PART 1

SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY
It has long been acknowledged that psychological skills are critical for athletes
at the elite level. Athletes with the requisite “mental toughness” are more likely tobe successful. In the past, it was assumed that these skills were genetically based, oracquired early in life. Now, it is commonly accepted that athletes and coaches arecapable of learning a broad range of psychological skills that can play a critical rolein learning and in performance.
A. Role of Sports Psychology

The specialised ﬁeld of sports psychology has developed rapidly in recent years.
The importance of a sports psychologist as an integral member of the coaching andhealth care teams is widely recognised.
Sports psychologists can teach skills to help athletes enhance their learning
process and motor skills, cope with competitive pressures, ﬁne-tune the levelof awareness needed for optimal performance, and stay focused amid the many
distractions of team travel and in the competitive environment. Psychologicaltraining should be an integral part of an athlete’s holistic training process, carriedout in conjunction with other training elements. This is best accomplished bya collaborative effort among the coach, the sport psychologist, and the athlete;
however, a knowledgeable and interested coach can learn basic psychological skills
and impart them to the athlete, especially during actual practice.
B. The Medical Staff and Psychosomatic Disorders

The health professional often plays a major role in supporting the emotional
health of athletes. An athlete’s psychological stresses may be manifested assomatic complaints, such as sleep disturbances, irritability, fatigue, gastrointestinal
disturbances, muscle tension, or even injury. Athletes often turn to a therapist or
physician for relief, either because they do not recognise the psychological basisof the physical complaint, or because they fear the services of a mental healthpractitioner due to the perceived stigma, or because no psychologist is available.
Therapists must be aware of the possibility of an underlying psychologicalbasis for a complaint and inquire into the emotional status of the athlete as part ofthe medical history. Careful, non-judgmental questioning may reveal inter-personal
problems with a coach, teammate, family member, or other individuals, or anxiety
concerning an upcoming competition. In these situations, a sports psychologist isinvaluable. If none is available, the physician or therapist may need to assume therole of sounding board, intermediary, or stress-management advisor. At times, beinga patient listener and conﬁdant may be all that is required. If mediation between
parties is required, a neutral, non-judgmental stance must be maintained to help theparties air and resolve differences.

CHAPTER 5, SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY

C. Preparing for Competition

Simple psychological skills to help the athlete manage the competitiveperformance environment include: 1) learning relaxation skills (e.g. progressiverelaxation; slow, controlled, deep abdominal breathing; or autogenic training;2) mastering all of the attentional styles (types of concentration); 3) imagery (bothvisualisation and kinesthetics); 4) appropriate self-talk; and 5) developing a precompetition mental routine to be employed immediately prior to competition on
game day (these routines are short [1–2 minutes] and use all of the mental skills justpresented). (See also Part 2 of this chapter, Competition Day Preparation.)
D. The Injured Athlete

Athletes have a strong sense of body awareness, and take great pride in thecapabilities of their bodies. Thus, injuries can be psychologically as well as
physically devastating. The ability to train and compete well involves enormous ego.
Athletes often identify themselves by who they are as an athlete. Thus, an injury
places considerable stress on this self-identiﬁcation. The more severe the injury, andthe longer the recovery-rehabilitation period, the more prolonged and profound themood disturbance may be.
Injured athletes commonly experience at least three emotional responses: isolation,
frustration, and disturbances of mood:
1. The injury forces the athlete to become separated from teammates andcoaches. Other team members may provide little support, and in fact
they may shun their injured teammate to avoid reminders of their own
potential frailty.
2. The athlete becomes frustrated because he or she perceives the loss ofmonths of training and skills mastery, although there are many instanceswhere athletes have used the recovery period to master mental and otherphysical skills to return successfully to competition.
3. Mood disturbances are common. The athlete may be temporarily
depressed, or become upset by minor annoyances.
An injury can provide the athlete with an opportunity to work with a caring
professional to re-assess his or her reasons for being in sport, and for redeﬁning
goals in sports participation.
The health care team must be aware and include psychological support as anintegral part of the treatment and rehabilitation processes. At the outset, the athlete
must be fully informed about the nature and severity of the injury, the prognosis forrecovery, recommended course of therapy and rehabilitation, and an estimate of thetime needed before training can be resumed. The athlete must be made a full partnerin the treatment and recovery process, and given responsibility for therapeutic
activities that can be carried out at home. The medical team must discuss openly thepsychological changes that accompany an injury, and reassure the athlete that this is
to be expected. Reassurance and supportive measures are generally adequate, but avisit from an athlete who has recovered from a similar injury may be of great value.

