success of a ninja warrior obstacle.

The slightest hesitation can lead to missteps and muscle fatigue.

Only those who maintain faith in their abilities and instincts can succeed.

Water is there not just to cushion falls.

It is designed to intensify reactivity.

Fallen athletes are condemned to plunge into an ice bath. Intensifying their shock and snapping them out of the flow state that they were in on the course.

It's no coincidence the finish line is on the uppermost part of the course.

Designed for feeling on top of the world.

Winning athletes feel elated — literally in the highest spirits while at the highest point off the ground.

And it’s no surprise that’s the case, since it’s an entire obstacle course designed to subliminally influence emotion.

And if you want to dig a little deeper into the psychology of a Ninja Warrior course, check out my thread on its 3 planes of progress.

Here's a breakdown of the psychology behind the design of a Ninja Warrior stage.

Honestly, it’s so clever, it's borderline biblical 👀

https://twitter.com/LamarElimbo/status/1640523655661723649?s=20

Each plane in a course is designed to affect an athlete’s emotions in a specific way.

Earth (middle plane) = determination, confidence, fear

Hell (lowest plane) = shame, anger, disappointment

Heaven (highest plane): pride, joy, euphoria

One foot in front of the other

Constant momentum

Eyes on the prize

Those are its virtues & the course is designed to punish those who lose faith.

Each obstacle crafted so that the longer an athlete hesitates, the more they struggle.

Water placed not just to cushion falls.

But designed to intensify reactivity.

As punishment for their missteps, fallen athletes plunge into an ice bath.

Climbing out drenched, shaking, and shocked, they appear even more emotional about their fall.

It’s the uppermost part of the course where athletes finally get to hit the big red buzzer.

Sirens sing in celebration.

They spread their wings in pride.

And they look down on the kingdom they just conquered.

And it’s no different from every single place we go.

Each one with its own strategies designed to affect the way we think, feel, and behave.