Focused For Bowling

Learn mental techniques professional bowlers use to perform their best and build high averages. Focused for Bowling includes game-tested strategies to help you pick up spares more consistently, recover from and avoid slumps, and get more satisfaction from each trip to the alley.

Dean Hinitz gives serious bowlers the mental tools for performing at their best. Bowling Psychology features the latest mental training concepts including mindfulness training, sensory awareness, and mind–body connection as well as insightful interviews from top bowlers—many of whom are clients of the author.

Updated to include a new chapter about the influence of social media and the Internet—the 20th anniversary edition of Bowling Alone remains a seminal work of social analysis, and its examination of what happened to our sense of community remains more relevant than ever in today’s fractured America. Twenty years, ago, Robert D. Putnam made a seemingly simple observation: once we bowled in leagues, usually after work; but no longer. This seemingly small phenomenon symbolized a significant social change that became the basis of the acclaimed bestseller, Bowling Alone, which The Washington Post called “a very important book” and Putnam, “the de Tocqueville of our generation.” Bowling Alone surveyed in detail Americans’ changing behavior over the decades, showing how we had become increasingly disconnected from family, friends, neighbors, and social structures, whether it’s with the PTA, church, clubs, political parties, or bowling leagues. In the revised edition of his classic work, Putnam shows how our shrinking access to the “social capital” that is the reward of communal activity and community sharing still poses a serious threat to our civic and personal health, and how these consequences have a new resonance for our divided country today. He includes critical new material on the pervasive influence of social media and the internet, which has introduced previously unthinkable opportunities for social connection—as well as unprecedented levels of alienation and isolation. At the time of its publication, Putnam’s then-groundbreaking work showed how social bonds are the most powerful predictor of life satisfaction, and how the loss of social capital is felt in critical ways, acting as a strong predictor of crime rates and other measures of neighborhood quality of life, and affecting our health in other ways. While the ways in which we connect, or become disconnected, have changed over the decades, his central argument remains as powerful and urgent as ever: mending our frayed social capital is key to preserving the very fabric of our society.

As the leading authority on bowling’s mental game, Dean Hinitz has worked with the premier players, coaches, and teams in the sport. He has helped countless pros elevate their results, avoid slumps, and overcome stressors affecting performance. He has improved their play, and now he’s ready for you. In Bowling Psychology, you’ll learn the mental strategies for performing your best, day in and day out. From progressive muscle relaxing techniques to positive self-talk and focus cues, you will pick up spares more consistently, improve accuracy, and overcome anxieties. You’ll also find insights, advice, and anecdotes from bowling’s best: Kim Terrell-Kearney Jason Belmonte Diandra Asbaty Carolyn Dorin-Ballard Rick Steelsmith Bill O’Neil Mike Fagan Gordon Vadakin Jeri Edwards Bob Learn, Jr. Amleto Monicelli Fred Borden LeAnne Hulsenberg Del Warren Del Ballard, Jr. Rod Ross Tommy Jones, Jr. Jason Couch Manage pressure, find your focus, and reach your potential. With detailed information on topics including mindfulness training, sensory awareness, and the mind–body connection, Bowling Psychology is your all-in-one toolbox for mental mastery of the lanes.

One of the world’s most highly sought-after bowling instructors provides bowlers with comprehensive coverage on the essential equipment, techniques, lane play and spare-shooting strategies, and mental training necessary for success on the lanes. With specific information for both right-handed and left-handed bowlers, this is a one-of-kind book to help you bowl better!

"Why did I leave the 10-pin on that shot?" "Why isn't my ball hitting the pocket anymore?" "Should I change balls, or move?" "How heavy should my ball be?" "What's the best bowling ball?" "How do I get more hook?" "Why do I keep missing my spares?" Bowlers are faced with endless questions, problems, and choices every time we bowl. Answers and solutions abound, but a great many of them are ineffective or just plain wrong. How do we know what to do? How do we know what to believe? In this book we examine: What doesn't work, and what bowlers have wrong. What's really happening on the lanes, and how things really work. What you need to change to get back to striking. How to properly make that change. We teach you how to figure out exactly what's wrong with your shot. We show you all of the adjustments available to you, teach you what each one actually does, and show you how and when to apply it. We give you strategies that will improve your lane play and your decision making. Finally, we teach you a mathematically sound spare system that will simplify your game and make picking up your spares an easy proposition. We give you all of the knowledge and tools you need to take your game to the next level and become the bowler you want to be.

The fast and easy way to perfect your bowling game Bowling is an inexpensive date, an affordable night out for the whole family, and a fun hangout activity for kids of all ages. Bowling For Dummies reveals the tips, tricks, and rules of play for this iconic American sport. While not every player can hope to bowl 300, you can improve your average and show off for friends, family, and bowling league teammates. Bowling For Dummies provides easy-to-understand instructions for improving your bowling game. The expert tips and advice take you through every step of the game, from selecting the right shoes to the proper way to yell, "Strike!" Packed with photos and line drawings Step-by-step instructions and illustrations included for all techniques Covers beginner through more advanced techniques Whether you're a casual bowler or on a bowling league, the practical, friendly advice in Bowling For Dummies will have you itching to hit the lanes to try out your new skills.

There's a lot more to bowling that hurdling a large round ball at a bunch of pins. There's science at play. This book, through plenty of diagrams and illustrations, provides students with easy ways to relate to the new science concepts they're learning. This volume also discusses the history of bowling and sports-related injuries.