CHAPTER 5, SPORTS PSYCHOLOGYThis entire process can be facilitated by a supportive and understanding medicalstaff. The formula:
Genuine Caring + Skills + Courage = Positive Outcome for the Injured Athlete
must be kept in mind by the staff and the athlete, even though progress may be slow
and uneven throughout the treatment and recovery process.
Referral to a sports psychologist may be necessary if the athlete is deeply
disturbed, or if the injury is severe and a prolonged recovery is anticipated. Allinjuries involve a certain degree of fear and uncertainty, and the sports psychologist
may be great value in helping to deal with this emotion (see Table 5-1 and Table5-2).
Table 5-1. From common to clinical responses: gauging referrals to therapy.
Temporary Emotional Responses

Ongoing Emotional Patterns

Sadness

Depression

Feeling isolated

Withdrawal

Irritated

Explosive

NeutralNumb

Unmotivated

Apathetic

Frustration

Frequent crying or emotional outbursts

AngerRage

Moderate change in appetite

Rapid weight loss or gain, or disorderedeating pattern

Minor sleep disturbanceInsomnia

CHAPTER 5, SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY

Table 5-2. Sports psychology consulting with injured athletes: when to make a referral.
Consider referring to a trained, experienced sport psychology consultant if injured
athlete:• Lacks conﬁdence in his/her ability to recover, or to engage in the rehabilitation
process.
• Lacks belief in the rehabilitation process.
• Has difﬁculty ﬁltering out environmental distractions during rehab or training
sessions.
• Is withholding effort out of fear (of re-injury, of failure, etc.).
• Loses focus easily when pain intensiﬁes or when discouragement sets in.
• Is engaging in excessive cognitive thinking over simple tasks.
• Is unsure of how to set and attain meaningful goals.
• Has trouble controlling thoughts about the injury, or worries about re-injury.
• Is unable to control negative self-talk.
• Desires to maximise the utility of the rehab and wishes to work more intensely
on developing his/her mental game (e.g. improving conﬁdence, concentration,composure, trust).

References

1.

2.
3.
4.
5.

Brewer, B. W. Psychology of sports injury rehabilitation. In Handbook ofSports Psychology (2nd ed.), R. N. Singer, H. A. Hausenblas, and C. M. Janell(eds.). New York: Wiley, 2001.
Heil, J. Psychology of Sport Injury. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics Publishers, 1993.
Pargman, D. (ed.) Psychological Basis of Sport Injuries. Mortgantown, WV:
Fitness Information Technology, 1993.
Tracey, J. The emotional response to the injury and rehabilitation process.
J. Appl. Sports Psych. 15(4):279-293, 2003.
Webber-Moore, N. Track and ﬁeld injuries: psychological guidelines forcoaches, athletic trainers and athletes. In The Psychology of High-Performance
Track and Field, R. A. Vernacchia, and T. A. Statler (eds.), pp. 262-273.
Mountain View, CA: Tafnews Press, 2005.

PART 2

ATHLETE’S COMPETITION DAY PREPARATION
Many athletes use special psychological procedures to prepare themselveson competition day. The following exercises will help you develop your own
competition-day routine and achieve that hard-to-deﬁne sense of “readiness”—it
may be a sense of “tingling” or the simple subjective feeling that “this is my day.”Too high a level of activation is experienced as “stress” or anxiety and leads tomuscle tightness, poor efﬁciency, poor attention or concentration (chaotic thinking
or too narrow a focus), and loss of smooth and responsive muscle coordination.
Too low a level of activation is seen as low energy, a “ﬂat” performance, little or nomotivation, and wandering attention. Both proﬁles lead to performance errors. How
one achieves that sense of readiness that precedes optimum performance varies witheach person, so carefully review your best competition days and try to identify thecues (inside of you and in your environment) that seemed to help you prepare tocompete well.
A. Identify Your Stress ProﬁleThe next time you experience some type of stress (competition, tests, talking
with someone you feel uncomfortable with, etc.), notice how stress affects yourbody and your mind. Be very speciﬁc.
1. Muscles that tighten: Jaw clenches, shoulders tighten, ﬁsts clench,stomach tightens, other:
2. Breathing pattern: Shorter and faster, rapid speech, other:
3. Gastro-intestinal responses: nausea or unsettled sensations in thestomach; more frequent bowel movements, other:
4. Other physical signs: Dry throat, upset stomach, cold hands and/or feet,
rapid, pounding heart, sweaty palms, frequent urination, other:
5. Interpersonal responses: Rapidity of speech with different people,
need to be around certain people (coach, teammate, family, friends, etc.),
need to be alone, need to “show them” during warm-up, watching otherathletes, other:
6. Personal cues: Mind goes blank (when?), forgetfulness, unable to focus
attention well (easily distracted or too narrow a focus), things you say toyourself (I’ve got to do better this time, what am I doing here? I hope mycoach/parents don’t get mad if ..., I hope I don’t goof ...), other:
7. Environmental cues: Air temperature, humidity, rain, crowd noises,ofﬁcials, poor ﬁt of clothes or shoes, equipment problems, other
distractions:
Use this information to identify the early signs of stressCHAPTER 5, SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY

Individuals experience stress in consistent ways, and you need to ﬁnd your own
stress proﬁle. Log your responses to stress as well as the cues that were present on
your best competition days so that you can compare the two proﬁles.
B. Planning for Competition Day

