#1035: The Dreaded "Yips"
#1035: Tracie and coach Leia Miller tackle one of pickleball’s most terrifying afflictions: the dreaded yips, when a serve you’ve hit a thousand times suddenly feels like your arm has been stolen by the gods. Why does it happen when the score matters most—and how do you get your brain and body working together again? Leia shares the simple serving ritual she uses with her students, from saying the score and taking a breath to slowing down, transferring your weight and remembering that the first job of the serve is simply to get the ball over the net. They also talk about pressure, unforced errors, why trying to hit the “perfect” serve can sabotage you, and the danger of convincing yourself that one missed shot means you’ve suddenly forgotten how to play pickleball.
In this episode you’ll hear:
Why pressure can make a perfectly reliable serve suddenly disappear
How creating a simple pre-serve ritual can settle your brain
Why Leia wants you to say the score, breathe and take your time
The physical adjustment that can make your serve feel more controlled
Why trying to hit the world’s greatest serve may be exactly the wrong goal
How calling one bad shot “the yips” can turn a mistake into a self-fulfilling prophecy
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