Ogilvie, B.C., & Taylor, J. (1993). Career termination issues among elite athletes. In R.N. Singer, M. Murphey, & L.K. Tennant (Eds.), Handbook of research on sport psychology (pp. 761-775). New York: Macmillan. (To read)

Taylor, J., & Wilson, G.S. (2002). Intensity regulation and sport performance. In J. Van Raalte & B. Brewer (Eds.) Exploring sport and exercise psychology (2nd Ed.). (pp. 99-130). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. (To read)

Wilson, G., Taylor, J., Gundersen, F., & Brahm, T. (2005). Intensity. In J. Taylor & G.S. Wilson (Eds.) Applying Sport Psychology: Four Perspectives (pp. 33-50). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. (To read)

Jones, M., Taylor, J., Tanaka-Oulevey, M., &  Grigson Daubert, S. (2005). Emotions. In J. Taylor & G.S. Wilson (Eds.) Applying Sport Psychology: Four Perspectives (pp. 65-82). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. (To read)

Taylor, J., Ogilvie, B., & Lavallee, D. (2006). Career transition among elite athletes: Is there life after sports? In J. Williams (Ed.), Applied sport psychology: Personal growth to peak performance (5th ed.) (pp. 480-496). Mountain View, CA: Mayfield. (To read)

Taylor, J. & Kress, J. (2006). Psychology of cycling. In J. Dosil (Ed.), The sport psychologist’s handbook: A guide to sport specific performance enhancement. New York: Wiley. (To read)

Taylor, J. (2012). My approach to sport and performance psychology. In Aoyagi, M. W., & Poczwardowski, A. (Eds.) The chronicle of expert approaches to sport & performance psychology: Applied theories of optimal performance. (To read)


CAREER TERMINATION ISSUES AMONG ELITE ATHLETES

Bruce Ogilvie & Jim Taylor

Introduction

Athletic participation is characterized by glorious peaks and debilitating valleys. Furthermore, the range of events and emotions that are experienced through athletic involvement seem to be both numerous and extreme compared to the normal population. Yet, of all the powerful experiences encountered by athletes, perhaps the most significant and potentially traumatic is that of career termination. Moreover, termination from sports involves a variety of unique experiences that sets it apart from typical retirement concerns.

In response to the apparent significance of this issue, during the past 25 years, there has been a small, but steady stream of anecdotal, theoretical, and empirical exploration of career termination among athletes. These considerations have brought attention to the potential difficulties of retirement, attempted to provide explanations for the process, and offered evidence of the nature of the termination process.

The issue of career termination has received considerable attention in the popular press. These writings are typically anecdotal in nature and focus on professional athletes (Hoffer, 1990; Putnam, 1991). Moreover, the focus of these articles vary from depictions of the difficulties experienced by athletes in their post-athletic lives (Alfano, 1982; Bradley, 1976; Elliot, 1982; Jordan, 1975; Kahn, 1972; Morrow, 1978; Plimpton, 1977; Stephens, 1984; Vecsey, 1980) to successful career transitions of athletes (Batten, 1979; White, 1974).

Based on the large proportion of these articles that suggest termination difficulties, it might be concluded that career transition trauma is a widespread spread phenomenon. However, due to the absence of methodological rigor in these investigations, it is impossible to make any conclusive judgments about the prevalence of termination difficulties among athletes.

During this period, commensurate interest in career termination began to grow among the professional community. What resulted was a variety of scholarly, though speculative, articles by noted professionals in sport psychology based upon their own professional experiences dealing with this issue, available research in the area, and literature from related fields (Broom, 1982; Botterill, 1982; McPherson, 1980; Ogilvie & Howe, 1982; Werthner & Orlick, 1982).

These concerns have raised an important question relative to career termination: What is the incidence of athletes who experience significant distress when leaving their sport? Those individuals who have published their concerns about this issue have mainly been sport psychologists who provide services to the more elite end of the athletic continuum. Though the question remains as to whether just the tip of the iceberg is being seen, they are consistent in their concern for what might be the hidden significant number of athletes throughout the sports world who experience difficulties upon career termination (May & Sieb, 1986; Ogilvie, 1982, 1983; Rotella & Heyman, 1986).

The goal of this chapter is to provide an integrative view of career termination among athletes. This objective will be accomplished by considering the following areas: (1) Historical and conceptual issues that will assist in the understanding of the growth of career termination as a meaningful avenue of inquiry; (2) Theoretical perspectives of career termination; (3) The causes of career termination; (4) Evidence of trauma in career termination; (5) Factors that contribute to crises of career termination; (6) Prevention and treatment of career termination distress; and (7) Avenues for future theoretical and empirical investigation into career termination in sports.

The issues that will be considered will focus primarily on the termination crises of athletes who have made sport participation a dominant part of their lives. The term “elite athlete” will be used to distinguish this population that best represents such individuals from the recreational athlete.

Historical and Conceptual Concerns

Career termination received little attention in North american as well as in most countries prior to 20 years ago. This may have been due in large part to the fact that elite athletes were more fully integrated into the basic fabric of society as compared to now. Specifically, due to limited technology they did not receive a high level of media scrutiny. In addition, salaries were not significantly higher than the normal population. Also, elite-amateur athletes typically were either students or held full-time jobs away from their sports involvement. As a consequence, their transition to life as an “average” citizen was not as dramatic (Chartland & Lent, 1987).

In contrast, the schism between elite athletes and the general population has grown wider in recent years. The development of cable and satellite television has brought these athletes into the homes of millions of people worldwide, thus placing them “under the microscope”. In addition, the current financial rewards of elite athletes, whether professional or “amateur”, further separate them from “normal” people (Newman, 1988). These factors then create a lifestyle that is highly discrepant from the one that they might have to adopt following career termination.

The nature of the athlete development system in North America may have also contributed to the lack of concern and study of the post-career adjustment problems experienced by elite athletes. In particular, largely as a function of the socio-political system, athletic development in North America has occurred in a laissez-fair fashion. What this approach emphasizes is the self-responsibility of the athletes in their entrance into the sport, their development during their athletic careers, and, by extension, in their departure from the sport. Additionally, due to the large population of the United States, there was constant influx of talented athletes that replaced those at the end of the their careers, thereby drawing attention away from the career termination of other athletes.

The participation of the sport psychologist at the elite level also inhibits our ability to provide for the career termination needs of elite athletes. Until recently, the team psychologist associated with a national governing body, collegiate team, or professional organization rarely had the opportunity to develop an extended relationship with team members. In fact, even at present, few sport psychologists have the chance to establish and maintain on-going relationships with the athletes with whom they work. For example, typical involvement of a sport psychologist consists of two weeks of contact at a training camp or being called upon for some form of performance or crisis intervention (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986). This type of contact rarely presents an opportunity for the sport psychologist and athletes to communicate about issues related to career termination. Also, sports organizations often do not want the sport psychologist to address career termination and life after sport for fear of distracting the athletes from their competitive focus.

In contrast to this approach used in North America, the Eastern European nations were accepting more responsibility for preparing their national athletes for life after sport. This greater awareness would be expected because team psychologists often had long-term relationships with their team members. These professionals frequently established contact with the athletes at the inception of the structure selection process that is common in these countries. Thus, relationships were initiated as early as pre or early teens and often endured until the athlete’s middle thirties (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982). Moreover, education and vocational counseling were an integral part of the athletes’ developmental process (Chartland & Lent, 1987). It was also true that a significant number of these athletes were studying in areas that were related to their sports participation. Specifically, coaching, motor learning, exercise physiology, and physical therapy often became their areas of major interest and, subsequently, their chosen careers following termination of their athletic careers. Because the discrepancy between athletic and post-athletic careers was relatively small and the athletes were able to combine their love of sport with a post-athletic career, it seems reasonable to suggest that they would be less likely to exhibit problems of adaptation to a life as a non-competitor (Beehr, 1986; Pawlak, 1984).

Another factor that might attenuate the traumatic effects of career termination on Eastern European athletes is that the average age of their competitors is significantly above that of U.S. elite athletes. This fact may be due in part to the limited pool of talent from which they have to draw. Most of these countries do not have the vast talent pool that emerges from our university and club programs. It might then be expected that these highly select athletes would compete longer, receive more attention throughout the duration of their careers, retire at a later age, and make the transition to non-competitor more easily.

As a consequence, in clarifying the factors that contribute to difficulties in career termination, it would be valuable to examine alternative systems such as the Eastern Europeans. This knowledge would enable us to consider differences that might explain the divergent responses to career termination as a function of the country which they represent and the nature of the system in which they developed.

It should also be noted that as salaries, prize money, and appearance fees continue to escalate, age differences between nations will begin to lessen. When marginal professional athletes and world-class amateur competitors are able to earn a living in their sport longer, their incentive to stay in the sport will remain high, thus easing the pressure to terminate their athletic careers prematurely. However, it should be noted that Haerle (1975) reported that professional baseball players who competed longer tended to have more difficulty in finding a second career. As a result, simply being able to stay in a sport longer will not necessarily ease the transition process. Rather, the ability of athletes to make an effective career transition may be related the length of the career, the reason for staying in the sport, and the level of financial security that results.

Over the past 15 years, there has been an increasing awareness of the need for preretirement planning and counseling outside the sports domain (Kleiber & Thompson, 1980; Manion, 1976; Rowen & Wilks, 1987). Similarly, in recent years, there has been a growing concern about career termination on several levels of elite sports. For example, in 1989, the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) developed a manual designed to assist elite athletes in understanding important issues related to career termination and guide them in devising a plan for their post-competition careers (USOC, 1988). In addition, the USOC implemented career counseling training seminars for interested national athletes that were very well-received (Murphy, 1989; Petitpas, Danish, McKelvain, & Murphy, 1990) and many sport psychologists currently working with U.S. Olympic Teams provide services related to career termination and planning (Gould, Tammen, Murphy, & May, 1989; May & Brown, 1989).

The professional sports in the U.S. also appear to be responding to this need as well (Dorfman, 1990). Specifically, both the National Football League Players Association and the National Basketball Association Players Association have, in recent years, developed similar programs for players who’s careers are terminated (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982). Lastly, a survey of collegiate athletic advisors indicated that a portion of their responsibilities involved providing vocational counseling (Brooks, Etzel, & Ostrow, 1987). Unfortunately, there has been no empirical exploration of the extent to which these services have been used by the elite athletes. It may be that, in contrast to years past when salaries were not highly discrepant from the normal population (Andreano, 1973; Blitz, 1973), with average salaries of over $500,000 per year (Cohen, 1989) and the presence of agents controlling finances (Garvey, 1984), many of these athletes may experience a false sense of security which makes career planning a low priority for them (Hill & Lowe, 1974).

This interest has also spread to the coaching ranks as well. Traditionally, coaches have actively avoided career guidance programs based on the belief that such involvement would act as a distraction to the athletes that would detract from their focus on their performances (Taylor, Ogilvie, Gould, & Gardner, 1990). However, this opposition appears to be softening as coaches at both the professional and elite amateur levels are realizing that providing such opportunities to mature athletes can contribute to the ultimate success of the athletic program (Blann, 1985; Ogilvie & Howe, 1982).

Theoretical Perspectives on Career Termination

Since career termination began to attract attention from the sports scientific community, efforts have been made to develop theoretical conceptualizations to explain the process that athletes go through as their careers come to an end. Sports researchers examining this issue have sought formulations from outside of the sports world as a foundation for developing explanatory models for the athletic population (Hill & Lowe, 1974; Lerch, 1982; Rosenberg, 1981).

Thanatology. Rosenberg (1982) suggests that retirement from sports is akin to social death. This concept, not related to biological death, focuses on how members of a group treat an individual who has recently left the group. Social death is characterized as social isolation and rejection from the former in-group. Ball (1976) suggests that a common reaction to an athlete’s release from a team is to ignore the athlete. Furthermore, this reaction by former teammates can cause embarrassment and anxiety (Rosenberg, 1982).

This explanation has received support from anecdotal and fictitious accounts of athletes who have experienced similar reactions upon retirement (Bouton, 1970; Deford, 1981; Kahn, 1973). However, the concept of social death has also received considerable criticism. For example, Blinde and Greendorfer (1985) argue that, though the depictions of athletic retirement as social death are poignant and dramatic, the thanatological perspective may be an excessively negative characterization of career termination. In addition, Lerch (1982) questions the generality of social death beyond the few dramatic anecdotal cases. He bases this concern on data collected from a large sample of former professional baseball players (Lerch, 1981). The findings of this study indicate that not one of the athletes made reference to death of any sort.

Social gerontology. This perspective emphasizes aging and considers life satisfaction as being dependent upon characteristics of the sports experience. It has been suggested that four social gerontological approaches are most appropriate to the study of retirement from sports (Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985).

Disengagement theory (Cummings, Dean, Newell, & McCaffrey, 1960) posits that society and the person withdraw for the good of both, enabling younger people to enter the work force and for the retired individuals to enjoy their remaining years. Activity theory (Havighurst & Albrecht, 1953) maintains that lost roles are exchanged for new ones, so that a person’s overall activity level is sustained. Continuity theory (Atchley, 1980) suggests that, if people have varied roles, the time and energy from the previous role can be re-allocated to the remaining roles. Finally, social breakdown theory (Kuypers & Bengston, 1973) proposes that retirement becomes associated with negative evaluation, which causes individuals to withdraw from the activity and internalize the negative evaluation. Rosenberg (1981) indicates that each of these theories has value in expanding the understanding of retirement from sports.

Despite the intuitive appeal of the social gerontology perspectives, they have been criticized as inadequate when applied to athletic retirement. Greendorfer and Blinde (1985) indicate that there is no empirical support for the relationship between sport-related factors and adjustment to retirement. Specifically, Lerch (1981) tested continuity theory on a sample of professional baseball players and found that continuity factors were not associated with post-retirement adjustment. Similar findings were reported by Arviko (1976) and Reynolds (1981) in their studies of professional athletes.

Termination as transition. Another criticism of both thanatology and social gerontology views is that they consider retirement as a singular, abrupt event (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985). In contrast, other researchers characterize retirement as a transition or process rather than a discrete event which involves development through life (Carp, 1972; Taylor, 1972). Greendorfer and Blinde (1985) assert that the emphasis from this perspective is on the continuation rather than cessation of behaviors, the gradual alteration rather than relinquishment of goals and interests, and the emergence of few difficulties in adjustment. Furthermore, data collected from former collegiate athletes supports their view of career termination as transition.

The earliest view of athletic retirement as transition was delineated by Hill and Lowe (1974). These researchers briefly applied Sussman’s (1971) analytic model of the sociological study of retirement to termination from sport. Sussman, in his multidimensional conceptualization, asserts that perceptions about retirement will be influenced by the following factors: (1) individual, e.g., motives, values, goals, problem solving skills; (2) situational, e.g., circumstances of retirement, pre-retirement planning, retirement income; (3) structural, e.g., social class, marital status, availability of social systems; (4) social, e.g., family, friends, extended social support; and (5) boundary constraints, e.g., societal definitions, economic cycles, employer attitudes. Schlossberg (1981) offered a similar model that emphasizes athletes’ perceptions of the transition, characteristics of the pre- and post-transition environments, and the attributes of the individual in their roles in the adaptation to the transition.

Hopson and Adams (1977) proposed a seven-step model of transition that is similar to the grieving process: (1) immobilization, i.e., shock from the event; (2) minimization, i.e., negative emotions associated with a loss are downplayed; (3) self-doubt, in which self-esteem is threatened and depression may ensue; (4) letting go, where the individual works through feelings of loss, anger, and disappointment; (5) testing out, when groundwork for a new direction is laid; (6) searching for meaning, where the individual gains perspective on the difficulties of the earlier stages; and (7) internalization, when this insight is accepted and the transition is complete.

Kubler-Ross’s human grieving model. In a similar fashion, the psychosocial process that athletes experience during career termination may be conceptualized within the framework of the human grieving model proposed by Kubler-Ross (1969). She has defined five distinct sequential stages in the grieving process which she found to be almost universal in her grief counseling experience: (1) denial against the initial trauma; (2) anger about the perceived injustice and lack of control; (3) bargaining to delay the inevitable; (4) depression over acceptance of the loss; and (5) full acceptance and a re-orientation toward the future.

Previous research has demonstrated the value of applying this model to employment issues (Winegardner, Simonetti, & Nykodym, 1984). This grieving model has also proven to be a useful means by which the experiences of the terminated athlete may be understood (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986; Wolff & Lester, 1989).

Causes of Career Termination Among Athletes

The causes of termination of an athletic career are found most frequently to be a function of three factors: Chronological age, deselection, and the effects of injury. As these major factors are examined, an attempt will be made to clarify their psychological, social, and physical ramifications in the career termination process. In addition, these factors will be scrutinized in terms of how they interact in the emergence of a crisis in the process of career termination.

Chronological age. Age is typically considered to be a primary cause of career termination. Anecdotal accounts of former elite athletes underscore the importance of age in career termination (Kahn, 1971; Kramer, 1969). Empirical research has also supported this relationship. For example, in a study of former Yugoslavian professional soccer players, 27% indicated that they were forced to retire because of their age (Mihovilovic, 1968). In addition, a study examining retired boxers reported similar findings (Weinberg & Arond, 1952). Also, Svoboda and Vanek (1982) showed that 13% of Czechoslavian national team athletes terminated their careers because of age. Allison and Meyer (1988) found that 10% of their sample of female tennis professionals retired due to age.

The age of the athletes as contributors to career termination have physiological and psychological implications. Perhaps the most significant is the physiological influence of age. In particular, athletes’ ability to compete at the elite level is largely a function of maintaining their physical capabilities at a commensurate level. Relevant physical attributes include strength, endurance, flexibility, coordination, physical composition. Unfortunately, a natural part of the maturation process is the slow deterioration of these attributes (Fisher & Conlee, 1979). Some aspects of this process may be slowed through intensive physical conditioning, experience, and motivation (Mihovilovic, 1968; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). However, others, such as the ability to execute fine motor skills or changes in body composition, are not considered to be remediable.

These changes have implications for both young and old elite athletes. For athletes engaged in sports such as gymnastics and figure skating, the physical changes that accompany puberty, such as height and weight gain, can literally make it impossible for them to execute skills that were previously routine, thus contributing to the premature conclusion of their careers. It should be noted that, in response to these changes and their debilitating effects on performance, young athletes are most vulnerable to chemical remedies and eating disorders (Thornton, 1990). Similarly, among older athletes, loss of muscle mass or agility may contribute to career termination from sports such as football, tennis, and basketball (Fisher & Conlee, 1979).

Age also has psychological components in its influence on career termination. In particular, as suggested by the findings of Werthner and Orlick (1986), as athletes become older, they may lose their motivation to train and compete, and they may conclude that they have reached their competitive goals. In addition, as the athletes mature, their values may change. Svoboda and Vanek (1982) found that the values of Czechoslovakian world-class athletes shifted their priorities away from a self-focus involving winning and traveling toward an other-focus with an emphasis on family and friends.

Deselection. One of the most significant contributors to the incidence of difficulties in the career termination of athletes is the harsh deselection process that occurs at every level of competitive sports (Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Unlike other areas of life in which people may continue to function regardless of the level of competence, sports rely on the Darwinian philosophy of “survival of the fittest” that places great value on the individuals who survive, but pays little attention to those who are deselected (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982).

Furthermore, this same Darwinian philosophy prevails throughout high school, university, elite-amateur, and professional sport and the current deselection process is a natural consequence of such a philosophy. The deselection process is clearly illustrated with statistics indicating the reality of attrition factors that operate within the competitive sports world, i.e., the proportion of athletes who successfully ascend succeeding rungs of the competitive ladder. For example, it is estimated that 5% of high school football players received university scholarships and, of these, only 1% have an opportunity to play in National Football League (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986). Similar statistics are found in basketball (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982). Add to this the fact that the average professional career span of basketball and football players is under five years (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986). From this perspective, to represent a career in professional football or basketball as a viable option for any child appears to be the height of deceit. As a result, it is important that the ramifications for those who have been deselected are explored, particularly those who remain committed to participation.

To date, the only study that has specifically looked at the role of deselection among elite-amateur and professional athletes was conducted by Mihovilovic (1968). In his study, 7% of the Yugoslavian professional soccer players polled indicated that they were forced out by younger players. However, as will be discussed later, the theoretical and empirical evidence suggests that career termination difficulties are more likely to occur among these groups of athletes. As a consequence, it may be reasonable to assume that deselection is a significant issue for these athletes at the highest rung of the competitive ladder.

Injury. National figures have estimated that, in any given year, between three and five million recreational and competitive athletes experience a sports-related injury (Kraus & Conroy, 1984). Due to the dramatic incidence of injury, there has been a significant increase in psychosocial research directed at gaining greater insight into causal factors associated with injury (Andersen & Williams, 1988). Some of the most important contributions have come from seeking answers to such questions as: Are there injury-prone athletes?; what is the relationship between injury and other life crises?; what can the study of injuries contribute to our understanding of adherence issues in rehabilitation?; and, finally, what role does injury play in the career termination of athletes? The quest for answers to these and other important questions is providing an increased understanding of the complexity of the problem of sports injuries (Duda, Smart, & Tappe, 1989; Henschen, 1986; May, et al., 1989; Rotella & Heyman, 1986).

A variety of writers have suggested that injuries may result in serious distress manifested in depression, substance abuse, and suicidal ideation and attempts (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982; Rotella, 1984; Werthner & Orlick). Furthermore, it is believed that career-ending injuries may cause athletes to experience identity crises (Elkin, 1981), social withdrawal (Lewis-Griffith, 1982), and fear, anxiety, and loss of self-esteem (Rotella & Heyman, 1984). Research has shown that injuries are a significant cause of career termination. In particular, Mihovilovic (1968) reported that 32% of the Yugoslavian professional soccer players questioned indicated that sport-related injuries were the cause of their career termination. Additionally, Werthner and Orlick (1986) found that 14% of a sample of 28 Olympic-caliber Canadian athletes were forced to retire due to injury. Also, Svoboda and Vanek (1982) in their study of Czechoslovakian national team members, indicated that 24% retired because of injury. Similar findings were reported by Weinberg and Arond (1952) and Hare (1971) in their investigations of former world-class professional boxers. In addition, 15% of the female tennis professionals studied by Allison and Meyer (1988) stated that they were forced to retire due to injury.

Perhaps the most significant factor related to injury to elite athletes that affects career termination is that elite athletes perform at such a high level that even a small reduction in physical capabilities may be sufficient to make them no longer competitive at that level. As a consequence, an injury need not be serious to have dramatic impact on athletes’ performances and, in turn, their careers. Moreover, when serious injury does occur, the considerable time and effort required for rehabilitation acts as a contributor to career termination (Feltz, 1986; Heil, 1988; Samples, 1987). This process not only affects the athletes’ return to their previous level, but also inhibits the normal improvement that occurs during the course of an athletic career. This event further increases the likelihood that the injury will be career-ending.

Free choice. An oft-neglected cause of career termination is that of the free choice of the athlete (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Coakley, 1983). The impetus to end a career freely is certainly the most desirable of the causal factors. Reasons why athletes might freely choose to retire may be a function of personal, social, or sport-related issues. On a personal level, athletes might wish to assume a new direction in life (Werthner & Orlick, 1986), seek out new challenges and sources of satisfaction in other areas of life, or have a change in values (Greendorfer & Blinde, 1986; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Socially, athletes may want to spend more time with family and friends, or immerse themselves in a new social milieu (Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). In terms of the sport itself, athletes might simply find that sports participation no longer provides the enjoyment and fulfillment that it once did (Werthner & Orlick, 1986).

There is some empirical evidence for this particular cause of career termination. In their interviews with Olympic-caliber Canadian athletes, Werthner and Orlick (1986) indicate that 42% of the ex-competitors retired for reasons that were within their control. However, in the Mihovilovic (1968) study, only 4% of athletes freely chose to end their careers. No research has examined this issue among scholastic and collegiate populations.

Other causes of career termination. In addition to causes discussed above, which have been found to be the predominant reasons for career termination, other factors have been either suggested or reported to also contribute to retirement. These causes include family reasons (Mihovilovic, 1968), problems with coaches or the sports organization (Mihovilovic, 1968; Werthner & Orlick, 1986), and financial difficulties (Werthner & Orlick, 1986).

Evidence of Trauma in Career Termination

Despite the extensive amount of literature on the issue of career termination, there is still considerable debate about the proportion of athletes who experience distress due to retirement and how the distress is manifested. Some early writers such as Sussman (1972) believed professional athletes did not experience difficulties because they knew their sports careers would be short and they prepared appropriately. In addition, he asserted that most professional athletes were assured of second occupations upon retirement. Some more recent researchers, both within and outside or sports, draw similar conclusions. For example, outside of sport, Atchley (1980) and George (1980) suggest that retirement seems to have little influence on personal adjustment and self-identity, and most people possess the necessary coping skills to overcome any problems that arise.

In the sports domain, others make similar arguments (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Coakley, 1983; Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985). These investigators base their judgments predominantly on research at the scholastic and collegiate levels. In fact, substantial research has found little evidence of distress due to career termination among these athlete populations. Specifically, several studies of high school athletes indicate that, compared to nonathletes, they are more likely to attend college, obtain undergraduate and graduate degrees, achieve greater occupational status, and earn higher incomes (Otto & Alwin, 1977; Phillips & and Schafer, 1971). In addition, Sands (1978), in a study of outstanding male scholastic athletes, found that the importance of sports to these athletes declined following high school and they defined their sports participation as a passing phase of life. Sands concluded that these athletes’ departure from scholastic sports was not accompanied by trauma or identity crises.

Less clear findings were reported from research involving collegiate athletes. Snyder and Baber (1979) found that there were no differences between former athletes and nonathletes in terms of life satisfaction, attitudes toward work. Also, the former athletes effectively altered their interests and activities upon graduation. As a result, their results do not support the argument that disengagement from collegiate sports is stressful for former athletes. Greendorfer and Blinde (1985) also judged that there were few adjustment difficulties among a large sample of male and female ex-college competitors. In support of their position, they indicated that 90% of the respondents looked forward to life after college and about 55% were very or extremely satisfied when their athletic careers ended. However, the authors de-emphasize the finding that one-third of their sample indicated that they were very or extremely unhappy with their retirement and that 38% of the males and 50% of the females responded that they very much or extremely missed sport involvement.

Curtis and Ennis (1988) found few indications of distress among a sample of junior-elite Canadian hockey players and a matched sample of nonathletes. Specifically, there were no differences in life satisfaction, or employment or marital status. Moreover, though 50% of the athletes indicated that retirement was difficult and 75% experienced a feeling of loss after leaving hockey, these perceptions did not appear to significantly impact the athletes at a practical level including educational, occupational, and family pursuits. Based on these results, the authors conclude that these finding reflect “a brief lament at having to give up hockey, and an occasional longing to relive the competition, camaraderie, and excitement” (p. 102).

Coakley (1983), in a review of relevant literature, states that “the transition out of intercollegiate sport seems to go hand-in-hand with the transition from college to work careers, new friendships, marriage, parenthood, and other roles normally associated with early adulthood” (p. 4). He further argues that the perception that distress is common is based upon the biased sampling of male professional athletes participating in spectator sports (Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985) and accounts in the popular media (Coakley, 1983).

At the same time, another group of researchers have developed an opposing view. Specifically, career termination may cause distress that manifests itself in a wide variety of dysfunctional ways. The majority of those who hold this view have focused on elite-amateur and professional athletes. Anecdotal accounts of athletes with psychological difficulties include financial difficulties and drug abuse (Newman, 1991), attempted suicide (Beisser, 1967; Hare, 1971; Vinnai, 1973), and criminal activity (Hare, 1971; McPherson, 1980).

At a scholarly level, it has been asserted that retiring individuals experience a loss of status, identity crisis, and a loss of direction and focus (Ball, 1976; Pollack, 1956; Tuckman & Lorge, 1953). In addition, Ogilvie and Howe (1982) report experiences of working with athletes suffering from alcoholism and acute depression.

There is also some empirical evidence for the occurrence of distress. For example, Mihovilovic (1968) reported that the coaches and management of Yugoslavian professional soccer players believed that retired players drank excessively, resorted to illegal activities, were in a serious psychic state, and had significant fears about the future. In questioning the players themselves, he found that 38% smoked cigarettes more and 16% drank more after their careers ended. Arviko (1976) also found alcoholism to be present in his study of former professional baseball players.

In addition, Hallden (1965) found that 45% of retired Swedish athletes who were interviewed were concerned about their emotional adjustment following the end of their careers. Also, Weinberg and Arond (1952) reported that retired professional boxers experienced severe emotional distress after leaving the boxing world. Unfortunately, neither study specified the nature of the emotional difficulties experienced by the athletes.

However, as indicated previously, one criticism of this research is that it is biased toward professional male athletes in team sports. In response to this issue, Allison and Meyer (1988) studied the effects of career termination on a sample of 20 female tennis professionals. Their findings indicate that 50% of the athletes perceived retirement as a relief, an opportunity to re-establish more traditional lifestyles, and felt a sense of satisfaction about their competitive careers. Furthermore, it should be noted that 75% remained actively involved in tennis as coaches or in business. The authors conclude that, rather than the social death concept suggested by Rosenberg (1984) and Lerch (1984), retirement may be considered social rebirth (Coakley, 1983). However, the researchers pay little attention to the finding that 30% of the athletes expressed feelings of isolation and loss of identity upon retirement and 10%, who retired unexpectedly due to injury, felt that they had failed to achieve their competitive goals.

Factors Contributing to Crises of Career Termination

In considering the potential for a crisis following career termination, it is important to note that ending a career will not necessarily cause distress (Coakley, 1983; Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985). Rather, there are a number of factors that make individuals, including athletes, more vulnerable to difficulties in the transition process (Rosenkoetter, 1985).

Elite athletes, when faced with the end of their careers, are confronted by a wide range of psychological, social, and financial/occupational threats. The extent of these threats will dictate the severity of the crisis they experience as a function of their career termination.

Self-identity. Most fundamental of the psychological issues that influence adaptation to career termination is the degree to which athletes define their self-worth in terms of their participation and achievement in sports (Greendorfer, 1985; Ogilvie & Howe, 1982; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Elite athletes who have been immersed in their sport to the exclusion of other activities will have a self-identity that is composed almost exclusively of their sports involvement (McPherson, 1980; Strieb & Schneider, 1971). This notion is derived from the early work of the Ego Psychologists (Ausubel & Kirk, 1977) and the more recent considerations involving self-esteem and self-identity (Wolff & Lester, 1989). Furthermore, without the input from their sport, these athletes have little to support their sense of self-worth (Pearson & Petitpas, 1990).

Athletes who are so heavily invested in their sports participation may be characterized as “unidimensional” people, in which their self-concept does not extend beyond the limits of their sport (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982). Moreover, these athletes often have provided themselves with few options in which they can invest their ego in other activities that can bring them similar satisfaction and ego-gratification (McPherson, 1980). In support of this position, Erikson (1959) and Marcia (1966) suggest that the search for self-identity requires the examination of many potential alternatives as adulthood approaches. However, the structure of elite sports seldom provide athletes with sufficient time or opportunities for exploring options.

Athletes in this situation typically experience career termination as something very important that is lost and can never be recovered (Werthner & Orlick, 1986). Furthermore, the finality of the loss seems impossible to bear and herein lies a significant source of the distress associated with career termination.

Perceptions of control. Exacerbating this distress is the profound lack of control that athletes have with respect to the end of their careers (McPherson, 1980). Consideration of the three primary causes of career termination discussed above, i.e., age, deselection, and injury, indicates that all are occurrences outside the control of the individual athlete. As a result, this absence of control related to an event so intrinsically connected to athletes’ self-identities creates a situation that is highly aversive and threatening (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Szinovacz, 1987).

Strong empirical evidence supports the importance of control in career termination. Mihovilovic (1968) reports that 95% of the athletes attributed causes to the end of their careers that were beyond their control and 52% retired suddenly. Additionally, 29% of the Olympic-caliber Canadian athletes experienced a decrease in their sense of personal control following retirement (Werthner & Orlick, 1986). Similar results were found by Svoboda and Vanek (1982).

Though this issue has not been addressed extensively in the sports literature. there is considerable research from the areas of clinical, social, and physiological psychology that demonstrates that perceptions of control are related to many areas of human functioning including sense of self-competence (Deci, 1980; White, 1959), the interpretation of self (Kelly, 1967) and other (Jones & Davis, 1965) information. In addition, perceptions of control may influence individuals’ feelings of helplessness (Friedlander, 1984-85), motivation (Wood & Bandura, 1989), physiological changes (Tache & Selye, 1985) and self-confidence (Bandura & Adams, 1977). Also, control has been associated with a variety of pathologies including depression (Alloy & Abramson, 1982), anxiety (Garfield & Bergin, 1978), substance abuse (Shiffman, 1982), and dissociative disorders (Putnam, 1989).

Social identity. It has been suggested that retired individuals who experience the most doubt and anxiety are those who feel that they are no longer important to others (Sheldon, 1975). Pollack (1956) and Tuckman and Lorge (1953) also associate retirement with a loss of status and social identity. Certainly, due to the high profile of elite athletes today, this issue is a significant concern for them (Gorbett, 1985). McPherson (1980) suggests that athletes define themselves in terms of their popular status. However, this recognition typically lasts only a few years and disappears following retirement. As a result, athletes may question their self-worth and feel the need to regain the lost public esteem.

In addition, athletes whose socialization process occurred primarily in the sports environment may be characterized as “role restricted” (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986). That is, these athletes have only learned to assume certain social roles specific to the athletic setting and are only able to interact with others within the narrow context of sports. As a result, their ability to assume other roles following career termination is severely inhibited (Greendorfer, 1985).

Only one study to date addressed this issue specifically. Arviko (1976) found that former professional baseball players who had a substantial number of social roles during their competitive careers were better adjusted. It is also possible to infer support for this contention from other research. Specifically, Haerle (1975) reported that professional baseball players who continued their educations or held meaningful jobs during the off-season had better occupational adjustment following career termination. In addition, Mihovilovic (1968) reported that if the athletes did not plan for another career following termination, the experience could be painful. Similar findings were described by Werthner and Orlick (1986). This educational and occupational pre-retirement planning may be considered other social roles for the athletes. As a result, they possessed roles that they could assume upon career termination.

Social support. Due to the total psychological and social immersion in the sports world, athletes’ primary social support system will often be derived from their athletic involvement (Coakley, 1983; Rosenfeld, Richman, & Hardy, 1989). In other words, the vast majority of their friends, acquaintances, and other associations are found in the sports environment and their social activities revolve primarily around their athletic life (Botterill, 1990; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982).

When the athletes’ careers end, they are no longer an integral part of the team or organization. As a consequence, the social support that they received previously may no longer be present. Moreover, due to their restricted social identity and the absence of alternative social support systems, they may become isolated, lonely, and unsustained socially, thus leading to significant distress (Greendorfer, 1985; McPherson, 1980). In support of this notion, the findings of Remer, Tongate, and Watson (1978) suggest that a support system based entirely in the sports setting will limit athletes’ ability to acquire alternative roles and assume a non-sport identity.

The smoothness of the career transition process may also depend on the amount of social support the athletes receive (Coakley, 1983; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Werthner and Orlick (1986) report that those Olympic-caliber Canadian athletes who received considerable support from family and friends had an easier transition. In addition, the athletes who had the most difficulties indicated that they felt alone as their careers ended and expressed the desire for support during that period.

Mihovilovic (1968) also demonstrated that social support was an important part of the career termination process. Specifically, he found that, according to the Yugoslavian soccer players they surveyed, 75% of their friends were from their sports club. Also, 60% of the athletes indicated that these friendships were maintained, but 34% said that the friendships ended after they retired. Moreover, 32% of the respondents stated that their circle of friends diminished following career termination. Additionally, Reynolds (1981) reported that, among a sample of retired professional football players, those athletes who received support from close friends and relatives demonstrated the highest level of satisfaction in their current jobs.

Gorbett (1985) also recommends that, in addition to emotional support from family and friends, athletes must receive institutional support. However, in one study (Svoboda & Vanek, 1982), the athletes expressed considerable dissatisfaction over the support they received from their organization during the retirement process. Schlossberg and Leibowitz (1980) found that employer support was critical for the transition to retirement outside of sport. Furthermore, Schlossberg (1981) and Manion (1976) suggest that institutional and interpersonal support can best be provided through pre-retirement counselling programs.

Pre-retirement planning. A common theme that emerges from the literature on retirement outside of sports is the resistance on the part of individuals to plan for their lives after the end of their careers (Avery & Jablin, 1988; Chartland & Lent, 1987; Rowen & Wilks, 1987; Thorn, 1983). This type of denial may be even more threatening for elite athletes since the immediate rewards are so attractive and the discrepancy between their current lifestyles and that which might occur upon career termination is significant. As a consequence, any acknowledgement or consideration that their athletic careers might end would be a source of significant anxiety, thus warranting avoidance of the issue altogether. Yet, it is likely that this denial of the inevitable will have serious, potentially negative, and extended implications for the athletes.

It has been widely asserted that an essential component of effective career transition is sound post-athletic career planning (Coakley, 1983; Hill & Lowe, 1974; Pearson & Petitpas, 1990). Substantial research is supportive of this position. Haerle (1975) reported that 75% of the professional baseball players he surveyed did not acknowledge their post-career lives until the end of their careers. He also found that the level of educational attainment, which may be considered a form of pre-retirement planning, was a significant predictor of post-athletic occupational status. Arviko (1976) and Lerch (1981) reported similar findings in their studies of professional baseball and football players, respectively.

Svoboda and Vanek (1982) showed that 41% of the Czechoslovakian national team athletes admitted that they had paid no attention to the reality that their career would end and 31% began to consider the future only immediately before termination. Similar comments were expressed by the Olympic-caliber Canadian athletes interviewed by Werthner and Orlick (1986).

In addition, research on former world-class professional boxers found a high incidence of difficulties following retirement (Hare, 1971; Weinberg & Arond, 1952). The authors conclude that, since the majority of their sample came from lower socioeconomic status environments, they lacked the education and experience to plan for the end of their careers.

Other contributing factors. The above factors have received substantial and consistent attention as potential causes of distress during career termination. In addition, a number of other factors have been suggested to contribute to this process. These variables include socioeconomic status (Hare, 1971; Weinberg & Arond, 1952), financial dependency on the sport (Lerch, 1981; McPherson, 1980; Werthner & Orlick, 1986), minority status (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Hill & Lowe, 1974;), post-athletic occupational potential (Hill & Lowe, 1974; Haerle, 1975), health (Gorbett, 1985; Hill & Lowe, 1974), and marital status (Svoboda & Vanek, 1982).

Prevention and Treatment of Crises of Career Termination

The phenomenon of career termination from sports can best be understood as a complex interaction of stressors. Whether the stressors are physical, psychological, social, or educational/occupational, their effects on athletes may produce some form of distress when athletes are confronted with career termination.

The evidence to date indicates that crises due to career termination occur less often among retiring scholastic and collegiate athletes (Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985; Otto & Alwin, 1977; Phillips & Schafer, 1971; Sands, 1978) and with a greater frequency among elite amateur (Werthner & Orlick, 1986) and professional athletes (Mihovilovic, 1968; Weinberg & Arond, 1952). However, appropriate intervention will decrease the risk that athletes at any level will experience distress following career termination.

The prevention of crises of career termination is a task that is not left to a few people at a particular level of competitive sport. Rather, it is the responsibility of individuals involved at all levels and in all areas of sports including parents, educators, coaches, administrators, physicians, and psychologists (Werthner & Orlick, 1986). Moreover, participation of these people in fulfilling their roles in this process can range from the earliest stages of sports participation to the termination process itself (Pearson & Petitpas, 1990).

Early development. The often single-minded pursuit of excellence that accompanies elite sports participation has potential psychological and social dangers. As discussed above, these risks involve the development of a “unidimensional” person. The personal investment in and the pursuit of elite athletic success, though a worthy goal, may lead to a restricted development.

