Sports Psychology training modules for sports
- 2. DEFINITION Sports psychology is the study of how psychology influences sports, athletic performance, exercise and physical activity. Some sports psychologists work with professional athletes and coaches to improve performance and increase motivation.
- 3. PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS OF PERFORMANCE • Awareness • Focus / Concentration • Anxiety • Confidence • Motivation
- 4. AWARENESS Awareness is the recognition of the need to do something to gain control. Moreover, it is the first step to gaining control of any pressure situation. The athlete must “check-in” and determine if the different aspects of his or her mental, emotional, and physical state need adjustment in order to give the best opportunity for success. Checking-in on the various aspects of one’s person helps to create awareness within the athlete, and gives the person a foundation in which he or she can begin to optimize performance.
- 5. FOCUS / CONCENTRATION Concentration and attention are very important aspects of athletic performance. There are two general ways to use concentration, and that is through either a process focus or an outcome focus. A process focus involves directing one’s attention to the act of completing a motion in the respective sport, while an outcome focus involves directing one’s attention to an end product, or result. Both methods can be either beneficial or dangerous, depending on their use. It is important to use both, and the key is the timing in which they are implemented.
- 6. ANXIETY Anxiety is defined as an unpleasant emotional state. This construct can be divided into two basic sections: state anxiety and trait anxiety. State anxiety is specific to a certain situation or environment, while trait anxiety is specific to a certain person or team, regardless of the situation. Think of state anxiety as something that happens periodically (but not randomly) and trait anxiety as something that always happens, no matter the environment. Too much or too little of either can negatively affect performance.
- 8. CONFIDENCE Confidence is a result of how one thinks, what one focuses on, and how one reacts to the events in one’s life. Most of all, a decision to not be bound by a fear of failure will allow an athlete to put total effort into the present task. Failure has the natural consequence to judge and classify based on “worthiness.” Successful athletes have a tendency to ignore the natural consequences of failure and focus on his or her specific job at the present moment.
- 9. MOTIVATION Motivation is a key psychological factor of sport performance. Motivation influences the amount of effort expended, the ability to bounce-back after setbacks, how long an athlete will endure long and/or difficult training periods, and actual competition results. The good news is that motivation is the factor over which athletes have the most control.
- 10. ENHANCING ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE • Performance Routines • Goal Setting • Imagery / Visualization “Seeing is Believing” • Positive Self-talk • Relaxation Techniques • Coping with Adversity • Focusing
- 11. GOAL SETTING It provides: • Motivation • Commitment • Direction Examples; • Short-term goal: Training four times per week for the next six weeks • Long-term goal: Representing Slovakia in the next Olympic games.
- 12. IMAGERY / VISUALIZATION Visualization is the mental rehearsal technique which involves the athletes creating a picture in their minds. This may be either an internal or external picture. In order for visualization to work effectively, the person must firstly, believe that the strategy is effective and secondly that it is a skill which requires practices, patience and time. “Seeing is believing”.