By now you will have some idea of what your stress proﬁle is: when too muchor too little stress is activated, WHAT or WHO triggers the stress, and HOW it
affects you (both physically and mentally). Once you know the cues that interferewith your performance, you can plan a programme of psychological and physicaltechniques to help reach a better performance level. Table 5-3 lists activities thatmay help you reduce tension, or help you “activate” yourself if you are feeling ﬂat,unresponsive, or “down.”
Be sure to use psychological techniques in your daily training programme. Like
any skill, these techniques require practice before you can use them effectively
under pressure. Also, be sure to keep a log of techniques and routines that help you
on competition day(s).
1. Plan for the night before competition:
You may wish to use mental rehearsal techniques, but don’t use them just before
sleep—this is an activation activity, not a relaxation for sleep.
2. Day of competition:a. Know your competition schedule, and plan activities such as eating,reaching the competition site, and getting into the locker room so that
there is no sense of rushing. Some athletes become more tense if they
arrive too early—ﬁnd the balance that’s right for you. List the timeneeded to reach the competition site and a schedule you plan to follow.
b. Every 45 minutes–1 hour check yourself for signs of stress (fromA, above) and take a minute to do a body check and use stress management/self-regulation techniques that work for you. List the signs ofstress and the speciﬁc techniques you plan to use to reduce stress:
If tension is too great for self-control or self-regulation, who (teammate orcoach) can help you? How?
Example: Help you check breathing; muscle check; quietly repeat relaxationphrases; place hands gently on your shoulders to help lower them to a more relaxedlevel; help move away from distracting noises or scenes to a quieter place, etc.
3. Psychological Strategies to Use Before Competition
Internal Muscle Check: Review each muscle group (standing, sitting, or lyingdown). Hands, arms and ﬁsts, forehead, eyes; cheeks and jaw; shoulders and upper
back; stomach; hips and lower back, thighs; lower legs and feet.
Breathing Check: Inhale and feel slight tension; exhale and relax from top ofhead to knees and toes. Feel the relaxation roll down the body. Periodically inhale
deeply, hold your breath and feel the tension throughout your body, then relax

CHAPTER 5, SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY

Table 5-3. Relaxation and activation techniques.

PurposeImagery

Self-phrase

GeneralPleasant scene such I feel relaxed, warm,
relaxation as favorite activity or heavy(awake)placeMuscle
Relaxation

Brief OnSite
Techniques

Try to feel relaxedand heavy bytelling eachmuscle by nameto become more
and more relaxedwhile staying
awake. Stretch
and yawn.

Internal
muscle scanand check
Breathingcheck andexercise

Alternate tension
and relaxationof each muscle
group
Sleep

Same as above. Usecolour to “ﬂood”
awareness.

I feel relaxed, warm,
serene, calmSame as above(but move towardsleep)

I feel the blood
ﬂowing through myhands and feet, I feelvery relaxed andwarmCouple withmuscle relaxation

Small handheld thermometer.
Place handon forehead;
if handis cooler,increase
warmth.

Muscle check forrelaxation, yetI feel relaxed, alert,with anticipation
alive, energy is ﬂowing through my body, of movement
my arms, my legs. I
feel relaxed, yet readyto move quickly andalertly.

Same asabove.
Increaseheart rate, if
it is slow.

Get rid of worries or
distracting scenes
WarmthSerene or active
scene of pleasant
warmthActivation VMBR*: imagine
ideal peformance indistance
VMBR: experience
self doing andrehearsing speciﬁcparts ofperformance
VMBR: practice entering the competition with relaxed
and alert conﬁdence*Visual-Motor Behaviour Rehearsal

Self-phrases tape

CHAPTER 5, SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY

your jaw, exhale and feel the contrast of the relaxation as it rolls down your body.
QUICKLY “scan” your muscles and release any tension you feel. Notice if yourbreathing is deep or shallow. Deepen it each time so that you can almost FEEL theair “tickle your belly button.” Relax each time you exhale.
Visual-Motor Behaviour Rehearsal (VMBR): Relax as much as possible. Now,
as clearly and vividly as possible, imagine yourself in an ideal performance.If you
see yourself “in the distance,” add the feeling of actually experiencing yourself
doing the activity. The difference is feeling alertly relaxed with a very slight senseof muscle activity/tension vs. feeling heavily relaxed. This technique can be used
to: 1) rehearse an entire performance; 2) review and correct a speciﬁc performance
problem so that doing it correctly becomes second nature; 3) practice approaching
the crowd or competition with conﬁdence.
4. Four or ﬁve hours before the event:a. list your objective, e.g. you want to emphasise a fast start, conﬁdence,aggressiveness, a particular strategic approach to the other competitors;
b. determine how to achieve the objective, e.g. plan to take a moment tovisualise a fast start to the gun immediately before getting into the blocks.
5. Immediately prior to the event (before stepping to the line, blocks, or into thering):
a. for a second or so, visualise your complete event as you would actuallyperform; see it happen, make this vivid visualising include the way
the body is to feel as it performs;
b. use an inner frame of reference—you are doing it IN the scene, notwatching yourself do it;c. clear your mind after you have programmed your body by visualisation.
NOW, let your body take off and do its job automatically.

Reference

Partially adapted from:
1. Suinn, R. M. Body thinking for Olympic champs (appendix B). In Psychology
in Sports: Methods and Application. Burgess, Minneapolis, 1980.