Though there is substantial evidence demonstrating the debilitating effects of deselection upon self-esteem among young athletes (Orlick, 1980; Scanlan, 1984; Smith et al., 1979), little consideration has been given to changing this process in a healthier direction. Most organized youth programs still appear to place the highest priority on winning.

It is important that the indoctrination of a more holistic approach to sports development begins early in the life of the athlete (Pearson & Petitpas, 1990). This perspective relies on a primary prevention model that emphasizes preventing problems prior to their occurrence. Considerable research indicates that primary preventive measures are a useful and efficient means of allocating resources (Conyne, 1987; Cowen, 1983). As a consequence, the first step in the prevention process is to engender in parents and coaches involved in youth sport a belief that long-term personal and social development is more important than short-term athletic success (Ogilvie, 1987). This view is especially relevant because it has been asserted that developing athletes must often face issues that are unique and separate from the normal requirements of development (Remer, Tongate, & Watson, 1978).

It has been further argued that high school and college athletic programs restrict opportunities for personal and social growth (Remer, Tongate, & Watson, 1978; Schafer, 1971). Significant issues in this area include the development of self- and social identities, social roles and behaviors, and social support systems. Moreover, examples of this balance not being fostered include the low graduation rates of collegiate basketball and football programs (Sherman, Weber, & Tegano, 1986). Early intervention of these areas will decrease the likelihood that the factors related to crises in career termination such as those mentioned above will contribute to distress due to career termination later in their lives.

It is also important to emphasize that these two issues, i.e., sports participation and development, are not mutually exclusive. Sports participation may, in fact, become a vehicle through which general “life” skills may be learned (Scanlan, Stein, & Ravizza, 1989). In addition, sports may be the foundation upon which children may develop the ability to take psychological and social risks in other areas of their lives. Thus, a healthy sports environment may assist athletes to become more fully integrated personally and socially, thereby enabling them to function in a more diverse variety of situations.

Prior to and during career termination. In addition to the values, beliefs, and skills that can be instilled in developing athletes, there is much that can be done with the athletes who attain elite status and are currently in the midst of elite athletic careers. As discussed earlier, recognition of the inevitability of career termination and subsequent action in preparation for that eventuality are the best courses of action (Haerle, 1975; Pearson & Petitpas, 1990; Werthner & Orlick, 1986).

Pre-retirement planning that involves reading materials and workshops (Kaminski da Rosa, 1985; Manion, 1976; Thorn, 1983; USOC, 1988) are important opportunities for elite athletes to plan for and work toward meaningful lives following career termination. In addition, effective money management and long-term financial planning will provide athletes with financial stability following the conclusion of their careers (Hill & Lowe, 1974). It should also be noted that organizational support of this goal is critical to the comfort and commitment experienced by the athletes (Gorbett, 1985; Pearson & Petitpas, 1990; Schlossberg & Leibowitz, 1980).

Therapeutically, sport psychologists may assist athletes in clarifying their values, interests, and goals. Also, they may aid the athletes in working through any emotional distress they may experience during career termination (Kubler-Ross, 1969). Specifically, they may provide the athletes with the opportunity to express feelings of doubt, concern, or frustration relative to the end of their careers (Gorbett, 1985). Also, the professional may help the athletes to explore ways of broadening their social identity and role repertoire (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982), thus taking on new, non-sport identities and experiencing feelings of value and self-worth in this new personal conception (Shaffer, 1985). Additionally, athletes may be encouraged to expand their social support system to individuals and groups outside of the sports arena (Beehr, 1986).

On a manifest level, the sport psychologist may help the athletes cope with the stress of the termination process (Gorbett, 1985). Traditional therapeutic strategies such as cognitive restructuring (Garfield & Bergin, 1978), stress management (Meichenbaum & Jaremko, 1983), and emotional expression (Yalom, 1980) may be used in this process.

Outside of sport, Brammer and Abrego (1981) offer an interactive model of coping with transition adapted from Moos and Tsu (1977). This model posits the need to intervene at a variety of levels including the appraisal process, social support systems, internal support systems, emotional and physical distress, and planning and implementing change. In addition, within sport, Wolff and Lester (1989) propose a three-stage therapeutic process comprised of listening/confrontation, cognitive therapy, and vocational guidance to aid athletes in coping with their loss of self-identity and assist them in establishing a new identity.

There has been little empirical research examining the significant factors in this process. Outside of sport, Roskin (1982) found that the implementation of a package of cognitive, affective, and social support interventions within didactic and small-group settings significantly reduced depression and anxiety among a high-stress group of individuals composed partly of retirees.

Within sport, Svoboda and Vanek (1982) studied the ability of their sample of Czechoslovakian national team members to cope with the practical and psychological stress of adjustment to their new professions. Their results indicated that 30% were able to meet the new practical demands immediately and 58% were able to adjust within three years. However, psychological adjustment took much longer: 34% adapted immediately, but 17% had not adjusted at all. These researchers also explored the predominant means of coping with career termination. They found that social support was the most important factor. Specifically, 37% indicated their family most often, followed by colleagues in their new profession (12%), friends (8%), and their coach (3%).

Avenues for Future Research

Due to the relative scarcity of systematic investigation into the area of career termination, there is considerable room for contribution to the theoretical and empirical literature. As Landers (1983) has argued, there is a significant need in sport psychology for more theory-driven study of important issues. In addition, there is a noticeable lack of empirical data to substantiate the positions held by the leading thinkers in the area. As a consequence, a program of empirical research based on a sound working model of the career termination process should be the goal.

Theoretical development. The first area of research development within the area of career termination should be in the theoretical domain. In particular, there is a need for a conceptual model specific to sports that incorporates many of the relevant issues that have been discussed in this chapter. Though, as discussed previously, attempts have been made to develop a conceptual model of career termination from work done outside of sport (Lerch, 1982; Rosenberg, 1982), these efforts have met with limited success (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985).

It is presently suggested that an effective model must fulfill the following criteria: (1) Identify the causal factors that initiate the career termination process, e.g., age, deselection, injury; (2) Specify the factors that differentiate traumatic and healthy responses to career termination, e.g., self- and social identity, perceptions of control, pre-retirement planning; (3) Designate the tertiary factors that might mediate this effect, e.g., coping resources, social support; and (4) Indicate treatment modalities for distressful reactions to career termination.

Empirical development. Based on a conceptual model such as the one proposed above, a systematic program of research may be implemented that would progressively examine and generate data for each phase of the model. Such an organized approach would enable researchers to draw meaningful conclusions from sound theory-driven data gathering.

Pertinent empirical questions that should be considered include: (1) Does the particular cause of career termination influence the nature of the response from the athletes?; (2) What are the underlying factors relative to these causes that differentiate athletes’ responses to career termination?; (3) What are the specific factors that

mediate the nature of the response to career termination?; (4) What preventive measures will moderate the distress of career termination?; and (5) What strategies are most effective in the treatment of distress due to career termination?

In addition, there are other ancillary concerns that would be worth addressing: (1) What issues in childhood development and early sports participation will influence the career transition process?; (2) What types of changes at the development level may mitigate potential trauma in the career termination process?; (3) Are there differences in the type of sport, e.g., individual vs. team, professional vs. amateur, with respect to the athletes’ responses to career termination?; and (4) Are there gender, age, and cultural differences in athletes’ responses to career termination?

Conclusion

The purpose of this chapter was to provide an overview of relevant issues in the process of career termination among elite athletes. In addition, another objective was to discuss the factors that contribute to traumatic reactions to career termination. Lastly, a goal was to demonstrate the importance of further understanding of career termination and its influence on athletes. However, as mentioned earlier, despite its apparent significance, some investigators have challenged its seriousness. For example, Coakley (1983) argues that transition from high school football is similar to other forms of retirement and, as a result, not worthy of special concern. Moreover, Greensdorfer and Blinde (1985) assert that only 17% of their sample of retired collegiate athletes were unsatisfied with themselves after retirement. Furthermore, they question the generalizability of conclusions made about career termination from a sample composed primarily of male professional athletes in spectator sports. As a consequence, they conclude that the magnitude of the problem is over-rated. Eitzen and Sage (1982) further question the wisdom of basing concerns about the trauma of career termination on the 2% of the athletic population who are professionals.

However, it is presently suggested that these contentions do not adequately argue against the importance of understanding career termination. Specifically, Coakley (1983) and Greendorfer et al. (1985) are not drawing from a truly elite sample of athletes. Also, as discussed previously, they downplay their findings which suggest a meaningful number of athletes who indicate that they did experience following career termination. Additionally, termination from high and collegiate sports is still within the normal developmental process and, consequently, should not be generalized to older athletes. As a result, it would not be expected that these athletes would present considerable trauma upon the termination of their careers. In addition, Greendorfer et al. and Eitzen et al. indicate that if only a small portion of the population experience distress, then the issue is not worth considering. To the contrary, fortunately, in our society, provision of study and assistance is not based upon having a “sufficient” number of people suffering. Moreover, as is often the case, the significant visibility of this select group of elite athletes and the exposure of these issues to the general population may have a positive influence on other individuals faced with similar difficulties.

Based on this review, it is clear that career termination is an important issue worthy of study. However, though there has been considerable discussion about career termination among professionals in the field, there has been relatively little systematic exploration of the area. It is hoped that the present integration of current information will act as impetus for future theoretical and empirical inquiry.

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CAREER

 

TRANSITION AMONG ELITE ATHLETES:

IS THERE LIFE AFTER SPORTS?

Jim Taylor & Bruce Ogilvie

During the course of athletes’ careers, the primary focus of sports administrators, coaches, and sport psychologists is on assisting athletes to maximize their competitive performances. This emphasis is expected since athletes are their responsibilities during their competitive tenures and, when the athletes leave, their attention has to turn to the current athletes under their charge. This system, unfortunately, tends to neglect what happens to athletes when they retire and must make the transition to another career and lifestyle.

Fortunately, there has been a growing interest at many levels of sport and among many groups involved in sport in the issue of what has become known as “career transition” (Baillie & Danish, 1992). Popular accounts of this issue have provided anecdotal depictions of professional athletes adjusting to life after sport (Hoffer, 1990; Putnam, 1991). These have most often recounted difficulties that athletes have had following the conclusion of their careers (Bradley, 1976; Kahn, 1972; Morrow, 1978), with a few exceptions of athletes who had successful transition (Batten, 1979; White, 1974). These accounts suggest that athlete retirement is a pervasive problem, but the accuracy of these observations comes into question as these writings lack the ability to generalize to the larger population of athletes experiencing the end of their sports careers.

HISTORY AND BACKGROUND

It was only two decades ago that the issue of career transition gained the attention of sport psychologists. Leading professionals in the field in Europe such as Miroslav Vanek, Paul Kunath, Ferruccio Antonelli, Lars-Erik Unestahl and John Kane who were consultants for their various national teams began to discuss this issue, describe experiences they had in their work with athletes, and express concern about their adjustment to a life after sport. Additionally, the media (Bradley, 1976; Kahn, 1972; Plimpton, 1977) and early scholarly, though anecdotal, writings (Broom, 1982; McPherson, 1980; Ogilvie & Howe, 1986) brought to light some of the significant concerns associated with career transition among athletes. Soon after these preliminary discussions began, research emerged investigating the issues raised by these professionals (Haerle, 1975; Hill & Lowe, 1974). These researchers studied the impact of career transition on athletes in different sports and at various levels of competition.

Professionals from Eastern Europe were the leaders in these investigations. The nature of their sports organizations made the study of career transition more conducive to this process. Eastern European nations appeared to be accepting more responsibility for preparing their national athletes for a career beyond sport. The team psychologists in these countries typically had long-term relationships with the team members beginning early in their athletic development and enduring throughout their athletic careers.

Also, the centralized structure of the Eastern European sports organizations allowed for educational and vocational training to be an integral part of the developmental process of athletes. Many of these athletes studied in fields that were related to sports participation such as coaching, exercise physiology, and physical therapy, thus enabling them to combine their love of sport with a professional career after retirement.

In addition, European elite athletes typically had a longer competitive history due to population size and the relatively limited pool of talent from which they had to draw. Outside of the former Soviet Union, most of these countries did not have the vast talent pool available in the United States, resulting in European athletes competing longer and retiring at a later age.

The decentralized nature of sports in the United States has made it more difficult to examine the adjustment difficulties of elite athletes and to address them in an organized manner. Unlike other countries which often have national training centers for elite sports preparation, the primary development pools leading to most world-class and professional competition in the United States are the collegiate athletic programs and private sports clubs such those found in swimming, figure skating and gymnastics.

The opportunity to study and address career transition needs of elite athletes has proven to be difficult for a variety of reasons. Typically, trained professionals such as sport psychologists and career counselors have had limited contact with athletes during their competitive careers much less after they leave their sport. Until recently, sport administrators had little concern for athletes after they retire and sport psychologists rarely had the occasion to evaluate the need for such services to elite athletes. Additionally, the contact time that professionals had with athletes was not conducive to exploration of post-career concerns. For example, sport psychologists usually work with elite athletes at training camps and competitions, neither of which provide opportunities for discussion of career transition issues.

Divergent perspectives held by administrators and coaches with respect to career transition may also have hindered further exploration of these concerns. For example, head coaches may sabotage career counseling programs because they interpret them as distracting the athletes from their primary focus of winning.

Only in recent years have the United States Olympic Committee, the individual NGB’s, and Sport Canada established on-going career counseling programs available to all Olympic-caliber athletes (Sinclair & Orlick, 1993; USOC, 1988).

Professional sports teams also appear to be responding to these concerns. The players’ associations of the National Football League (NFL) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) have recently offered career counseling services to their members. However, the extent of use by the athletes is unclear. In fact, research indicates that relatively few elite athlete consider post-athletic career concerns (Arviko, 1976; Haerle, 1975; Lerch, 1981). It may be that the high salaries accorded these athletes may provide them with a false sense of security.

THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES ON CAREER TRANSITION

Since the onset of interest in the area of career transition for elite athletes, attempts have been made to provide a formal conceptualization of this process. Most investigators have drawn upon retirement research outside of sport and tried to apply these models to the concerns of athletes.

Thanatology. Rosenberg (1982) suggested that retirement from sports is akin to social death, which is characterized as social isolation and rejection from the former in-group. This explanation has received support from anecdotal and fictitious accounts of athletes who have experienced similar reactions upon retirement (Bouton, 1970; Deford, 1981; Kahn, 1972). However, the concept of social death has also been widely criticized and there has been little empirical support for this position (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Lerch, 1982).

Social gerontology. This view focuses on aging and considers life satisfaction as being dependent upon characteristics of the sports experience. Four social gerontological perspectives have been offered as most applicable to sports retirement (Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985; Rosenberg, 1982).

Disengagement theory (Cummings, Dean, Newell, & McCaffrey, 1960) posits that the person and society withdraw for the good of both, enabling younger people to enter the work force and for the retired individuals to enjoy their remaining years. Activity theory (Havighurst & Albrecht, 1953) suggests that lost roles are replaced by new ones, so that people may maintain their overall level of activity. Continuity theory (Atchley, 1980) states that, if people have different roles, the time and energy from the prior role may be re-allocated to the remaining roles. Finally, social breakdown theory (Kuypers & Bengston, 1973) proposes that retirement becomes associated with negative evaluation, which causes individuals to withdraw from the activity and internalize the negative evaluation.

Despite their intuitive appeal, these views have been criticized as inadequate when applied to athletic retirement. Specifically, research by Arviko (1976), Greendorfer and Blinde (1985), and Lerch (1982) provides little support for any of the social gerontological approaches.

Retirement as transition. A criticism of both thanatology and social gerontology theories is that they view retirement as a singular, abrupt event (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985). In contrast, other researchers characterize retirement as a transition or process which involves development through life (Carp, 1972; Taylor, 1972). Greendorfer and Blinde (1985) suggest that the focus should be on the continuation rather than cessation of behaviors, the gradual alteration rather than relinquishment of goals and interests, and the emergence of few difficulties in adjustment. Data collected from former collegiate athletes support their view of retirement as transition (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985).

Building on this perspective, theorists have offered models of career transition considering the specific needs and concerns of the athletic population. Hill and Lowe (1974) applied Sussman’s (1971) analytic model to sport which stressed the roles that personal, social, and environmental factors have in the transition process. Schlossberg (1981) offered a similar model that emphasized athletes’ perceptions of the transition, characteristics of the pre- and post-transition environments, and the attributes of the individuals in their roles in the adaptation to the transition. Both Hopson and Adams (1977) and Kubler-Ross (1969) offer models that describe the steps through which athletes progress after leaving their sport with a particular emphasis on the emotional implications of career transition.

CONCEPTUAL MODEL OF CAREER TRANSITION

In order to continue the evolutionary process in our understanding of career transition among elite athletes, Taylor and Ogilvie (1994) developed a conceptual model that attempted to integrate the theoretical and empirical investigations to date by incorporating aspects of prior theorizing, taking into account the findings of previous empirical research, and considering their own applied work with athletes in career transition. What emerged was a model that addresses all relevant concerns from the initiation of career transition to its ultimate consequences.

STAGE 1: CAUSES OF CAREER TERMINATION

The causes for termination of an athletic career are found most frequently to be a function of four factors: Age, deselection, the consequences of an injury, and free choice. These factors influence a variety of psychological, social, and physical issues that contribute to the likelihood of distress due to career transition.

Age

Age, or more specifically, the decline in performance due to advancing age, is a primary cause of retirement. Anecdotal accounts of former elite athletes underscore the importance of age in retirement (Kahn, 1972; Kramer, 1969). Empirical evidence has also shown that a substantial proportion of elite athletes retire because of decreased performance associated with age (Allison & Meyer, 1988; Mihovilovic, 1968; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982; Weinberg & Arond, 1952).

The influence of age on career termination is a function of physiological, psychological, and social factors and has significant ramifications for both young and older athletes. For athletes competing in sports where high-level performance occurs during adolescence, career termination may result while they are still teenagers. This will be particularly evident for those sports such as gymnastics in which puberty, and the accompanying physical changes, can restrict rather than contribute to motor development and performance.

Similar difficulties with older athletes are also evident in sports such as baseball, football, and tennis that require size, strength, and precise motor skills. Athletes performing at the elite level is largely due to their ability to maintain their physical capabilities at a competitive level. Athletes can often compete effectively into their 30’s or later. However, due to the natural physical deterioration that accompanies approaching middle age, athletic performance will decrease commensurately (Fisher & Conlee, 1979).

Age also has psychological influences on retirement. As athletes become older, they may lose their motivation to train and compete, and conclude that they have reached their competitive goals (Werthner & Orlick, 1986). Athletes’ values may also change. Svoboda and Vanek (1982) found that Czechoslovakian world-class athletes shifted their priorities away from a self-focus involving winning and traveling toward an other-focus with an emphasis on family and friends.

Finally, age possesses a social element. “Aging” athletes, particularly those whose performances begin to diminish, can be devalued by fans, management, media, and other athletes. This loss of status further contributes to the difficulties that may arise in the career transition process. Sinclair and Orlick (1993) reported that elite-amateur athletes who retired due to declining competitive performance tended to have the most difficulties with loss of status and a lack of self-confidence.

Deselection

One of the most significant contributors to the occurrence of career termination is the nature of the selection process that occurs at every level of competitive sports. This process, which follows a Darwinian “survival of the fittest” philosophy, selects out only those athletes capable of progressing to the next level of competition and disregards those who do not meet the necessary performance criteria. Organized youth programs still place the highest priority on winning and this same philosophy predominates throughout high school, university and professional sport. Data indicates that only one in five scholastic athletes receive college scholarships and only 1% of those play professionally. Moreover, the typical career length of a professional football, basketball, and baseball player is only 4-5 years (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986).

Injury

The occurrence of serious or chronic injury may force athletes to end their athletic careers. The research to date indicates that 14-32% of the athletes that were studied were forced to retire prematurely because of injury (Allison & Meyer, 1988; Hare, 1971; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982; Werthner & Orlick, 1986). Furthermore, it has been suggested that severe injuries may result in a variety of psychological difficulties including fear, anxiety, and loss of self-esteem (Rotella & Heyman, 1986), depression, and substance abuse (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986).

Injury also has significant ramifications as retired athletes consider post-sport careers. It is not uncommon for elite athletes to leave their sport permanently disabled to varying degrees. These physical disabilities can negatively impact retired athletes, producing a range of psychological and emotional problems. Iinjuries sustained during their athletic careers may also limit them in their choices of new careers.

Free choice

An often neglected cause of career termination is that of the free choice of the athlete (Coakley, 1983). Research has indicated that it is a common cause of retirement among elite amateur and professional athletes (Mihovilovic, 1968; Werthner & Orlick, 1986). The impetus to end a career by choice is the most desirable of causes of retirement because the decision resides wholly within the control of the athlete. Athletes choose to end their careers voluntarily for a variety of personal, social, and sport reasons. Athletes may choose to embark on a new direction in their lives (Werthner & Orlick, 1986). They may experience a change in values, motivations, and the desire to pursue new interests and goals (Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985).

Athletes in career transition may wish to spend more time with family and friends or seek out a new social milieu in which to immerse themselves (Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Lastly, their relationship with their sport may also change, in which athletes may have reached their sport related goals (Sinclair & Orlick, 1993) or found that their sports participation was no longer enjoyable and rewarding (Werthner & Orlick, 1986).

Other Causes of Career Termination

Though less common, other factors have been either suggested or reported to contribute to career termination. These causes include family reasons (Mihovilovic, 1968), problems with coaches or the sports organization (Mihovilovic, 1968; Werthner & Orlick, 1986), and financial difficulties (Werthner & Orlick, 1986).

STEP 2: FACTORS RELATED TO ADAPTATION TO CAREER TRANSITION

Athletes experiencing career transition may face a wide range of psychological, social, financial, and occupational changes. The extent of these changes and how athletes perceive them may dictate the quality of the adaptation they experience as a function of their retirement.

Developmental contributors. The presence and quality of adaptation to career transition may depend on developmental experiences that occurred since the inception of their athletic careers. The nature of these experiences will affect the emergence of self-perceptions and interpersonal skills that will influence how athletes adapt to retirement.

The often single-minded pursuit of excellence that accompanies elite sports participation has potential psychological and social dangers, and this quest is rooted in the earliest experiences athletes have in their youth sports participation. The personal investment in and the pursuit of elite athletic success, though a worthy goal, may lead to a restricted development.

Though there is substantial evidence demonstrating the debilitating effects of deselection upon self-esteem among young athletes (Scanlan, 1984; Smith, Smoll, & Curtis, 1979), little consideration has been given to changing this process in a healthier direction. Most organized youth programs still appear to place the highest priority on winning.

In order to alleviate these difficulties at their source, the indoctrination of a more holistic approach to sports development can be beneficial early in the life of the athlete (Pearson & Petitpas, 1990). This perspective relies on a primary prevention model that emphasizes preventing problems prior to their occurrence (Conyne, 1987; Cowen, 1983). The first step in the prevention process is to engender in parents and coaches involved in youth sport a belief that long-term personal and social development is more important than short-term athletic success (Ogilvie, 1987).

It has been further argued that high school and college athletic programs restrict opportunities for personal and social growth such as the development of self and social identities, social roles and behaviors, and social support systems (Remer, Tongate, & Watson, 1978; Schafer, 1971). Early intervention in these areas will decrease the likelihood that the factors related to the quality of the adaptation in career transition will contribute to distress due to retirement later in their lives.

Self-identity. Most fundamental of the psychological issues that influence adaptation to career transition is the degree to which athletes define their self-worth in terms of their participation and achievement in sports (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Ogilvie & Howe, 1982; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Athletes who have been immersed in their sport to the exclusion of other activities will have a self-identity that is composed almost exclusively of their sports involvement (Brewer, Van Raalte, & Linder, 1993; McPherson, 1980). Without the input from their sport, retired athletes have little to support their sense of self-worth (Pearson & Petitpas, 1990).

Athletes who are disproportionately invested in their sports participation may be characterized as “unidimensional” people, in which their self-concept does not extend far beyond the limits of their sport (Coakley, 1983; Ogilvie & Howe, 1982). These athletes often have few options in which they can gain meaning and fulfillment from other activities outside their sport (McPherson, 1980).

It has been suggested that athletes with overly developed athletic identities are less prepared for post-sport careers (Baillie & Danish, 1992), have restricted career and educational plans (Blann, 1985), and typically experience retirement from sport as something very important that is lost and can never be recovered (Werthner & Orlick, 1986). The finality of the loss seems impossible to bear and herein lies a significant threat to healthy adaptation to athletic career transition.

Perceptions of control. The degree of perceived control that the athletes have with respect to the end of their careers can also impact how they respond to career transition (McPherson, 1980). Of the four primary causes of athletic retirement discussed above, namely, age, deselection, injury, and free choice, the former three are predominantly outside the control of the individual athlete. This absence of control related to an event so intrinsically connected to athletes’ self-identities may create a situation that is highly aversive and threatening (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Szinovacz, 1987).

Research examining Olympic-caliber and professional athletes has indicated that the causes of retirement for many athletes were beyond their control (Mihovilovic, 1968) and that they experienced a decrease in their sense of personal control following retirement (Svoboda & Vanek, 1982; Werthner & Orlick, 1986). Though this issue has not been addressed extensively in the sports literature, there is considerable research from the areas of clinical, social, and physiological psychology demonstrating that perceptions of control are related to many areas of human functioning including sense of self-competence (White, 1959) and the interpretation of self (Kelly, 1967) and other (Jones & Davis, 1965) information. In addition, perceptions of control may influence individuals’ feelings of helplessness (Friedlander, 1984-85), motivation (Wood & Bandura, 1989), physiological changes (Tache & Selye, 1985) and self-confidence (Bandura & Adams, 1977). Loss of control has been associated with a variety of pathologies including depression (Alloy & Abramson, 1982), anxiety (Garfield & Bergin, 1978), substance abuse (Shiffman, 1982), and dissociative disorders (Putnam, 1989).

Social identity. The diversity of athletes’ social identities can affect their adaptation to career transition (Gorbett, 1985). Researchers have associated retirement with a loss of status and social identity (Pollack, 1956; Tuckman & Lorge, 1953). McPherson (1980) suggests that many athletes define themselves in terms of their popular status, though this recognition is typically short-lived. As a result, retired athletes may question their self-worth and feel the need to regain the lost public esteem.

In addition, athletes whose socialization process occurred primarily in the sports environment may be characterized as “role restricted” (Ogilvie & Howe, 1986). That is, these athletes have only learned to assume certain social roles specific to the athletic setting and are only able to interact with others within the narrow context of sports. As a result, their ability to assume other roles following retirement may be severely inhibited (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985). Studies by Arviko (1976), Haerle (1975), Mihovilovic (1968), and Werthner and Orlick (1986) all indicate that athletes with a broad-based social identity that includes family, friendship, educational, and occupational components demonstrated better adaptation following sports career termination.

Tertiary contributing factors. In addition to the above intrapersonal factors, there are personal, social, and environmental variables that may influence athletes’ adaptation to retirement. These factors may be viewed as potential stressors whose presence will likely exacerbate the primary adaptive factors just discussed (Coakley, 1983).

Socioeconomic status may influence the adaptation process (Hare, 1971; Weinberg & Arond, 1952). Athletes who are financially dependent on their sports participation and possess few skills to earn a living outside of sport or have limited financial resources to fall back on may perceive retirement as more threatening and, as a result, may evidence distress (Lerch, 1981; McPherson, 1980; Werthner & Orlick, 1986).

It has also been argued that minority status (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Hill & Lowe, 1974) and gender (Coakley, 1983) will affect the adaptation process due to what are perceived as fewer post-athletic career opportunities (Hill & Lowe, 1974; Haerle, 1975). These factors are likely to be most significant when interacting with socioeconomic status and pre-retirement planning (Weinberg & Arond, 1952). The health of athletes at the time of retirement will further affect the quality of the adaptation (Gorbett, 1985; Hill & Lowe, 1974). Athletes with chronic disabilities incurred during athletic careers may, as a result of the injuries, have limited choices in their post-athletic careers. Also, marital status, as an aspect of social support, will influence the adaptation process (Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Athlete characteristics including age, years competing, and level of attainment will also influence adaptation in the retirement process.

STEP 3: AVAILABLE RESOURCES FOR ADAPTATION TO CAREER TRANSITION

Athletes’ adaptation to career transition depends largely on the resources that they have available to surmount the difficulties that arise. Two factors that can influence people’s ability to respond effectively to these problems include coping skills (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984; Meichenbaum, 1977) and social support (Cohen & Wills, 1985; Sarason & Sarason, 1986; Smith, 1985). In addition, research indicates that another valuable resource, pre-retirement planning, may significantly influence adaptation to career transition (Coakley, 1983; Hill & Lowe, 1974; Pearson & Petitpas, 1990).

Coping strategies. During the course of retirement, athletes are faced with dramatic changes in their personal, social, and occupational lives. These changes will affect them cognitively, emotionally, and behaviorally. The quality of the adaptation to career transition experienced by athletes will depend on the manner in which they respond these changes. The availability of effective coping strategies may facilitate this process and reduce the likelihood of difficulties. Sinclair and Orlick (1993) reported that finding another focus of interest to replace their sports participation, keeping busy, maintaining their training/exercise regimens, talking with someone who listens, and staying in touch with their sport and friends in their sport were effective coping strategies for facilitating the transition process.

Cognitively, retiring athletes must alter their perceptions related to the career transition process, specifically with respect to self-identity, perceptions of control, and social identity (Bandura, 1977; R.S. Lazarus, 1975). Athletes can use cognitive restructuring (A. Lazarus, 1972) and mental imagery (Smith, 1980) to re-orient their thinking in a more positive direction, self-instructional training (Meichenbaum, 1977) to improve attention and problem-solving, and goal-setting to provide direction and motivation in their post-athletic careers (Bruning & Frew, 1987). These techniques have been used successfully to enhance adaptation in a variety of populations and activities (Labouvie-Vief & Gonda, 1976; Meichenbaum & Cameron, 1973; Moleski & Tosi, 1976; Trexler & Karst, 1972).

Similarly, relevant techniques could be used for emotional/physiological stressors. Specifically, athletes in transition could employ anger and anxiety strategies such as time-out (Browning, 1983), relaxation training (Bruning & Frew, 1987; Delman & Johnson, 1976; May, House, & Kovacs, 1982), and health (Savery, 1986), exercise, and nutritional counselling (Bruning & Frew, 1987) to alleviate these difficulties.

Finally, a regimen of behavior modification could deal with overt manifestations of distress associated with career transition. Techniques such as assertiveness training (Lange & Jakubowski, 1976), time management training (Bruning & Frew, 1987; King, Winett, & Lovett, 1986), and skills assessment and development (Bruning & Frew, 1987; Taylor, 1987) could be effective in overcoming behavioral difficulties caused by retirement.

Social support. Due to athletes’ total psychological and social immersion in the sports world, the majority of their friends, acquaintances, and other associations are found in the sports environment and their social activities often revolve around their athletic lives (Botterill, 1990; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982). Thus, athletes’ primary social support system will often be derived from their athletic involvement (Coakley, 1983; Rosenfeld, Richman, & Hardy, 1989).

When the athletes’ careers end, they are no longer an integral part of the team or organization. Consequently, the social support that they received previously may no longer be present. In a sample of athletes with international competitive experience, Sinclair and Orlick (1993) reported that missing the social aspects of their sport was a frequently reported difficulty during career transition. Moreover, due to their restricted social identity and the absence of alternative social support systems, they may become isolated, lonely, and unsustained socially, thus leading to significant distress (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985; Remer, Tongate, & Watson, 1978).

Research by Mihovilovic (1968), Reynolds (1981), Werthner and Orlick (1986), and Sinclair and Orlick (1993) reported that athletes who received considerable support from family and friends had easier transitions and those who had the most difficulties indicated that they felt alone as their careers ended and expressed the desire for support during that period. Additionally, other researchers (Gorbett, 1985; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982) suggest that athletes also need institutional support during the retirement process, best provided through pre-retirement counselling programs (Manion, 1976; Schlossberg, 1981).

Pre-retirement planning. Of the available resources that are being discussed, pre-retirement planning appears to have the broadest influence on the quality of the career transition process (Schlossberg, 1981). Pre-retirement planning may include a variety of activities including continuing education, occupational and investment endeavors, and social networking. As a result, pre-retirement planning may significantly affect most of the factors previously discussed that are related to the adaptation process. For example, pre-retirement planning would broaden an athlete’s self-identity, enhance perceptions of control, and diversify his or her social identity. As for the tertiary factors, socioeconomic status, financial dependency on the sport, and post-athletic occupational potential would all be positively influenced. Substantial research involving both elite-amateur and professional athletes supports of this position (Arviko, 1976; Haerle, 1975; Lerch, 1981; Sinclair & Orlick, 1993).

Despite these benefits, a common theme that emerges from the literature on retirement outside of sports is the resistance on the part of individuals to plan for their lives after the end of their careers (Avery & Jablin, 1988; Chartrand & Lent, 1987). Yet, it is likely that this denial of the inevitable will have serious, potentially negative, and long-term implications for the athletes. A wide range of difficulties have been reported due to athletes’ resistance to pre-retirement planning (Hare, 1971; Svoboda & Vanek, 1982; Werthner & Orlick, 1986).

Structured pre-retirement planning that involves reading materials and workshops (Kaminski da Rosa, 1985; Manion, 1976; Thorn, 1983; USOC, 1988) are valuable opportunities for athletes to plan for and work toward meaningful lives following retirement. In addition, effective money management and long-term financial planning can provide athletes with financial stability following the conclusion of their careers (Hill & Lowe, 1974).

The incorporation of pre-retirement planning is becoming increasingly a part of collegiate (Brooks, Etzel, & Ostrow, 1987), elite-amateur (Gould, Tammen, Murphy, & May, 1989; Murphy, Abbot, Hillard, Petitpas, Danish, & Holloway, 1989; Petitpas, Danish, McKelvain, & Murphy, 1990; Sinclair & Orlick, 1993; USOC, 1988) and professional (Dorfman, 1990; Ogilvie & Howe, 1982) organizations. The only research clarifying the extent to which these services have been used by the elite athletes indicate that only a small proportion of athletes (27%) take advantage of these services (Sinclair & Orlick, 1993). There is also no empirical evidence of how effective these programs are for athletes in career transition.

STEP 4: QUALITY OF CAREER TRANSITION

Based on the present model to this point, it may be concluded that career termination from sports will not necessarily cause a distressful reaction on the part of athletes (Coakley, 1983; Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985). Rather, the quality of adaptation to career transition by athletes will depend upon the previous steps of the retirement process. It is at the present juncture that the athlete’s reaction to career transition will become evident. There are a variety of psychological, social, and environmental factors that will determine the nature of the response. Specifically, the presence or absence of the contributing variables described in the early steps of the model will dictate whether athlete undergo a healthy transition following retirement or experience distress in response to end of their competitive career.

The question is often raised as to the incidence of those individual athletes who exhibit some form of distress when forced from their sport. In fact, the extant literature has not produced widespread evidence of transition difficulties at all levels of sports participation. Notably, there is little evidence of distress in athletes concluding their scholastic and collegiate careers (Blinde & Greendorfer, 1985, Coakley, 1983; Greendorfer & Blinde, 1985). This may be due to the fact that the completion of high school and college athletic careers as dictated by eligibility restrictions may be seen as a natural part of the transition to entering college or the work force, respectively (Coakley, 1983).

At the same time, another group of researchers assert that career transition may cause distress that manifests itself in a wide variety of disruptive ways. Sinclair and Orlick (1993) reported that about one-third of a sample of elite-amateur athletes experienced fair to serious problems with missing the social aspects of their sport, job-school pressures, and finances. In addition, 11% felt dissatisfied with their lives since retirement and 15% felt that they did not handle the transition well.

Other researchers including Arviko (1976), Hallden (1965), Mihovilovic (1968), and Weinberg and Arond (1952) reported more serious manifestations of transition difficulties consisting of incidences of alcohol and drug abuse, participation in criminal activities, and significant anxiety, acute depression, and other emotional problems following retirement. The emergence of distress among elite-amateur and professional athletes is likely due to the significantly greater life investment in their sports and their commitment to their sports participation as a career into adulthood.

STEP 5: INTERVENTION FOR CAREER TRANSITION

Career transition may be characterized as a complex interaction of stressors. Whether the stressors are financial, social, psychological or physical, their effects may produce some form of distress when athletes are confronted with the end of their careers. Despite the best efforts made in the prevention of career transition distress, difficulties may still arise when the reality of the end of an athletic career is recognized. The experience of career transition crises may adversely affect athletes cognitively, emotionally, behaviorally, and socially. As a result, it is important to address each of these areas in an active and constructive manner.

Unfortunately, as discussed earlier, there are significant organizational obstacles to the proper treatment of career transition difficulties. In particular, the limited participation of sport psychologists at the elite level, where problems are most likely to occur, inhibits their ability to provide for the career transition needs of athletes. Also, the team psychologist typically associated with national governing bodies, collegiate teams, or professional organizations rarely have the opportunity to develop an extended relationship with team members. This limited contact rarely presents an opportunity to discuss issues related to career transition. Also, since retired athletes are no longer a part of a sports organization, treatment of the athletes may not be seen as within the purview of the organization’s psychologist.

The retiring athletes themselves may also present their own obstacles to intervention. A survey of former world-class amateur athletes indicated that they did not perceive personal counseling as a useful coping strategy during the career transition process (Sinclair & Orlick, 1993).

The treatment of distress related to career transition may occur at a variety of levels. As discussed previously, the changes that result from retirement may detrimentally impact a person psychologically, emotionally, behaviorally, and socially. As a consequence, it is necessary for the sport psychologist to address each of these areas in the intervention process.

Perhaps the most important task in the transition process is to assist athletes in maintaining their sense of self-worth while establishing a new self-identity. The goal of this process is to adapt their perceptions about themselves and their world to their new roles in a way that will be maximally functional. The sport psychologist can assist them in identifying desirable non-sport identities and experiencing feelings of value and self-worth in this new personal conception.

Also, sport psychologists can aid athletes in working through any emotional distress they may experience during retirement (Kubler-Ross, 1969). Specifically, they can provide the athletes with the opportunity to express feelings of doubt, concern, or frustration relative to the end of their careers (Gorbett, 1985).

On a manifest level, the sport psychologist can help the athletes cope with the stress of the transition process (Gorbett, 1985). Traditional therapeutic strategies such as cognitive restructuring (Garfield & Bergin, 1978), stress management (Meichenbaum & Jaremko, 1983), and emotional expression (Yalom, 1980) can be used in this process. Also, athletes can be shown that the skills they used to master their sport can be used as effectively in overcoming the challenges of a new career and lifestyle (Meichenbaum & Jaremko, 1983).

Finally, the professional can help the athletes at a social level. This goal may be accomplished by having athletes explore ways of broadening their social identity and role repertoire (Ogilvie & Howe, 1982). Additionally, athletes can be encouraged to expand their social support system to individuals and groups outside of the sports arena. The use of group therapy and the articulation of the athletes’ potential social networks can be especially useful in aiding them in this process. Wolff and Lester (1989) propose a three-stage therapeutic process comprised of listening/confrontation, cognitive therapy, and vocational guidance to aid athletes in coping with their loss of self-identity and assist them in establishing a new identity.

There has been little empirical research examining the significant factors in this process. Outside of sport, Roskin (1982) found that the implementation of a package of cognitive, affective, and social support interventions within didactic and small-group settings significantly reduced depression and anxiety among a high-stress group of individuals composed partly of retirees.

Intervention at the organizational level can also be a useful means of facilitating the career transition process. As indicated earlier, many elite-amateur and professional organizations offer some form of pre-retirement and career transition assistance. Reece, Wilder, and Mahanes (1996) suggest that such programs should emphasize the transferability of skills from sport to a new career. They further highlight the importance of identifying specific transferable skills and successful role models, and clarifying interests, values, and goals that will promote an effective career transition.

