Sports psychology looks at the mental aspects of athletic performance and wellbeing. That’s all well and good, but what does that actually mean?
I’m sure almost everyone is familiar with a physiotherapist. If you think about physio for an athlete(*):
they look to understand the physical elements
why they may be experiencing pain
why there’s an increased risk of injury for that one athlete
how to recover from injury
how to strengthen an athlete to build robustness against injury and to improve performance.
(*) When I refer to an athlete, I simply mean anyone partaking in a sport or physical activity. This can be beginners, amateurs, professionals or anyone in between.
Similar to what a physio does for the physical, a sports psychologist:
looks to understand the mental elements
why there may be emotional pain
why an athlete may be at risk for psychological injuries and mental ill-health
how to recover from setbacks and challenges
provide you with the psychological tools to build resilience and robustness so athletes can then overcome challenges themselves
However, there is no hard and fast fix. Much like physio exercises when coming back from injury, building up an effective psychological toolkit takes time and practice. Moreover, what works for your teammate and friend might not work for you. You are individual and sports psychology looks different to everyone.
What do sessions look like?
One to one sessions are, perhaps, the most effective way to engage with a deeper level of sports psychology. Workshops are a great educational tool, but they are unable to provide the environment where a relationship can be built and trust can be gained to then provide individual support.
Sessions usually start with getting to know each other and finding out what area of performance you want to strengthen, if you are facing any challenges or if there are any skills you would like to develop. Sometimes there is a clear problem, much like there is a clear injury, whereas sometimes athletes like to use this as a safe space to discuss future goals, action plan and make decisions. It doesn’t always have to be problem that needs to be fixed.
A few examples
Here are a few hypothetical examples where a sports psychologist might be able to help you both in performance as well as with satisfaction in training and sport.
Athlete A has just moved to a new country because they want to pursue a professional career in a sport. The move has been stressful and they are settling in well but there is still some anxiety around meeting new training partners and the new environment. As a sports psychologist, I can provide guidance and a safe space to talk through decisions as well as help develop coping strategies to manage stress adaptively.
Athlete B has sustained an injury and feels like their world has been turned upside down. Training was their release from stress and provided them with an outlet outside of work and family. As a sports psychologist, we can look to reframe recovery and focus on things they may not have had time to focus on whilst training as well as assisting with low mood and general wellbeing.
Athlete C is an amateur athlete that gets demotivated and frustrated easily when training is not going well and wants to find a better balance and coping strategies so that it becomes less of a negative spiral. Here we will look to identify what Athlete C values and develop psychological skills to allow them to behave according to those values even when the going gets tough.
How does sports psychology differ from therapy?
Sports psychology is based around improving performance, enjoyment and wellbeing in a sport context whereas therapy takes the approach of looking at mental health, wellbeing and relationships through a "general life" lens. Although as a sports psychologist, we may look at factors outside sport that impact you in the sport and psychological skills are often transferable to other contexts, but there is less outright focus on those factors in regular life. There is also a larger emphasis on going from good to great in sports psychology, especially with regards to performance.
How would you incorporate sports psychology into your own sporting journey?
Whilst this looks different for everyone, and it very much depends on your journey and goals, sports psychology can be incorporated directly through 1-2-1 sessions with a sports psychologist or it can be indirect; An indirect incorporation may look like attending workshops to educate you on psychological tools that you can use in sport, such as reflective practices or how to create pre-performance routines. More often than not, seeing a sports psychologist is not a 'forever thing'; as a sports psychologist, I want to make myself redundant through providing you the psychological tools and resources to be able to cope with problems yourself, be able to better your performance and be able to maintain enjoyment in sport.
In conclusion
Sports psychology still has a lot of stigma around it. Although, it is becoming more widely incorporated in professional and semi-professional sport, sports psychologists are still seen as the people that athletes get sent to when something needs ‘fixing’. Yes, sometimes that may be the case and it may be as simple as 3 sessions to develop a good pre-performance routine to help with anxiety surrounding competitions. But sports psychologists can also be a source of support to assist in goal setting and decisions and help provide balance in an athlete’s life. We want to optimise your performance and make you a happy athlete. After all, a happy athlete is a successful athlete.
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