How to calm nerves before tryouts: scripts for the night and the day

The honest answer: you won’t feel calm, and that’s OK

Here’s what most articles skip. Nobody walks into tryouts feeling relaxed. The pounding heart, sweaty hands and tight stomach are your body getting ready for something that matters. Kinesiologist Amanda Stanec puts it plainly in a TrueSport article: it’s normal for kids to feel anxious before tryouts, because they care.

So stop trying to feel calm. Aim for nerves you can play with. That takes three things: a night-before routine, a day-of routine, and a plan for the moment after a mistake. The rest of tryout week (training, sleep, food, what to pack) is in how to prepare for tryouts. If nerves show up before every game, not just tryouts, read sports performance anxiety.

The night before: empty your head and your bag

Most night-before worry is about small unknowns. Where do I go? Did I pack my mouthguard? Close those loops early so your brain has nothing to chew on at 11 p.m. The full packing list is in our tryout week plan.

1. 01

   Pack and lay out clothes after dinner

   Bag by the door, forms in the front pocket, broken-in shoes on top. Done is calmer than almost done.

2. 02

   Write three things you control

   On an index card: effort, body language, how fast you reset. Add your cue word at the bottom. It goes in your bag.

3. 03

   Do muscle relaxation in bed

   Ohio State’s LiFE Sports coaching handout suggests progressive muscle relaxation the night before or several hours before competition, not right before you play. Squeeze a muscle group for 3 to 5 seconds as you breathe in, then let it go for 10 seconds as you breathe out. Go feet, legs, core, arms, shoulders and face. It takes 10 to 15 minutes.

4. 04

   See the first five minutes, then stop

   Picture walking in, checking in, the first drill going well and your first mistake followed by a fast reset. Then put it away. More rehearsal at midnight turns into more worry.

5. 05

   Keep your normal bedtime

   Going to bed two hours early usually means lying awake. Screens off, lights out at your usual time.

Tryout day: the morning, the drive and check-in

Nerves usually peak in the hour before you start, the stretch where you’re waiting with nothing to do. Give that hour a plan.

Children’s Health also suggests not watching other athletes’ tryouts before or after your turn if you can avoid it. Sit with your back to the other court. Comparing pulls your attention away from the only rep you control.

Three breathing patterns that work at tryouts

Breathing works on nerves for a simple reason. Children’s Health behavioral health manager Kimberly Williams explains that when you count your breaths, your brain focuses on the breath and less on your nerves. Ohio State’s LiFE Sports handout recommends two to five breaths before a big moment or after a mistake, filling your belly, not your chest. Practice each pattern at home this week, not for the first time in the gym.

Don’t do progressive muscle relaxation right before you play. Ohio State’s handout flags it for the night before or hours ahead, not the minutes before competition. In the gym, stick to breathing and movement.

Cue words: one or two words that pull you back

Nervous brains try to remember everything: elbow in, knees bent, call the ball, don’t mess up. That’s too much. A cue word is one short instruction you can say in a second. Good cues are about action, not feelings. “Next ball” works. “Don’t be nervous” doesn’t, because it keeps you thinking about nerves. Our guide on how to choose a mental performance cue goes deeper, and self-talk for athletes covers the words around it.

During tryouts: what to do when nerves spike

Nerves don’t leave when the whistle blows. They come back in waves: before your first rep, after a mistake, when a coach with a clipboard walks over. Have an answer for each.

1. 01

   When your name is called

   Long exhale, eyes up, jog in. Moving fast with good posture tells your body you’re ready, even before you feel it.

2. 02

   When you make the first mistake

   Expect it. Stanec reminds athletes that mistakes are one of the only things guaranteed in sport. Run the 10-second script and get back in line first.

3. 03

   When a coach is writing something

   You don’t know what it says, and guessing won’t help. Bring your eyes back to your station and say your cue.

4. 04

   When you get a correction

   “Got it, coach.” Then try it on the next rep. Using feedback fast is one of the things coaches watch. See what coaches look for at tryouts.

5. 05

   When you’re waiting with nothing to do

   Box breathing, then stay loose: bounce, stretch, cheer for the person in front of you. Standing still and thinking is where nerves grow.

6. 06

   When you think you blew it

   You can’t judge a whole tryout from inside one bad drill. Give the next drill everything. If it helps, read playing scared after a mistake.

For parents and coaches, and when to get help

Tryout nerves usually ease once the first drill starts and fade after the list goes up. If worry is constant, keeps your athlete from sleeping or eating, shows up as panic, or doesn’t ease after tryouts end, talk with a doctor or a licensed mental health professional. Our sports anxiety self-check can help you start that conversation. It’s a reflection tool, not a diagnosis. In a crisis in the US, call or text 988.

Practice it before tryout day

A breathing pattern you’ve never practiced is hard to trust with a coach watching. Run the scripts above at three practices this week. Use the 10-second reset after every missed rep, even the ones nobody sees. By tryout day it won’t feel like a trick. It’ll feel like what you do. If the list doesn’t go your way, start with didn’t make the team: what to do next.

That’s what reset is built for: short daily mental reps so the reset is there when it counts. Two minutes. Three steps. Notice. Name. Return. Try a 2-minute reset, or join the waitlist.