Sinclair and Orlick (1993) also support intervention at the organizational level as having a positive impact on career transitions of elite athletes. They recommend that sports organizations can facilitate the transition process by continuing financial support for a short time following retirement, encourage sports organizations to stay in contact with retired athletes, offer seminars on career transition issues, and establish a resource center for athletes in transition. Additionally, retired athletes should be provided with opportunities to stay involved in their sport and shown how mental skills training can be used in their new pursuits.

CONCLUSION

This chapter has reviewed the relevant literature pertaining to career transition among athletes. From this overview, several conclusions can be drawn. First, the extant research suggests that career transition difficulties are more likely to emerge with elite-amateur and professional athletes than scholastic or collegiate athletes. This finding appears to be due to the greater ego-involvement and personal investment of the former group of athletes and that transition from world-class and professional sports participation typically occurs outside of the normal developmental process. Second, distress due to career transition will not necessarily occur. Rather, the emergence of difficulties is due to a variety of developmental, psychological, and social factors including early life experiences, coping strategies, perceptions of control, self and social identities, social support, and pre-retirement planning. Third, addressing career transition issues can begin at the earliest stages of sports participation. This process involves having parents, coaches, and youth sports administrators create an environment that will enable young athletes’ sports involvement to be a meaningful vehicle that will engender healthy personal and social development. Finally, despite the best efforts to eliminate distress that may arise due to career transition, it may still occur when athletes fully recognize that their sports careers are over. This distress can manifest itself psychologically, emotionally, behaviorally, and socially. It is important that each of these areas is addressed directly and constructively by a trained professional.

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INTENSITY REGULATION AND SPORT PERFORMANCE

Jim Taylor & Gregory S. Wilson

Training has been going well for weeks as the day of competition approaches. Throughout the weeks of training a feeling of confidence and excitement has been building. Suddenly, as the moment of competition arrives, the athlete experiences butterflies in the stomach and feelings of uncertainty and apprehension have encroached upon his thinking. What has happened?

As the day of competition arrives, intensity assumes the central role in pre-competitive preparations, and becomes the most critical psychological factor prior to competitive performance, regardless of the level of confidence, motivation or physical preparedness of the athlete. As Roger Bannister, the first man to run a sub 4:00 mile once said, “I am certain that one’s feelings at the last minute before a race matter most. Confidence that has been supreme until that moment can be lost quite suddenly” (p. 236-237).

The applied sport psychology consultant can play a significant role in the control and maintenance of precompetition intensity. Practitioners can assist athletes in the identification of their optimal level of intensity, and clarify situations in which an athlete’s perceptions can alter this level. However, perhaps the most important service a consultant can provide is to teach the athlete the skills needed monitor his intensity prior to and during competition.

The term intensity has alternately been called arousal, anxiety and nervousness (Landers & Boutcher, 1986; Silva & Hardy, 1984; Spielberger, 1972). Anxiety has been used to describe the response to a situation perceived as stressful by an individual, which may vary and fluctuate over time as a result of the amount of stress perceived. Hence, anxiety is a subjective evaluation on the part of the individual in terms of the stress perceived.

However, recent writings in sport psychology (Hanin, 2000; Taylor, 2000) have suggested that the terms such as “anxiety” carry with them a negative connotation. As a result, it has been suggested that the term “intensity” be used when explaining perceptions of stress with athletes, since intensity is viewed by athletes as a positive an important contributor to optimal performance, rather than something to be avoided (e.g., anxiety). Moreover “arousal” often has sexual connotations that may serve to distract athletes from its real meaning and value. Particularly when used with younger athletes, this term may provoke a comical or anxious reaction that actually may interfere with the competitive preparation of the athlete.

Defining intensity has been a problem for decades (Borkovec, 1976; Cannon, 1928; Neiss, 1988; Spielberger, 1966). However, from the perspective of the sport psychology consultant, Zaichkowsky and Takenaka (1993) have provided a detailed and comprehensive conceptualization of intensity. These researchers have suggested that intensity be viewed as a multidimensional construct that performs an energizing integration of the mind and body. Intensity in this view has three important qualities that impact upon performance. First, there exists a physiological activation that includes heart rate, glandular and cortical activity, and blood flow. Second, behavioral responses are evident in terms of the amount of motor activity activation. Lastly, cognitive and emotion responses are exhibited in terms of valenced evaluations of the physiological and behavioral manifestations of intensity and the accompanying emotional reactions to these perceptions.

Athletes will experience a wide range of intensity levels, ranging from very low extremely high (Hanin, 2000). Intensity may be experienced by athletes positively, leading to increases in confidence, motivation, stamina, strength and heightened sensory acuity (Carver & Scheier, 1986), and it may alternately been perceived in a negative fashion by athletes in terms of fear, dread, muscle tension, breathing difficulty, loss of coordination and other performance inhibiting conditions (Eysenck, 1992).

The primary purposes of this chapter are to: (1) provide four current theoretical explanations for the relationship between intensity and athletic performance: inverted-U hypothesis (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908); Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning Model (Hanin, 1986);Catastrophe theory (Hardy & Fazey, 1987), and Reversal theory (Kerr, 1987). (2) Identify the causes of intensity in athletes, including reasons for under and over intensity as well as optimal intensity, (3) offer practical applied cognitive and physiological interventions that the consultant can use to facilitate prime optimal levels in athletes (4) provide the perspective of both the coach and athlete of the importance of intensity to success in athletics.

I. Models of Intensity and Performance

Intensity has traditionally been viewed as a significant contributor to levels of athletic performance in the field of sport psychology (Hanin, 2000; Weinberg & Gould, 1999; Cox, 1998). However, general acceptance of theories describing the relationship of intensity to sport performance has changed as the field of sport psychology has evolved. Moreover, the nature of intensity has evolved from a unidimensional to a multidimensional construct emphasizing a complex interaction of numerous cognitive and somatic factors (Hanin, 2000; Hardy & Fazey, 1987; Kerr, 1987).

Although it is commonly acknowledged that psychological states are ever changing in nature, with emotions drastically changing from one moment to another (Raglin, 1992), this issue becomes of crucial importance when dealing with athletes. Depending on the model of intensity and performance one chooses to follow, manipulation of an athlete’s level of intensity, may either positively or negatively affect athletic performance. This chapter will present three current theoretical explanations of the underlying causes of intensity and athletic performance: the inverted-U hypothesis (Yerkes and Dodson, 1908), the Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning (IZOF) model (Hanin, 1986; 2000), catastrophe theory (Hardy & Fazey, 1987) and Reversal theory (Kerr, 1987). Also discussed will be why athletes experience varying levels (e.g., under, over and prime intensity), and the use of effective cognitive and physiological interventions for intensity regulation.

Inverted-U Hypothesis.

The Inverted-U Hypothesis is the most popular explanation of the relationship of intensity and athletic performance today, and is often referred to as the Yerkes-Dodson Law (Weinberg, 1990; Gould & Tuffy, 1996; Krane, 1993). Based on work conducted by Yerkes and Dodson (1908) at the turn of the century this view was originally conceptualized as a relationship between performance and stimulus activation, and later arousal, but has more typically been tested in terms of intensity (Raglin, 1992). As commonly predicted by the Inverted-U Hypothesis, as intensity increases from low to moderate levels there is an associated improvement in performance. On the other hand, performance worsens once intensity levels either exceed or fall below this moderate range (Cox, 1994).

However, Yerkes and Dodson’s original intent to was explain the relationship between performance and stimulus intensity following an experiment involving maze discrimination learning in rats. In an experiment in which Yerkes and Dodson would alter the degree of electrical stimulation while at the same time varying illumination, they found that an optimal range of stimulation existed in which the greatest amount of learning occurred in their rats. When Yerkes and Dodson plotted the performance of the rats in running the maze against the varying degrees of stimulation, a curvilinear shape that resembled an inverted-U was depicted (Cox, 1998). This led Yerkes and Dodson to interpret their findings to suggest that a specific level of stimulus intensity is necessary for optimal learning, and that as learning becomes progressively more difficult, the optimal level of stimulus is decreased (Raglin, 1992).

The inverted-U hypothesis was later applied to sport performance by Oxendine (1970) when he suggested intensity to be sport specific. Oxendine’s view of intensity suggested that moderate levels are appropriate for most motor pursuits. However, Oxendine further classified the optimal level of intensity as dependent on the specific sport task to be performed. Oxendine hypothesized that for gross motor activities involving strength and speed (e.g., shot put, football, hockey), levels of high intensity were essential for optimal sport performances. Alternatively, Oxendine predicted that relatively low levels of intensity would best facilitate those types of athletic performances in which a premium is placed on fine muscle movements, steadiness, coordination and general concentration (e.g., golf, diving, archery).

However, despite the intuitive appeal of the Inverted-U hypothesis, empirical research supporting its claims is virtually nonexistent (Neiss, 1988; Fazey & Hardy, 1988; Gould & Krane, 1992; Klein, 1990; Raglin & Turner, 1992). Indeed, the Inverted-U hypothesis has commonly been misinterpreted (Wilson, 1999) and many introductory textbooks focus on the various physiological responses associated with arousal rather than on the more important influence of stimulus intensity on motor learning as Yerkes and Dodson intended (Winton, 1987). Hence, much of the support for the Inverted-U Hypothesis has been misinterpreted, or derived from studies examining the effect of intensity on motor learning and not athletic performance (Morgan & Ellickson, 1989).

This problem has led critics to speculate on the ecological validity of the Inverted-U Hypothesis (Weinberg, 1990; Krane, 1992). Raglin (1992) has noted that research has relied on the use of simple motor tasks, rather than sport skills and experimentation in sport settings. Schmidt (1991) has defined learning as a set of internal processes associated with practice and experience leading to relatively permanent changes in one’s capacity for skill. Performance, on the other hand is defined as the execution or completion of a skill. A skill is performed to the degree that it is learned. While learning is not an observable phenomenon, performance may be directly measured. Hence, interpretations from studies examining the effect of anxiety on the learning of a novel skill are not the equivalent of the skilled performance of athletic competition. Furthermore, recent research (Imlay, Carda, Stanbrough & O’Connor, 1995; Krane & Williams, 1994) has not supported the claim that intensity levels are influenced by motor skill (e.g., fine or gross). Finally, since much of the research cited in support of the Inverted-U Hypothesis has utilized non-athletic populations, generalizations made to sport performance have little or no relevance (Morgan & Ellickson, 1989; Raglin, 1992).

Perhaps the most important criticism of the Inverted-U hypothesis is its premise that only moderate intensity levels are appropriate for all athletes, which does not account for the individual differences in the way athletes respond to the stress of competition (Raglin & Hanin, 2000; Fazey & Hardy, 1988). The Inverted-U hypothesis has generally arrived at the assumption of moderate intensity as optimal through averaging scores of groups of individuals rather than plotting individual scores of intensity against performance (Neiss, 1988; Raglin, 1992). Hence, through this methodology the average scores of groups of individuals have been calculated, and when the mean is derived it has naturally reflected the middle or moderate range within that sample (Wilson, 1999). As a result, the Inverted-U Hypothesis tends to ignore important individual differences in the intensity-performance relationship through its focus on group averages (Neiss, 1988).

From an applied perspective, the inverted-U hypothesis suggests that a consultant should treat all individuals the same. That is, all individuals, regardless of level of skill, experience, competition setting, or other individual factors within the athlete, should possess moderate levels of intensity. Hence, the goal is to raise or lower an athlete’s intensity level to fit this moderate range. However, recent research (Wilson & Raglin, 1997; Raglin & Turner, 1993; Ebeck & Weiss, 1988) has indicated that a significant proportion of athletes actually perform better under high levels of intensity. By lowering the intensity level of these athletes to a moderate range, performance may suffer. Further evidence (Raglin & Morgan, 1988; Raglin & Morris, 1994; Wilson & Raglin, 1997) suggests that the level of competition influences intensity levels within athletes. These studies have reported that athletes exhibit lower intensity levels when competing in “easy” as opposed to “hard” competitions.

Moreover, Taylor (2000) has suggested that the environment in which an athlete performs may also influence intensity levels within an athlete. For example, a gymnast might experience higher intensity levels while performing on the balance beam when compared to a floor exercise. Additionally, individual differences in attentional processing (Nideffer, 1989), cognitive appraisal (Landers & Boutcher, 1986), confidence, motivation, and investment in the activity (Taylor, 2000) as well as the physical conditioning and health of the athlete may exert important influences upon intensity levels.

As a result of the inability of the Inverted-U hypothesis to explain these individual differences, recent theoretical models have been developed specifically from research with athletes in attempts to identify reasons for individual differences in intensity.

Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning Theory

Partly as a result of differences found in intensity levels of successful athletes, the Individual Zones of Optimal Function (IZOF) model was conceptualized by Yuri Hanin (1978; 1986; 2000). Cratty & Hanin (1980) originally referred to this theory as the “individual optimum zone” (IOZ) model, emphasizing the importance of the individual upon optimal levels of anxiety, and Hanin (1986) later redefined this work as the Zone of Optimal Function (ZOF) model before settling on the current Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning (IZOF) model (Wilson & Raglin, 1997; Hanin, 2000).

Cratty and Hanin (1980) have written that the original idea of individual differences was conceived from data measuring precompetition intensity levels in Soviet rowers, divers, gymnasts and ski jumpers. Although Hanin’s initial findings supported the premise of intensity as a significant factor in sport performance, his results did not support an association between intensity and athletic performance on a group level (Raglin & Hanin, 2000). Thus, Hanin (1979; 1986) concluded that the optimal level of intensity is highly individualistic in nature, and has practical significance only when working with individual athletes. As a result, intensity and performance in the IZOF model are not correlated in a positive, negative or curvilinear manner (Morgan & Ellickson, 1989). Rather, the IZOF model contends that the optimal level of precompetition intensity may vary from very low to very high, depending upon the unique characteristics of the individual athlete (Ebbeck & Weiss, 1988).

While considerable replication of Hanin’s work has been conducted (Morgan, et al 1987; Morgan, et al 1988; Raglin, Morgan & Wise, 1990; Raglin, Wise & Morgan, 1990; Raglin & Turner, 1992; Gould & Krane, 1992; Krane, 1993; Gould & Tuffey, 1996; Wilson & Raglin, 1997) the IZOF model has received mixed reviews (Randle & Weinberg, 1997). IZOF research has often been misinterpreted to be a duplication or an extension of the Inverted-U Hypothesis, a fact Morgan and Ellickson (1989) have noted when writing that “many contemporary sport psychologists have ignored or simply dismissed Hanin’s ZOF concept on the basis of redundancy; that is, it has been erroneously viewed as a reiteration of the inverted-U theory” (p. 168). Much of the confusion in distinguishing these two theories lies in the fact that when an individual’s level of precompetition anxiety falls outside their ‘individual optimal zone of functioning’ performance levels worsen. Hence, when plotted on a graph, the resulting relationship appears to be described by an inverted-U curve, which has lead to the mistaken notion that IZOF theory is simply a refashioned statement of the Inverted-U Hypothesis (Raglin, 1992).

However, while both the Inverted-U Hypothesis and IZOF theory predict a range or “zone” of level of anxiety in which performance is optimized, important differences exist in how these two theories view the optimal level of intensity. Hanin (2000) has stated that the basic assumptions underpinning the IZOF model are that emotion is: (1) a component of an adaptive or maladaptive response in the interaction between the individual and her/his environment; (2) a central feature of a person’s psychobiosocial state, and level of performance; (3) determined through the personal interpretation of an individual’s appraisal of the environment, and (4) a reflection of past critical moments. Hence, the IZOF model suggests that a multitude of interindividual differences exist across athletes and sport settings.

As a result, the IZOF theory model purports that the optimal level of intensity may vary considerably, ranging from very low to very high for different individuals (Gould & Tuffy, 1996). For example, in a study of college track and field athletes Raglin and Turner (1993) found that 51% of the men and 48% of the women reported successful performances to occur when intensity levels were high, while Wilson and Raglin (1997) reported that 26% of 9-12 year old track and filed athletes performed best under high intensity levels. Interestingly, Ebbeck and Weiss (1988) found that track and field athletes exhibited below average, average and above average performances all within the same level of precompetition intensity. In other words, the same level of intensity produced outstanding performances for some athletes, while proving to be detrimental to the performance of others.

A second distinction between IZOF theory and other group based theories of intensity and performance is that the IZOF model does not propose a discreet point of optimal intensity level, but rather provides for a flexible range or “zone” of intensity unique to the individual (Gould & Tuffey, 1996).

A final concern the IZOF model by some researchers (Gould & Tuffey, 1996; Jones, 1995) has been its lack of an explanatory mechanism delineating the reason such individual zones of optimal intensity exist. In other words, why are there differences in the precompetition levels of intensity among athletes, and why do athletes possess unique individual zones of intensity in which they perform optimally? Hence, from an applied perspective, it is often difficult for the consultant to identify those athletes most likely to benefit from a specific level of intensity.

The difficulty in fully conceptualizing and measuring the multifaceted psychobiological states of performance are complex (Hanin, 2000), and this has led some sport psychologists (Fazey & Hardy, 1988; Gould, Tuffey, Hardy & Lochbaum, 1993; Martens, Vealey & Burton, 1990) to question the unidimensional conceptualizations of traditional approached to this question. Hence, these researchers have proposed theories that involve a myriad of factors that may affect sport performance.
Catastrophe Theory

Because of the complex difficulty in conceptualizing and measuring the vast multifaceted psychobiological states of performance, including those contributing to intensity, some sport psychologists (Fazey & Hardy, 1988; Hardy, 1990; Martens, Vealey & Burton, 1990; Gould, Tuffey, Hardy & Lochbaum, 1993) have questioned the efficacy of unidimensional models of the intensity and performance relationships. Rather, in response to a growing multidimensional view of this relationship, more complex theories have been developed that suggest a dynamic interaction of the cognitive, somatic and self-confidence aspects within each athlete (Martens et al., 1990).

As a result of these findings, Hardy (1990, 1996) has suggested that the influence of cognitive, somatic and self-confidence aspects of intensity rather than being additive in nature are interactive. Utilizing a mathematical model Hardy (1990; 1996) has purported that together, these three components exert an interactive three-dimensional influence on performance (Cox, 1998). Hardy has termed this theory the Cusp Catastrophe Model.

In a test of IZOF theory within a multidimensional framework, Woodman, Albinson and Hardy (1997) assessed precompetition intensity in members of a competitive bowling league. Woodman and colleagues reported support for the IZOF concept within a multidimensional framework, and concluded that the Cusp Catastrophe Model provided the best explanation of the interaction between somatic and cognitive intensity.

Catastrophe theory suggests that as opposed to being a separate entity, physiological arousal is dependent upon the level of cognitive intensity possessed by the individual athlete (Fazey & Hardy, 1988). In other words, cognitive intensity is believed to possess a thought component that involves worry and apprehension, and a somatic component that relates to the degree of physical arousal perceived by the athlete (Weinberg & Gould, 1999). Hence, in competitive situations where physiological arousal is high, additional increases in cognitive intensity should have a debilitating effect upon performance. However, in cases in which physiological arousal is low, further increases in cognitive intensity should serve as a facilitator to enhanced performance (Edwards & Hardy, 1996). As a result, performance decrements are thought to occur only under states of high physiological arousal accompanied by high cognitive intensity. When this situation arises, “catastrophe” occurs, resulting in a rapid and dramatic deterioration in athletic performance (Cox, 1998).

Although limited support (Edwards & Hardy, 1996; Hardy, Parfitt & Pates, 1994; Woodman, Albinson & Hardy, 1997) has been reported for catastrophe theory, Weinberg and Gould (1999) have written that it is a difficult concept to adequately test. The model has also been criticized for several of its basic tenants (Krane, 1993; Gill, 1994; Krane, Joyce & Raefield, 1994). A significant question has been whether the interactive effects of the cognitive, somatic and self-confidence components are stable characteristics within an athlete, or whether these variables may be subject to situational influences within the performance setting (Gill, 1994).

As a result, the applied consultant is faced with the obstacle identifying the exact causes of changes in intensity. Since it is not known whether the components that combine to create intensity levels are themselves subject to change, it is difficult to constantly “control” or “manage” these variables. Hence, the consultant has the unenviable task of continuously watching for signs that may indicate this transition.

Furthermore, it has been suggested that even more specific affective components of anxiety have yet to be identified which may exert a strong influence on individual levels of performance (Gould & Tuffey, 1996). This has led some theorists (Hanin, 1999) to suggest that future research may need to examine a wider range of emotions for their possible influence upon sport performance. Finally, Woodman and colleagues (1997) concluded in their investigation that although partial support for catastrophe theory was found, the present model was not able to account for the successful performances that occur under conditions of high intensity for some athletes.
Reversal Theory

It has been suggested by some sport psychologists (Jones, 1995) that the most important factor in understanding the relationship of intensity to performance is the individual athlete’s own interpretation of their perceived intensity. In other words, high levels of intensity can be beneficial if an athlete perceives such heightened levels as positive. However, if intensity is interpreted as a negative emotion on the part of the athlete, further increases in intensity will be detrimental to performance. Hence, for successful performances to occur, athletes must view their own intensity level as positive (Kerr, 1997).

Reversal theory further suggests that there are shifts in the perceptions of intensity throughout the duration of a sporting competition (Kerr, 1989). For example, a golfer may begin a round feeling confident and motivated about her performance and as a result, interpret the accompanying intensity as beneficial. However, as the round progresses, she makes several bad shots, and finds her score soaring. At this point, there is a shift in the mood state of the athlete, and the same level of intensity that was once viewed as positive is now seen as negative and thus detrimental to performance. Hence, reversal theory suggests that perceptions of intensity are not static, but rather dynamic and constantly changing throughout the course of a competition.

While Weinberg and Gould (1999) have noted that reversal theory offers an innovative alternative to the traditional views of the intensity and performance relationship, the model remains primarily descriptive with no extant empirical support. Hence, conclusions regarding the efficacy of this point of view are difficult (Weinberg & Gould, 1999). However, Hanin (2000) has suggested that the role of changing emotions may be important to the understanding of individual perceptions of intensity by athletes.

From an applied perspective, it would appear that emotions may hold the key to perceptions of intensity on the part of the athlete. In order for the consultant to understand the optimal level of intensity for each athlete, it is first important to understand the present emotional state of the athlete, and how these emotions in turn influence her or his perception of intensity prior to athletic competition.

II. Causes of Intensity

The question one must ask is “What causes intensity in athletes? Why do athletes differ in intensity levels, and at times, why do some individuals or teams suffering from over-and under-intensity?”

In a study of college track and field athletes designed to assess possible causes for these differences in intensity, Wilson, Raglin & Pritchard (2001) found that one’s cognitive orientation style predicted individual levels of precompetition and optimal intensity. These researchers grouped athletes into one of three cognitive orientation groups based on their reported past experiences as measured by the Optimism-Pessimism Scale (Showers, 1992). Athletes were characterized as either optimistic, defensive pessimists or real pessimists. An optimistic athlete was one who has experienced much previous success and expected future success. Perhaps golfer Tiger Woods (1997) best exemplifies this attitude when he remarked “Each and every time I play, I go in with the mind-set of winning the tournament”.

The defensive pessimistic athlete was exemplified by Olympic gold medal speed skater Dan Jansen who stated that he went into the 1994 Winter Olympics with “low expectations because I didn’t want to set myself up for disappointment” (p.21). In other words, defensive pessimism may be thought of as a strategic mechanism in which an athlete sets unrealistically low expectation in order to protect themselves from potential failure, while at the same time using it as a motivation to avoid future failure. This differed from the athlete who was a real pessimist, in which case the athlete both expected and achieved low levels of athletic success.

Findings from Wilson, et al (2001) revealed that a majority of the athletes studied possessed a defensive pessimistic orientation, while males were more often optimistic than females. Moreover, optimistic athletes had optimal intensity levels that were lower than either the defensive pessimistic or real pessimistic athletes. Hence, differences in intensity level were largely explained the degree to which an athlete possessed an optimistic or pessimistic cognitive orientation. However, a very interesting finding was that despite elevated levels of intensity, defensive pessimistic athletes outperformed their optimistic counterparts, suggesting that they used these heightened levels of intensity as a motivating tool prior to competition.

Causes of over-intensity:

A lack of confidence is an important contributor to over-intensity. Such perceptions may interfere with an athlete’s ability to perform at an optimal level (Hanin, 2000). Hanin has suggested that the emotional reactions and intensity of an athlete are greatly influenced by the athlete’s appraisals of the likelihood of achieving their goals. Hence, the defensive and real pessimist experiences higher levels of precompetition intensity because of these lower expectations. The important difference, is that the defensive pessimist is able to harness this intensity into a motivational force. Edwards and Hardy (1996) have reported that athletes whose confidence increased perceived their intensity to be more facilitative to their competitive performances, and as the defensive pessimist enters competition, this is surely the case.

However, a severe lack of confidence is irrational thinking, in which an athlete develops an extreme and often harmful cognition about her or his performance. Preparation can often be a source of confidence. An athlete who feels that their training is lacking is often lacking in confidence. Successful NBA coach Pat Riley has remarked that “When you go after a goal and you’re not prepared, you soon find yourself pressing. The harder you try, the less effective you become. The less effective, the more discouraged, until there is finally an iron-clad conviction that you will fail. Poor preparation is an enemy of free-breathing performance and an invitation to choking” (p.107).

Landers and Boutcher (1986) have suggested that there are five areas of appraisal on the part of the athlete that can lead to feelings of over-intensity, or negative reactions to intensity. Specifically, these researchers have purported that the (1) demands of the situation; (2) individual’s resources for effectively managing the demands; (3) consequences of the situation; (4) “meaning” that is attached to the consequences, and (5) recognition of bodily reactions all interact to create negative appraisals. For instance, Rick Ankiel was a highly touted rookie pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2000. His rookie season had gone exceedingly well, until the National League Championship Series. He was named as the starting pitcher in the Cardinals rotation, and most likely perceived this requirement of his starting role in such an important game (demand) to be extremely stressful, and would require his best effort (resources). As a result, his performance suffered when he began throwing wild pitches (consequences) and had to be removed from the game, disappointing himself and his team (“meaning”). Legendary basketball coach John Wooden once remarked that “You cannot function physically or mentally or in any other way unless your emotions are under control” and it is certain that in this case, Ankiel’s intensity level was set too high.

Another intrapersonal cause of over-intensity involves focusing on the outcome of competition rather than on it’s process. Regardless of whether the outcome is positive (success) or negative (failure) undue consideration of the consequences of a performance adds unnecessary additional pressures on the performer, detracts from the proper competitive focus that allows for optimal performance. Nideffer (1981) has identified attentional focus as important to successful sport performance. He has identified internal distractors (e.g., attending to past events, overanalyzing body mechanics, worries about irrelevant cues) and external distractors (e.g., visual distractions such as the rapid fans at Duke basketball games waving flags behind the goal as opponents shoot free-throws, and auditory distractions) as common obstacles to successful performance.

Social causes of over-intensity are primarily derived from the expectations of significant others, including family, teammates, coaches, friends, and the media. Research has suggested that the perception of an athlete who does not live up to the socially-derived expectations may threaten their individual self-esteem and feelings of love and support (Krohne, 1980; Smith, Smoll & Curtis, 1978; Passer, 1982). Perhaps Hall of Fame outfielder Joe DiMaggio illustrated the effect of social expectations when asked why he tried so hard in every game, even those that were unimportant, he replied “Because, there may have been a boy in the stands that had never seen me play before.”

Causes of under-intensity

Unlike over-intensity, under-intensity is less influenced by social and situation variables, and is better described as having at its roots psychological and physical causes. For instance, over-confidence is a significant psychological cause of under-intensity. Athletes who are overly-confident often believe that they will succeed with little effort, and as a result of this belief, are physiologically unprepared to compete. In explaining a late season loss to a poor Denver team, then head L. A. Lakers coach Pat Riley commented “Our game focus was gone. It didn’t matter that we were the defending champs, coming in with one of the top records in the NBA, or that the Rockets had the lowliest record of any team in the playoffs.” (p.51).

A lack of interest in or the motivation to compete will also produce under-intensity. Long-time St. Louis Cardinal outfielder Willie McGee knew that it was time to retire from professional baseball when he began to lose competitive interest and motivation, thus affecting his performance. McGee commented that “something was missing. The focus. The drive as far as that competitive feeling.” (p.23).

A completely different cause of under-intensity has been suggested by Czikszentmihalyi (1975) who believes that athletes that perceive that their abilities exceed the demands of a competitive situation will experience boredom, which in turn creates under-intensity. An athlete that is far superior to the competition often lacks intensity. Often, this lack of intensity also creates a lack of focus and concentration, resulting in unnecessary mistakes and poor performances, even sometimes causing losses in situations in which the athlete should have easily prevailed.

Recent research using the IZOF model has offered partial support for this cause of under-intensity. A consistent finding (Wilson, Raglin & Pritchard, 2001; Wilson & Raglin, 1997; Raglin & Turner, 1993) has been that athletes tend to have lower levels of precompetition intensity prior to athletic contests considered as “easy” or “less important” by both the coach and athlete when compared to those considered “hard” or “difficult”. Such lower levels of intensity may reflect the perception on the part of the athlete that the competition he or she is about to face is not “worthy” or demanding of their total athletic ability.
Optimal-Intensity

Optimal intensity refers to the ideal or optimal level of physiological and cognitive intensity that will allow athletes to perform at their best (Taylor, 2000). However, it is important to remember that there is no one optimal level of intensity for all athletes. Rather, optimal intensity is personal, involving ideal levels of physiological and cognitive activity for the individual athlete. Additionally, optimal intensity is not something that athletes automatically obtain in all competitions. Rather, intensity is often determined by numerous personal, social, athletic, and situational variables over which the athlete has little awareness and even less control (Schmidt & Wrisberg, 2000). The first goal of the applied practitioner in working with intensity regulation in athletes is to teach each athlete to how to monitor her or his level of intensity. Secondly, to show athletes how they can effectively attain and maintain their optimal level of intensity.

Determining Optimal Intensity

As indicated in both the IZOF model (Hanin, 2000) and the catastrophe theory (Fazey & Hardy, 1988) each athlete has a level of intensity in which allows the athlete the potential of a best performance. Yet, how does one know where their optimal intensity level lies?

Hanin (1986) has offered two methods for determining an athlete’s optimal intensity range. Initially, Hanin (1986) reported following athletes through an entire competitive season, and correlating performance with precompetition intensity as measured one hour prior to actual competition. By comparing precompetition levels of intensity to individual levels of performance, Hanin was able to determine when an athlete’s best performances occurred and the corresponding level of intensity under which the athlete performed.

However, the logistical problems in following an athlete throughout a competitive season can make this method impractical (Raglin, 1992; Hanin & Syrja, 1995; Raglin & Hanin, 1999). Additionally, it can often be difficult to gain access to athletes immediately prior to performing, and athletes may consider such measures intrusive (McCann, Murphy & Raedeke, 1992). Moreover, Hackfort and Schwenkmezger (1989) have suggested that such directed self-focus on competition intensity immediately prior to a contest may lead to unwanted additional increases in intensity within the athlete. Hence, Hanin developed an alternative indirect method of establishing an athlete’s IZOF based on retrospection. In a study of female gymnasts, Hanin (1986) measured precompetition intensity one hour prior to actual competition. Eighteen days later, the gymnasts were asked to recall their precompetition intensity level prior to the meet. Despite differences in levels of performance, the difference between the averages of both actual and retrospective measures was not significantly different. Hence, Hanin was able to establish optimal zones through this retrospective procedure. Accuracy in recall can be determined through the correlation of recalled anxiety scores with previous competition intensity values (Raglin & Hanin, 1999).

Recent research with North American athletes has replicated these findings, and added cross-cultural validity to Hanin’s results (Morgan & Ellickson, 1987). Correlations between actual precompetition levels of intensity and recalled values obtained from 3 to 22 months after performance have ranged from 0.75 to 0.82 (Raglin & Turner, 1992; Imlay et al. 1995; Turner & Raglin, 1996), and this has been offered as a viable alternative in establishing IZOF levels.

Regulating Intensity

A practical concern to the applied practitioner is that by the waiting until one hour prior to a competition to measure an athlete’s level of intensity in order to determine whether or not it is optimal is simply not practical. Not only is it invasive for reasons already discussed, it leaves little if any time for intervention techniques designed to raise or lower intensity to the appropriate level.

An important finding of IZOF research is that athletes possess the ability to successfully predict precompetition levels of intensity up to 48 hours prior to competition. Results from these studies have found significant correlations between predicted and actual precompetition intensity ranging from .60 to .80 (Hanin, 1986; Morgan, et al., 1987, Morgan, et al., 1988; Raglin & Turner, 1992; Wilson & Raglin, 1997). The ability to predict precomptition intensity levels is important as it may be used as a reference point for intervention with athletes (Hanin, 2000). For example, this information has the potential to be used as an indicator of the perceptions that an athlete holds towards an upcoming event, since the predicted level of intensity represents the extent to which the athlete views the situation as threatening (Raglin & Hanin, 2000). As a result, significant deviations from the optimal intensity zone may indicate to the applied consultant the type of intervention (e.g., raising or lowering intensity) that is needed.

Using a form such as the Intensity Identification Form, the applied practitioner can ask the athlete the following question concerning the optimal level of intensity experienced by the athlete: (1) Prior to and during a successful competition, how did your body feel? For example, heart rate and sweating, or calem and at ease? The athletes should be as specific as possible in describing their perceived physiological conditions. (2) What were the thoughts and emotions at the time? For example, very positive and excited or neutral in thinking and low key? And (3) What social influences are typically present or absent during successful performances? For example, family, coaches, friends? The same questions should also be asked of poor performances. Typically, what emerges from this examination is a consistent pattern of physiological, cognitive, and social activity that is associated with optimal and non-optimal intensity, as well as the corresponding level of performance. At the bottom of Table 1, the athlete can summarize those factors that are associated with both successful and unsuccessful performances.

 

The purpose of this exercise is to create an understanding within the athlete of what his or her body feels like, what they are thinking and feeling, and with whom are they interacting in performance situations that are both good and poor. The goal of intensity identification is to make athletes aware of these differences before they compete so they can then take proactive steps in reproducing those factors that are associated with good performance through the use of intensity regulation.

Cognitive Interventions

Over-intensity is most often created by negative, inaccurate or extreme cognitive appraisal of a situation (Landers & Boutcher, 1986). Consequently, a good place to begin with the appropriate controlling of over-intensity is at its source, in other words, by altering the self-appraisal process (Kerr, 1997). A fundamental aspect of the faulty appraisal process that leads to over-intensity is the perception on the part of athletes that they do not have the ability to effectively cope with the five areas of appraisal (e.g., demands, resources, consequences, “meaning” and recognition of bodily reactions). Such a self-evaluation may indicate that the athlete lacks confidence in his or her ability. As result, by enhancing self-confidence, and learning to positively and accurately re-evaluate athletic situations, athletes may also inhibit perceptions of over-intensity at the source. Legendary Indiana University swim coach James “Doc” Counsilman remarked that it is essential for the athlete to have complete confidence in “his own mental and physical preparation; it then follows he will perform near his optimum level in the big competition” (p.269).

The applied practitioner can assist athletes in rationally assessing the upcoming competition by discussing the five appraisal areas either individually or in a group form. Often, athletes, particularly young or less experienced athletes, becomes so overwhelmed by the approaching competition that they lose perspective and are simply not able to the objectively evaluate the situation. As mentioned earlier, such faulty evaluations of a situation may lead to irrational thinking that may lead to further increases in intensity (Ellis, 1962). Typically, by showing the athlete a more positive way to viewing the situation, the consultant can help the individual recognize the extremity of their thinking, and accept a more realistic perspective. This shift in perspectives will then result in a shift in their intensity to a more optimal level (Heyman, 1984).

Applied practitioners can also use this approach in addressing the social causes of over-intensity. Through assessments of the athlete’s perceptions of others’ expectations and then intervening when appropriate, the practitioner can effectively diminish the negative effects of many social influences, thus reducing over-intensity and improving competitive performance.

All of these interventions have the effect of altering debilitating intensity in several ways. First, athletes are offered new perspectives that serve to make competition less threatening. Secondly, these strategies can change the attitudes that led to the cause of over-intensity within the athlete. Finally, they can restructure the perceptions of the intensity symptoms so that athletes see them as positive and facilitating (Kerr, 1990).

Self-Talk At a more direct level, negative thoughts, worrying, or irrational self-talk such as “I know I will fail.” “I am so scared,” or “I am going to break every bone in my body” represent the perceptions of the athlete that possesses the real pessimistic cognitive orientation (Wilson, et al., 20010 with the associated with levels of intensity. Hence, such statements are often made by the athlete suffering from over-intensity.

The applied practitioner can intervene with self-talk through the use of cognitive restructuring techniques that include negative thought-stopping and positive litanies. For example, athletes can be taught to say “POSITIVE” when a negative though occurs. Negative thoughts can then be replaced by positive statements such as “I will try my hardest and play my best.” Developing a series of positive self-statements (e.g., “I love to compete. I am a great athlete. I always think and talk positively.”) can help athletes to train themselves to be more positive in their cognitive orientation. These strategies increase the athletes’ awareness o unproductive thinking and show her how to develop more positive and constructive ways of thinking about situations.

Unfamiliarity. Hanin (2000) indicates that the athletes’ environment has a substantial impact on competitive performance. He suggests in his IZOF model that intensity is a function of the appraisals that athletes make about their environment and how athletes respond to their environment.

Unfamiliarity may occur in several ways. A lack of knowledge of the physical environment in which athletes compete may cause over-intensity for some individuals. The best solution in dealing with this particular problem is to allow athletes an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the competitive setting, ideally through practice or preliminary competition in the competitive arena. In the absence of direct experience practicing or competing in that setting, enabling athletes to attend another competition at the same site, or simply allowing them to walk around the setting may be helpful. Athletes may then combine this observational experience with mental imagery to see themselves competing in the days before the actual competition. In addition to any first-hand experience at the setting, it can also be useful for coaches or some of the athletes who have been there previously to describe the critical physical aspects of the setting to the newcomers.

These same strategies may also be used to assist athletes in familiarizing themselves with other aspects of the competitive setting. For instance, perhaps an upcoming international competition is the first for several new members of a track and field team. These athletes may have no previous competition experiences in a large stadium, in front of a boisterous crowd. Important factors that the applied practitioner should familiarize these athletes with might include media coverage before the competition, training and competitive schedules, transportation, typical activity on the infield, audience responses, access to the locker rooms, and the location of the warm-up areas. Developing a mentoring system with more experienced athletes may also often prove beneficial for the less experienced athlete.

Unexpected events Another difficult that often leads to over-intensity is the occurrence of a unexpected events prior to and during a competition. The ability to deal with such distractions is often essential for successful performance. Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson once commented that “I believe all successful athletes have a common ability to put distractions out of their mind when they’re called on to perform” (p. 169).

The most effective means of handling this problem is to prevent or minimize such unexpected incidences from the outset. This does not mean that all problems can be prevented. Rather, the goal is to prevent these problems, or have a contingency plan for dealing with them, and thus preventing over-intensity within the athlete.

This may be achieved in two steps. First, in a meeting with athletes, the applied practitioner can have them identify all the things that can go wrong at a competition. Then, have them propose possible solutions in dealing with these problems. Even though difficulties will still arise, instead of panicking and raising intensity to a debilitating level, athletes will recognize that a problem has occurred and have a plan for dealing with this difficulty. Hence, unwanted increases in intensity can be avoided.

Uncontrollable events Finally, athletes, just like most people, spend a considerable amount of time worrying about things over which they have little control (Bandura, 1986). This is a fruitless endeavor, not only because the athlete cannot change things by worrying about them, but it also places a significant amount of unwanted stress on them through worry. Much of what occurs in the competitive sports world is outside of the control of the athlete. Moreover, there is only one thing that any of us can truly control, and that is ourselves. As a result, athletes should concentrate their focus inward, specifically, on those things that they need to do to perform optimally.

