How do you get yourself into the zone?

It happened once trap shooting and I got a perfect score that night.
I could do it every so often at playing chess as well,and when that happened I could easily defeat my opponent.
But lately have an extreme hard time trying to concentrate on anything,how do I get my zone back?

Medittaion.

Being “in the zone” is a matter of being completely in the moment, completely present. There are times when I am focused on the matter at hand where everything not germane to what I am doing slips away. The only way I know to practice for it is to meditate.

Breathe. Take notice of your breathing and your present circumstances. As your mind slips into thinking about something else, refocus on your breathing.

And that works @zenvelo ?
I have never tried that, the ties that I did get to the zone, I was amazed at myself, so concentrate on breathing ,and the task or just breathing?

Usually the biggest step for me is getting started. After that, I have no problem keeping myself in the zone. How do I get started (if not by interest)? Force; procrastination, which leads to cramming. I find myself very polarized when it comes to interest. Either I can’t put something down or I can’t even finish reading one sentence without having my mind drift off.

Microdosing

I tend to hyperfocus when I’m really interested in learning something. I have read for upwards of 30 hours with only short breaks for the restroom and refilling the coffee mug. Sometimes I get in “the zone” when drawing or painting.

It’s never really done on purpose. It just sort of happens.

@Seek makes a good point: trying to make it happen doesn’t work. The trying itself gets in the way. Being “in the zone” is an experience of effortlessness.

It’s also called a “flow” experience, because it’s a lot like just relaxing into the current of a river and letting it carry you along. There are a couple of ways that this experience can get blocked or disrupted: one is that your attention grabs onto a passing thought. This is like grabbing onto something on the riverbank; you’re pulled out of the flow for as long as you hold onto it.

Another disrupter is trying to exercise control. In the zone, you’re not really controlling anything; things just get done as needed. If you’re in there trying to tweak and adjust, things go wrong. Taoists call this “pushing the river”. The river flows just fine without your help.

@zenvelo mentioned paying attention to the breath as a meditative exercise. If you do this for awhile, you can see how this all works. First, you see how grabbing onto thoughts (instead of letting them just drift by) pulls you out of the flow. And you also see that the breath flows best when you just let it happen, without trying to control it. It’s the same way with driving a truck.

I just get in the car and drive.

The triple latte and “The Narcotic Suite” by The Prodigy helps.

For me, if I am not into something, I procrastinate about doing it and I’m not enthused about doing it. Once I start and am hopefully doing well at it, it helps me focus.

I also need to make sure I’m fed and rested.

The last time that I was in the zone (July/2023) I had a pint of Blueberries, two bananas, some veggies, and lasagna, 2 litters of cool tap water, homemade chicken wings with pink salt and lots of snacks (beef Jerky, and milk chocolate, ect) That I was the last time that i was in the zone.

My dizzy spells went away temporarily, and my cognitive abilities excelled; So much that I was able to do more of my Duolingo French lessons to such an amount that I was able to win a gold medal in the Emerald League with 5 times my average score

I ate what I wanted, and not what I thought I should eat.

Basically I am trying out my old diet; Where I eat what I want, when I am hungry and sleep when I am tired.

Update I find that when I am at a comfortable temperature that I am more likely to be in “The Zone”. Has anyone noticed that too?