The applied practitioner can play a meaningful role in helping athletes to maintain this focus on controllable factors. When a practitioner overhears an athlete worrying about things that are outside of their control, the athlete should be asked a series of questions. First, is this something that is within their control? If it is, the athlete should be asked what specifically can they do to relive the problem. The practitioner can then help them in devising an appropriate plan of action. If it is a factor that the athlete is unable to control, they should be asked what in the situation they can control. The athlete should then focus on that aspect, and the practitioner can assist them in finding ways to alleviate the problem.

Under-Intensity

Under-intensity, though less likely to occur, can also have dramatic negative effects on competitive performance. As a result, the applied practitioner should create an awareness of under-intensity and teach athletes ho to address this phenomenon when it does occur (Caudill, Weinberg, & Jackson, 1983; Williams & Harris, 1998).

High-energy self-talk Let-down self talk such as “I have this competition won” and “I quit” are commonly associated with feelings of under-intensity (Caudill, et al., 1983; Williams & Harris, 1998). Self-talk such as his produces a physiological decline in intensity, which directly interferes with effective performance. This self-talk needs to be replaced with high-energy self-talk that will raise physiological intensity to an optimal level (Edwards & Hard, 1996). For example, statements such as those described above should be replaced with “Finish strong” and “Keep at it.”

Physiological Interventions

Despite the best efforts of the practitioner, coach and athlete to achieve optimal intensity through cognitive interventions, many times this will not be possible due to various situational and social aspects of the competition. Consequently, it is important that the applied practitioner is able to provide the athlete with simple and practical tools that may be used prior to competition, enabling the athlete to attain optimal physiological intensity.

Over-Intensity

Breathing. Williams and Harris (1998) have suggested that the simplest, and most effective technique in reducing unwanted high levels of intensity is breathing. Often, it is common to see athletes taking short, choppy breaths just before a competition. When athletes are experiencing over-intensity, the respiratory system contracts, so that an oxygen levels are inadequate for the demands of competition. Breathing serves several essential functions. In addition to providing oxygen to enrich the blood, breathing also is the primary way in which we remove carbon-dioxide from the body. A build-up of carbon-dioxide in the tissues is associated with muscle fatigue and cramping, both of which can seriously impair athletic performance. Moreover, without adequate supplies of oxygen, the body’s ability to resynthesize energy is impaired, which adversely affects endurance performance. Taking several deep, rhythmic breaths will allow athletes to replenish their body’s oxygen supply, and help in “calming” the individual, thus reducing over-intensity.

Breathing also has psychological ramifications. A significant problem with over-intensity is that athletes tend to become focused on such negative symptoms as muscle tension and stomach butterflies. By taking slow, deep breaths, athletes alleviate some of these symptoms, thereby increasing self-confidence and feeling of well-being. Additionally, by focusing on one’s breathing, the focus is taken off the negative feelings often associated with over-intensity.

Muscle Relaxation. One of the most uncomfortable manifestations of over-intensity is muscle tension (Landers & Boutcher, 1986). A common sight before a competition is athletes who look as if they are made of stone. Tight muscles inhibit coordination, interfere with quality of performance, and increase the likelihood of injury. As a result, the applied practitioner may need to teach athletes practical and easy to use techniques of muscle relaxation.

One common strategy is called passive relaxation. This procedure works effectively with all but the most overly intense athletes. It involves deep breathing and a “tension draining” process.

However, this relaxation method may not work with all athletes, particularly those individual athletes that experience extreme muscle tension. These athletes will try to get their muscles to relax by shaking them and wishing them to relax, however, the tension they are experiencing is often so great that these simple attempts are not effective. A technique that directly affects such extreme symptoms of over-intensity is called progressive relaxation (Jacoboson, 1938). Progressive relaxation involves alternating tension and relaxation of major muscle groups.

To illustrate this process, consider Rob, how is a promising 24-year old pistol shooter participating in his first world championship. Fifteen minutes before Rob is scheduled to perform, he is understandably very nervous and tense. However, despite his best efforts, he is unable to rid himself of his unwanted over-intensity. Fortunately, several weeks prior to the competition, the team’s sport psychologist taught Rob progressive relaxation techniques. She told him that in order to relax his muscles, he must first do just the opposite, that is, to tighten them up! So, he tightened each of the four major muscle groups (e.g., legs & buttocks, chest & back, arms & shoulders, face & neck) for five seconds, followed by five seconds of complete relaxation. Rob repeated this sequence of tightening and relaxing his muscles several times, taking a deep breath between each phase of the exercise. Almost immediately, he noticed that his muscles were more relaxed and comfortable. Fortunately, Rob remembered this lesson prior to his competition, and was able to successfully use these techniques to calm himself down prior to his performance.

This somewhat counterintuitive approach is effective because muscles work on what Jacobson (1938) termed an opponent-principle process. For instance, consider a scale of 1 (e.g., complete relaxation) to 10 (e.g., totally tense) representing the range of intensity that Rob could feel prior to competition. Prior to the world championships, Rob was about an 8, but he needed to be closer to 4 to achieve his individual optimal range of intensity. Through the process of tightening his muscles to reach a 10, the natural reaction of the muscles is to rebound past 8, down to a more relaxed state near a 4, which is where Rob needed to be in order to perform well.

Progressive relaxation has value for athletes at two levels. First, athletes are often so accustomed to being tense that they are simply not aware of their level of muscle tension and how this tension negatively affects their performances. The process of tightening and relaxing muscles teaching athletes to discriminate between states of complete tension and total relaxation. Once this recognition occurs, athletes will be more sensitive to their bodies’ signals and better able to respond effectively to unwanted high levels of intensity (Weinberg & Gould, 1999).

As with any technique, the muscle awareness and control that develops from progressive relaxation takes practice. Hence, the applied practitioner or sport coach can facilitate this process by making progressive relaxation a regular part of their practice sessions. For example, it can be an enjoyable and beneficial part of the cool-down at the end of each practice.

Smiling. The last physiological intervention to be discussed is surprising in its effectiveness, primarily because it is so commonplace. This technique is smiling. In other words, if an athlete is experiencing excessively high levels of intensity, he or she should simply smile!

This technique was described several years ago when a sport psychologist was working with a professional tennis player who became very angry and frustrated during on-court practice session as she struggled to improve a less than stellar aspect of her otherwise sound game. She became so tense that she could not perform at all, and on a whim, the sport psychologist told her to smile. As can be easily imagined, smiling was the last thing that she wanted to do, and she expressed her feelings quite emphatically. However, with persistence and simply to appease her sport psychologist, she formed a big smile, and when she did, the sport psychologist told her to hold the smile. Within two minutes, a remarkable transformation occurred. As she held the smile, the tension in her shoulders disappeared, the wrinkle in her brow went away, and her body, which had been hunched and closed began to rise and open up. She went on to have a productive practice in which she was able to overcome her earlier difficulties.

The sport psychologist was curious as to why smiling had such a dramatic effect on this athlete. After combing the available research on the effects of smiling, he discovered several causes of this phenomenon. First, people are conditioned to associate smiling with happiness and feeling good. Also, research has demonstrated that smiling actually alters blood flow through the brain, causing the release of neurochemicals that produce calming effects (Zajonic, 1985). Finally, it is difficult to think and feel in a way that is contrary to one’s body language. In other words, it is difficult to be angry when one is smiling.

Under-Intensity

Physical activity. Intensity is partially the result of the amount of physiological activity experienced by an athlete. As a result, the most direct way to increase intensity within the athlete is often through vigorous physical activity. The type of physical activity will largely depend on the specific sport of the athlete, but many times any type of running, jumping, or active movement will be beneficial. The bottom line involves elevating the exercising heart rate of the athlete, increasing the flow of blood to the active muscles.

High-energy body language. It is not uncommon to see athletes pumping their fist, slapping their thighs, and giving high-fives to their teammates. In fact, athletes such as Shaquille O’Neal (basketball) Dennis Mitchell (track) Steffi Graf (tennis) and Pernell Whitaker (boxing) often use such high-energy body language to maintain the optimal levels of intensity. Internal physiological activity can be effectively activated with such external physical activity, and such practices by athletes often serve the role of regulating intensity.

General Interventions for Intensity Regulation

In addition to such cognitive and physiological techniques just described, there are a number of general performance-enhancement strategies that can be beneficial to many aspects of mental preparation with athletes. Some of these interventions are discussed below in terms of how they can be used to regulate intensity. Additionally, these techniques impact athletes both cognitively and physiologically.

Mental Imagery

Although research is equivocal in its findings of the benefits of mental imagery, there is evidence to suggest that it can have a distinct physiological effect on athletes (Feltz & Landers, 1983). Consequently, athletes can use mental imagery in attempts to adjust their intensity levels prior to competition (Caudill, Weinberg & Jackson, 1983). High-energy images of intense competition, strong effort, and success will often raise physiological activity. Conversely, calming images of relaxing scenes, peace and tranquility will reduce intensity.

Keywords

A common pit fall that many athletes experience is that they become so absorbed in the heat of competition, they often forget to do the important things they need to do in order to perform optimally. Specifically, athletes forget to monitor and adjust their intensity. A useful tool to maintain an awareness of intensity is the use of meaningful key words.

Applied practitioners can encourage athletes with who they work to identify keywords related to performance, and place these words in visible settings such as their bedroom, locker room, or weight room.

Music

Music has been shown to have a profound emotional and physiological impact upon people. Music can create feelings of happiness, sadness, inspiration or anger. It can also excite or relax a person. Although this relationship has not been empirically studied in the world of athletic competition, many well-known athletes, including Greg Louganis (diving) Kristie Phillips (gymnastics) and Kristi Yamauchi (figure skating), often utilize music in regulating intensity prior to competition.

Applied practitioners can assist athletes in selecting the appropriate style of music for their individual intensity regulation. For instance, athletes who need to increase their intensity may need to listen to high-energy music, while those needing to reduce intensity should listen to relaxing music. In fact, some athletes combine music with relaxation audiotapes.

Situational Interventions for Intensity Regulation

Other factors influencing intensity are situational interventions. These occur when an athlete uses the time and space before a competition to achieve optimal levels of intensity. Situational strategies affect intensity by controlling both environmental and preparatory factors that can influence intensity. Through effective management of time, setting, and preparation prior to competition, athletes are able to identify and gain control over situational contributors to intensity.

Pre-Competition Management

On the day of competition, the time that athletes spend before they compete is the most crucial period of their competitive preparation. What athletes think, feel and do before they compete often dictates how they will perform. This pre-competitive time can ensure optimal intensity that contributes to quality performances. Athletes should have three goals before they compete: (1) their equipment should be ideally prepared; (2) their bodies should be properly warmed up and at optimal intensity, and (3) they should be mentally prepared, most notably with optimal levels of confidence and focus. Applied practitioners can ensure this total preparation by asking athletes four questions about their precompetitive environment.

Where to stay in the competition site?

Attentional style will greatly influence where an athlete can best accomplish his precompetitive preparation needs. Athletes who have an external focus (e.g., are overly sensitive to external distractions) are better off isolating themselves from the typically busy activity of the competition site. This will reduce the likelihood that environmental distractions such as other competitors, coaches, officials or media will interfere with their pre-competitive preparations. In contrast, athletes with an internal focus (e.g., overly sensitive to internal distractions) may need to be around the activity associated with the competition arena. By doing so, these athletes will be drawn out of their internal focus by the surrounding activity, and less likely to dwell on negative or irrelevant thoughts that may inhibit their pre-competitive preparation.

What do they need to do to be totally prepared? Three primary areas for preparation need to be considered in response to this question: (1) equipment (2) physical, and (3) mental. For each of these areas, specific methods need to be developed that will ensure total preparation. It is also important that the athlete develop pre-competitive routines (see below) that will combine the many preparation strategies into a single cohesive plan that is most effective for the individual athlete and specific competition.

Who can assist in their preparation? There are many people with whom the athlete can successfully interact at the competition site, including teammates, coaches, family, friends and even fans. Some of these individuals are important to the pre-competitive preparation of the athletes, and others may be tangential. For example, Weiss and Friedrichs (1988) found that coaches that provided frequent positive reinforcement and greater social support also had teams that performed at higher levels when compared to those coaches who do not provide these. The applied practitioner can assist athletes in identifying those individuals that will facilitate their pre-competitive preparation.

Who and what can interfere with their preparation? There are people or things who are either irrelevant to or will interfere with athletes’ pre-competitive preparation, such as chatty teammates, family, and unwanted competition information. These people can act to distract athletes from relevant pre-competitive focus and inhibit their pre-competitive efforts (Magill, 1998; Nideffer, 1989). Such obstacles need to be identified and actively avoided, and plans to deal unwanted people or situations developed.

Pre-Competitive Routines

Considerable research has demonstrated that pre-competitive routines are an effective means of controlling intensity and enhancing the consistency and quality of performances (Boutcher & Crews, 1987; Cohn, Rotella, & Lloyd, 1990; Ravizza & Osborne, 1991). As a result, routines are an important part of the pre-competitive preparation and important in intensity regulation.

Routines can be valuable for several reasons. They ensure completion of every key aspect of pre-competitive preparation, and enhance the familiarity of situations by making the associated preparation familiar to the athlete. They decrease the likelihood of unexpected events occurring by giving athletes greater control over pre-competitive events, and help to develop a consistency of thoughts, feelings and behaviors. When properly used, routines may raise self-confidence and reduce unnecessary intensity as well. By developing and implementing an effective pre-competitive routine, regardless of the importance of the competition, athletes will condition their minds and bodies to into thinking and feeling that this is just another competition in which they will perform at their best.

Performance funnel. All pre-competitive preparation should involve a consistent narrowing of focus, intensity, and effort as the athlete approaches the start of competition. Each step close to the competition should lead the athlete to that unique state of readiness in which they achieve physical and psychological preparedness. This notion is nicely conceptualizes as the performance funnel. The quality of equipment, physical, and mental preparation will determine the quality of their competitive performances (Taylor, 2000).

 

Routines vs. rituals. Superstitious behavior is a common phenomenon among athletes. This can be viewed as the rigid adherence to pre-competitive behavior that athletes imbue with importance to their performances, yet serve no practical function in preparation for the competition. Often, athletes develop a series of steps that appear to be routines, but are in fact, superstitious rituals (Vernacchia, McGuire, & Cook, 1992). It is important for the applied practitioner to be able to distinguish between the two in order to assist athletes in developing effective routines, thus ensuring maximum preparation.

The goal of routines is to totally prepare the athlete for competition. As such, everything done in pre-competitive routines serves a specific and necessary function in the preparation for competition. Also, routines are flexible and can be adapted to unique aspects of each competitive situation. In contrast, rituals involve anything that does not serve a specific purpose in preparation for the competition. In addition, rituals are inflexible and athletes believe that they must be done, or they will not perform well. It is important that the applied practitioner show athletes that they control their routines, but rituals control them.

What to put in a pre-competitive routine? Each athlete’s pre-competitive routine should be comprised of every factor that influences competitive performance: (1) meals; (2) physical warm-up; (3) equipment; (4) technical warm-up, and (5) mental preparation. A useful means of identifying what those elements are is for the applied practitioner to discuss with athletes what they do to prepare themselves for competition. Team-sport athletes must deal with the added dimension of team pre-competitive routines (e.g., a football offensive unit running plays). These athletes must manage their pre-competitive time effectively in order to meet their individual and pre-competitive needs.

Early morning routine. Pre-competitive preparation begins as soon as athletes awake in the morning. This early morning preparation sets the tone for the day and ensures that the athletes are both physically and mentally ready for later preparation. Before athletes get out of bed, they should use mental imagery to rehearse their performance in the upcoming competition. Athletes can also use some of the intensity regulation techniques discussed above to begin a shift toward optimal levels of intensity. These techniques set the stage for the competitive performance by generating appropriate feelings and focus.

Physical preparation, in the form of vigorous warm-up before breakfast, is important for athletes who participate in morning competitions. One’s internal core body temperature can range from three to five degrees below normal in the morning, and it can take up to five hours for it to return to more normal states. If an athlete rises at 7 AM and competition begins at 10 AM, her body may not be ready to perform, and performance may suffer. The morning warm-up may involve any exercises that result in the athlete working up a sweat, for example, a run or jumping rope, or stretching. If the athlete is sweating, she knows that her body is warming up, and will be ready for later competition. An added benefit is that such early morning warm-up may also reduce the likelihood of a physical injury.

Arrival at competition site. A similar preparation process should be conducted upon arrival at the competition site several hours prior to actual competition. Similar to the early morning routine, this procedure should be aimed at further readying the athlete both mentally and physically for the upcoming competition. Athletes should again use a form of mental imagery to produce feelings that they associate with good competitive performances. The imagery, keywords, and other intensity regulation techniques may be used to direct focus and to begin the shift towards optimal levels of intensity.

A more vigorous physical warm-up is also necessary with the emphasis on further shift toward optimal intensity. For technical sports such as tennis, golf, and baseball this phase should be accompanied by technical war-up in which proper technique is reviewed and reinforced. Initial physical and technical warm-up should be slow and gentle. However, once the body is warmed-up and this initial phase is completed, the preparation should be rehearsed with increasing focus and intensity aimed at simulating competitive conditions. This makes it easier for athletes to attain their prime focus and intensity when the competition begins.

Final preparation routine. This last stage of the athletes’ pre-competitive routine ensures that complete readiness is attained just prior to the competition. First, any adjustments to equipment should be made. Secondly, as with the previous routines, emphasis is placed on fine-tuning the athletes mentally and physically to their optimal state of readiness. Final mental preparation involves using mental imagery to review their performance, repeating keywords to narrow and maintain focus on the competition, and the use of intensity regulation exercises that will enable the athlete to reach individual levels of optimal intensity as competition nears. Final physical preparation includes last minute physical warm-up and technical fine-tuning.

The goal of the three levels of pre-competitive preparation is that when athletes begin competition, they are optimally ready both mentally and physically to perform their best. How each of these factors is accomplished is what makes a routine personal to the individual athlete. Once athletes have established the necessary components of the routine, the applied practitioner can assist each athlete in establishing their own personalized pre-competitive routine that satisfies their individual needs and style.

Summary

Once competition has arrived, intensity becomes the most important mental factor involved in performance. Although some level of intensity is necessary for optimal performances, too much or too little can harm athletic performance. However, there is no one level of intensity that is appropriate for all athletes. This chapter has reviewed the leading theoretical views of the relationship of intensity to athletic performance, and ways that the applied practitioner can intervene in order to help the athlete achieve optimal intensity.

The four leading theories of intensity and performance are the inverted-U hypothesis, Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning (IZOF) theory, Catastrophe Theory and Reversal Theory. However, as the inverted-U hypothesis has fallen out of favor, more emphasis has been placed on the intensity needs of the individual athlete, which has led to more individualized approaches. Yet, the complex relationship between anxiety, emotions, and physiological factors is still not completely understood, and theories are constantly evolving as we learn more about the way in which athletes respond to intensity in competitive settings.

Although individual athletes may display differing symptoms, over-intensity is typically characterized by muscle tension, difficulty in breathing, negative self-talk and loss of coordination. Causes of over-intensity include a lack of confidence, extreme or inaccurate cognitive appraisals of the competition, and unfamiliar or uncontrollable events that occur right before the competition that impact upon the athlete. Under-intensity is less influenced by social and situation variables, and more often is the result of such psychological causes as over-confidence, lack of interest or boredom.

Optimal intensity refers to the ideal or optimum level of both physiological and cognitive intensity that will allow athletes to perform at their best, and methods of determining optimal intensity through systematic recall were discussed. Another intervention that has been successfully used with athletes is the Intensity Identification Form, which helps to create an understanding within the athlete of what his or her body feels like, and what they are thinking prior to both good and bad performances. This allows the athlete to become aware of theses differences, and take proactive steps in reproducing those factors associated with good performances.

Several cognitive interventions were also presented in dealing with both over and under-intensity. An important source of over-intensity is an inaccurate cognitive appraisal of the situation, and a good place to begin with appropriate controlling of this is at the source, by altering the self-appraisal process that leads to unwanted fear and intensity. The use of positive self-talk, preparing for unexpected and uncontrollable events, and familiarizing the athlete with the environment can all help to reduce high intensity. Although under-intensity is typically less of a problem for athletes, the applied practitioner at times may actually need to help athletes increase intensity. Cognitive interventions such as high energy-self talk, mental imagery, or listening to music can be used in these instances. The use of physiological interventions for intensity regulation was also discussed. Techniques such as controlled breathing, muscle relaxation and the simple use of “smiling” have all proven effective means of reducing high levels of intensity, while high-energy body language and physical activity can be used in situations in which under-intensity is a problem. Finally, the important of intensity regulation to performance, and ways do deal with this issue was discussed by a successful athletic coach and athlete.

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Chapter 3: Intensity

 Jim Taylor, Ph.D. & Gregory Wilson, Ph.D.

Introduction.

Training has been going well for weeks as the day of competition approaches.  Throughout the weeks of training a feeling of confidence and excitement has been building.  Suddenly, just before the competition, the athlete experiences difficulty breathing, muscle tension, butterflies in the stomach, and feelings of uncertainty and apprehension.  What has happened?

On the day of competition arrives, intensity assumes a central role in pre-competitive preparation and becomes the most critical psychological factor prior to competitive performance. Regardless of how mentally prepared an athlete is, if he or she is not physiologically prepared to perform his or her, optimal performance will not be possible.

The applied sport psychology consultant can play a significant role in helping athletes learn to control and maintain their pre-competition and competitive intensity.  Consultants can assist athletes in identifying their optimal level of intensity and clarify situations in which athletes’ intensity shifts away from optimal and the possible causes of these changes. Perhaps the most important service a consultant can provide is to teach athletes the skills needed monitor and adjust their intensity prior to and during competition to ensure that their intensity remains at an optimal level throughout the competition.

Key Issues

 

During both training and competition, athletes experience levels of intensity ranging from deep relaxation to highly energized states.  Yet, the level of intensity required for optimal athletic performances has often been debated.  Moreover, the relationship of intensity to performance is complicated, and may involve factors as yet still unidentified.  Regardless of these issues intensity remains one of the most written about topics in sport psychology, and the ability to accurately identify an athlete’s optimal intensity is important for both coaches and athletes when attempting to maximize athletic performances.

Learning Objectives

 

This chapter has four primary learning objectives. First, intensity will be defined based on both scientific evidence and practical experience. Second, a detailed explanation of what intensity is and how it influences athletic performance will be discussed. Third, why athletes have differing levels of optimal intensity and what factors affect intensity will be explored. Finally, practical methods of raising, lowering, or maintaining intensity for high level performance will be presented.

Chapter Purpose

The purpose of this chapter is to provide an indepth understanding of the impact of intensity on athletic performance. Issues that will be examined include athlete and sport factors that influence intensity, understanding optimal intensity, and identifying the causes and symptoms of over- and under-intensity. This chapter will also offer practical information and tools for assessing, achieving, and maintaining optimal intensity. Intensity will be explored comprehensively with insights from researchers into its theoretical and scientific study, from consultants into applied concerns, and from coaches and athletes based on their “real-life” experiences with intensity. The consultant (Dr.Jim Taylor) describes the important areas in which intensity influences performance based on his applied work with a wide range of athletes.  The researcher (Dr. Gregory Wilson) integrates recent theoretical and empirical research findings concerning the relationship of intensity to sport performance within the context of the applied issues presented by the consultant. The coach (Gary Wilson) offers his unique perspective through a successful Big 10 track-and-field career, while the athlete (Terry Brahm) discusses the meaning of intensity in his competitive career that included representing the US at the Olympics as a 5000-meter runner.

What is Intensity?

The term intensity is recommended over other more commonly used terms, such as arousal, anxiety and nervousness (Landers & Boutcher, 1986; Silva & Hardy, 1984; Spielberger, 1972).  These latter terms have negative connotations that can limit their value. For example, arousal has sexual associations that can distract athletes from its present meaning, and anxiety and nervousness are sensations that athletes generally want to avoid.  We recommend that intensity be used because it has positive associations and athletes typically view intensity as an integral contributor to optimal performance (Taylor, 2001).

Zaichkowsky and Takenaka (1993) suggest that intensity has three important qualities that affect performance. First, there exists a physiological activation that includes heart rate, glandular and cortical activity, and blood flow.  Second, behavioral responses are evident in terms of the amount of motor activity activation.  Lastly, cognitive and emotional responses are exhibited in terms of positive or negative perceptions of the physiological and behavioral symptoms of intensity.

Importance to athletes.

Athletes experience a wide range of intensity in training and competition, ranging from very low (e.g., relaxed, calm) to extremely high (e.g., fearful, agitated).  Intensity may be experienced by athletes positively, leading to increases in confidence, motivation, stamina, strength, endurance, and sensory acuity (Carver & Scheier, 1986), or negatively as fear, dread, muscle tension, breathing difficulty, loss of confidence, motivation, focus, and coordination (Eysenck, 1992).  The ability of athletes to monitor and control their intensity will dictate how they perform in training and competition.

Characteristics of Intensity.

      During the last decade, the scientific and applied understanding of intensity and its influence on athletic performance has increased dramatically (Cox, 1998, Hanin, 2000; Weinberg & Gould, 1999). These new insights have shown that intensity is a complex attribute that is affected by individual athletes and the sport in which they participate and, in turn, acts on athletes in idiosyncratic and sometimes surprising ways.

Intensity is multifaceted.

      Intensity is now seen as being affected by many physical, psychological, and emotional factors. Hardy (1990, 1996), for example, proposed the Cusp Catastrophe Model, which suggests that intensity possesses thought (i.e., worry and apprehension), and somatic (i.e., physiological activity) components.. This theory asserts that declines in performance will only occur when high somatic intensity and high cognitive intensity are both present. When this situation arises, “catastrophe” occurs, resulting in a rapid and dramatic deterioration in athletic performance (Cox, 1998). The challenge for consultants is to identify the precise contributors to changes in intensity in individual athletes. Only by helping athletes identify their specific causes can they then learn to control them and, thus, perform their best.

Intensity is unique to each athlete.

Consultants’ work would be much simpler if all athletes performed their best at the same level of intensity. This, however, is not the case. The earliest theory, the Inverted-U hypothesis (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908), suggested that, as intensity increases performance will improve, but only to a point, after which more intensity hurts performance (Cox, 1994). From an applied perspective, the inverted-U hypothesis suggests that all individuals should possess moderate levels of intensity, regardless of physiology, skill level, experience, competitive setting, or other factors.

However, the Inverted-U hypothesis does not account for the individual differences in the way athletes respond to the stress of competition (Fazey & Hardy, 1988; Raglin & Hanin, 2000) or the unique demands of different sports (Taylor, 1995). Recent research (Raglin & Turner, 1993; Wilson & Raglin, 1997) indicates that a significant proportion of athletes perform better at higher levels of intensity. Further evidence (Raglin & Morris, 1994; Wilson & Raglin, 1997) suggests that the level of competition influences intensity levels within athletes.  For example, athletes exhibit lower intensity levels when competing in “easy” as opposed to “hard” competitions.

The Individual Zone of Functioning (IZOF) model asserts that optimal intensity varies depending on the unique characteristics of the athlete (Hanin, 2000). Hanin (2000) believes that intensity is: (1) a part of athletes’ responses to the competitive situation, (2) determined by an how athletes perceive the situation, and (3) a reflection of their past experiences in similar situations. IZOF research has demonstrated that the optimal level of anxiety may greatly vary across athletes, with between 30 to 45% of athletes performing best when anxiety is high (Raglin & Hanin, 2000).

Another view of the individual nature of intensity has been offered by Reversal Theory (Jones, 1995) which states that the most important factor in understanding the relationship between intensity and performance is athletes’ own interpretations of their perceived intensity.  For example, high intensity can be beneficial to performance if athletes perceive their high intensity as positive. Conversely, if athletes interpret their intensity negatively, intensity will hurt performance. (Kerr, 1997).

Reversal theory further suggests that there can be shifts in the perceptions of intensity throughout the duration of a sporting competition (Kerr, 1989).  For example, a golfer may begin a round feeling confident and motivated about her performance and, as a result, interpret the accompanying intensity as positive.  However, as the round progresses and she makes several bad shots there may be a shift in her perceptions of her intensity. The same level of intensity that was once viewed as positive is now seen as negative and thus negatively affects her golf performance.

Perceptions of ability.

      The perceptions that athletes hold about their ability to succeed in a given competition influences their level of intensity and whether they interpret it as positive or negative. Landers and Boutcher (1986) propose five areas that affect the perceptions of their ability: (1) demands of the situation; (2) individual’s resources for effectively managing the demands; (3) consequences of the situation; (4) “meaning” that is attached to the consequences, and (5) recognition of bodily reactions. For example, Eddie, an 18-year-old freshman goalie for a collegiate hockey team has been named the starter for the championship game. He perceives that the requirements of his starting role in such an important game (demands) are greater than his ability (resources) to perform successfully.  He believes that he will fail in his performance (consequences) and it will disappoint his family and ruin his chances at a career in the National Hockey League (meaning). The confluence of these appraisals lead Eddie to experience a dramatic increase in his intensity prior to the game.

 

 

Past experience.

Recent studies have also found past experience to be an important contributor to both an athletes precompetition and optimal level of intensity (Wilson & Steinke, 2002; Wilson, Raglin, & Pritchard, 2001). Findings from these studies suggest that when athletes are grouped based on attribution styles (e.g., optimistic, defensive pessimistic or pessimistic),  those athletes labeled as “optimistic” and tended to have lower precompetition and optimal intensity values than athletes who were more pessimistic in nature.  However, no performance differences have been found between optimistic and pessimistic athletes.  Reasons for this lack of performance differences may be explained by how more pessimistic athletes view intensity.  It has been suggested that individuals who possess a defensive pessimistic attribution style may actually use these higher levels of intensity as motivation to perform (Sanna, 1998).  This research is important for consultants because, lowering the intensity of an athlete who is pessimistic may actually harm performance while raising the level of intensity for an optimistic athlete may harm performance.

Perceptions of competitive situation.

      Taylor (2001) has suggested that the specific setting in which an athlete performs may also influence intensity. For example, a gymnast might experience higher intensity while performing on the balance beam than on the floor exercise. Situational factors that are present at competitions also influence intensity. Competitive conditions such as the facility, weather, and crowd size may impact intensity. How familiar athletes are with the competitive situation and conditions will also affect intensity.

It is likely that the level of the competition, such as whether the competition is above, at, or below athletes’ typical level with influence intensity. Competitions above athletes’ usual level would cause an increase in intensity, while competitions at a lower level might lead to a decline in intensity. The level of opposition could be expected to have a similar effect on intensity. Czikszentmihalyi (1975) supports this view by suggesting that athletes who perceive that their abilities exceed the demands of a competitive situation (i.e., they are better than their opponents) will experience boredom, which will lower intensity, and if the demands of the situation exceed their abilities, they will become frustrated or fearful, and their intensity will increase.

Intensity is sport specific.

            How intensity affects athletic performance depends on the type of sport in which athletes compete. Oxendine (1970) was the first theorist to suggest that intensity is sport specific. He believed that optimal intensity depended on the motor demands of a sport. For example, sports involving gross motor activities requiring strength and speed (e.g., shot put, football, hockey) required high intensity for optimal performance.  In contrast, relatively lower intensity would be needed in sports that involving fine muscle movements, (e.g., golf, diving, archery). However, despite the intuitive appeal of Oxendine’s ideas, research support has been virtually nonexistent (Fazey & Hardy, 1988; Gould & Krane, 1992; Raglin & Turner, 1992).

Terry Brahm:

 

If there are two competitors that are equally prepared in terms of physical training, the competition will always go to that individual who is the most prepared mentally.  That individual will be able to can control their intensity level, and get the most out or their performance.

For example, several days before the 1988 Olympic Trials I began to get very anxious and tense.  Training had gone perfectly, and I knew that I was physically ready.  However, as the event that I had trained for years approached, I was becoming very nervous.  My coach, Sam Bell sensed this and brought me back to the proper level of intensity by calmly discussing the upcoming trials.  He told me to be myself, and to simply go out and compete as I had the over the last few months and I would make the Olympic team.  This brief talk made me realize that I was overly high intensity levels and that I needed to be myself in order to run well. I believe that this was the most important factor in me making the Olympic team that year in the 5,000m.

Identifying Optimal Intensity.

 

Optimal intensity refers to the ideal level of physiological and cognitive intensity that will allow athletes to perform their best (Taylor, 2001). There is no one optimal level of intensity for all athletes, rather, optimal intensity is personal for each athlete. Whether athletes attain optimal intensity in a competition is determined by numerous personal, social, athletic, and situational variables over which the athlete may have little awareness and even less control (Schmidt & Wrisberg, 2000).

As indicated in both the IZOF model (Hanin, 2000) and catastrophe theory (Fazey & Hardy, 1988), all athletes have a level of intensity that allows them to perform their best.  The first goal of consultants in working with intensity regulation with athletes is to teach them to how to identify their optimal intensity.

Identify relevant personal factors.

Using a form such as the Intensity Identification Form (Form 1), consultants can ask athletes the following questions concerning the optimal intensity they have experienced in the past: (1) Prior to and during a successful competition, how did your body feel?  For example, heart rate and sweating, or calm and at ease? Athletes should be as specific as possible in describing their physiological conditions. (2) What were their thoughts and emotions at the time,? such as very positive and excited or neutral in thinking and low key? And (3) What social influences are typically present or absent during successful performances, such as family, coaches, and friends?  The same questions should also be asked about poor performances. Typically, what emerges from this examination is a consistent pattern of physiological, cognitive, and social activity that is associated with optimal and non-optimal intensity, as well as the corresponding level of performance.  At the bottom of Table 1, athletes can summarize those factors that are associated with both successful and unsuccessful performances.

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Insert Form 3.1 About Here

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The purpose of this exercise is to create an understanding within athletes of what their body feels like, what they are thinking and feeling, and with whom are they interacting in performance situations that are both good and poor. The goal of intensity identification is to make athletes aware of these differences before they compete so they can then take proactive steps in reproducing those factors that are associated with good performance through the use of intensity regulation.

Experiment with different intensity in training.

 

Athletes who are unsure of their optimal intensity can use training to experiment with varying intensity levels and their impact on performance.  For example, a 400-meter runner can divide a training session comprised of six 400-meter timed intervals into three parts in which, using the intensity regulation techniques described later in this chapter, she runs two intervals each at low, moderate, and high levels of intensity (with adequate rest in between). She can then use her feelings during each segment of workout and the times she ran to help her identify her optimal intensity.

 

Compare successful and unsuccessful performances.

 

Hanin (1986) has offered two methods for determining an athlete’s optimal intensity range.  Initially, Hanin followed athletes through an entire season and measured intensity one hour prior to actual competition. By comparing pre-competitive intensity to individual performances, Hanin was able to determine optimal intensity for each athlete. However, the logistical problems in following an athlete throughout a competitive season can make this method impractical (Hanin & Syrja, 1995; Raglin & Hanin, 1999). It can also be difficult getting athletes to cooperate because of this approach’s intrusiveness (McCann, Murphy & Raedeke, 1992).

In response to this problem, Hanin (1986) developed a retrospective method for assessing an athlete’s IZOF. Hanin and others (Morgan & Ellickson, 1987) found that recall of pre-competitive intensity remained highly accurate even 18 days after a competition.

An important finding of IZOF research is that athletes can successfully predict pre-competitive levels of intensity up to 48 hours prior to competition ( Raglin & Turner, 1992; Wilson & Raglin, 1997). This ability is important as it may be used as a reference point for intervention with athletes (Hanin, 2000).  With this knowledge, significant deviations from optimal intensity can guide applied consultants in the type of interventions (e.g., raising or lowering intensity) they recommend.

<a> Terry Brahm:

Intensity is definitely unique to each athlete. The role of the coach is to observe and communicate with each athlete in order to find out what makes them tick, and then set the environment to allow them to perform to their highest level.  The role of the athlete is to pay attention to how they respond to various levels of intensity in practice and competition settings, and then to communicate their feelings back to their coach.  It must be a two way line of communication, and the athlete needs to be in touch with their own emotions.

General intensity control strategies.

 

With a clear understanding of what optimal and non-optimal intensity feels like and how it influences performance, athletes can now develop skills to achieve and maintain optimal intensity. This section will examine general intensity control techniques that athletes can use to either increase or decrease their intensity. Later sections of this chapter will introduce specific strategies to help athletes respond to the causes and symptoms of over- and under-intensity.

Precompetitive management.

 

On the day of the competition, the time that athletes spend before they compete is the most crucial period of competitive preparation.  What athletes think, feel and do before they compete will dictate how they perform.    Athletes should have three goals before they compete: (1) their equipment should be prepared; (2) their bodies should be warmed up and at optimal intensity; and (3) they should be mentally prepared to perform their best. The use of routines in precompetitive management will be discussed in detail in Chapter Nine.

Mental imagery.

 

Mental imagery, one of the most commonly used mental training strategies by athletes,can be used to adjust their intensity up or down prior to competition (Caudill, Weinberg & Jackson, 1983). High-energy images of intense competition, strong effort, and success can raise intensiy. Calming images of relaxing scenes, peace, and tranquility can reduce intensity (for more on mental imagery, see Chapter 8). 

Keywords.

 

A common pit fall that many athletes experience is that they become so absorbed in the heat of competition, they often forget to do important things to perform optimally, such as forgetting to monitor and adjust their intensity. Athletes can develop key words to remind them of what they need to do to achieve optimal intensity (see Table 6). Applied consultants can encourage athletes to identify intensity keywords that have either an energizing or calming effect, and to use them before and during competition to help them maintain optimal intensity (for more on keywords, see Chapter Four).

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Insert Table 3.1 About Here

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Music.

Music has a profound emotional and physiological impact upon people.  Music can create feelings of happiness, sadness, inspiration or anger.  It can excite or calm people.  Although this relationship has not been studied in the sports world , many well-known athletes, including Olympic 400m champion Michael Johnson, Olympic figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi, and Major League Baseball player Derek Jeter use music in regulating intensity before competition. Consultants can assist athletes in selecting the appropriate style of music for reaching their optimal intensity. For instance, athletes who need to increase their intensity should listen to high-energy music, while those needing to reduce intensity should listen to relaxing music.

Terry Brahm:

Athletes should with different levels of intensity in their training.  Certainly the most important skill that is developed is the physical competency in one’s sport, however, it should not be forgotten that practice sessions can also be used to develop the mental framework needed to perform at an optimal level.  I think that it is good to experiment in practice under differing levels of intensity, and match these intensity levels to your performance.  If you are not sure under which level of intensity you perform the best, practice is the time to find out, not an actual competition.

Controlling over-intensity.

Over-intensity is the most common form of non-optimal intensity. Athletes experience over-intensity for a variety of reasons, but the outcomes are the same—physical and psychological discomfort and poor competitive performance. To gain control of their over-intensity, athletes must follow several steps: (1) Understand its causes so that they can solve the fundamental problem that is leading to over-intensity; (2) recognize its symptoms so that appropriate intensity control techniques can be used to address them; and (3) apply the most effective “psych-down” strategies to help athletes achieve and maintain their optimal intensity.

<b> Causes of over-intensity.

Athletes experience over-intensity for a reason. At some level, they feel that the upcoming competition is threatening to them. This belief triggers all of the physical and psychological symptoms that lead to poor competitive performance. To relieve their over-intensity, athletes must understand what is causing it.

 

<c>Lack of confidence.

 

Athletes who have a lack of confidence are placed in a threatening and untenable position; they must perform in a competitive situation for which they have little faith in their ability to succeed. Considered in this light, over-intensity—anxiety in its truest sense—is inevitable. A good place for consultants to start in helping athletes lower their intensity is to alter how athletes appraise their upcoming competition. (Kerr, 1997).   In fact, Edwards and Hardy (1996) have reported that athletes whose confidence increased perceived their intensity to be more facilitative to their competitive performances.

Assuming that athletes are well-prepared physically and technically, a lack of confidence is most often caused by negative, inaccurate or extreme cognitive appraisal of a competitive situation (Landers & Boutcher, 1986). At the heart of this faulty appraisal process is the perception by athletes that they can’t cope effectively with the five areas of appraisal (i.e., demands, resources, consequences, meaning, and recognition of bodily reactions). Thus, by developing their confidence, athletes can reduce their over-intensity at its source by re-evaluating the situation positively and accurately.

Terry Brahm:

Before entering a competition where I knew the skill level was higher than what I was used to competing against, I would remember my best practice or competition from the past weeks or months.  I would recall that feeling mentally, physically and spiritually that I had when running fast.  I would go over those feelings again and again in my mind until I was in that mental frame that I was confident that I would be able to compete at the highest level.  If an athlete is not confidence, it makes competing at a high level difficult for most individuals.

Internal focus.

Nideffer (1981) has suggested that athletes who become distracted by thoughts, physical sensations, and emotions, particularly when those distractions lower confidence, are more likely to experience a shift away from optimal intensity. Internal distractions, such as negative thoughts, discomforting emotions, thinking about past failures, and a preoccupation with technique, can cause athletes to feel threatened and to experience over-intensity. Another internal distraction that is common among athletes involves focusing on the outcome of competition rather than on its process. This emphasis causes athletes to feel pressure to achieve the desired outcome and detracts from their focus on what they need to do to perform their best.

External focus.

Athletes who focus on external factors that can interfere with performance increase the likelihood that they will experience over-intensity. Focusing on social causes of over-intensity come primarily from pressure athletes feel from the expectations of significant others including parents, coaches, friends, community, and media. Over-intensity results from the perception that if athletes do not live up to the socially-derived expectations, they will disappoint people who are important to them, and they will not be loved, respected, or supported (Krohne, 1980; Passer, 1982).

Focusing on environmental factors, such as the setting, competitive conditions, noise, unfamiliarity with the situation, the occurrence of unexpected events, and worry over uncontrollable aspects of the competitive situation, can also cause athletes to feel over-intensity. These factors can have an unsettling effect on athletes, cause them to lose confidence, and, as a result, elevate their intensity to a level that may hurt performance.

Terry Brahm:

To me, one of the more challenging aspects of competing in the Olympics is controlling both internal and external factors that affect your performance.  You cannot dwell on the fact that everyone (friends, family, teammates, coach, media) want you to win a gold medal.  Instead, you need to recognize that while the entire world is watching, you need to stay focused on the simpler processes of your sport (mechanics, stride, pace).  In my case, all I needed to do was to focus on running the 5,000 meters as fast as I could.  All the other factors just added to the experience, but I had to be aware not to allow them to detract me from my performance.  If I had let these things enter my mind, my level of intensity would have soared, and I would not have been at an optimal level of intensity to compete.  To me, this was very important.

Symptoms of over-intensity

Intensity can be manifested in three ways: physically, behaviorally, and psychologically (Hanin, 1999; Jones, 1997; Kerr, 1995).  The most apparent physical symptoms include extreme muscle tension, stomach butterflies, shaking muscles, difficulty breathing, and excessive perspiration (Landers & Boutcher, 1986).  Other more subtle physical signs include increased heart rate, fatigue, and a decrease in motor coordination. Behavioral indicators include an increase in pace during competition, generalized agitation, an increase in performance-irrelevant or superstitious behaviors, tense body language, more mistakes, and a decrease in competitive performance (Eysenck & Calvo, 1992). Psychological symptoms of over-intensity include negative self-talk, a shift from performance-relevant thoughts to performance-irrelevant thoughts, a decline in motivation, an over-narrowing of concentration (Nideffer & Sagal, 1998), and experiencing emotions such as frustration, anger, and fear (Elko & Ostrow, 1991; Hamilton & Fremouw, 1985).

Cognitive psych-down techniques.

Reducing over-intensity using psychological psych-down techniques focuses on changing the causes of over-intensity. This section will address a variety of psychological strategies that athletes can use to lower their intensity. These techniques can first be used during training sessions and then prior to competitions to prevent non-optimal intensity. They can also be applied immediately before and during competitions to achieve and maintain optimal intensity.

Build confidence.

The most effective way to relieve the psychological and emotional causes of over-intensity is to develop athletes’ confidence in their ability to achieve their goals. Chapter Two describes many useful techniques that consultants can teach athletes to improve their confidence, such as positive self-talk, thought stopping, and positive litanies. Most important, confidence should develop progressively out of athletes’ experiences in training and competitions. Confidence should be grounded in quality preparation, the consistent use of mental skills in training, positive responses to adversity, supports from others, such as coaches, teammates, family, and friends, and daily successes in training. Confidence built in this way will be well-founded, deeply ingrained, and resilient in the face of obstacles, mistakes, and failure.

Often athletes, particularly those who are young or less experienced, become so overwhelmed by the approaching competition that they lose perspective and are simply not able to view the situation objectively. This loss of perspective further hurts confidence as the competition approaches. This distortion may lead to irrational thinking, which further increases intensity (Ellis, 1962). The applied consultant can assist athletes in rationally assessing the upcoming competition by discussing the five appraisal areas (discussed earlier), either individually or in a team setting. Typically, by being shown another way of viewing the situation, athletes are able to recognize the extremity of their thinking and accept a more realistic perspective, which then results in a shift in their intensity to an optimal level (Heyman, 1984).

Redirect focus.

The ability of athletes to redirect their focus onto cues that will help them to perform their best is essential for relieving the causes of over-intensity. If athletes are not focused on those things that cause over-intensity, such as negative thoughts and emotions, worry about the outcome, and expectations of others, they less likely to experience increased intensity. By attending to cues that are important to performance, athletes also feel more confidence and have a greater sense of control over their efforts, which can also reduce intensity. Chapter Five will offer a more detailed discussion of focus and how it can be used to maximize performance.

Physical psych-down techniques.

Though preventing the causes of over-intensity is the ideal intervention, there will be times when athletes experience over-intensity before and during competition. At these times, they must have the tools to immediately identify its primary symptoms and to take active steps to reduce their intensity to an optimal level. Consultants can play an essential role in providing athletes with the information and skills they need to act quickly and effectively when they experience over-intensity.

Breathing.

When athletes are experiencing over-intensity, the respiratory system contracts, so that oxygen intake is inadequate for the demands of competition. Williams and Harris (1998) have suggested that breathing is the simplest and most effective technique for reducing over-intensity.

Controlled breathing provides oxygen to enrich the blood and allow for athletes to give their best efforts. Breathing is also the primary way in which carbon dioxide is removed from the body. A build-up of carbon dioxide in the tissues is associated with muscle fatigue and cramping, both of which can seriously impair athletic performance. Without sufficient oxygen, the body’s ability to resynthesize energy is impaired, which also adversely affects performance. Taking deep, rhythmic breaths will allow athletes to replenish their body’s oxygen supply and reduce the noticeable symptoms of over-intensity.

Controlled breathing also has psychological benefits.  A significant problem with over-intensity is that athletes tend to become focused on its negative symptoms such as muscle tension, high heart rate, and stomach butterflies.  By taking slow, deep breaths, athletes alleviate some of these symptoms, thereby increasing confidence and feelings of control and well-being.  Additionally, by focusing on their breathing, athletes will pay less attention to the negative feelings associated with over-intensity.

Muscle relaxation

 

Muscle tension is one of the most uncomfortable and debilitating symptoms of over-intensity (Landers & Boutcher, 1986). Tight muscles inhibit coordination and flexibility, disrupt technique, hurt performance, and increase the likelihood of injury. Consultants can teach athletes practical and easy-to-use techniques of muscle relaxation.

Passive relaxation is a common strategy that works effectively with all but the most overly intense athletes. This technique involves deep breathing and a procedure in which athletes focus on relaxing their muscles and imagine the tension gradually draining from their bodies. For athletes who experience significant muscle tension, progressive relaxation will be more effective in relaxing tense muscles (Jacoboson, 1938).  This technique involves alternating tension and relaxation of major muscle groups (head and neck, arms and shoulders, chest and back, and legs). Somewhat counterintuitive, progressive relaxation requires athletes to tense rather than relax their muscles. The procedure involves tensing a muscle group for five seconds, releasing the tension for five seconds, taking a deep breath, and repeating.

Relaxation training increases athletes’ awareness of their muscle tension and how it affects performance. The relaxation process teaches athletes to discriminate between states of complete tension and total relaxation.  Once athletes recognize their muscle tension, they have the ability to actively reduce their tension, lower their intensity, and improve their performances (Weinberg & Gould, 1999). Because muscle relaxation takes practice, consultants can foster its use by making it a regular part of training.

Terry Brahm:

Muscle relaxation is another great way to lower intensity levels when they are too high.  On the night before a competition, I often found it very hard to sleep because of pre-race tension.  I found that if I lay in bed on my back, with my arms at my side, breath deeply and slowly, then flex each muscle group from head to toes, that I would often feel like the tension had left my body.  At times, I would feel like I was becoming very light and almost lifting off the bed, and at other times I would feel like I was sinking down deep into the mattress.  This technique often lead to a good night’s sleep and let me control my intensity so that mentally  I was ready for a big race.

Smiling.

 

Smiling is a surprising yet effective technique for inducing relaxation in athletes. The value of smiling was discovered several years ago when a consultant was working with a professional tennis player who became frustrated and angry during an on-court practice session as she struggled to improve a part of her game.  She became so upset and tense that her game was getting worse rather than better and, on a whim, the sport psychologist told her to smile.  As can be easily imagined, smiling was the last thing that she wanted to do, and she expressed her feelings to the consultant. However, simply to appease the consultant, she formed a big smile, and when she did, the consultant told her to hold it. Within two minutes, a remarkable transformation occurred. As she held the smile, the tension in her shoulders disappeared and her body, which had been hunched and closed, began to rise and open up. She went on to have a productive practice in which she was able to overcome her earlier difficulties.

The consultant was amazed at the transformation and curious as to why smiling had such a dramatic effect on the athlete. A review of the research on the effects of smiling revealed several causes. First, as people grow up, they learn that smiling is associated with happiness and good feelings. Also, research has demonstrated that smiling actually alters blood flow in the brain, causing the release of neurochemicals that produce a calming effect (Zajonc, 1985). Finally, it is difficult to think and feel in a way that is contrary to one’s body language.

Calming body language.

<a> Terry Brahm:

One of the best ways to control over intensity is to simply smile. My coach of 10 years, (Sam Bell) had a great ability to make me smile or laugh when I needed it the most.  I would always seek out Coach Bell before a race for reassurance, and also because I knew that I would come away laughing or smiling at something he would say.  The second I smiled, I knew that I was ready to compete.

Controlling under-intensity.

Due to the inherent pressures associated with competition, under-intensity is not a common occurrence among athletes (Williams & Harris, 1998). However, it may be evident in some athletes and in some competitive situations, such as when an athlete is heavily favored to win or when an athlete has a big lead and feels assured of victory. Consultants can help athletes recognize when a drop in intensity may happen and how they can respond to it to maintain their optimal intensity.

Causes of under-intensity.

Like over-intensity, under-intensity is caused by an interaction of psychological and situational factors. This relationship is based largely in how athletes perceive themselves relative to the competitive situation and those against whom they will be competing.

Over-confidence.

 

Athletes who are over-confident believe that they will win easily. Over-confidence is caused by athletes’ perceptions that they are far superior to their opponents, the conditions are ideally suited for them, or an overestimation of their own capabilities or underestimation of their competitors’ abilities.

This over-confidence causes athletes to not prepare fully for competition, and give poor effort and not marshall their full psychological and physical capabilities while competing. Because athletes don’t feel the need, they lack the motivation and focus to perform up to their abilities. Intensity tends to stay low because athletes don’t feel it is necessary to raise their heart rate, respiration, blood flow, adrenaline, and other physical factors to an optimal level.

Lack of importance.

 

Recent research (Wilson, Raglin & Pritchard, 2001; Wilson & Raglin, 1997) indicates that athletes tend to have lower pre-competitive intensity prior to competitions considered as “easy” or “less important” by both the coach and athlete when compared to those competitions considered “hard” or “difficult”.  This lower intensity may reflect the perception on the part of athletes that the competition they are about to face is not “worthy” or demanding of their total athletic ability.

Terry Brahm:

At times, there are competitions where the opponents may not have been equal in talent.  When this happens, it is important for the higher caliber runner to stay motivated and “interested” in the race.  This can be a time where new race tactics can be experimented with, or new mechanics tried.  A competitive situation should never be wasted as there are significant potential gains to be made from each competition.  An athlete can simply not let their intensity level down, or consider a race less important just because the level of talent in the race may not be of the highest caliber.

Low motivation.

A lack of interest in or motivation to compete will also produce under-intensity. Athletes who lack the desire to perform will not feel the need to activate themselves physiologically.  Additionally, Czikszentmihalyi (1975) suggested that athletes who perceive that their ability exceeds the demands of the competitive situation will experience boredom, which is reflected in  under-intensity.

Physical causes.

Fatigue from over-training or over-competing, sleeping difficulties, and competitive stress can cause under-intensity.  Other physical causes of under-intensity include nutritional deficiencies and injuries.  In all cases, athletes suffering from these physical causes will simply not have the physiological resources to activate their bodies when needed to perform their best in competition.

Symptoms of under-intensity.

 

Because of the inherent pressures associated with sports competition, athletes do not commonly experience under-intensity (Williams & Harris, 1998). It may be evident in some athletes and in some competitive situations, such as when an athlete is far superior than her opponent and is expected to win easily, or when an athlete has a large and seemingly insurmountable lead in a competition.  As with over-intensity, under-intensity can manifest itself physically, behaviorally, and psychologically. Psychological symptoms include a decline in interest and motivation to compete, difficulty narrowing concentration, an over-sensitivity to external distractions, and a generalized feeling of “not being all there.” Physical signs of under-intensity include low levels of heart rate, respiration, and adrenaline.  These changes are experienced as low energy and feelings of lethargy. Behaviorally, under-intensity can be seen as a decrease in pace during competition, “let-down” body language, a reduction in performance-relevant behaviors (e.g., routines), an increase in mistakes, and a decline in competitive performance.

Cognitive psych-up techniques.

Cognitive psych-up techniques aim to control intensity at its source, by altering the thoughts that trigger the decline in intensity below an optimal level. These strategies change the beliefs and perceptions that cause athletes to lose intensity prior to and during a competition. By teaching these techniques to athletes, consultants can help them to counter these “let-downs” and maintain optimal intensity that will enable them to perform their best.

Raise personal importance of competition.

 

Athletes’ intensity can be affected by how they perceive the importance of the competition and the difficulty of the opponent. Athletes who see little importance in the competition may experience under-intensity and poor performance is likely to follow.  In such instances, the athlete needs to raise the personal importance of the competition by finding value in the competition and resetting their competitive goals according to those new perceptions.  If the competition isn’t seen as important or the opponents aren’t viewed as challenging, then athletes need to shift their motivation and focus from the outcome to other aspects of the competition that will maintain intensity and maximize performance, such as working on new technique or tactics. By altering their perceptions about the competition and changing their goals in a way that will challenge and motivate them, athletes can internally elevate their intensity and maintain a high level of performance.

Bring confidence back to earth.

 

Although it is important for athletes to be believe they can be successful, over-confidence can often lead to disaster. Confident athletes believe they can be successful if they work hard and perform their best. Over-confident athletes believe their victory is guaranteed no matter what they do. Athletes need to be reminded the David vs. Goliath effect, in which an overwhelming favorite is beaten because they lacked intensity and didn’t expend the necessary effort to win. The emphasis for bringing confidence back down to earth involves helping athletes to develop a beneficial level of confidence by having an accurate understanding of what they will need to be successful and maintaining a healthy respect for their opponents.

High-energy self-talk.

 

Let-down self-talk such as, “I have this competition won” and “I quit” are commonly associated with feelings of under-intensity (Caudill, Weinberg, & Jackson, 1983; Williams & Harris, 1998). These types of self-talk produce a physiological decline in intensity which directly interferes with effective performance. In a sense, athletes tell their bodies that there is no longer need to perform, so their bodies shut down and lose their intensity.

This self-talk needs to be replaced with high-energy self-talk that will raise physiological intensity to an optimal level (Edwards & Hardy, 1996). For example, the statements described above should be replaced with “Finish strong” and “Keep at it.”

Physical psych-up techniques.

The benefits of physical psych-up techniques is that they act directly on the intensity that athletes experience before and during a competition. While other psych-down techniques may take time to influence performance, physical psych-down strategies have an instantaneous effect on performance. When consultants teach these methods to athletes, they develop the ability to recognize and act immediately on the lower intensity, enabling the athletes to regain their optimal intensity and to return a high level of performance.

Physical activity.

Intensity is partially the result of the amount of physiological activity athletes experience before a competition . The most direct way to increase intensity in athletes is often through vigorous physical activity. The type of physical activity will largely depend on the sport, but many times any type of running, jumping, or active movement will be beneficial.  The bottom line involves elevating the heart rate and blood flow of the athlete.

High-energy body language.

High-energy body language is another effective means of raising intensity. Techniques, such as athletes pumping their fist, slapping their thighs, and giving high-fives to their teammates increase intensity by combining energetic physical action, quick and forceful movement, positive thinking, and strong and positive emotions. In addition to the physical increase in intensity, high-energy body language has the powerful effect of drawing athletes’ focus into the present, sharpening awareness of their goals, increasing their motivation and resolve, and making them excited about competing. If there are fans present, high-energy body language also can incite a similar increase in intensity among spectators which athletes can feed on to further heighten their intensity.

Terry Brahm:

 

There comes a point when every athlete has the opportunity to take their performance to the next level.  This can often be predicted in practice, but only realized in competition.  How they handle this opportunity is connected to how they perceive their abilities.  If they feel that they don’t belong in the competition, (or on the other hand that the competition is not good enough for them) then they are not likely to have a positive experience.  An athlete has to view each competition as an opportunity to grow, and when they do, they are more likely to grow along with it as well.

 

<a>  Chapter Summary Elements

<b> Key Points

c> Define intensity and describe its impact upon athletic performance

<c> Describe how optimal intensity allows athletes to perform at their physiological best.

<c> Identify the four major theories of the relationship of intensity to athletic performance.

<c> Describe how factors such as past experience and perceptions of ability affect optimal levels of intensity.

<c>  How can athletes determine their optimal level of intensity?

 

<b> Summary Questions

 

List several common symptoms of over-intensity.

 

What are the causes of over-intensity?

 

If an athlete is overly nervous prior to a competition and the coach perceives that their level of intensity is above what is needed for optimal performance, what suggestions might the coach make that would allow the athlete to control her “over-intensity”?

 

List several common symptoms of under-intensity.

 

 

What are the causes of under-intensity?

 

 

An athlete is having a hard time preparing mentally for an upcoming contest.  The athlete appears flat and unemotional before the game, and the coach knows that this athlete typically performs best when intensity is high.  What strategies might be used in raising the level of intensity for this athlete?

 

Summary

An athlete’s preparation starts months in advance of an actual competition. However, despite this long-term mental and physical preparation, Roger Bannister (the first runner to break four minutes in the mile) once remarked that an athlete’s feelings at the last minute before a race matter the most. Regardless of the readiness of the athlete to compete, intensity that is too high or too low may hurt performance. Yet, there is no one ideal level of intensity for all athletes. Athletes will experience varying levels of intensity depending on an interaction of personal, social, sport, and situational factors. As a result, the identification of an individual athlete’s optimal level of intensity is of prime importance for applied sport psychology practitioners, coaches, and athletes themselves.

 

This chapter has offered a definition of intensity that is scientifically rigorous for researchers and of practical use to applied sport psychology practitioners, coaches, and athletes. It has also reviewed the four leading theories (Inverted-U Hypothesis, IZOF Model, Reversal Theory, and Catastrophe Theory) of intensity and athletic performance and discussed the multifaceted and idiosyncratic nature of intensity. Additionally, methods of determining an athlete’s optimal level of intensity (directly through systematic observation and indirectly through past recall) have been provided. The chapter concluded with an exploration of how athletes can raise or lower their intensity to their optimal level.

 

The efforts of researchers, applied practitioners, and coaches is directed toward assisting athletes in understanding their optimal intensity and how they can reach and maintain that ideal level. An important consideration for athletes is recognizing the signs of both overintensity and underintensity. Overintensity is often characterized by muscle tension, negative thinking and doubts about an athlete’s ability to succeed. Such feelings can be caused by a lack of confidence or motivation, fatigue, inaccurate appraisals of the situation or an unfamiliar competitive environment. Underintensity typically is characterized by lethargy on the part of the athlete accompanied by a loss of motivation and difficulty focusing.

 

Athletes can use a variety of cognitive techniques to decrease (e..g., positive self-talk, improve focus, help the athlete to re-evaluate inaccurate perceptions) and or increase (e.g., use of keywords, mental imagery, listening to music) intensity. Physiological interventions such as breathing, relaxation exercises, physical activity can also be used to effectively adjust intensity to its optimal level.

 

The goal for athletes before a competition—and the ultimate purpose of this chapter—is threefold. First, for athletes to gain an understanding of how intensity influences competitive performance. Second, for athletes to learn what their optimal intensity is and what physical, psychological, emotional, social, and competitive factors affect it. Finally, for athletes to have the tools to recognize their level of intensity before a competition and adjust it to its optimal level so they can perform their best.

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EMOTIONS

 

Marc Jones, Ph.D., Jim Taylor, Ph.D.,

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey, & Mary Grigson Daubert

 

<a>Introduction

Emotions are as much a part of the competitive sports experience as physical conditioning, equipment, technique, strategy, and teamwork. It could be argued that emotions are the “raison d’être” of sports competition. The emotions that athletes connect to their sport experiences act as the initial and ongoing impetus to train and compete while the emotions they feel following competition can influence their future motivation, goals, and efforts.

 

Taylor(2001) has suggested that emotions are the ultimate determinants of how athletes perform in competition. The impact of emotions on athletic performance is so powerful and pervasive because they affect every aspect of an athlete’s performance: physical, psychological, technical, and tactical. Yet many in the sports world from researchers and consultants to coaches and athletes hold misconceptions about how emotions arise, how they affect performance, and whether athletes are capable of altering the emotions they experience.

Mary Grigson:

Shedding a tear or two during training was not tolerated.  My coach didn’t stand for any emotional outbursts.  He expected his athletes to do as he requested without comment.   How you felt was not relevant to him.   Besides on competition day you had to race no matter how you felt.  So I tuned out to how my body felt and never analyzed my emotions. 

Occasionally though I would pop like a shaken champagne bottle.  Frustrations, tears and feelings of total devastation would gush out.   Sometimes I was so mad at myself I couldn’t ride my bike properly.  I would make many mistakes and fight my bike with stiff arms and shoulders.  I looked as if I had forgotten how to ride. 

After many years of working through my inner responses to situations have I come to appreciate how much my emotions can affect my athletic performance.

 

In my 10 career I won two World Cup races.   Each race was very different terrain and under different circumstances.  But one thing was the same – the way I rode.   On those two occasions I felt relaxed and in control of my bike.  In fact the bike was like an extension of my body. I could put it anywhere on the technical trail.   My thoughts were clear and focused on the tasks that lay ahead.   I had no time for negative thoughts or to daydream.  In both instances I only acknowledged irrelevant or negative thoughts and mentally moved back to the task at hand

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey

As Taylor mentioned, I totally agree that “emotions are the raison d’etre of sports competition”. As a Japan synchronized swimming national team coach and as a former Olympic medalist, I have experienced many kinds of emotions in many different degrees both in competition and in training.

<b>Key Issues

During training and competition, athletes can experience a broad spectrum of emotions that range from negative emotions, such as frustration and disappointment, to positive emotions such as excitement and satisfaction. The relationships that these diverse emotions have on athletic performance are complex and often counterintuitive, yet these connections have only recently begun to be explored in the sport psychology community. Emotions are clearly an important topic, as the ability of researchers and consultants to understand these interactions and the capacity for coaches and athletes to incorporate the resulting insights and tools into competitive preparation and performance determine whether emotions facilitate or interfere with athletes’ performances.

<b>Learning Objectives

This chapter has four learning objectives. First, emotions will be defined and operationalized in a way that is scientifically rigorous to meet the precision expected by researchers and consultants, yet simple and practical enough to be of use to coaches and athletes. Second, the influence of emotions on athletic performance will be explored both scientifically and practically. Third, the chapter will explore why athletes have divergent emotional reactions to competition. Finally, how athletes can gain emotional mastery and use emotions to their advantage during competition will be discussed.

<b>Chapter Purpose

The purpose of this chapter is to offer readers a broad and in-depth exploration of the role that emotions play in athletic performance. The consultant (Dr. Jim Taylor) describes the essential areas in which emotions influence performance based on his applied experience working with a wide range of athletes in many sports. The researcher (Dr. Marc Jones) integrates the latest theoretical and empirical findings about emotions in the context of the issues raised by the consultant. The coach Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey

(/her perspective on how emotions affect athletes. Lastly, the athlete Mary Grigson discusses the meaning and impact of emotions on her competitive performances.

<a>Defining Emotions and Emotional Experiences

Arriving at a single definition of emotion is challenging given that it must account for the breadth of influence emotion has on human functioning and describe diverse experiences such as anger, excitement, embarrassment, guilt, and happiness. At the same time, emotions, however dissimilar they may appear to be, share some common characteristics. From these unifying qualities, Deci (1980) has developed a definition that has been used widely in sport psychology research (Jones, in press; Vallerand, 1983, 1987; Vallerand & Blanchard, 2000):

“An emotion is a reaction to a stimulus event (either actual or imagined). It involves change in the viscera and musculature of the person, is experienced subjectively in characteristic ways, is expressed through such means as facial changes and action tendencies, and may mediate and energize subsequent behaviors.” (p. 85)

Though this definition offers a precise and thorough description of emotions, it nevertheless does not do justice to the impact that emotions have on athletes nor does it adequately portray the richness and depth of emotional experience that athletes feel. Suffice it to say that despite our inability to fully describe emotions, all athletes know what they feel like and the importance emotions have in their sporting lives.

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey:

I find from my past experiences that there are some emotions influencing positively to the outcome and some are influencing negatively. When I was young, I used to try to reduce the negative emotions as much as possible. However, I became to find out that the more I tried to fight with the negative emotions to go away, the more negatively they grow in me. Since then, I decided not to fight with the negative emotions; rather, I tried to focus on accepting them, cope with them, and moreover, turned the negative ones into positive emotions. Since emotions occur no matter what in sports, I believe that we need to first recognize what kinds of emotions we have in competition or training, second to realize which emotions influence positively or negatively in our outcome, then to learn how to cope with any single emotions.

 

<b> Emotion as a Response to Competition

Athletes may respond emotionally to many different internal or external events.  For example, a 1500-meter runner may feel excited as she walks into the stadium to warm up, feel nervous before her race because she lacks confidence in her ability, and angry after the race because she performed below her expectations.  How individuals interpret situations has been given a central role in explaining emotional reactions, and several researchers suggest that athletes only respond emotionally to events that they perceive to have personal relevance (Clore, 1994; Lazarus, 1991, 2000a,b). For example, almost every athlete would feel tremendous pride if they won an Olympic gold medal because such an achievement typically carries considerable personal significance.

 

<b> Influence of Emotions on Athletes

Emotions affect athletes at many levels of personal and sport functioning. This influence occurs at the physiological, psychological, and behavioral levels. An understanding of the ways in which emotions affect athletes is essential in helping them gain mastery over their emotions during competition.

 

Emotions lead to physical (not sure?) changes that can have a powerful role in the emotional experience. For example, when we feel happy we are physically relaxed and we smile, when we feel embarrassed we blush, and when we feel sad we cry. Of particular relevance to athletic performance are changes that result from activity of the sympathetic nervous system. These changes are often referred to as the “flight-or-flight response” and are associated with a perception of threat to one’s well-being. Emotions that are often associated with this reaction include anger and fear, and the physiological changes that athletes report include a dry mouth, rapid breathing, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, and muscle tension. These physiological changes are also an important part of the emotional experience because they influence the intensity of the emotions that are felt (Zillmann, 1971).  For example, heightened levels of these physiological changes may serve to increase the level of anger felt by an athlete.

 

However, not all emotions are accompanied by an overt physiological response and individuals may experience a range of more subtle emotions with less pronounced physiological shifts such as guilt or pride. As a result, the subjective feelings that an athlete experiences must also be recognized as important and is typically assessed in sport psychology research through the administration of self-report inventories (Jones, in press).

 

A primary reason why emotions are so important in sport is because of the potential impact they have on athletes and their competitive performances.Taylor(2001) suggests that emotions affect the intensity, motivation, confidence, and focus of athletes. As the effect of intensity on athletic performance is addressed in Chapter 3, we will discuss how emotions affect the other three psychological factors.

 

Vallerand and Blanchard (2000) point out that many theorists consider emotions to serve a motivational function that can mobilize athletes to channel extra physical and mental resources into their sports. Hanin (2000a) suggests that optimal emotions for sport performance motivate athletes to initiate and maintain the required amount of effort for successful performance, while dysfunctional emotions act to decrease motivation and effort expended in performance. Thus, emotions can lead athletes toward (e.g., excitement) or away from a goal (e.g., fear). Certain emotions can have either effect depending on the particular individual and the situation. For example, an athlete feeling embarrassed about missing an easy shot in basketball may try to stay away from the ball to avoid further opportunities.  Another athlete, by contrast, may respond to her embarrassment by being motivated to take the next big shot.

 

The relationship between emotion and confidence is particularly pertinent to success in sport.  If an athlete is experiencing an emotion that he perceives as counterproductive to optimal performance, such as fear or frustration, this may cause him to lose confidence in his ability to succeed and hurt his performances by reducing effort and persistence. Conversely, experiencing an emotion perceived to be beneficial to athletic performance may bolster confidence, thereby increasing motivation and effort (Bandura, 1997; Kerr, 1997).

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey:

As an athlete, I understood that emotions influenced my performance, so that I was going to coach young athletes how important it is to cope with emotions in sports. However, when I started coaching, I didn’t know how to coach these kinds of mental parts. When I started coaching at the age of 21, I didn’t have my own coaching philosophy. At the beginning, I thought a coach is “just” coaching technical skills and tactical skills. Of course, the coach has to motivate athletes and make them work hard, but I thought that coaching those kinds of mental parts would be easy. In the first few years of my coaching, I would always yell athletes to pump them up prior to the competition. When they looked nervous, I yelled them not to be nervous. When they looked anxious or worried, I told them to be confident. At the result, I found out that the more I told them not to be nervous, the more nervous they became. I also found out that the athletes didn’t gain their confidence without being explained how to gain confidence or how to decrease their anxiety. As I continued coaching, I realized how important the mental parts were in coaching. It is important for coaches to know what emotions are in sports, how much emotions influence athletes in sports, and the individual differences in emotions.

 

Finally, emotions may affect athletes’ focus during competition. Increased physiological arousal—caused by fear or anger, for example—can narrow an athlete’s focus which may enhance performance by helping the athlete concentrate on relevant cues and avoid distractions. However, if arousal gets too high, focus can become overly narrow causing athletes to miss task-relevant cues (Easterbrook, 1959). In addition, athletes who are experiencing optimal emotions may have fewer distractions and be able to attend more easily to sport-related cues. Hanin (2000a) suggests that optimal emotions for performance ensure efficient use of available resources until task completion. For example, Eysenck and Calvo (1992) indicate that worry may facilitate performance as an individual who is worried about something may allocate extra mental resources to the task. In contrast, dysfunctional emotions may lead to an inappropriate use of resources. For example, a tennis player may be playing well when a questionable line call results in her losing the point. The tennis player becomes angry and, as a result, dwells on the unfairness of the call rather than directing her attention to the next point, which causes her to play poorly and lose the game. Some athletes prefer to experience few emotions because they find any emotions—even pleasant ones—to be distracting and would rather remain calm and emotionally detached during competition (Uphill & Jones, 2002; See Chapter 4 for more on focus).

 

Mary Grigson: 

Over time I noticed small things about how I felt and how I performed.  For instance if I was feeling so happy that I joked around in the morning of competition I tended to have a fast race with intense focus.   The bike was easy to handle and I would try to do wheelies and skids.  Pushing myself during the race came naturally.  Hurting was fun, it was good.   If I had a problem I was able to overcome it smoothly and resume racing.    Good results always reflected my good mood.  So in order to help myself get top results I realized I needed to work on happiness within myself.

Competitions are usually several laps of a circuit with approximately 2 hours of riding.  During the two hours, many things happen.  Not only do you rides amongst 50-80 others attempting to be first into the narrow single track but you also need to stay on top of your machine.   Steep ascents, tricky downhills, corners, holes, mud, trees roots and the occasional wandering spectator keep you busy.  For me to win or be a contender I have to concentrate, make my self hurt, use the correct gearing, steer correctly, be assertive, make quick decisions and anticipate other rider’s moves.  Lastly I need to believe in myself.   I need to believe I can do it.   As simple as this may sound it is not that easy.  I often question my motivation.   It is rare to have a competition where I do everything perfectly and have no doubts.  But the less time I spend questioning myself the more focused I am on the race.   And good focus produces better results.

 

<a>Emotions and Athletic Performance

Emotions can consume all aspects of an athlete’s performance by impacting how athletes think, feel, and behave during competition (Hanin, 2000a; Jones, in press; Lazarus, 2000b; Vallerand & Blanchard, 2000). Research has shown that a wide range of emotions are associated with changes in performance. Jones, Mace, and Williams (2000) examined the relationships between the emotions experienced by international hockey players before and during competition, and their performance levels.  When the players performed well, they reported feeling more nervous and quick/alert/active before the game and more confident and relaxed during games than when they played poorly. Research has also shown that the emotions that affect performance may be specific to individual athletes. Hanin and Syrjä (1995a) reported that junior-elite ice hockey players selected 44 positive emotions (e.g. alert, active) and 39 negative emotions (e.g. tense, angry) as being relevant to their performances. All the emotions were either helpful or harmful depending on their idiosyncratic meaning and intensity to the athletes.

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey:

 

Interestingly, each athlete reacts differently in the same situation. For example, in synchronized swimming, some athletes take the emotions of excitement by looking at tremendous number of audience in competition as positive stimuli, but some take the emotions of excitement as a fear. Because each athlete perceives the same situation in different ways, I believe that it is important for a coach to understand the perception tendency of each athlete.

 

<b>Pleasant vs. Unpleasant Emotions

Athletes usually describe the emotions they experience as either positive or negative. Positive emotions that athletes may feel include the excitement of competition, the joy of optimal performance, and the exhilaration of success. Negative emotions experienced by athletes may include the frustration of poor performance, the anger at a losing effort, the fear of injury, and the disappointment at a failed performance.

 

Athletes often refer to how these emotions make them feel rather than how the emotions influence their performances. For example, excitement and satisfaction are pleasant (positive) emotions and anger and disappointment are unpleasant (negative) emotions. Yet, counterintuitively, positive emotions don’t always lead to improved performance and negative emotions don’t always hurt performance. To the contrary, some positive emotions, such as satisfaction over one’s level of performance, can cause complacency and a drop in performance. Conversely, frustration and anger can increase intensity and raise the quality of performance. For example, Terry and Slade (1995) found that winners in a karate tournament reported higher levels of anger than losers.

<b>Helpful vs. Harmful Emotions

Athletes cannot just seek positive emotions that make them feel good, but rather they must create emotions that enhance competitive performance. Thus, emotions must be looked at in terms of whether they are helpful or harmful to performance rather than just how good or bad the emotions feel. Athletes, coaches, and sport psychology consultants must also decide whether it is worth experiencing unpleasant emotions if they are also helpful and feeling pleasant emotions if they are harmful. For example, anger may improve the quality of an athlete’s performance, but the consequences of being angry may be so unpleasant as to be not worth experiencing in the name of athletic success.

Mary Grigson:

First lap is very important.   The course usually narrows soon after the start.  Its cruial to get near the front.  It is also important to hold position through out the lap.   Starting fast is not one of my strengths. And knowing how important it is for me to get myself to the front as fast as possible, I get very nervous.   If I get too nervous I end up trying too hard.  And sometimes I try so much that I make poor choices or bad judgments that result in crashes.   Or even worse I push myself beyond my capabilities and end up with lactic acid muscle burn.  Either way I don’t achieve my goal, all through being overly nervous and trying too hard.

To find a little bit extra while racing is great.  Sometimes that motivation can come from other racers.    Especially if they do something like give you a big push when over taking you or cut you off.  It is poor judgment of their behalf and unfair.   Feeling as if I have been ill-treated helps drive me to get in front and well away from them.  

It works both ways too.  If I cut somebody off or give someone a nudge I often find myself slowing, as if I don’t deserve to be in front anymore.  Inside I feel myself regress and I cringe at my actions.   

North of Quebec city is a ski resort called Mt St Anne. I first went there in 1998.  It was hot and humid with millions of bugs.   Heat I can deal with but not humidity and biting insects.   I couldn’t wait to leave the place after about an hour.   That year, 1998 I crashed out on the course and broke my shoulder.  

Two years later I returned to compete.   Days before my competition my parents called to say that they were separating after 30 years of marriage.   I was devastated by this news and struggled to focus on racing.   In 2002 when I returned yet again to compete I found I couldn’t focus.  I wanted to leave.  There were so many bad memories associated with the area that I felt really sad.   Out on the course I was distracted.   I found I couldn’t ride my bike very well and made constant mistakes.    In practice twice I crashed heavily injuring my hip and legs.   When I finally did race I was far from my best. 

It would be nice if you could choose the weather conditions for race day.    About 80 F cloudy with a dry race course that has been wet recently to keep the dust down.  Perfect.   But these conditions are scarce more than common.   On one course it rained so heavy that a 1 mile stretch of narrow wooded trail became a knee deep sloppy mud pool.     By the time I arrived to this section my bike had doubled in weight with sticky mud so carrying it was a chore.  So I slipped, tripped and skated my way through the mud bog for 1 mile absolutely hating it. It was no fun.   I couldn’t believe the race organizers could be so stupid to think that something like this would be fun, after all isn’t that why I do this in the first place? For fun!  Well, it wasn’t so I allowed myself to hate it, to be angry and feel these feelings as long as I kept running (not walking) with my bike.   Once back on firm ground  I let my anger go, remounted my bike and rejoined my usual race-style focus. Looking back I still smile.  It wasn’t fun but I still went fast!

 

<b>Emotion Matrix

The dimensions of positive-negative and helpful-harmful emotions lead to a 2×2 emotion matrix with four quadrants that illustrates the experience and influence of emotions on athletes (see Figure 5.1). This matrix is consistent with Hanin’s Individual Zones of Optimal Functioning (IZOF) model which outlines the complex and often counterintuitive relationship between emotions and performance (e.g., Hanin and Syrjä, 1995a; 1995b; 1996; D’Urso, Petrosso & Robazza, 2002; or see Hanin, 2000ab, for a review). A key element of this matrix is that the relationships between specific emotions and performance are fluid rather than fixed and both pleasant and unpleasant emotions can be helpful or harmful to performance.

 

Emotions can have differential effects on performance depending on the individual (Hanin, 2000a, b). For example, one athlete who is excited about an upcoming competition plays well because she likes feeling energized, while another athlete who also feels excited plays poorly because she believes that she plays best when she is calm and centered. The nature of the sport may also mediate the relationship between emotions and performance. McGowan and Shultz (1989) reported that defensive players on American football teams used anger as a strategy to increase motivation, intensity, and performance. This relationship was not found, however, among offensive players who are generally required to perform more complex tasks during competition. Finally, emotions that are initially helpful can later become harmful, for example, frustration and anger may initially increase motivation and intensity, but eventually may cause athletes to try too hard and hinder technical and tactical execution. Indeed, a number of authors have advocated greater research into the temporal patterning of emotions and their relationship with performance (Cerin, Szabo, Hunt & Williams; D’Urso et al., 2002; Hanin, 2000a; Jones, 1991).

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey

It is interesting to see the emotion matrix showing on the page…

It is true that there are some unpleasant yet helpful emotions. In my case, I usually explain to athletes that it is okay or even natural to have unpleasant emotions during training or in competition. When athletes are angry (unpleasant/helpful), I would tell them to keep being angry, hold the energy of anger in mind, then explore the energy to turn into the positive energy in competition. I understand that anger is not a good emotion for keeping athletes’ motivation in sports, but I believe that it is good to use the energy of anger in competition. On the other hand, when athletes are scared or panic (unpleasant/harmful), I would tell them that it is normal to feel that way in an important competition. I even praise them when they can specify what kinds of emotions they are holding in competition. Of course, it is hard to cope with the harmful emotions, but I think that coping with any adversity is one of the most important mental skills to perform the way we want to.

 

_____________________________

Insert figure 5.1 about here

_____________________________

<c>Pleasant-helpful.

Pleasant-helpful emotions are considered optimal emotional states because they feel good and they lead to improved performance. These emotions usually include excitement, exhilaration, and joy. Pleasant-helpful emotions act to motivate athletes to pursue their goals, increase their confidence in their ability to succeed, regulate intensity to a facilitating level, direct focus more effectively, and reduce the experience of pain.

<c>Pleasant-harmful.

Pleasant-harmful emotions, such as satisfaction and contentment, may feel good, but usually hurt performance. These emotions harm motivation by causing a sense of completion of goals, reduce intensity required for optimal performance, and decrease the ability of athletes to stay focused and avoid distractions. Pleasant-harmful emotions often occur when athletes are leading a competition and are pleased with their performance, causing them to feel complacent and self-satisfied.

<c>Unpleasant-helpful.

Unpleasant-helpful emotions do not feel good to athletes, but they can enhance the quality of performance, at least temporarily. Emotions such as frustration, anger, and, in some cases, fear, can provide impetus to athletes, particularly when they are performing poorly. Unpleasant-helpful emotions may trigger motivation to clear the obstacles that have caused these emotions, increase efforts toward goals, elevate intensity, and distract athletes from competitive pain. Though these emotions may improve performance, they are not considered to be the first choice of emotions to improve performance. Unpleasant-helpful emotions are often only beneficial for a short time after which they hurt performance. Additionally, unpleasant-helpful emotions draw on feelings that are counterproductive to athletes’ overall happiness and well-being.

<c>Unpleasant-harmful

Unpleasant-harmful emotions are the worst emotions that athletes can experience because they not only cause them to feel bad, but they also lead to declines in performance. These emotions can influence athletes in two ways. Some of these emotions, such as desperation or panic, may be harmful because they raise intensity to interfering levels, cause athletes to try too hard, and hinder technical and tactical execution. Other emotions, such as despair, triggered by the perception that their situation is hopeless, can cause a complete physical and psychological shutdown of everything that influences performance. Motivation to perform, confidence in their ability to succeed, physical intensity, and focus all decline to a point at which performance, for all intents and purposes, ceases. Also, unpleasant-helpful emotions can turn harmful when they persist or become too intense and consuming. For example, some anger can improve performance, but if that anger turns to rage, athletes will lose the ability to think clearly, intensity will rise to a level that interferes with physical functioning, and the thorough absorption in the anger precludes athletes from focusing effectively on their performances.

<b>Negative Emotional Chain

The emergence of unpleasant-harmful emotions typically follows a predictable course referred to as “the negative emotional chain” (Taylor, 2001). This sequence begins during a period of poor performance. At this time, frustration, an emotional reaction that occurs when athletes’ efforts toward a goal are thwarted, is often the first negative emotion to arise. Initially, frustration acts as an unpleasant-helpful emotion by motivating athletes to clear the obstacles to which they are presented (e.g., technical difficulties, ineffective tactics). However, if the athletes are unable to resolve the cause of the frustration, the intensity of the frustration will grow and the emotion will shift to being harmful because the frustration will begin to interfere with their ability to think clearly, focus effectively, and maintain optimal intensity. As a result, performance is likely to continue to deteriorate.

 

If the frustration goes unresolved, the next stage of the negative emotional chain is the appearance of anger. At first, anger may act as an unpleasant-helpful emotion to the athletes by further motivating them to resolve the performance difficulties. However, this benefit is usually short-lived because the anger overwhelms athletes during the heat of competition. Though their physical and mental efforts may increase, they are typically not well directed or effective because of anger’s negative influence on thinking, focus, and intensity.

 

In some cases, athletes may experience a sort of panic in which efforts are still maintained, but are expressed in a frenzied, disorganized, and, ultimately, fruitless attempt to alter the course of the competition. In this panic, athletes try anything to improve their performances and produce a change in the competition, but their efforts are doomed to fail.

 

In other cases, as the anger proves to be ineffective, athletes come to believe that there is nothing they can do to alter their performance or the tide of the competition. At this point, athletes’ experience despair and a feeling akin to learned helplessness (Seligman, 1975), appraising the situation as having no hope for change. Athletes then resign themselves to failure, accept defeat, give up all efforts in the competition, and experience disappointment and sadness.

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey:

When I was an Olympic athlete, the most harmful emotions were contentment, satisfaction, or feeling over-confident. As a coach, I think that this is the time of limiting athletes’ potential when they get satisfied in their ability or performance. I always tell athletes that those emotions (pleasant/harmful) are so much worse than unpleasant/harmful emotions. It is true that elite athletes are never satisfied with themselves. As long as “pursuit of our own excellence” is the goal of the competition in sports, I hope athletes to enjoy pursuing of their excellence and cope with any negative emotions for their excellence.

 

<a>Why Athletes Respond Emotionally

Athletes react in particular emotional ways depending on their appraisal of competitive situations (Cerin et al., 2000; Kerr, 1997; Vallerand, 1983, 1987), which is affected by their relationship to their sport, their attitude toward their athletic participation, and their perceptions of their ability to effectively manage the demands placed on them.

<b>Appraisal Patterns as Triggers of Emotional Responses

The evaluation of competitive situations that trigger emotions is considered by Lazarus’s Cognitive-Motivational-Relational Theory to comprise primary and secondary appraisal (see Lazarus, 1991, 2000ab for a detailed review).  Primary appraisal is concerned with how important a situation is to an athlete in terms of his or her goals. For example, a rugby player who is tackled heavily in a match and knocked backwards may feel ashamed because he failed to live up to his view of himself as being a physically dominant player. In contrast, his teammate, for whom being perceived as skillful is more important, does not feel ashamed as he accepts being tackled as a normal part of rugby. Secondary appraisal concerns athletes’ perceptions of their ability to cope with the situation. Athletes who are confident they can produce a beneficial change in the competitive situation will experience pleasant-helpful emotions, whereas a belief that they cannot change things for the better will lead to unpleasant-harmful emotions.

 

The types of primary and secondary appraisals athletes make determine the emotions they experience and the spectrum of psychological contributors to their sports performance. Consulting experience suggests that part of the appraisal process outlined by Lazarus, which is particularly relevant to competitive sports, is whether an event is appraised as actually (or potentially) harmful or beneficial. In other words, whether athletes appraise the competitive situation as a threat of anticipated loss or a challenge of anticipated gain. The more confident athletes are of their ability to overcome obstacles, the more likely they are to feel challenged rather than threatened (Lazarus, 1999).

 

In competitive sport a threat appraisal arises from the perception that winning is all-important, failure is unacceptable but likely, and that the outcome of the competition is a significant reflection on the worth of the athlete as a competitor and as a person. This threat is most often associated with too great an emphasis on winning, results, and rankings. Pressure to win from parents, coaches, media, and from the athletes themselves is also common. The threat appraisal produces “defensive” emotions that may be helpful at first, for example, marshalling anger to avoid the threat of failure, but, in time, the persistent threat will likely lead to unpleasant-harmful emotions such as panic and despair.

 

A threat appraisal can trigger a vicious cycle in which the appraisal hurts essential psychological contributors to performance (Taylor, 2001). The threat appraisal can reduce the motivation to perform and compete because of the wish to avoid the threat, especially when the threat (e.g., losing) is imminent. For example, when an athlete is behind in a competition she may “give up” (i.e., a significant loss of motivation). The threat appraisal also suggests to athletes that they’re incapable of overcoming the situation that is causing the threat, so their confidence is hurt and they experience strong unpleasant-harmful emotions, such as fear, frustration, anger, sadness, and despair. The threat appraisal also causes anxiety and all of the negative physical symptoms associated with overintensity. These negative changes caused by the threat appraisal make it difficult for athletes to focus effectively because there are many distractions pulling athletes’ focus away from a useful process focus. The culmination of a threat appraisal is that athletes inevitably perform poorly and gain little enjoyment from their sport.

 

A challenge appraisal in competitive sport is associated with the perception that, while obstacles and setbacks are inevitable, success is likely with patience and persistence.  Failure, though not desirable, is tolerable and, in fact, may have value to athletes in their sports participation (Taylor, 2001). There is less emphasis on the outcome of competitions and greater emphasis on athletes enjoying the process of their sport regardless of whether they win or lose. The challenge appraisal leads athletes to emphasize the “fun” aspect of sport, and experience competition as exciting and enriching. Sports, when perceived as a challenge, are experiences that are relished and sought out at every opportunity. Thus, a challenge appraisal is highly motivating, to the point where athletes love being in pressure situations and perform their best in them. The challenge appraisal results in athletes experiencing pleasant-helpful emotions, such as excitement, joy, and satisfaction. It also stimulates athletes to achieve optimal intensity, where they are relaxed, energized, and physically capable of performing their best. Athletes also have the ability to attain an ideal focus, in which they are totally focused on what enables them to perform their best. All aspects of the challenge appraisal lead athletes to a higher level of performance and greater enjoyment in their sport

Mary Grigson:

Part of my attraction to the sport of mountain bike racing is the culture.   The environment is informal, friendly and draws many different types of people to participate from young to old.   My favorite part is listening to post -race stories.  Competitors gather at the end of each event at the finish line.  Bikes are cast aside as the sweaty, grubby riders swap yarns.   Some measure their performance by their placing, others by how they felt.  Some are disappointed, others thrilled.  Personally my judgment of a good race is based on how hard I tried and whether I enjoyed it.  I have won many races hating almost every second of it.  During that race I may have battled with feeling negative and self-loathing.  It was hard to be happy despite winning.  

Yet, I have finished 5th, given every portion of myself, worked  hard, dug deep to be competitive and felt ecstatic.

 

 

<b>Investment in Performance

The investment that athletes have in their sport participation is a primary contributor to their emotional reactions in competition. This connection refers to how important their sport involvement is to them. The degree to which athletes’ self-identities are highly interwoven with their athletic successes and failures influences how pleasant or unpleasant their emotions are, the intensity of those emotions, and whether they are helpful or harmful to their sports performances. For example, athletes who are overly invested in their sport may find losing unpalatable, so when they are in a losing situation, they may make a threat appraisal and experience strong unpleasant-helpful emotions, such as frustration or anger, as a means of altering their losing path. If those emotions do not turn the tide of the competition, unpleasant-harmful emotions may arise. In contrast, if their investment is balanced and healthy, athletes are more likely to make challenge appraisals and experience pleasant-helpful emotions.

<b>Performance Consequences

How athletes perceive the possible consequences of their competitive performances influences their emotional reactions to competition (Lazarus, 2000a). For example, if athletes believe that their participation will most likely lead to failure and that failure will have unpleasant consequences such as thinking less of themselves or being criticized by others, unpleasant-harmful emotions will arise. Conversely, if athletes have confidence that they will be successful and that their success will have positive consequences, for example, the success will validate their years of training or they will be rewarded financially, athletes will experience pleasant-helpful emotions.

Mary Grigson:

 

Racing is never easy.   Just some days pushing myself is easier.  Some days I can just suffer with ease and other times suffering is impossible.  My best races are the days when I don’t really feel too much.   My focus on the task at hand is extremely strong.    Memories of a good race are minimal. I can only recall thinking about the upcoming track.  Mile by mile or kilometer by kilometer (depending where you are from).   Race time might have been 2 hours but it felt much shorter.   When remembering about the race I only can recall small segments, usually when I made a crucial decision.

<b>Demands and Resources

As Lazarus (1991, 2000a, b) has suggested, emotions during competition are influenced significantly by the athletes’ perceptionsof the resources they have available to effectively manage the demands of the competitive situation.  In general, if the demands exceed the perceivedresources of athletes, unpleasant-harmful emotions, such as frustration, anger, panic, or despair, are likely to arise. These emotions occur because athletes believe they have little ability to master the demands of the competitive situation. For example, an athlete who is competing against an opponent who has beaten her three previous times and, in the early stages of the competition, is faring no better, will likely become frustrated in her efforts. At some point during this competition, she will experience despair and may give up because she sees no way out of this repeatedly uncontrollable situation. Conversely, if athletes perceive that they have the capacity to overcome the demands of the situation, they will likely respond with pleasant-helpful emotions because they have confidence that they will prevail.

<b>Outside Influences

External forces can play a substantial role in the emotional reactions that athletes have during competition. Common outside influences include encouragement, expectations, pressure, or criticism from others, such as teammates, family, friends, media, and community. Athletes who feel supported by others will likely experience pleasant-helpful emotions such as excitement and joy in their sports participation. In contrast, athletes who feel burdened by unrealistic expectations from others may respond with unpleasant-helpful emotions, such as anger, to help them avoid the outside pressures. If, however, they either do not believe they can live up to those expectations or they actually fail to meet those expectations, they will succumb to unpleasant-harmful emotions, such as sadness and despair, as the weight of the pressure continues and grows.

 

<a> Gaining Emotional Mastery

The goal for the researcher, consultant, and coach is to help athletes gain mastery over their emotions so that emotions help rather than hurt their competitive performances (not sure my alteration makes sense?). To accomplish this objective, athletes must first understand the ways in which they respond emotionally to competitive situations. Then, they can identify those circumstances that cause harmful emotions. Finally, athletes need to develop the skills that will enable them to use their emotions to their advantage in competition.

 

For athletes to be truly successful, they must have emotional mastery (Taylor, 2001). Athletes can gain control of their emotions with awareness and practice. They can develop healthy and productive emotional habits. Their emotions can facilitate their competitive efforts and help them achieve their athletic goals. Qualities that Goleman (1995) associates with emotional mastery include the ability to stay motivated and persist in the face of frustration, to control urges and the need for immediate gratification, to be able to adjust mood, and to keep negative emotions from interfering with their ability to think clearly and act appropriately. All of these assets converge to enable athletes who have emotional mastery to be their own best allies. These athletes have the ability to ensure that the energy that they put into their competitive efforts—and the positive and negative emotions they feel as part of those efforts—help them progress toward their goals.

Mary Grigson:

10 years of crashing off my mountain bike has left me with many scars.   The initial injuries have healed but occasionally I will develop a dull ache from an old torn ligament, broken bone or muscle strain.   Before competitions its not usually to feel physically stiff or achy from old injuries.  Rarely the ache develops into anything more serious.   Experience has taught me to acknowledge the ache and mentally move on, focusing on the upcoming event.  And 10 minutes after the start of the competition the problem usually disappears.

The same applies to the regular toilet stops the morning,   I could spend a good majority of  my warm up time in the bathroom.   Needing to constantly go to the bathroom can be a good sign. It means that I am ready to go or suitably nervous (I prefer to call this feeling “worried”).  Its good to be worried or a little nervous, that is what pushes me to ride fast.   But in order to warm up properly I need to keep on schedule so I need to limit how many times I visit the girl’s room.

Interestingly again, once in the competition the urge completely disappears.

 

 

 

<b>Perspective of Emotional Mastery

When athletes gain a healthy perspective on the meaning of their sports participation, they are less likely to become overly invested in their efforts and their self-identity is not likely to become too connected with their successes and failures. Athletes, regardless of their level of competition, should care about their sports participation. Why should they work hard to reach their goals if they don’t really care about attaining that high level? So, some level of investment is normal, healthy, and necessary.  However, athletes with emotional mastery understand that ups and downs are a natural part of sports. This attitude keeps them from getting overly upset about setbacks and takes the pressure off them needing a big success every time. These athletes are able to stay positive and motivated even when they are not at their best and, most importantly, they never give up; they keep working hard, no matter how bad it gets. They look for the cause of their difficulties and then find a solution. With this perspective, athletes with emotional mastery respond positively to the obstacles they face, minimize the severity of the difficulties, clear the barriers that arise, and find success again. Both success and failure are recognized as essential and inevitable parts of the process of achievement. Success validates their efforts and confirms their belief in themselves. Failure provides meaningful lessons and valuable information that further their future athletic efforts and increase the chances of future success.

 

<b>Making Effective Emotional Choices

At the heart of emotional mastery is the ability of athletes to objectively evaluate their self- perceptions as well as their appraisals of both their emotions and reactions felt during participation in sports. Taylor (2001) suggests that emotions are a simple, but not easy, choice. They are a simple choice because if athletes have the option to feel bad and perform poorly or feel good and perform well, they will certainly choose the latter option. However, emotions are not an easy choice because past emotional experiences and unhealthy emotional habits that develop can lead athletes to respond emotionally in competitive situations in ways that are harmful and result in poor performance. The choice comes with awareness of when old emotional habits will arise and choosing a positive emotional response that will lead to good feelings and successful performance.

<b>Foundation of Emotional Mastery

Before specific techniques can be used to gain control of their emotional reactions during competition, athletes must first make several observations that act as the foundation of emotional mastery.  The first step to emotional mastery is self-awareness. Athletes need to become familiar with their emotions during competition. They should ask themselves (or have a sport psychology consultant or coach ask them), “What is this feeling I (you) have?”

 

Awareness can also be accomplished by athletes keeping a written record of their emotional reactions during competition. This monitoring can also be done by the coach or trusted third party, such as a sport psychology consultant. Athletes can easily make a distinction between positive and negative emotions, but only with experience can they learn the differences between helpful and harmful emotions, particularly in the heat of competition. When athletes feel bad and are performing poorly, they need to judge whether they are, for example, fearful, angry, frustrated, or disappointed, and whether those emotions are helping or hurting them. Athletes can begin this awareness process in training by identifying practice situations as they happen that trigger emotions.

 

An increased awareness of both the situations in which these emotions arise and the consequences of such responses can lead to more helpful emotional responses and improved performance. For example, during a practice match, a tennis player can record her emotions and how they affect her play on changeovers. After the match, she can see more clearly how her emotions influenced her level of play and the outcome of the match. Research has shown that increasing awareness can be an effective strategy in dealing with unpleasant-harmful emotions.    In a study examining the impact of self-awareness strategies in controlling anger among competitive soccer players, Brunelle, Janelle, and Tennant (1999) found that self-awareness was effective in reducing angry behaviors.

 

Once athletes become more adept at identifying their emotions and recognizing whether they are helpful or harmful, they can then come to understand that they will continue to feel bad and perform poorly if they allow their current harmful emotional state to persist. This awareness will cause them to realize that they need to do something differently to reverse the harmful trend and motivate them to action.

 

With this increased understanding of their emotional states, athletes can search themselves and their environment for possible causes of their emotional reactions. Understanding the reasons why athletes react a certain way during competition provides them with further information about the emotional experience and gives them greater understanding and control over what they are feeling. This process also encourages athletes to “step back” from their emotions, which offers a different perspective and often lessens the intensity and impact of the emotions. This approach also acts to interrupt the negative emotional chain and provides athletes with the opportunity to reverse its course.

 

With this more detached and objective outlook towards the competitive situation and the emotional reactions they are experiencing, athletes can begin to consider courses of action that will serve them best, as well as choose the path that feels better and that will lead to success. These options can include different ways of thinking (for example, being positive, motivated, focusing on the process rather than on the outcome), feeling (for example, feeling excited, being psyched up), and acting (for example, having more energy, putting in greater effort). Finally, athletes can choose and commit to a positive course of action directed at altering their current emotional state and the competitive situation which caused the emotions. The ultimate goal of this emotional mastery process is for athletes to have the ability to choose an emotional path that will assist them in achieving their competitive goals.

<b>Techniques for Emotional Mastery

Emotional mastery is a skill that is acquired with awareness, control, and practice. Athletes can facilitate the development of emotional mastery by adopting the foundation of emotional mastery previously discussed. These steps act as the basis for applying emotional mastery skills to emotional situations that arise during competition.

 

The development of specific emotional mastery skills are the next step in athletes gaining complete mastery of their emotions. These strategies focus primarily on changing the way athletes think about and appraise the competitive situations in which they find themselves. Additionally, physiological techniques are also used to address the visceral aspects of the emotions (see Chapter 3).With time and practice, these emotional mastery skills can be internalized and athletes will be able to use them to their advantage whenever they are faced with emotionally demanding situations in their sports participation. Additionally, athletes can learn to use emotional mastery preventively. They can come to recognize common competitive situations in which harmful emotions arise, for example, when their strategy is not working or when they are going through a period of poor performance, and initiate the emotional mastery process before harmful emotions appear, thereby stopping the negative emotional chain before it starts and allowing themselves to improve their level of performance.

 

<c>Reappraisal

Challenging the way athletes appraise events can be beneficial in alleviating harmful emotions and generating helpful ones. Helping athletes gain a different, and more positive, perspective on the competitive situation lies at the heart of reappraisal. Athletes react with harmful emotions because they appraise the situation as a threat. Reappraisal by athletes themselves, a coach, teammate, or sport psychology consultant is aimed at offering them other perspectives on the situation that will alter their appraisal to one of challenge, thereby replacing harmful appraisals with perspectives and perceptions that will generate pleasant-helpful emotions.

 

For example, a gymnast was experiencing frustration because she was unable to master a skill on the floor exercise in the first few days she had been practicing a new routine. She expected to learn the skill quickly and to use it in an upcoming competition. Seeing that these emotions were hurting her, her coach explained that the skill is difficult, that it would take several weeks to master, and that she would not allow the gymnast to use the skill in the upcoming meet anyway. The coach told her about an older and more experienced gymnast who struggled with the skill for months before she was able to use it in competition and that she was well ahead of the other gymnast in learning the new skill. This new perspective helped the gymnast to relax and be more positive, patient, and persistent in the ensuing weeks as she practiced the skill, and she even felt excitement at the progress she was making toward incorporating the skill into her competitive floor exercise routine.

 

Reframing is a particular type of reappraisal that helps athletes gain a new and healthier view of the situation that is causing harmful emotions. The aim of reframing is for athletes to alter the meaning of an event, thereby changing their emotional reactions to it.  For example, when a water polo player felt ashamed because he had missed several good chances to score during a match, the coach pointed out that the player continued to play aggressively, get into good positions to score, and still took shots when he had scoring opportunities arose. In addition, the coach affirmed his continued faith in the player and his belief that his ongoing efforts would pay off with a goal very soon. This reframing of the competitive situation removed the appraisal that caused the shame and replaced it with an appraisal that produced helpful emotions such as pride, inspiration, and satisfaction.

Mary Grigson:

My perception of my body has always been a little off. As a teen I struggled with how I viewed myself.    I associated negative thoughts with being overweight.   Even though I am far from overweight when I am having trouble with negative thoughts I feel heavy and slow.   I tend to look down at my front tire and rock my upper body.  For those who aren’t mountain bike riders, looking down at the front wheel is not helpful.  You need to be looking up the trial so you can ride safe and fast amongst the dirt and rocks.   And rocking your upper body alters your balance on the bike  and this is not helpful as the edges of the tracks sometimes drop yards down a hillside.  So on those days when I battle with negativity I also have a rough day on the bike.

 

<c>Problem-solving

Problem solving is an essential tool for athletes to reappraise the circumstances that may be causing their harmful emotions. Problem solving alters athletes’ appraisals of the emotional situation itself, their appraisals of their ability to effectively cope with its demands, and their actual ability to handle the demands that initially trigger a harmful emotional reaction. Problem solving involves generating alternative responses to the current circumstances, considering the potential consequences of the various choices, and selecting the response that will best solve the problem (Platt, Prout, & Metzger, 1986).

 

Problem solving benefits athletes who are struggling emotionally in several ways. First, it requires athletes to step back from their emotions and the situation that is causing them, resulting in the emotions losing some of their intensity and influence. Second, it can increase their ability to effectively cope with the current situation by giving them tools they can use to overcome the demands. Problem solving also gives athletes a sense of control over a situation that, previously, felt out of their control. Finally, it gives athletes tangible steps they can take to resolve the emotionally unsettling problem.

 

For example, a 100-meter high hurdler was frustrated because she kept hitting the hurdles with her trail leg. Instead of getting upset about it, she decided to do some detective work. Her coach videotaped her on several practice runs through the hurdles and they watched the video of each performance. After careful scrutiny, they saw that her torso was too erect over the hurdle causing her trail leg to drop. At the following practice session, she tried several different body positions until she came up with the one that was both comfortable and enabled her trail leg to clear the hurdles. Problem solving allowed this athlete to resolve the difficulty that could have become a significant “hurdle” to her development and a cause of unpleasant-harmful emotions. Finding a solution was also emotionally beneficial because she became excited to have overcome an obstacle that was holding her back and this excitement motivated her to continue to work hard.

<c>Self-talk

There is evidence to support the use of positive self-talk to control emotions in sport. In their analysis of coping strategies used by elite figure skaters, Gould, Finch andJackson(1993) reported that 76% of the sample used rational thinking and self-talk to cope with the stress of competition. Jones and Mace (1998) described how self-talk that focused on pre-shot preparation helped a professional golfer from dwelling on self-doubts, alleviated the unpleasant-harmful emotions he had been experiencing, and had a positive impact on his play (for more on self-talk, see Chapter 2).

<c>Mental Imagery

Mental imagery is another strategy that has been shown to help athletes gain control of their emotions in sport settings (Mace, 1990). Imagery can be used to generate pleasant-helpful emotions, such as excitement or joy, by having athletes see and feel themselves experiencing those emotions in competitive situations. Imagery can also be used to replace negative images that may be causing negative emotions. In addition, imagery of effective coping and mastery of demanding competitive situations can enhance athletes’ perceptions of their ability to cope in a competitive situation, resulting in a more pleasant-helpful emotional state. For example, a football (soccer) player who experiences fear when faced with taking a penalty kick can use imagery in several ways. The player can imagine himself going through a pre-shot routine that focuses on deep breathing, positive self-talk, and a process focus. He can also imagine a successful penalty kick and the feelings of excitement and joy he will experience.

 

According to Martin, Moritz, and Hall (1999), imagery that focuses on regulating intensity in competition can be an effective tool for emotional control. Other research has found mental imagery to be beneficial to athletes by increasing excitement, maintaining composure during competition (Munroe, Giacobbi, Hall, & Weinberg, 2000), and reducing distress in high-risk sports (Jones, Mace, Bray, MacRae & Stockbridge, 2002; for more on mental imagery, see Chapter 8).

Mary Grigson:

In the days leading up to a major event I would become very nervous.   My apprehension would engulf my every thought and I would verge on the point of panic.    During these moments my heart rate would increase and I would sweat.    After a day of nervousness at this level I would feel very tired.  So to reduce my anxiety about the “what ifs”, “may bes” and the unknown result of the upcoming race I would think about things that I had power over.    Closing my eyes I would think about the race track.   Where were my strengths, where was I going to have to find extra effort.  Where could I make up time.  I would imagine myself riding tricky parts of the trail smoothly, almost floating and putting my bike where I wanted it to go.   I would remind myself that I had done the hard work and the race was the fun part.  My thoughts bought me back to the things that were in my control.   And this would keep my nervous tension at a healthy level that enabled me to race well.

<c>Intensity Regulation

The intensity with which athletes experience emotions affects the impact that those emotions have on sports performance. One way to reduce the influence of harmful emotions is to change the intensity that athletes feel during competition. For example, a shooter who is angry—and overly intense—because of a poor scoring round can use relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing and muscle relaxation, to lower his intensity and the feelings of anger he has. Conversely, a speed skater who is disappointed and close to despairing of qualifying for the national championships can use motivating self-talk and engage in positive high-intensity body language to replace the harmful emotions associated low intensity with helpful emotions and higher intensity.

 

However, caution is warranted when using these intensity-altering techniques to manage emotions. Increasing or decreasing intensity can have a blanket effect on the range of emotions experienced by the athletes and their overall physiological functioning. Consequently, while a technique may alter the intensity of a harmful emotion, such as frustration, it may also change the intensity of helpful emotions, such as excitement, and the intensity needed to meet the physical or technical demands of their sport. Care should be taken in developing appropriate strategies to master emotions to ensure that the unwanted effects are removed and the beneficial effects are maintained. A number of strategies have been described that aim to raise or lower the physiological arousal (intensity) of athletes in Chapter 3.

 

<c>Training success

Emotional mastery can not be first learned and used in competitive settings. The pressure and intensity of competition makes it nearly impossible for athletes to focus on performing their best and trying to develop new emotional skills at the same time. Just as technical skills are first practiced and mastered in training, emotional skills must also be tried and tested in training before they can be used effectively in competition.

 

Emotions that are experienced during competition will almost inevitably arise in training, for example, frustration, anger, or despair, though perhaps with less intensity. At the same time, because training is not as important as competition and there are usually frequent breaks, athletes are in a better position to focus on and take steps to change their emotional reactions. For these reasons, training is an ideal setting in which athletes can practice emotional mastery.

 

The involvement of a coach or sport psychology consultant can facilitate the development of emotional skills during practice. When athletes begin to react with harmful emotions, the coach or consultant can step in, point out the emotion and how it is affecting performance, and suggest a strategy for altering the emotion. For example, a baseball pitcher was getting angry at himself in practice because his curveball wasn’t working for him. As his anger grew, he tried harder and harder which caused him to throw several wild pitches. Having talked to him about his anger before and having suggested some techniques he could use, the pitching coach reminded him of these strategies. Heeding his coach’s advice, the pitcher took several minutes to regroup, did some deep breathing and relaxed his body, and focused on the proper technique for his curveball. Immediately, his pitches improved and his anger was replaced with excitement and satisfaction of having regained control—emotional and pitching. After repeating this process in subsequent practices, these new emotional mastery skills became ingrained and he was able to use them successfully in upcoming games when he began to get frustrated with his play.

 

<b>Emotional Mastery in Action: Stopping the Negative Emotional Chain

Frustration is often the first unpleasant-harmful emotion that athletes experience in a competition. For example, if their goal is to perform well and win a competition, then athletes may experience frustration if they’re making mistakes, performing poorly, or are behind in a competition. As discussed earlier, frustration can initially be a unpleasant-helpful emotion that pushes athletes to find a way to remove the obstacles to their goal. However, if the frustration is not relieved, then athletes may get caught in the negative emotional chain.

 

If athletes can learn to respond positively to frustration when it first occurs, they can prevent other stronger unpleasant-harmful emotions from arising and they can stop the negative emotional chain before it starts. Their goal is to react positively to the first indications of unpleasant-harmful emotions. This pleasant-helpful emotional reaction starts with recognition that frustration is starting to build and that continued frustration will hurt their performances (self-awareness).

 

The next step in reversing the negative emotional chain is for athletes to regain perspective about the meaning of the competitive situation, most notably in how they appraise mistakes and poor performance (reappraisal). Recognizing that these “failures” are a normal and inevitable part of sport reduces the threat appraisal and acts as the foundation for putting an end to the negative emotional chain (reframing). With a challenge appraisal in place, athletes are in a position to take practical steps to counter the frustration they will periodically experience.

 

The subsequent step toward emotional mastery is for athletes to step back from the emotions that are interfering with their performances. Relaxation techniques that directly lower athletes’ intensity are useful tools to encourage this detachment (intensity regulation). Reducing the intensity associated with frustration lowers the experience of the frustration itself which makes it easier for athletes to gain mastery over the frustration.

 

When athletes begin to experience the negative emotional chain, their thinking can become clouded with negativity, which can further drive them down an unhealthy and unproductive road during competition. Athletes can alter their thinking by becoming aware of what they say to themselves and others, and shifting it in a helpful direction with positive thinking (self-talk). They can also combat all aspects of the negative emotional chain by generating positive and motivating images in which they see and feel themselves overcoming the frustration, performing well, and succeeding (mental imagery).

 

With the influence of the initial unpleasant-harmful emotions reduced, athletes are in a better position to make conscious choices in how they respond to their emotions. However, athletes may not always be able to figure out for themselves the best way to relieve their frustration, so they can look to other, more experienced athletes for guidance. They can observe other athletes to see how they react when they get frustrated. They can also talk to a coach or sport psychology consultant to help them develop alternative ways of responding to their frustration.

 

Athletes can learn to identify when frustration usually begins for them. Frustration typically occurs in response to a pattern of mistakes or poor performance, for example, after an athlete has made the same mistake three times. The next step is to recognize a pattern before frustration arises. If athletes make the same mistake several times in a row, they know that if they keep repeating the mistake they will become frustrated. Having realized that frustration is just around the corner, athletes can find a solution to the problem so the pattern doesn’t continue, for example, make a technical or tactical correction that will enable them to stop making that same mistake (problem solving). Having found a solution to the problem, they can then rehearse their positive responses to frustration in practice so that it becomes ingrained and can be used effectively in competition (training success).

Miyako Tanaka-Oulevey:

Of course, I believe that it is better for athletes not to have any negative emotions in competition. To prevent them from having negative emotions, I usually tell them to focus on the quality of their performance, not the outcome. I believe that when athletes start doubting about their outcome, they become having harmful emotions such as fear and distress. I would tell athletes to focus “right now” and “just do what they can do NOW”. I would tell them that it is very meaningless to think about their outcome. By focusing NOW, it seems that it is easier for athletes to reduce their negative emotions and focus on performance itself. Lastly, what I recently tell athletes is that “there is no emotion that you can’t control by yourself.” There must be always a reason why an athlete becomes anxious or worried in the competition. There must be always a reason why an athlete gets satisfied about himself. If the athletes understand what they are really thinking in their mind or how they see the situations around them, I believe they can control their emotions easier.

 

<a>Chapter Summary Elements

<b>Key Points

<c>Athletes react in particular emotional ways depending on their appraisal of competitive situations.

<c>Changes in emotional states can have both positive and negative impacts on sport performance

<c> The relationship between specific emotions and performance can be counterintuitive in that pleasant emotions may sometimes be harmful to performance and unpleasant emotions may sometimes be helpful to performance.

<c> Athletes can employ a number of techniques (e.g., reappraisal, self-talk, mental imagery) to gain emotional mastery

<c> Developing emotional mastery enables athletes to maintain performance during competition and prevent the emergence of unpleasant –harmful emotions which typically follow a predictable course referred to as “the negative emotional chain”.

<b>Summary questions

Why is the impact of emotions so powerful and pervasive?

How do emotions physiologically and psychologically influence athletes?

What are the components of the emotion matrix and provide examples of emotions that could be located in each quadrant?

What is the difference between a threat appraisal and a challenge appraisal?

What are some causes of emotional reactions in competition?

What are some techniques for developing emotional mastery?

What is the negative emotional chain and how can it be stopped?

 

<b>Summary

Emotions play a central role in athletes’ participation in sport, affecting competitive sports performance in general, and specific psychological and physical contributors to performance in particular. However, this relationship is complex and often counterintuitive. Emotions influence performance based on the individual, the nature of the sport, and the meaning that athletes attach to their sport participation. How athletes respond emotionally to competition depends on how they appraise its personal relevance to them and their ability to overcome its demands. Factors that contribute to the impact of emotions on sports performance include how invested they are in their successes and failures, whether athletes appraise it as a challenge or a threat, the consequences of the outcomes, the demands placed on them and their ability to cope with those demands, and outside influences. Emotions can be categorized along two dimensions, pleasant-unpleasant and helpful-harmful, and the influence that emotions have on athletes depends on how they feel and how they affect performance. Athletes should make efforts to guard against being draw into the negative emotional chain, in which frustration can lead to anger, panic, and despair. For athletes to gain mastery over their emotions so that emotions help rather than hurt their competitive performances, they must first understand the ways in which they respond emotionally to competitive situations. This increased self-awareness provides the foundation for developing emotional mastery through the use of specific techniques, such as reappraisal, intensity regulation, self talk, mental imagery, and problem-solving. The ability of athletes to ingrain these strategies and use them during competition will determine whether they are able to use their emotions to foster their competitive success.

 

Figure 5.1  Emotion Matrix

Pleasant

Unpleasant

Helpful

Excitement
Exhilaration

Joy

Happiness

Pride

Frustration

Anger

Harmful

Satisfaction

Contentment

Fear

Desperation

Panic

 Rage

Embarrassment

Shame

Guilt

Distress

 

 

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PSYCHOLOGY OF CYCLING

Jim Taylor & Jeff Kress

INTRODUCTION

Bicycle racing is an endurance sport in which competitors must cope with tremendous physical and psychological demands in training and competition. O’Conner (1992) cites the Tour de France bicycle race as one of the most grueling tests of human athletic endurance. Typical road races for Olympic-level cyclists range between 50 and 250 kilometers and can take from one (50 km) to six hours or more (250 km) to complete. Weather conditions can vary from hot and humid to wet and rainy to cold and snowy. Cyclists must deal with dehydration, cold, heat, exhaustion, and pain while, often, having to assume specified tactical roles within their team (Ryschon, 1994). Attempts at predicting endurance performance in elite athletes solely on the basis of physiological variables have been unsuccessful (Shepard, 1980). Consequently, it has been suggested that psychological factors play an important role in the achievement of outstanding endurance performance (O’Conner, 1992).

This chapter will address the essential role that the mind plays in cycling. It will begin with an overview of cycling in which the demands and complexity of cycling are discussed. You will then learn about the different types of road races in which cyclists compete, providing perspective on the physical, technical, technological, tactical, and psychological aspects of cycling. The body of the chapter will explore the impact of four psychological factors on cycling performance: intensity, focus, pain, and recovery. We will discuss how these psychological issues influence cyclists, as well as mental training strategies that cyclists can use to develop these areas to maximize their cycling performances.

INTRODUCTION TO CYCLING

Competitive road racing is unique in the realm of sport. Road cycling takes place in an open arena, for example, city streets and country roads, in which, in most cases, nothing separates the competitors from the spectators. “No other sport dares allow such close contact with the participants. Spectators hear riders breathing as they pass; they smell them; and sometimes—by mistake—they touch” (Roll, 2004, p. 14). Perhaps the most famous example of spectator contact with a cyclist occurred when the five-time Tour de France winner, Eddy Merckx, was racing for a record sixth victory in 1975. While leading the race into the famous climbs of the French Alps, he was punched in the kidney by a spectator. The resulting injury plagued him for the remainder of the race and he eventually finished a distant second.

Racecourse conditions can also vary dramatically. Road racing can take place on surfaces ranging from smooth asphalt streets to brutal cobblestones. In addition, unlike many sports in which their contests are either postponed or canceled due to weather, cycling races are contested through all forms of inclement weather. A memorable stage of the Giro d’Italia (one of the three major road-cycling events along with the Tour de France and the Vuelta a’Espana) occurred in 1988 when the American, Andy Hampsten, persevered through heavy sleet and snow over the 2621-meter Gavia Pass to take the race lead and eventual victory. Conditions that day were so brutal that many of the support vehicles were unable to drive over the same roads on which the cyclists raced.

The competitive cycling season is also long by most standards of professional sport, lasting more than nine months. The typical professional road cyclist contests 90-110 races per year. A typical week of training and racing consists of approximately 700-1200 kilometers, during which cyclists will log 25-30 hours a week of riding time. In addition to training and race time, cyclists also spend many hours traveling to training camps and races all over the world. This level of commitment means considerable time away from home and family.

The races themselves are complex and sometimes chaotic events that place additional demands on cyclists. A typical road race is composed of more than 20 teams of up to ten riders each, for a total of between 150-200 competitors. Each team has differing riding styles, goals, and strategies to achieve their goals. In cycling, the best-laid plans can go for naught due to the unpredictable nature of races, including breakaways (when one or more riders try to separate themselves from the peloton or the main pack of riders), crashes, bad weather, poor communication, and equipment malfunctions. The ability of riders to persevere under these conditions and adapt to these capricious and uncontrollable occurrences often determines which cyclists will be successful.

Types of Road Races

Road racing is contested in a variety of formats. It can consist of mass-start single-day events, stage races, or solo races against the clock. Each type of road race requires different physical abilities and places unique psychological demands on the riders.

Single-day Races

Single-day races are those that are completed over the course of one day. Perhaps the most traditional form of single-day race is the point-to-point road race, which typically begins at one location and finishes at another. These events often take place between two cities or towns. Examples of well-known professional single-day events include Fleche-Wallonne, Paris-Roubaix, Ghent-Wevelgem and Het Volk. The courses of single-day races can vary from entirely flat, favoring sprinters, to very mountainous, which benefit climbers.

Circuit racing is another category of single-day racing. These races are contested over courses that begin and end at the same location and consist of multiple laps of which each lap is 25 to 40 kilometers in length. The total distance raced is typically between 200 to 280 kilometers and are raced over roads that are flat to moderately hilly. A third type of road racing is the criterium, which is similar to circuit racing, but the courses are flatter and shorter, usually one to three kilometers per lap with races being 70 to 80 kilometers in length. These races tend to be very fast, with the average speed of a criterium being around 42 kilometers per hour while a road race is closer to 34 kilometers per hour.

The psychological demands of these races require that cyclists have a single-minded focus on the coming day. They can learn the specifics of the course (e.g., terrain and road conditions) and develop tactics appropriate for the race. Cyclists must have an intense and focused effort for a relatively short time. They can also give 100% effort in the race because they don’t need to conserve their energy for another day of racing.

Time Trials

Time trails have been affectionately called, “The Race of Truth” by cycling aficionados. This event is either contested as a point-to-point race, around a circuit, or out and back on the same road. This style of road racing is unique in that the riders are required to race alone start to finish (they start at 30 second to two minute intervals depending upon the race) and must rely on their own fitness and psychological strength, without the aid of teammates or drafting, to the finish in the fastest time possible. Cyclists use specialized equipment, including bicycles, helmets, and clothing that are designed to maximize aerodynamics and reduce wind drag. Time trials can range in length from a few kilometers to 60 kilometers or more. A sub-discipline of the time trial is the team time trial in which teams compete against each other using the same format. This event typically has four to nine teammates working together to maximize efficiency and speed in an attempt to record a time that is faster than the other teams in the race.

Time trials, perhaps more than any of the other disciplines of bicycle racing require the utmost amount of focus from cyclists. Because cyclists are racing solo against the clock, there are no team tactics, no one to pace them, they are entirely self-reliant in his efforts. Cyclists can monitor their efforts in several ways, such as heart rate, speed, cadence, and feelings of physical exertion. With an emphasis on all-out speed, cyclists must be acutely aware of the course (e.g., turns, climbs) and road conditions (e.g., wet, rough), and use this information to navigate the course in the fastest and most direct fashion. Because of the focus on absolute speed, time trials are dangerous and extremely physically demanding. They require that cyclists find the line that lies between the fastest route through the course and disaster. Cyclists must maintain focus every moment, calculating how fast they can go around curves and on descents.

They must also effectively apportion out their energy throughout the race. Because time trials are usually relatively short in distance (e.g., eight to 60 kilometers) and the focus is on speed, cyclists must maintain a high level of intensity and sustain a consistent amount of effort throughout the race. If they go out too fast, they may bonk later in the race. If they don’t go out fast enough, their early splits will be slow and they won’t be able to make up the time late in the race. The winners of time trials are often the cyclists who are able to distribute their energy evenly throughout the race and have nothing left when they cross the finish line.

One method we have found to be successful in getting cyclists to maintain their focus, intensity, and effort throughout the duration of the time trail is to have them go through regimented checks of their physical exertion, pace, and the course that lies ahead. One prominent cyclist likened the process to having his brain as the Central Processing Unit (CPU) of a computer and it constantly makes checks of the system. Without the required focus, intensity, and effort, a time trial can quickly turn into just a long solo ride with no promise of a good placing.

Stage Races

Stage races are multiple-day events that consist of a series of point-to-point, circuit, time-trial, and criterium races. Riders must start and finish each stage to continue to race in subsequent stages. The overall winner of a stage race is the rider with the lowest cumulative time of all of the stages. The most famous stage race is the Tour de France, which consists of 20 stages and approximately 3,250 kilometers in distance.

A variety of competitions are held within the stage race itself for which riders compete. Each day’s race is contested as a single event and gaining a stage win is a source of great prestige and individual, team, and national pride. Awards are also given for the categories of racing that occur within stage races, for example, best climber, best sprinter, best young rider, and most consistent rider. The leaders of each of these categories are awarded specially colored race jerseys, which are worn as symbols of status and honor. Points are awarded to the riders in each of these categories and the rider with the most points at the end of the stage race is named the best rider in that category. The most prestigious jersey in road cycling is the Tour de France’s Maillot Jaune (Yellow Jersey), awarded to the overall winner of the 20-day stage race. Notes the former professional cyclist, Bob Roll, “Wear yellow even one day and you’ll never buy your own drinks in France for the rest of your life” (Roll, 2004, p. 21).

Stage races combine the previously mentioned psychological issues with the need to establish a long-range individual and team tactical plan and awareness of the ongoing physical demands that a stage race places on cyclists. Unlike the single-day events, stage races are not won or lost in a single effort. Cyclists’ ability to adhere to their race plan, even when faced with unexpected challenges, allows them to be successful. Patience and the ability to effectively distribute their energy for the duration of the race, are also essential qualities of great stage cyclists . Because stage races include the other types of cycling events, they require all of the psychological tools necessary in cycling which will be described further in this chapter.

PSYCHOLOGY OF CYCLING

Based on the description of road cycling that we just offered, the physical demands and psychological challenges that riders face may be unique in sports. The physical factors of strength, endurance, and skill, coupled with the unforgiving weather and course conditions, and cycling being a team as well as an individual sport, present cyclists with rare challenges that test every part of their psychological repertoire. Not only must riders have command over their motivation, confidence, intensity, focus, emotions, and pain (Taylor, 2001), but they must maintain their mastery under the most dire physical and environmental conditions with the risk of serious injury or death for extended periods of time.

Though all athletes in every sport must deal with varying degrees of all of the psychological factors described by Taylor (2001), cycling presents particular challenges in a few specific areas. The remainder of this chapter will focus on four psychological areas, intensity, pain, fear, and recovery, which we believe are especially relevant to road cycling. It is worth noting is that these four factors are not exclusively psychological in nature (unlike motivation, confidence, and focus). Each is grounded in physical experience, yet the influence of intensity, pain, fear, and recovery on cyclists is determined by how they identify, interpret, and respond to the physical reactions of the four factors. This process of psychological filtering ultimately determines the impact they have cyclists’ performances.

Intensity

Cycling success involves preserving and apportioning out energy as it is needed during a race. Road racing has ebbs and flows of energy needs that are perhaps like no other sport in the world. During the course of a typical professional road race, which can last five to six hours, there will be extended periods of time during which there is no “racing” taking place—riders are maintaining a comfortable pace in the peloton and saving their energy for difficult parts of the course—and the intensity of the cyclists is low. The riders are simply covering distance on the road prior to a crucial part of the race, which could include a section of cobblestones, a long climb, a breakaway, or a sprint finish. Several minutes prior to a key part of the race the tempo will typically pick up as the cyclists’ position themselves for the upcoming test. The intensity of the riders will rise in preparation for the imminent effort. Their intensity level will be further elevated once they are actively racing and competing with others. If cyclists expend too much energy because of elevated intensity during the slower parts of the race, they will not have enough energy to compete effectively when it matters.

Intensity is a continuum that ranges from sleep (very relaxed) to terror (very anxious) (Sonstroem, 1984, Taylor & Wilson, 2002). Somewhere in between these two extremes is the level of intensity at which cyclists perform their best. One of the confusing aspects of intensity is that there isn’t one ideal level of intensity for all riders or all race distances (Landers & Boutcher, 1993, Weinberg & Gould, 2003, Zaichkowsky & Takenaka, 2001). Some cyclists ride best very relaxed, others moderately intense, and still others very intense. Shorter distance races, as a rule, require more intensity because more energy and explosiveness is needed. Longer races call for lower intensity because intensity is energy that needs to be conserved for strategic points in a race. Cyclists need to learn what level of intensity they ride best at in the different types of races in which they compete (Raglin & Hanin, 1999).

Awareness of Intensity

One of the first methods for educating cyclists about their intensity is to have them develop an awareness of their intensity while on a bike (Weinberg & Gould, 2003). They must be able to recognize the physical and psychological signs of intensity (Schmidt & Wrisberg, 2000). In a sport in which the environment, race conditions, and race strategy are continuously changing, cyclists must have an acute sense of self-awareness to be successful. Riders can use several strategies to increase their awareness of their intensity.

Cyclists can reflect back to recent races in which they rode very well and recall their level of intensity (Hanin, 1999). Were they relaxed, energized, or really fired up? Then cyclists can remember the thoughts, emotions, and physical feelings they experienced during these races. Were they positive or negative, happy or angry, relaxed or tense? Second, cyclists can reflect back to recent races in which they performed below expectations. They can recall their level of intensity and remember the thoughts, emotions, and physical feelings they had in those races. A distinct pattern differentiating between good and poor races emerges for most cyclists. When they performed well, they had a particular level of intensity each time. In contrast, when they rode poorly, there was a very different level of intensity, either higher or lower than their ideal. “Young riders who typically pedal too hard too early, who can’t modulate their aggressive instincts, aren’t a good bet to compete” (Roll, 2004, p. 101).

Cyclists can also gain insight into how their intensity affects their riding by focusing on their intensity during training rides and races. While riding they can turn their focus inward and pay attention to their physiology (e.g., breathing, heart rate, muscles), body position on the bike, pedal stroke, thoughts, and emotions. They can then cross-reference this data with how they are performing at the moment and in the race as a whole.

Pre-race Intensity

Having cyclists become aware of their ideal intensity is a crucial component of cycling success. Some cyclists perform best when they are relaxed before a race. Too much pre-race intensity can hurt performance. Negative effects may include the race feeling faster than they are accustomed, their thinking may not be clear, and fatigue may set in more quickly because of the unnecessary expenditure of energy before the race (Landers & Boutcher, 1993, Weinberg & Gould, 2003, Zaichkowsky & Takenaka, 2001).

Conversely, some cyclists perform best when they experience higher intensity immediately prior to a race. Their adrenaline is flowing and they feel what they might describe as excitement, jitters, or “the edge.” Attempting to drastically reduce their pre-race intensity would likely result in a loss of energy, feelings of lethargy, and a decline in motivation. The key for these cyclists is to find the balance between keeping their intensity high enough to make them feel comfortable and confident and not allowing their intensity to rise so high that it is uncomfortable and drains energy and wastes fuel that will be needed in the race.

Cyclists can use a variety of common “psych-down” techniques to reduce their intensity when needed before their race. Deep breathing is one of the most powerful, yet neglected, tools for lowering intensity (Taylor & Wilson, 2002). Anxiety can cause a constricted respiratory system, reflected in short and shallow breaths that can limit needed oxygen into their bodies. As cyclists go through their pre-race preparation, they should be keenly aware of their breathing and consciously take slow, deep breaths on a regular basis (Fenz, 1975; Fried, 1987a, b; Williams & Harris, 2001; Weinberg & Gould, 2003). Another valuable, though little used, technique to reduce intensity is to keep cyclists moving prior to the race (Taylor, 2001). If they sit or stand for too long, not only will their muscles tighten, but their anxiety will also rise. Cyclists should warm up on a stationary trainer, walk around, stretch, or get a pre-race massage. Another underappreciated tool for staying relaxed is to talk to people, whether it is family, friends, teammates, or other competitors. Talking to others takes the focus away from the race and provides support and encouragement that will increase comfort. Other strategies for reducing intensity includes progressive relaxation, maintaining a process focus (Jacobson, 1929; Martens, 1987), using positive self-talk, repeating relaxing keywords, using calming imagery, and listening to soothing music (Taylor & Wilson, 2002).

Pre-race intensity that is too low, caused by cyclists perceiving that the competition is inferior, a lack of enthusiasm for a particular racecourse, or physical or mental burnout, will also hurt race performance (Williams & Harris, 2001). Using “psych-up” techniques can help riders elevate their intensity to a level that will bolster their race efforts. Just as deep breathing can reduce intensity, intense breathing can increase it. If cyclists find their intensity too low pre-race, several hard exhalations can take their bodies and minds to a more intense level. Intense breathing gets more oxygen into their system, increases blood flow and adrenaline, and generally energizes riders. Mentally, intense breathing also creates a more focused attitude and increases feelings of aggressiveness. Increased physical activity, for example, a higher-cadence ride on the stationary trainer, can also elevate heart rate and respiration, and trigger adrenaline (Taylor & Wilson, 2002). Additional techniques for increasing pre-race intensity include high-intensity keywords and self-talk (Raiport 1988, Zaichkowsky & Takenaka, 2001), motivating music (Williams & Harris, 2001; Rider & Achterberg, 1989), motivating music, and mental imagery that rehearse the race goal (Zaichkowsky & Takenaka, 2001).

Race Intensity

Though cyclists may be at their ideal intensity prior to and in the early stages of a race, intensity can change quickly once the race begins. Intensity can go up in response to frustration and anger of getting cut off or missing a breakaway. It can also rise due to greater effort during a long ascent. This increased intensity, if sustained, will create discomfort and burn unnecessary energy. Cyclists’ ability to reduce their intensity when it arises involuntarily or in response to exertion will determine to a large degree whether they have the power and stamina to continue to ride well through the end of the race. Some of the psych-down techniques that cyclists use in their pre-race can also be used during races. Deep breathing, brief progressive relaxation, calming keywords and self-talk, and regaining a process focus can help riders settle down physically and psychologically.

Intensity can decline in reaction to feelings of despair from a flat tire or mechanical failure. It can also drop during periods of races, as we mentioned earlier, where the peloton is not really racing. Intensity that is too low can cause cyclists to be dropped from the peloton, miss a breakaway, or lack the energy for a concerted sprint at the end of a race. Pre-race psych-up techniques can also help riders during a race, for example, intense breathing and high-intensity keywords and self-talk.

Pain

Persistent and intense pain is a hallmark of bicycle racing. Pain is an essential part of cycling training and competition, and at the same time, the greatest obstacle cyclists face as they pursue their goals. Cyclist exact a profound physical and psychological toll when they race for hours at a time at the upper end of their lactate thresholds, for example, prolonged effort while ascending long climbs or repeated attempts at breaking away from the main peloton. Asserts three-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond, “…the best climbers are those who can stand the most pain…in pro cycling everything hurts, but they just ride through it…” (Avins, 1986, p. 44). The nature of the sport is such that those athletes who can cope the best with the pain will be more successful.

Pain plays an important role in providing cyclists with information about their cycling, including their level of effort and the intensity of their training program. But pain is also a persistent and powerful physical warning to their body. Cycling pain can be the product of several factors: an elevated heart rate which has exceeded a comfortable level, a buildup of lactate, an end product of glycolysis, a depletion of muscle glycogen from the body’s stores; fatigue of the respiratory muscles; and dehydration (Brooks, Fahey, & White, 1996). Athletes who have developed effective coping strategies for tolerating higher levels of pain are expected to perform better than those who have not (Egan, 1987; O’Conner, 1992; Scott & Gijsbers, 1981). Bill Koch, the silver medalist in cross-country skiing at the 1976 Olympics, believed that 90 percent of his success was attributable to his ability to tolerate pain (Iso-Ahola & Hatfield, 1986). Interviews with elite-level cyclists (Kress, 1998) have revealed common methods used for the management of pain while training and racing.

The ability to manage pain nonpharmacologically has improved dramatically (Brena & Chapman, 1983). Developing psychological strategies to deal with pain have become an area of interest since Melzack and Wall (1965) developed the gate-control theory of pain. This model encouraged psychologists to broaden their evaluations to include the assessment of cognitive, affective, psychosocial, and behavioral contributors to the perception of pain. One aspect of treatment involves the use of psychological methods to control pain (Gauron & Bowers, 1986). Cognitive-behavioral strategies that alter how people evaluate their pain have been used to reduce pain and help individuals cope with chronic discomfort (Turk, Meichaenbaum, & Genest, 1984). Cognitive-behavioral techniques have been shown to be effective in reducing pain, for example, surgical pain (Langer, Janis, & Wolfer, 1975); and chronic pain in children (Elliot & Jay, 1987).

To date, research examining pain among athletes has been limited. Pain-tolerance research has focused on comparing athletes and nonathletes performing a variety of pain-inducing activities (Ryan & Kovacic, 1966; Scott & Gijsbers, 1981). The conclusions of this research were that contact athletes had a higher tolerance for pain than did non-contact athletes and highly trained athletes had a much higher tolerance than did non-athletes. A variety of researchers have examined the use of pain-management strategies among marathon runners and found that they used both associative (focus on the pain) and dissociative (distract from the pain) techniques to manage their pain while competing (Morgan, 1978, 1980; Morgan, O’Conner, Sparling, & Pate, 1987; Morgan & Pollock, 1977; Schomer, 1986, 1987; Silva & Appelbaum, 1989). Others have conducted research based on associative and dissociative styles of attention distraction using other activities reporting similar findings as those just mentioned (Morgan et al., 1983; O’Connor, 1992; Russell & Weeks, 1994; Unestahl, 1992; Weinberg, Jackson, & Gould, 1984).

Perspective on Pain

Using pain to cyclists’ advantage starts with gaining a realistic perspective on what pain really is (Taylor, 2002). They need to understand the difference between suffering, pain, and physical discomfort. Cyclists have a strong tendency to use the term “suffering” when they describe the intense physical feelings they experience when training and racing. What cyclists experience in their training and races is not suffering. People with cancer suffer because their pain is severe, long lasting, life threatening, and often uncontrollable. What cyclists feel in training and races is not really even pain. Real pain comes from injuries. This pain is similar to suffering, but injury pain—though sometimes severe—is not life threatening, typically does not last that long, and can be controlled much more easily.

What cyclists really feel in training and races and what they call suffering or pain is discomfort. It hurts and it interferes with their training and competitive efforts, but it is not severe and they have control over it; they can ease the discomfort by slowing down or stopping. For simplicity’s sake, though, we will continue to call what cyclists experience pain knowing what it really is and that perspective is the first step to mastering pain.

Interpreting Pain

The next step to overcoming cycling pain is to understand that pain is not just a physical experience that cyclists have to tolerate in their training and races (Taylor, 2002). Pain also has a major psychological component to it; how they think about it and the emotions they connect to it affect the pain they feel. How riders interpret their pain either propels them to new and higher levels of performance or it hurts their motivation, reduces their confidence, increases their anxiety, and distracts they from their training or competitive focus. If cyclists can interpret their pain in a positive way, their pain will feel less painful (Kress, 1998).

Endurance athletes, such as cyclists, can actually enjoy the pain they experience in training and races. Cyclists can interpret the pain they feel from extreme exertion as rewarding because it affirms their significant efforts. It communicates to them that they are working hard and that their efforts will produce satisfying results. Successful cyclists enjoy the pain because it tells them that they are progressing toward their goals.

The situations in which cyclists find themselves affect their interpretation of pain. If all physical variables, such as heart rate and level of fitness, are kept constant, those competitors who are having a “good day” feel the pain a lot less than those who are having a “bad day.” A former Olympian said, “I don’t think the pain actually changes; your perception of it increases and decreases…Suffering really isn’t suffering when you are at the top of your form. When you are really going for the win and performing the way you ought to and want to, very few people would call that suffering even though the pain may be equal” (Kress, 1998). Cyclists must understand that they have a choice in how they interpret their pain. If they understand that how they interpret their pain affects the pain they feel, then they will come to believe that they have some control over how much pain they experience.

Pain as Enemy

Pain becomes cyclists’ enemy when they start to connect negative perceptions such as, “Pain is bad,” “Pain means I am weak,” and “Pain means I will fail,” with the pain they feel. This attitude toward pain puts them in a defeatist mindset in which the first experience of pain in training or competition will set off a vicious cycle of negative thinking and negative emotions. If, for example, while doing hill repeats on their bike during a training session, they start thinking, “I hate this because it hurts so much. Is this really worth it?” this negative self-talk will increase the pain they feel, lessen their desire to fight through the pain, and limit the benefits they gain from training (Taylor, 2002).

Some fascinating research has emerged recently that has found that the emotions that athletes connect with their pain have a significant impact on how much pain they feel (Gil, Williams, Keefe, & Beckham, 1990; Sullivan, Thorn, Haythornthwaite, Keefe, Martin, Bradley, & Lefebvre, 2001; Weisenberg, 1987). All cyclists have had the experience late in a race where they are hurting. They begin to get frustrated that they won’t achieve their race goal. They get angry at themselves for not training harder. They may even despair of their ability to finish. When they connect these negative emotions with their pain in training or a race, they will feel more pain. Between the pain they feel, their negative self-talk, and the negative emotions, they have little chance of giving their best effort in training or being successful in races (Taylor, 2002).

Pain as Ally

Making pain cyclists’ ally is a deliberate process that takes commitment, effort, and practice. It starts with accepting that pain is a normal and important part of training and competition (Kress, 1998)—“no pain, no gain,” as the saying goes. Staying emotionally detached from training and race pain can also reduce the pain they feel. This can be accomplished by using pain as information during their workouts and races. Pain tells them how hard they are working and whether what they are feeling is due to exertion or injury. With this information, they can adjust their pace, modify their technique, change their body position, or shift their tactics. Making these changes will help them reduce the pain and also maximize their performance (Taylor, 2002).

Cyclists can take active physical steps to reduce their pain. When their body begins to struggle, it tries to protect itself from the pain by tightening up. Their bodies do not realize that this only makes it worse, so they need to tell them to relax. Simple techniques during training and races, such as deep breathing, raising and lowering their shoulders every few miles, swinging their arms, shaking out their hands, and keeping their face relaxed, can make a huge difference in how their body responds to pain. A simple place to start is with the cyclists grip on their handlebars. Distressed cyclists tend to hold onto the handlebars very tightly with an almost “deathlike” grip. If cyclists release their index or “trigger” finger from the bars, their hands relax and this serves as a starting point for relaxation for the rest of the body.

The experience of pain can be lessened by what cyclists say to themselves (Kress, 1998). Positive self-talk, such “I’m getting stronger with every kilometer I complete,” “This is making me tougher,” and “This pain is normal and everyone’s feeling it,” not only reduces their perception of pain, but it has other psychological benefits including increased motivation, greater confidence, better focus, and more positive emotions.

As much as negative emotions increase the perception of pain, positive emotions have the opposite effect. Connecting positive emotions, such as excitement, joy, and fulfillment, with the pain they feel in training and races reduces the pain and makes it more tolerable. Positive emotions create more positive self-talk and have other psychological advantages, such as greater motivation and confidence. Physiologically, positive emotions release endorphins (neurochemicals that act as our internal painkillers) which not only reduce the perception of pain, but actually lessen the physical pain.

Inspiration may be the most useful positive emotion cyclists can experience when training and racing. They can view pain as part of an epic challenge to achieve their goals. Pain tells them that they are working hard and making progress toward their cycling aspirations. To that end, a two-pronged strategy that combines generating positive self-talk and positive emotions is effective. Smiling also creates positive emotions and releases the pain-killing endorphins. The self-talk tells riders that they are building their fitness that they will be able to rely on in races. Finally, perhaps the greatest lesson cyclists can learn is: The physical pain they feel in training and races in no way compares to the emotional pain they will feel if they do not achieve their goals because they did not master the pain (Taylor, 2002).

Fear

Bicycle racing is one of the most beautiful sports in the world. With all of the different uniforms in a race, a bike race is a colorful tapestry of movement. It takes place over some of the most beautiful scenery in the world, including the Swiss, French, and Italian Alps, and through some of the world’s most beautiful cities, including Paris, Madrid, and San Francisco. It is a graceful sport where a line of 200 cyclists spin their legs almost in unison and flow through the streets as one.

However, along with the beauty comes the beast, which is the speed and dangers that every cyclist is faced with. The close proximity of the riders to each other—physical contact is frequent—allows little margin for error and crashes and pile-ups are common. Because the only protection riders wear is a helmet (and head protection is not even mandated at the professional level), injuries, ranging from “road rash” to broken bones, are everyday occurrences. For example, a crash during the first stage of the 2003 Tour de France occurred near the finish, in which two riders, racing in excess of 55 kilometers per hour, fell, setting off a chain reaction of the almost 200 riders in close pursuit. A mass pileup of riders was the result and race favorites Tyler Hamilton, Jimmy Casper, Fabio Baldato, Marc Lotz, Levi Leipheimer, and five-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong became just a few of the victims of the crash. While Casper, Baldato, Lotz, Armstrong and several others sustained only minor abrasions, Hamilton sustained a fractured collarbone and Leipheimer a broken coccyx.

Crashes are not always the result of riders contacting each other, but are due to road conditions such as rain, potholes, gravel, or oil on the road. One of the most publicized crashes due to road conditions in recent years also occurred during the 2003 Tour de France. The Spaniard, Joseba Beloki, was in second place during the ninth stage of the race and threatening to take the leaders jersey from Armstrong. Both were descending a narrow, fast, and twisting road on a hot day. The intense heat was melting the tar in the road and, as Beloki rounded a corner just ahead of Armstrong, his rear wheel slipped on the soft tart and he flipped violently to the ground. The result of his crash was a broken right femur, wrist, collarbone, and elbow, and severe skin abrasions.

In addition to the frequent opportunities for injury, the physical harm is minor compared to the deaths of cyclists that can occur at any time. In recent years, the professional cyclists, Andrei Kivilev and Fabio Casartelli, have lost their lives in crashes. Crashes, whether minor or horrific, are a part of bicycle racing and, as any professional will express, they are simply a part of life in the sport.

Fear of Physical Harm or Death

Cyclists train predominantly on public roads that can be of uncertain quality and filled with automobile traffic. Every time cyclists take to the road for a training ride or race, they put themselves in harm’s way. Every cyclist knows or has heard about someone who either crashed or was hit by a car and sustained a serious injury or who died from a cycling accident. What makes this fear so difficult is that cyclists do not always have control over the danger and it often arises unexpectedly, for example, a pothole in the road or a car backing out of a driveway. Additionally, cars and trucks are not always accommodating to bicycles and some drivers are downright hostile.

Despite these dangers, there has been considerable resistance among the professional cycling communities to wear helmets. In 1991, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the sport’s governing body, attempted to enforce mandatory helmet use in sanctioned race. The professional riders threatened a strike, after which the UCI backed down. Contributing to the resistance to wearing helmets is a culture of machismo that is entrenched in the European cycling community. It is not uncommon on European roads to see amateur racers and recreational cyclists not wearing helmets.

This fear has taken on greater prominence in the last decade in the world of professional cycling. Italian Tour de France rider, Fabio Casartelli, died from injuries sustained from a crash during a stage of the 1995 Tour de France. In 2003, the Kazakh rider, Andrei Kivilev crashed during the Paris-Nice stage race while not wearing a helmet and died the next day from a brain hemorrhage. That incident prompted the UCI, to make helmets mandatory in all races. Under the new rules, riders are allowed to use their own discretion in the final five kilometers of races with summit finishes in Europe, but must otherwise wear helmets or risk being fined. The rules vary slightly between countries but more often than not, a helmet must be worn at all times during a bike race. Perhaps the most stringent rules are in the United States. For insurance purposes, the United States Cycling Federation has imposed the even more far-reaching rule of requiring all cyclists who are on a bicycle, whether racing or warming, up to wear a helmet. Some states in the United States make helmets compulsory for any cyclist (whether a racer or not) under the age of 18.

Fear of Overuse Injury

Cycling places significant demands on riders’ bodies and these demands increase as the race distances get longer and frequency, duration, and intensity of training builds. It is rare for cyclists not to sustain an injury due to overuse, improper technique, or inadequate recovery. The occurrence of injuries, particularly when they are serious, for example, meniscal damage, or recurrent, such as a nagging hamstring pull from hill repeats, can cause riders to fear continuing their training efforts and discourage them from giving their best effort. These fears can also reduce cyclists’ motivation to train and limit the intensity they put into their training.

Fear of Failure

In addition to fears of bodily injury, psychological fears can also interfere with cyclists enjoying their sport and achieving their goals. Most common among these fears is the fear of failure that can arise when riders become overly invested in their cycling efforts. Fear of failure is commonly thought of as a belief that failure will result in some type of bad consequence, for example, disappointing others, losing respect, feeling shame and embarrassment, and devaluing oneself (Martin & Marsh, 2003). What makes fear of failure so palatable is that people connect their results with whether they will be loved and valued by themselves or others (Conroy, Poczwardowski, & Henschen, 2001). Most people are motivated to succeed and to gain affirmation from themselves and praise from others, but those who fear failure are most often driven to avoid failure and the criticism and negative impressions that often come with it. Their self-esteem is based on their ability to avoid failure and gain self-love by achieving success. Fear of failure is a potent and unhealthy influence on people and has been associated with many psychological difficulties including low self-esteem, decreased motivation, physical complaints, eating disorders, drug abuse, anxiety, and depression (Conroy, 2001).

Because of the level of commitment that is required for success in cycling, cyclists are particularly vulnerable to fear of failure. The considerable time and energy that cyclists invest in their efforts, and the physical and psychological demands that take their toll, can cause riders to feel the need to justify their investment with success and lead them to believe that failure would render their efforts meaningless. Putting so much on the line whenever they train and race can cause cyclists to put pressure on themselves to succeed and to fear failure if they do not perform up their expectations.

Psychological Impact of Fear

Fear can be a powerful psychological obstacle to achieving cyclists’ goals. Regardless of the source of the fear, it can create a cascade of deficits in psychological areas that are essential for cycling success. Fear reduces riders’ motivation to train and race because doing so is unpleasant. Fear also hurts confidence because, inherent in any fear, is the belief that some form of harm—whether physical or mental—will come from their efforts. This loss of motivation and confidence will cause cyclists to become cautious and tentative, and prevent them from fully committing themselves to their efforts. Fear also cripples their ability to focus. Because the emotional and physical experience of fear is so strong, it is very difficult for cyclists to focus on things that will help their performance. Fear also prevents cyclists from gaining enjoyment from their participation.

Physical Impact of Fear

Fear expresses itself most profoundly in the physical symptoms they feel, including anxiety, muscle tension, shallow breathing, and loss of coordination. These physical sensations individually and collectively cause cyclists to feel tremendous discomfort. Cyclists often use the term, “pedaling in squares,” to describe their feelings when they are not physically feeling comfortable on their bike. Fear also creates substantial obstacles to achieving their goals. The physical experience of fear burns unnecessary energy, interferes with effective movement, and reduces cardiovascular efficiency, all of which keep cyclists from performing their best.

Mastering Fear

Fear is an essential human emotion that protects people when their physical well-being is threatened. (Cannon, 1932) Unfortunately, fear can also arise in situations where it is neither required nor helpful. People often think of courage as the absence of fear, true courage is being able to perform in the face of fear. Cyclists’ goal, when they experience fear, is not to banish it thoroughly, but rather to master the fear and not let it interfere with the pursuit to their goals.

Fears come in all shapes and sizes. Some fears are rational, in other words, there is something that is worthy of fear, for example, fear of crashing during a high-speed descent on their bike. Other fears are entirely irrational, such as worry that a bicycle frame or wheel will buckle on a rough road (it can happen, but it is exceedingly unlikely). Some fears have to do with physical injury or death, for example, being hit by a car. Other fears have to do with race performance, such as starting too fast and bonking or having to drop out. Still other fears are related to psychological injury, for example, failing to achieve a race goal will make them a failure in their own view or in the view of others.

However realistic or unlikely their fears are, they are as real as cyclists believe them to be and these fears will keep them from performing their best. Fears also won’t just go away. Instead, they tend to continue because they become so persistent that they become ingrained into cyclists’ thinking and emotions every time they are faced with the fear-provoking situation. To stop the fears, cyclists must address them, deal with them, and put the fears behind them. Only free of fears will cyclists be able to push themselves to their limits and race their strongest and fastest.

Understand their fear. The first step for cyclists to master their fear is to understand what their fear is. Is the cause of their fear obvious, such as riding on a road with a narrow shoulder with considerable traffic? Or is the source of their fear less clear, for example, feeling fear before the start of the race that they attribute to a tough course, but is actually caused by worry about failing to achieve their goals?

Cyclists need to identify the precise cause of the fear so that they can take proactive steps to overcome it.

As part of understanding their fear, cyclists should become familiar with what it is they are afraid of. In what situation does it arise? What thoughts are associated with the fear? How does the fear make their body feel? What helps them lessen their fear? Having a clear understanding of their fear enables riders to directly address its cause and, as a result, relieve it as quickly as possible.

Gain perspective on their fear. If cyclists are experiencing fear in some cycling situation, the chances are they are not alone. The fears we just discussed are likely to be felt by many cyclists around them. This should tell them that the fear they are feeling is normal. We have found widespread agreement on the fears we describe in this section. Experiencing the fear does not make cyclists stupid, weird, or weak. It just makes them human. Recognizing that their fear is normal will help riders keep it in perspective and prevent them from having the fear consume them. Part of gaining perspective on fear involves cyclists seeing that the fear does not have to cripple them and that they have the power to master it. Talking to others about their fear can help them normalize their fear and give them insights into how others deal with it.

Mastering their fear. Rational fears are best resolved by finding a solution to the cause of the fear. By gaining relevant information, experience, and skills, cyclists can alleviate the source of the fear. Or by changing the situation that causes the fear, they can remove the source of the fear and prevent the fear from arising. For example, a fear of a mass sprint finish is common among cyclists because of the close quarters and frantic pace. This fear can be relieved in several ways. Cyclists can avoid the jostling that causes their fear by being at the front of the peloton and begin their sprint first. They can also stay on the outside of the peloton, though they will still have to deal with the barriers that may be present that separate the road from the spectators. Finally, riders can choose not to participate in the sprint and finish back in the pack. They can also practice pack sprint finishes by simulating them during training rides with a group of cyclists and working on staying relaxed and focused, and maintaining their sprinting form. They can also reframe the fear as anticipated excitement about the finish of the race.

High-speed descending presents another type of fear some cyclists will encounter and it can be relieved in several ways as well. Cyclists can go down a mountain pass at speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour on tires that are no more than 23 millimeters in width. Lose gravel, oily roads, tight turns, other cyclists, and vehicular traffic are a few of the obstacles that must be safely negotiated at such high speeds. Cyclists can take bike-handling classes that will improve their cycling skills and give them more confidence in descending. They can also gain more experience and comfort by doing a great deal of descending on their training rides. An alternative way to relieve their fear is to simply slow down on the descents, realizing that races are rarely won or lost on the downhills. This last option involves weighing the value of going fast downhill versus their comfort and safety and choosing to follow the adage, “Discretion is the better part of valor.”

Mastering irrational fears involves a different approach. Because irrational fears have no objective solutions, cyclists can’t solve the fear nor can they readily change the situation that causes it. Instead, they have to counter the irrational beliefs that cause the fear, in other words, be rational with their irrationality. Returning to the bike buckling on a rough road example, cyclists can remind themselves that bikes are tested to withstand such abuse. They can do an Internet search to find any evidence of bikes breaking in half during rides on uneven roads. They can also draw on their own experiences and that of their friends who ride extensively and determine whether anyone has ever had or seen a bike buckle. Even with this rational debunking, irrational fears may linger. When the fear arises, cyclists can accept it as normal, decide to put it out of their mind, and focus on things that will help them have a good ride.

Regardless of whether cyclists’ fears are rational or irrational, they can use several practical techniques to help them overcome the fears. Positive thinking that focuses on their strengths and their ability to overcome their fears will gird them against the force of those fears. Fears can be overwhelming because they dominate their thinking and cause riders to focus on the things that make the fear worse. They can resist this tendency by focusing on things that will help them deal with the fear, for example, they can focus on using good technique on the bike during high-speed descents. If they are focused on the process of riding and what they need to do to ride well, then they will not be focused on the fear.

Because fears are manifested physically, with muscle tension, increased heart rate, and shallow breathing, cyclists can use the psych-down techniques we discussed earlier, including deep breathing and relaxing their body. Creating a physical state that counters the feelings of fear will cause lessen how much cyclists feel the fear. This strategy has the added benefit of distracting cyclists from the fear, helping them focus on something that actually reduces their fear, and increases their sense of control, the loss of which is a big part of the fear they feel. In cases where the fear is irrational or can cause little real harm, a great way to get over their fear is to just accept it and do the thing they fear. We have found that the most fear-provoking part of cycling is just thinking about it. Once cyclists get into the experience they fear, it is rarely as bad they as they think. Finally, riders should not expect their fear to disappear overnight. If they are patient and work on overcoming their fear, as they gain experience, confidence, and comfort, they’ll often find that the fear fades away.

Recovery and Overtraining

Making rest and recovery, a part of cyclists’ training program is an indispensable contributor to race preparation and success (Hawley & Schoene, 2003). Taking the time to recover is also, for many riders, a psychological commitment that is difficult to make because many believe that if they are resting, they are not getting in better condition and may actually be losing fitness. “One of the biggest challenges for young athletes is realizing how much rest and recovery they need. Their natural tendency is to push themselves extremely hard in an attempt to match the training of their older, more experienced teammates (Carmichael, 2001, p. 153).

Building recovery into cyclists’ training programs serves several essential purposes (Hawley & Schoene, 2003). Contrary to what many cyclists believe fitness gains are not made when they are physically training. Their training efforts actually tear down their bodies. It is during periods of recovery that their physical system repairs the damage and gets stronger and more efficient. Rest days should be comprised of extra sleep, rejuvenating activities such as massage or hot baths, and they should be focused on rehydrating and refueling. Recovery also has important psychological benefits. Rest periods give cyclists a break from the mental and emotional demands that training places on them. Rest gives riders time to reinvigorate the motivation, intensity, focus, and excitement that was depleted in training and racing. Rest also helps cyclists step back briefly from their training and allows them to maintain perspective on how training fits into their lives.

Scheduled recovery periods enable cyclists to take a mini-vacation from the intensity and monotony of training. These breaks allow them to replenish themselves physically and recharge their psychological and emotional batteries. Recovery should not be optional parts of riders’ training program, but rather they are absolutely necessary for them to maximize their training and achieve their cycling goals.

Post-Race Recovery

Cyclists’ allowing themselves to recover adequately following a race is another essential part of a quality-training program. Their willingness to recover fully from a race will affect how readily they are able to return to their season-long training programs and direct their focus and energy into preparation for their next race. Yet post-race recovery can be a source of trepidation for cyclists, raising fears that they will lose their fitness and hinder their preparations for their next race.

Post-race recovery is also necessary psychologically. Cyclists put a great deal of mental and emotional energy into their training and race preparations. Just like with physical effort, they need time to recover from the psychological wear and tear. Additionally, following the excitement of training and the race, some degree of post-race letdown is common in which cyclists may feel some sadness, a loss of motivation, and a lack of direction. This reaction is most pronounced when the race is very important and unusually demanding.

How long cyclists should take to recover following a race depends on a variety of factors. The longer the race, the more time they should take off. Criteriums and flat one-day events may only require a few days to recover, while stage races, which can last from two days to three weeks might require a much longer recovery time. The cyclists’ level of fitness also affects the length of their recovery. If riders are in very good condition and their bodies are accustomed to the demands of racing, then a shorter recovery can be expected. However, if they are not in top condition or they are new to cycling, they should allow more time to recover. The effort cyclists expend in the race also influences the amount of recovery needed. It is possible to complete a race, particularly shorter races, at a pace that places few demands on cyclists’ bodies, meaning that little damage is done and only a short recovery is required. If, however, cyclists competed aggressively, for example, forced the pace, attacked the climbs, or attempted breakaways, they can expect considerable physical damage and an extended recovery will be needed.

Recovery does not mean that cyclists should lie on their couch for an extended period. Exercise physiologists recommend that, after anywhere from two to five days of complete rest, active rest can not only facilitate the recovery, but also begin to prepare them for their return to training. Active rest involves doing light and noninvasive forms of exercise, for example, easy spinning on an indoor trainer. Active rest allows riders to keep their muscles active while placing few real demands on them.

Overtraining

We have found that, as a rule, cyclists are a highly motivated group. Rarely do they come to us because they are not training enough. More often, they are struggling because they are training too much (Keast & Morton, 2002). Overtraining is so common among cyclists because the sport requires so much time, effort, and physical exertion. Combine this training load with high motivation and you have a breeding ground for overtraining (Froehlich, 1993). Research has found that 20-25 percent of endurance athletes suffer from overtraining (Taylor & Cusimano, 2003).

Overtraining can be caused by several factors. A poorly planned training program that involves too much volume or intensity with too high frequency can cause the body to break down and lead to overtraining (Foster & Lehmann, 1999). Declines in endurance, strength, and flexibility are common indicators of overtraining. Research has shown that overtraining is most often the result of a lack of adequate recovery from training volume and intensity (Taylor & Cusimano, 2003). High volume and intensity are not inherently unhealthy, but become so when cyclists do not provide sufficient time for the body to repair and build on the physical damage that is incurred (Hawley & Schoene, 2003).

Symptoms of Overtraining

The experience of overtraining emerges subtly at first and then blossoms into a full-blown threat to cyclists’ training and competitive pursuits. Their goal is to recognize the early signs of overtraining and respond to them appropriately before overtraining sets in and seriously interferes with their cycling efforts (Johnson, 2000). Overtraining presents a number of physical and psychological indicators of which riders can take note (Froehlich, 1993). Physical symptoms related to overtraining include low energy, prolonged muscle fatigue and soreness, difficulty maintaining training intensity, high heart rate, and slow recovery from previous workouts. More general physical symptoms consist of lethargy, persistent tiredness, lingering illness or injury due to a breakdown in their immune system (Fry, Morton, & Keast, 1992a), and difficulty sleeping (Hawley & Schoene, 2003). Psychological warning signs related to overtraining include a loss of motivation to train and race, decline in confidence, lack of direction, difficulty focusing, and reduced pain tolerance. General psychological indicators are depression, irritability, negative thinking, and loss of interest in other aspects of their lives (Druckman & Bjork, 1991; Silva, 1990).

Contributors to Overtraining

Underlying the excessive training and insufficient recovery that leads to overtraining, a number of practical, physical, and psychological factors contribute to its emergence (Froehlich, 1993; Halson & Jones, 2002). The substance and often times monotonous structure of cyclists’ training programs and race schedules can make them vulnerable to overtraining. Elite cyclists compete in anywhere from 90 to 110 races a year and can train up to 1,200 kilometers per week with most of their training intensity occurring at 65-70 percent of maximum heart rate (Halson & Jones, 2002). A training program that schedules too many high-volume or high-intensity workouts each week will place physical demands on riders that can lead to overtraining. For example, more than two high-intensity workouts per week is usually discouraged for all but the highest-level cyclist. A training program that does not provide adequate recovery also sets the stage for overtraining. Without sufficient rest after daily workouts, weekly schedules, and high-volume/high-intensity training periods, cyclists’ bodies will not have enough time to heal and recover (Hawley & Schoene, 2003). A competitive schedule that has too many races without sufficient time to recover can also result in overtraining.

Physical factors can also contribute to overtraining. Minor illness and lingering injuries, both of which are also symptoms of overtraining, can exacerbate cyclists’ vulnerability to overtraining by adding to the already significant demands they place on their bodies in training. Because professional cyclists burn between 6000 to 10,000 calories a day, poor nutrition, before, during, and after training and races, can cause riders to lack the nutrients necessary to effectively sustain the workload of their training and competitive schedule. Without proper fueling in all phases of training, cyclists will be unable to sustain themselves and overtraining will be the likely result. Inadequate sleep is another physical contributor to overtraining. Because sleep is essential for the body to repair and recharge itself, too few hours or poor quality of sleep can prevent riders from getting the recovery time they need to counter the demands of their training programs. Life stress unrelated to cycling can contribute to overtraining (Budgett, 1994). Stress that cyclists experience at home and at work can place an undue burden above and beyond the demands that come from their training (Kentta & Hassmen, 1998).

Overtraining can also be aggravated by psychological and emotional issues that drive them to train too hard or prevent them from getting adequate rest. An overinvestment in cycling, in which riders’ self-identities are predominantly defined by cycling and in which they base their self-esteem on how they perform, can lead them to train excessively. The need for validation of their self-worth by meeting increasingly higher expectations in their training efforts and race results can cause cyclists to ignore reason from coaches and training partners and signals from their own bodies that they are breaking down under the strain. Specific psychological areas that affect this investment include perfectionism, insecurity, fear of failure, and self-criticism. Additionally, qualities that are admired—dare we say worshipped—in cycling, such as dedication, hard work, discipline, focus, intensity, and pain tolerance, when taken to the extreme, can impel cyclists to overtrain.

Recovery presents its own unique set of mental and emotional issues that contribute to overtraining and that can prevent cyclists from getting the rest they need. If riders train with others, they may feel pressure to keep up with them even when such a pace is harmful. This pressure is particularly compelling during group rides in which everyone is highly motivated to stay with the group for esteem and social-acceptance reasons. In these situations, it is easy for riders to raise their level of exertion and rationalize it as being good for them. Though short periods of this intense effort will do little harm, continued exertion will take its toll and lead to overtraining.

If riders are at all serious about their cycling efforts, they are probably always looking for new ways to improve their fitness. Many cyclists are seduced by the classic mentality that more is better, for example, if a 50-kilometer ride will improve their fitness, then they will gain even more fitness with an 80-kilometer ride. However, a key lesson in cycling is that more is not always better and there are diminishing returns as riders increase their volume and intensity. The more-is-better attitude can lead cyclists to overtraining.

Many cyclists simply do not recognize the warning signs of overtraining. As we just described, overtraining has a clear set of physical and psychological symptoms (Hawley & Schoene, 2003).

Unfortunately, these signs are often subtle or less noticeable individually. Cyclists may be so focused on their training that they do not notice them or they rationalize them as temporary states that they will not feel the next morning. Only after the many symptoms have accumulated and overtraining has entrenched itself might cyclists take notice and realize that they are overtrained. Another common reaction is for cyclists to recognize them, but be unwilling to respond to them. Riders might figure that they can just train through the symptoms or they are loath to respond because to do so would be an admission of weakness.

Preventing Overtraining

The best way to deal with overtraining is to prevent it from occurring (Budgett, 1990; Henschen, 2001). Cyclists can take a number of practical, physical, and psychological steps to ensure that they strike a balance between training hard enough to achieve their cycling goals and allowing themselves to recover sufficiently so that they can continue their progress toward their training and competitive goals.

Listening to their bodies lies at the heart of preventing overtraining and is at once the most obvious and least followed lesson cyclists need to learn to keep from becoming overtrained. Cyclists’ bodies communicate with them constantly about how it is responding to training, with heart rate, respiration, fatigue, pain, illness, and injury. These messages are particularly loud when riders are breaking down due to the volume and intensity of their training or a lack of recovery. Cyclists must recognize these warning signs and act responsibly and in their long-term interest by adjusting their training in a way that will alleviate these early symptoms of overtraining.

Prevention of overtraining starts with an understanding of cycling training, the demands it can place on riders, and how that knowledge can be translated into a quality-training program (Kuipers & Keizer, 1988). Buying into the notion that cyclists should train smarter, not harder, is the foundation for a sound training program. Effective training involves a periodized program of varying degrees of frequency, volume, and intensity in training accompanied by appropriate amounts of rest and recovery that will help them to progressively achieve their cycling goals (Carmichael, 2001; Fry, Morton, & Keast, 1992b: Hawley & Schoene, 2003). A quality-training program also includes specific training strategies that are fun, motivating, and fresh to help cyclists avoid the monotony and routine that can set in during a long season of training.

Riders must have confidence in and commitment to their training program. One of the biggest causes of overtraining is when cyclists lose faith in their programs and decide to increase the volume and intensity. If riders believe that their programs will give them the results they want, they are more likely to stick with the plan, particularly when they feel a pull to increase their efforts due to slow progress or seeing others improve faster than they do. Cyclists also need to have patience with their programs. Patience is often difficult in our microwave, fast food, instant-coffee culture in which we live. Like everything of value in life, riders will achieve their cycling goals by being patient and allowing them the time needed to see the results they want.

Cyclists can take several physical steps to prevent overtraining. They can reduce the risk of overtraining by ensuring that they fuel adequately for the demands they are placing on themselves. Riders should be on healthy and balanced diets that provide them with the proper nutrients and sufficient calories to satisfy their training load. Pre-, during, and post-workout nutrition, that includes both solid food and hydration, can also protect riders from overtraining by ensuring that their bodies are well fueled for the burden they place them under (Hawley & Schoene, 2003).

Getting enough sleep is also important for preventing overtraining. The more and harder cyclists train, the more time their bodies need to recover and repair itself. Shortchanging their bodies on this essential time of rest increases the chances of overtraining dramatically. Ensuring that riders get plenty of sleep at night and take naps during the day when needed is some of the best preventive measures they can take.

Interestingly, one of the most common causes of overtraining has nothing to do with cyclists’ training programs. Unless you are a pro rider whose life is devoted exclusively to the sport, cyclists probably, have a career, family, and other commitments that place considerable demands on their time and energy. This “real world” can cause life stress that can wear riders’ bodies down without even adding cycling to the equation. Cyclists should monitor and respond to life stressors so that their non-cycling stress does not take its toll and interfere with their training and race efforts (Froehlich, 1993).

Psychological and emotional factors are more subtle, yet no less influential, contributors to overtraining. These mental issues are often what drive cyclists to train too often and too intensely, and do not allow them adequate time to recover. As we mentioned earlier, psychological concerns, such as overinvestment in cycling, perfectionism, insecurity, life imbalance, social pressure, and unrealistic expectations, can cause riders to make poor decisions in their training that can lead to overtraining. Stepping back from, gaining perspective on, and exploring these areas can ensure that cyclists are not driven to overtrain by these unhealthy influences and that their attitude and emotions make a healthy contribution to their cycling participation.

SPECIAL ISSUES IN CYCLING

In addition to the general performance issues that we have discussed, cycling also presents special concerns that have psychological implications. These issues relate to the roles and dynamics that occur within teams and the allure of performance-enhancing drugs whose use is widespread in cycling and a source of concern and embarrassment in the sport.

Team Roles

Cycling is predominantly a team sport in which each team member has a clearly defined role that contributes to the team’s goals. In every race, at least one team leader is designated to win the race. The team leader role may change depending on the type of race or the point in the season. For example, during the 2003 professional racing season, the United States Postal Service team (USPS) designated George Hincapie as one of its leaders when the team was competing in the spring single-day “classics” and his teammates, including ostensible team leader, Lance Armstrong, supported his efforts. The leader role then shifted to Armstrong for the Tour de France, his specialty. In the fall of 2003, Roberto Heras, Armstrong’s “lieutenant” during the Tour de France, assumed the team leader role on his way to victory in the Vuelta a Espana.

Other members of the team are assigned specific roles as “domestiques,” whose job it is to help the team leader achieve the team goal. Their work may include riding at the front to shelter the leader from wind, chasing down breakaways, getting food and water for the leader and other team members, controlling the pace of the peloton and, and giving up their bicycle to the leader if a flat tire or mechanical problem arises.

Teams face psychological and interpersonal challenges in filling the necessary roles and balancing individual aspirations with team goals. Particularly for stage races and consistent success throughout the race season, successful teams have a balance of riders who can fulfill a variety of roles and compliment and support each other. The most successful teams have members who willingly embrace their roles and offer every team member the opportunity to feel rewarded for their efforts. The domestiques are the most challenged in their roles because they do a disproportionate amount of work supporting their team leader, but receive far less financial reward and attention for their efforts. In some races, such as the one-day events, these riders may not even cross the finish line because their extreme efforts early in the race prevent them from continuing to the end.

Domestiques do, however, have their moments in the sun. For example, at the 2004 Tour de France, the USPS domestique, Floyd Landis, led his team leader, Armstrong, up two major climbs on one stage. On the final descent, Armstrong offered Landis an opportunity to win the stage, but for tactical reasons, he was not able to and Armstrong ended up taking the stage. After the race, Armstrong told the media that Landis was the star of the day. In addition, for each of his six Tour de France victories, Armstrong has given his winnings to his teammates. Domestiques who prove themselves worthy of a more significant team role often move to other teams in need of a team leader, for example, the American Tyler Hamilton and the Spaniard, Roberto Heras, both moved to new teams and became their team leaders a year after being “super domestiques” for Armstrong in the Tour de France.

Teams have other roles that are fulfilled depending on the type of race. Mountainous races are the milieu of the climbers. These cyclists possess immense strength-to-weight ratios, have very high thresholds for pain, and are able to sustain a brutal pace up ascents reaching 15 degrees of inclination. Climbers are usually most successful in stage races because larger gaps of time can be gained in the mountains than on flat stages. The Frenchman, Richard Virenque, is believed to be the best pure climber in the world today.

Flat races often spotlight sprinters. They ride in the main peloton for the entire race conserving their energy and, in the final few kilometers, their teammates work together to position them near the front of the accelerating peloton allowing them to sprint the last 200 meters for the victory. The Italian, Mario Cipollini, has been considered the world’s best sprinter in recent years, along with the German, Erik Zabel, and the Australian, Robbie McEwen.

The sprinters are a special breed of competitor. They have the ability to unleash a powerful, perfectly timed sprint after several hundred kilometers of racing. Sprinting at the end of the race is similar to playing an entire chess game in the last few minutes of a race. Sprinters and their teams must make decisions that will allow them to get to the front of the peloton using the least amount of energy, be aware of the positions of the other sprinters who are their biggest threats, negotiate around opposing riders, and then make changes in strategy based on the dynamic situation that is unfolding around them. Sprinters must find their way through a mass of tightly compacted riders in the peloton while traveling at speeds in excess of 50 kilometers an hour and once near the front of the peloton, begin an all-out sprint reaching speeds of over 70 kilometers an hour or more. Negotiating through the riders, they will often bump each other or be required to swerve and alter their course on a moment’s notice, all the while calculating the precise moment when they should launch the sprint to the finish so that their front wheel will be the first to cross the line.

Sprinters are the most fearless and calculating cyclists who put themselves in the most dangerous situations faced in the sport. There have been some horrific crashes in mass-sprint finishes throughout the history of cycling. The crash that occurred during the first stage of the 2003 Tour de France alluded to earlier in this chapter is one such incident. Cyclists are exhausted during the final sprint to the finish and occasionally will make mistakes in judgment in their quest to gain the victory. A gap between two riders or a rider and the side barrier might suddenly close as a rider moves over resulting in a crash. At those speeds and the closeness of the competitors, it doesn’t take much for a chain reaction to occur with many cyclists crashing in the process. Because races that end in sprints are routinely determined by inches, sprinter’s ability to overcome their fear and to take the necessary risks will often determine who wins the race.

Drugs

Like many endurance sports, cycling has suffered from scandals related to the use of illegal, performance-enhancing drugs. Due to the extreme physical demands of cycling, the rewards for those who achieve success, and their broad acceptance in the cycling community, illegal drug use appears to be more the rule than the exception. Over the last decade, the UCI, attempting to clean up the sport, has instituted a rigorous drug-testing program that has resulted in positive tests, suspensions, and legal proceedings against some of the most prominent professional cyclists in the world. In 1999, the 1998 Tour de France winner, Marco Pantani, was leading the Giro d’Italia with two stages remaining, when a mandatory post-stage blood test revealed the marker indicative of the illegal performance-enhancing drug, EPO (erythropoietin). He was given, what was at the time, the UCI-mandated 14-day suspension from racing which effectively ended his pursuit of the Giro title (Wilcockson, 2004). Shortly after, the Frenchman, Richard Virenque, a now seven-time winner of the Tour de France’s “best climber” polka-dotted jersey, was implicated in a drug scandal with his team and was later suspended for two years. In 2004, two current Professional World Champions, the Englishman, David Millar (Individual Time Trial), and the Belgian, Filip Meirhaeghe (Cross-Country Mountain Biking), as well as former Professional World Champion, the Swiss, Oscar Camenzind (Road Race, 1998), tested positive for the EPO.

Even more disturbing are the deaths attributed to performance-enhancing drug use in recent years. During a six-month period beginning in the middle of 2003, six European cyclists died from “heart failure” which experts suspect was the result of illegal drug use. In February 2004, Marco Pantani, at age 34, died of a heart attack that was believed to have been caused by a drug overdose.

Cyclists feel significant pressure to use illegal drugs to boost their performances. It is frustrating for cyclists competing at the highest level, whose lives are committed to the sport, to watch competitors beat them because of the unfair advantage they gain by using performance-enhancing drugs. Because of significant amount of money that is invested in cycling teams and the strong national pride that is engendered, particularly in Europe, cyclists may also feel pressure from their teams, sponsors, the media, and fans. In 1998, the entire Festina team, one of the oldest and most respected professional teams in Europe, was expelled from the Tour de France after police discovered stocks of prohibited substances. The scandal effectively prompted the creation of the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA). In 2004, the Cofidis professional racing team, another leading European team, was involved in a sweeping drug investigation that eventually lead to the arrest of several members of its staff as well as some of the cyclists. The UCI and WADA hope to reduce or eliminate the use of performance-enhancing drugs in professional cycling through a formal system of education, testing, and sanctions.

While drug use among professional cyclists gets the attention, competitive cyclists of all levels of ability can be seduced by the benefits of performance-enhancing drugs. Anyone who wants to perform their best and achieve success at the level at which they are competing may be drawn to illegal drug use. While resources for obtaining these drugs may be more limited, amateurs still have access to them. Sport psychologists can play a role in preventing their use by educating cyclists with whom they work about the dangers physically, psychological, and within the legal system. Sport psychologists can also teach cyclists mental-training techniques that cyclists can use in place of performance-enhancing drugs to improve their performance.

CONCLUSION

Competitive cycling is a highly demanding sport that involves long hours, extreme physical exertion, considerable pain, risk of injury or worse, a complex interplay of individual and team goals, and great unpredictability. However, arguably, cycling does not bring anything so psychologically unique that it is that much different from many other sports, particularly other endurance sports. Perhaps what makes cycling unique from other endurance sports, such as running and swimming, is its high-risk nature. This chapter has presented issues we have found to be most distinctive to cycling and with which cyclists are most frequently faced in training and races. In addition to our exploration of the four psychological areas that we deemed most relevant—intensity, pain, fear, and recovery—we have offered a variety of practical strategies that have been successful for cyclists with whom we have worked. These tools are valuable to all levels of cyclists and, in fact, to all types of cycling, not just road cycling (e.g., mountain bike racing and track racing). An obstacle for encouraging the use of psychological information and techniques with cyclists is the dearth of research that specifically examines the relationship of psychology to cycling. Because of the shortage of cycling-specific research, we had to garner scientific support for our views by generalizing the results from investigations that explored the psychology of other sports. With the worldwide popularity of cycling as both a participation and spectator sport, we hope that this chapter will encourage those interested in cycling to explore the psychological contributors to the sport in a more rigorous manner.

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My Approach to Sport and Performance Psychology

Jim Taylor, Ph.D.

Auto-biographical Sketch

There’s a cliché that people get into the field of psychology to figure themselves out. Well, that adage certainly applies to me. As a teenager, I aspired to be the best ski racer in the world. Yet, despite achieving a top-40 national ranking, I had the reputation of being a “mind job” or “head case,” meaning my head always got in the way of my skiing. I lacked confidence and got really nervous before races. I was very inconsistent in my races, falling or not finishing far too many races to achieve my goals. The results and rankings that I did have were achieved almost despite myself.

One summer I took a college class related to sport psychology that introduced me to many of the techniques that I use with athletes in my consulting practice (e.g., goal setting, self-talk, relaxation and focusing exercises, mental imagery). For the final project that required students to apply mental imagery to an area of our lives on which we wanted to improve, I chose to focus on my ski racing. Through the conclusion of the class and into the fall and the next race season, I imagined myself skiing in races the way I wanted to. Over the ensuing weeks and months, my imagery improved dramatically, evolving from being unable to even finish a race course in my head (an indication that I had a fundamental lack of confidence in my ability as a ski racer) to being able to ski fast, confidently, aggressively, and consistently. That following season was a breakthrough for me. My ranking rose to the top-20 in the nation, I finished 75 percent of my races, and I finished in the top-five of all but one slalom all season. But, more important than the results, I had a quantum change in my psychology. Before races, I was relaxed and focused, and, when I stood in the starting gate, I not only knew I was going to finish, but I knew I was going to win. Of course, I didn’t win every run, but I believed that I could.

A year later, when I arrived at Middlebury College in Vermont, I took an Introductory Psychology course taught by Dr. Marc Reiss, the professor who would become my mentor and advisor. As the course progressed, I felt a profound connection with psychology and, by the end of the semester, I knew that I had found my calling. I wanted to study psychology and pursue a career in sport psychology. During these years, I continued to compete collegiately and internationally as a ski racer and I continued to apply the sport psychology lessons I learned from that summer course to my ski racing and other aspects of my life. Back then, almost 30 years ago, there was not the clearly defined career paths that exist today. I wrote several sport psychologists I had read about and all recommended that I get a Ph.D. in Psychology, so that’ s the road I took.

After graduating from Middlebury, I was accepted into the doctoral program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. During my four years there, I conducted a variety of sport psychology research projects that were later published in peer-reviewed journals and began to develop my consulting skills by working with athletic teams at C.U. In 1985, I received my Ph.D. in Social/Personality Psychology with a minor in Clinical Psychology and set out to establish a career in applied sport psychology.

Without any guidance or clear path, I followed my instincts as I set my career in motion. Over the next two years, I returned to Middlebury to teach a psychology class and taught tennis to pay the bills. I reached out to my network in ski racing and began to give free talks to junior race programs in New England. Seeing the need to build my credibility in sports beyond ski racing, I became certified as a professional tennis instructor by the United States Professional Tennis Association. I also started writing articles for small sports publications. And a slow trickle of athlete clients began.

After two years of laying this foundation – and struggling to make ends meet – I accepted a full-time faculty position in the School of Psychology at Nova University in Ft. Lauderdale. For the next five years, I lived the life of a typical academic, teaching classes in Nova’s doctoral programs in clinical psychology, conducting sport-psychology-related research, and expanding my consulting practice nationally, mostly in skiing and tennis. I also made my first forays beyond sports into work with ballet dancers and other performing artists. I was fortunate during this period to develop several strong mentoring relationships with incredibly capable clinical psychologists and to gain more clinical training. Both of these experiences helped me deepen my understanding of the complexity of people and expand my theories of what makes athletes and people tick.

After five year at Nova, I felt it was time to move on and pursue my passion for applied sport psychology consulting full time. I moved to Colorado where I continued to grow my practice, expand my speaking nationally and internationally, and write my first books. During my time in Colorado, I established my first long-term consulting clients, which provided me with much-needed financial security. I also began to expand my practice beyond sports performance to include business consulting, work with injured athletes, training of medical professionals (e.g., surgeons, nurses, physical therapists), and parent education.

After seven years living a small-town life (with lots of traveling) in a Colorado mountain town, I felt the pull toward a big city where I could better leverage my skills and reach a larger audience. So, in 1999, I moved to San Francisco where my practice grew considerably to include more work in the business world, expansion into more sports, particularly the endurance sports of running and triathlon, more speaking internationally, and more book writing.

During these years of building my practice, I also stayed active in competitive sports. After ending my ski racing career in my final year of graduate school, I trained for and earned a 2nd degree black belt and became a certified instructor in karate, played competitive tennis, ran marathons, and competed in triathlons, including two Ironmans. These activities held several benefits for me. I stayed healthy and active, and acted as a role model for my clients. I used myself as a “test subject” for the theories and techniques that I applied to my clients. I used my ongoing athletic participation as a source of credibility from which I could attract clients. And I was able to gain access to new sports because of my diverse sports experience.

After more than 25 years, 11 books, countless clients and workshops, many ups and downs, and many more adventures, having begun my career with no clear roadmap to follow, but just trusting my passions and instincts, I feel like a living testament to Mark Twain’s well-known recommendation, “Find something you love to do and you’ll never work a day in your life.”

Theory of Optimal Performance

My own theory of optimal performance has become the foundation on which every aspect of my professional work rests, including how I assess, interpret, and conceptualize clients, the type of relationship I establish with clients, as well as the course of intervention I choose to take with clients. This theory is also the basis for all of my writing and speaking. My theory has not evolved from courses, lectures, or books, but rather through my own personal and professional experiences. I believe that our personal theories are expressions of our individual personalities and a direct reflection of our development as people, in addition to our professional experiences. I further believe that our personal theories can only come from getting “hip deep” in life, grappling with our own individual psyches and from helping others wrestle with their own.

My considerable involvement in writing and speaking also played a key role in the formulation of my theory of optimal performance. I actually found a reciprocal relationship between the evolution of my theory and my writing and speaking. In one direction, I learned that you don’t really know a subject unless you can express it coherently either in spoken or written form. The development of a defined structure, detailed process, and an articulated vocabulary unique to my theory (e.g., Prime Performance) enabled me to convey my theory in a clear, practical, and compelling way. In turn, my speaking and writing were incredibly creative experiences in which I would, through expressing my ideas verbally and on paper, generate new ideas from which my theory continuously evolved and grew.

Role of the Mind

When athletes compete in their sport, they will, in fact, be competing in two competitions. The obvious competition is the one that occurs against the opponent. The more important competition, though, is the mental game that athletes play inside their head against themselves. Here is a simple reality: If athletes don’t win the mental game, they won’t win the competitive game. Contrary to what athletes may think, at whatever level in which they are competing, the technical and physical aspects of their sport don’t usually determine the winner. Athletes who compete at the same level are very similar technically and physically. For example, is Tiger Woods better technically than Phil Mickelson? Is Roger Federer in better physical condition than Rafael Nadal? In both cases, the answer is no. So, on any given day, what separates one from the other? The answer lies in who wins the mental game.

Whenever I talk to athletes, I ask them what aspect of their sport seems to have the greatest impact on how they perform. Almost unanimously they say the mental part. I then ask how much time they devote to their mental preparation and their answer is almost always little or no time. Despite its obvious importance, the mental side of sport is most often neglected, at least until a problem arises. The mistake athletes make is that they don’t treat their mental game the way they treat the physical and technical aspects of their sport. Athletes don’t wait to get injured before they do physical conditioning. They don’t develop a technical flaw before they work on their technique. Rather, athletes do physical and technical training to prevent problems from arising. They should approach the mental game in the same way. Athletes seem to have the impression that sport psychology can produce miraculous results in short time. But I am certainly not a magician. Athletes don’t expect increases in strength by lifting weights a few times or an improvement in technique by working on it for a few hours. The only way to improve any area, whether physical, technical, or mental, is through commitment, hard work, and patience. But if athletes make the same commitment to their mental training as they do to their physical and technical training, sport psychology can play a key role in helping athletes achieve their goals.

My Phrase for Optimal Performance

My theory continued to take shape with the phrase and definition of the performance goal toward which I want athletes with whom I work to strive. One of the most popular phrases in sport psychology is “peak performance.” Athletes typically think of peak performance as performing their best, as being at the top of their game. And when I came out of graduate school, peak performance was what I wanted athletes to achieve. But as I became more experienced as a consultant and a writer, I began to appreciate the power of words and how important it is that the words I use are highly descriptive of what I want to communicate. I decided that peak performance was not descriptive of what I wanted my athletes to achieve. I saw several problems with peak performance:

  • A peak is very small, so you can’t stay there long.
  • Once the peak is reached, there’s only one way to go—down!—and, and as with most peaks, the drop is usually precipitous.
  • The peak can be poorly timed, with athletes reaching their peak too early or too late, missing an opportunity for success.

I needed a phrase that accurately described what I wanted athletes to achieve. I struggled for several years unable to find such a phrase until one day I had one of those rare meetings of readiness and luck. Walking through the meat section of a supermarket I saw a piece of beef with a sticker that read “Prime Cut.” I had an “aha” experience. I looked up “prime” in the dictionary. It was defined as “of the highest quality or value.”  I had finally found the phrase, “Prime Performance.”

I define Prime Performance as “performing at a consistently high level under the most challenging conditions.”  There are two essential words in this definition. First, “consistently.”  I’m not interested if athletes can have one or two great performances and then some poor ones; that is not enough to be truly successful. I want athletes to be able to train and compete at a high level day in and day out, week in and week out, month in and month out, all season long. This means performing with minimal ups and downs instead of the large swings in performance that are so common among athletes. Second, “challenging.”  I’m not impressed if athletes can perform well under ideal conditions against an easy opponent when they are on top of their game. Anyone can do that. What makes the great athletes great is their ability to perform their best under the worst possible conditions against a tough opponent when they’re not on their game.

My theory of prime performance becomes further articulated with my understanding that the role of the mind in athletic performance actually has two parts, the athlete-as-performer and the athlete-as-person. Another way to look at this role is that of a facilitating side and an interfering side (the latter to be discussed in the next section). The facilitating part of the mind is the one that aims to maximize the psychological “muscles” that most impact performance. Prime Performance Pyramid

A key part of my theory of athletic performance has involved identifying what I consider to be the most important psychological factors that impact performance and offering athletes the information and tools they need to fully develop those factors. My framework for understanding these factors is what I call the Prime Performance Pyramid.

The Prime Performance Pyramid  (see pyramid at right) provides both a structure and a process for identifying and developing the key contributors to individual and team sports performance. The Prime Performance Pyramid is comprised of five psychological factors that most directly impact athletic performance. My goal with athletes with whom I work is to help them to understand their relationship with each of these factors and develop strategies and a plan of action for alleviating their psychological weaknesses and building on their psychological strengths.

The Prime Performance Pyramid is ordered in a purposeful and logical manner. Its order is based on the sequence in which the factors impact sports performance. The first two factors (motivation and confidence) prepare athletes for competition, while the next three (stress, focus, and emotions) directly impact their training and competitive performance.

Motivation. At the foundation of the Prime Performance Pyramid lies motivation, because without athletes’ determination and drive to take action in pursuit of their goals, all efforts would stop and any other contributors to performance, whether physical, technical, equipment, or team, would be moot. Motivation ensures that athletes do everything they can to be totally prepared to achieve their goals. Essential to developing motivation is athletes’ understanding of what motivates them and how they can continue to work hard in the face of fatigue, pain, setbacks, and frustration.

Confidence. Confidence is so important to athletic performance because athletes might have all ability in the world to achieve their goals, but if they don’t have confidence in that ability, they won’t use that ability. Many athletes defeat themselves even before the competition begins with doubts and negative self-talk. Like all mental skills, confidence is a skill that develops with practice. A deep faith in their capabilities comes from total preparation, exposure to adversity, support from others, a toolbox of mental skills, training and competitive success, and positive thinking skills.

Intensity. Intensity may be the most important contributor to sports performance once the competition begins. It’s so important because all of the motivation, confidence, focus, and emotions in the world won’t help athletes if their bodies are not physiologically capable of doing what they needs to do for them to perform their best. Intensity involves the amount of physiological activation athletes feel before and during training and competition and lies on a continuum between sleep (very low intensity) to terror (very high intensity). Somewhere between those two extremes athletes perform their best and my challenge with athletes is to help them find the ideal level of intensity that works best for each of them in their sport.

Focus. Focus involves the ability to concentrate on those things that facilitate performance, shift focus when the demands of the training or competitive situation change, and avoid distractions that are ever present in athletic arena. The ability to focus effectively is especially important in technically complex sports or those that last a long time, and when there are considerable expectations and pressure.

Emotions. Sports can evoke a wide range of emotions, from inspiration, pride, exhilaration, and satisfaction, to fear, frustration, anger, and despair. Emotions lie at the top of the Prime Performance Pyramid because I have found that they are the ultimate determinant of athletes’ ability to achieve Prime Performance, namely, to perform at a consistently high level under the most challenging conditions. Emotions also contribute significantly to athletes’ abilities as team members and leaders. Most powerfully, emotional mastery, for example, the ability to overcome frustration, relieve anger, and stay motivated in the face of disappointment, gives athletes the power to use emotions as tools to facilitate individual and team performance rather than weapons that hurt them and others.

Theory of Performance Breakdowns

My theory of performance breakdowns is comprised of two parts. The first part involves the athlete-as-performer and deficits in the five psychological areas that I described above in the Prime Performance Pyramid. The focus of this notion of athlete-as-performer is on athletes’ thoughts, emotions, and behavior in the sports arena. Athletes may find some success by developing some of the five factors fully or by developing all of the factors to some degree. But for athletes to achieve Prime Performance and fully realize their goals, the five factors must be developed to their greatest extent. Any weaknesses in motivation, confidence, intensity, focus, or emotions will, inevitably, lead to, at best, less than maximum performance and, at worst, breakdowns in performance in important competitions. For example, less than high motivation will result in a lack of preparation due to insufficient repetition or poor quality in training. Lower confidence will result in negative thinking (which hurts the other four psychological factors) and the unwillingness to take the necessary risks (“leave it all on the field”) to achieve competitive success. Poor intensity control will mean that athletes lack the ideal level of physiological activation that is necessary for their bodies to perform at their highest levels. Poor focus will involve athletes’ inability to focus on the relevant cues necessary for maximum performance and block out the inevitable distractions that are a part of all sport training and competition. Finally, the absence of emotional mastery will mean that athletes will be at the mercy of their emotional reactions and vulnerable to emotions, such as frustration, anger, and despair, that will hurt performance.

I can’t understate the importance of helping athletes fill their “mental toolboxes” with useful tools they can take out to both develop the five psychological factors of the Prime Performance Pyramid, thus preventing performance breakdowns, and use when they experience breakdowns in training and competitions to recover from them quickly. I use the metaphor of a flat tire while driving. If a flat occurs and drivers don’t have a spare tire, jack, and tire iron (or a membership in a roadside assistance program), they will be stuck on the side of the road and unable to progress toward their destination. But if they have the necessary tools to change the flat tire, they may be slowed a bit on their journey, but they will have the means to get themselves on their way as quickly as possible. The same holds true of athletes and their mental toolbox.

Breakdowns in training and competitions are an inevitable and, yes, valuable part of the pursuit of athletic goals. Whether in the form of obstacles, setbacks, failures, or plateaus, how these “bumps in the road” impact athletes depends on their capabilities to “fix” the breakdowns. If athletes lack the necessary tools, then breakdowns with have a debilitating effect on them. However, if athletes have the relevant tools to “repair” the breakdowns, several essential benefits accrue. First, athletes will receive a boost in their confidence because they will see that they have the means to surmount these frequent challenges. Second, athletes will not be prone to shy away from them. Third, a fully stocked mental toolbox will allow athletes to respond positively to a wider range of psychological, physical, technical, and tactical breakdowns. Fourth, athletes will gain a competitive advantage because most athletes against whom they compete will likely not have such a mental toolbox at their disposal. Finally, the mental toolbox will have the broad benefit of strengthening and maintaining all five of the psychological factors described in the Prime Performance Pyramid.

The second part of my theory of performance breakdowns focuses on the athlete-as-person in which who the athlete is as a person impacts their ability to perform in the field of competition. I believe that there is no true distinction between who athletes are on and off the field. In other words, when athletes walk into the sports arena, they don’t leave their “person-ness” outside. Instead, that person-ness has an immense influence on who they are as athletes and their ability to perform their best and achieve their goals. In fact, I believe that whatever strengths or weaknesses they may have as athletes, in terms of the five Prime Performance Pyramid factors, are eclipsed by their strengths and weaknesses as people. As such, everything that I do in my work with athletes is, directly or indirectly, about performance enhancement. This aspect of my work, unlike my traditional mental skills training efforts that facilitate performance, involves identifying off-field issues that interfere with performance and removing those psychological obstacles, thus freeing the athlete-as-person from inhibitions that prevent them from fully realizing themselves as the athlete-as-performer in the competitive arena.

Let me state that I don’t practice clinical psychology: I don’t do psychotherapy, diagnose psychiatric disorders, or treat psychopathology. What I do in my practice is consult, coach, and counsel on issues related to life and development. Issues that I find relevant in my exploration with athletes in their roles as athlete-as-person include habitual negativity, perfectionism, and fear of failure. It has been my experience that if athletes have significant obstacles in these areas, then many or all of the strengths they may possess as athletes in the five Prime Performance Pyramid factors will be negated by these roadblocks. Additionally, this over-riding of their athlete-as-performer by their athlete-as-person will result in their being incapable of performing to their fullest ability or, though they may achieve substantial success, they are nonetheless unhappy and disconnected from their achievements.

Additionally, it is usually safe to assume with the young athletes with whom I work that if they have problems, those problems likely originate with their parents. As the author of three parenting books unrelated to sports, I have the knowledge base and skill sets that allow me to explore whether the parents are playing a facilitating or interfering role in their children’s sports lives. If I find that parents are a detrimental influence on either their young athletes’ sports efforts or healthy development, I work separately with the parents to help them understand that influence and guide them in becoming more positive forces in their children’s athletic and personal lives.

Consulting Processes

I gain my clientele through three primary avenues. First, through my many own high-level athletic pursuits (e.g., ski racing, karate, tennis, running, and triathlon), I have a large network of contacts in a number of sports through which my name is disseminated. For example, because of my many years of competitive experience and professional involvement in ski racing, many ski racers in the U.S. seek me out when they are looking for a sport psychology consultant.

Second, I actively pursue speaking and writing opportunities, which gives me exposure to large audiences. For example, I give talks, many at no cost, to all sorts of athletic organizations, junior training programs and youth sports leagues. These audiences usually generate individual clients. I also have my four-book Prime Sport series of mental training books (general sports, tennis, golf, and ski racing). I have written articles for all manner of sports publication, from local to national, as well as publish a bi-monthly e-newsletter, Prime Sport Alert!. Additionally, I have leveraged social media, including creating a professionally designed web site (a must for any consultant), blogging on sport issues for a number of prominent web sites, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube (on which I post video versions of my e-newsletter), to draw traffic to me. I’m constantly amazed at how many people find me with a simple Internet search.

Third, the best way to get clients is by doing quality work. I’ve been fortunate to have many new clients referred to me by the word of mouth of past clients.

Consulting Style

My consulting approach, which evolved iteratively as an expression of my personality and personal and professional experiences, is grounded in my theories of optimal performance and performance breakdowns I described above. At the heart of my relationship with athletes is their trust and comfort with me. My style is direct, no-nonsense, and goal oriented, yet also caring and supportive, with a large dose of levity to lighten what is often a heavy load that athletes carry. The recipe for establishing productive relationships comes from my professional and athletic credibility, appropriate boundaries, and, a dash of humanity. Also, very importantly, the athletes with whom I work understand immediately that I am their ally and advocate in pursuit of their sports and life goals, and that I am available to them at any time.

Consulting Approach

I follow two paths of intervention in my consulting work with athletes that mirror my athlete-as-performer/ athlete-as-person model. The first path, which focuses on the athlete-as-performer, emphasizes the development of the five psychological areas in my Prime Performance Pyramid through the teaching and use of traditional performance-enhancement strategies, for example, goal setting, positive-thinking skills, intensity-control techniques, focusing techniques, mental imagery, and routines. This mental training occurs in two settings. First, I introduce these concepts to athletes in an office setting in which I educate them to their meaning and value to sports performance, assess their relationship to the five factors, and choose the best forms of intervention to develop these areas. Second, and most powerfully, I then work with them in their actual training setting (e.g., court, course, hill, field) and show them how to use the mental skills while they are actually performing their sport. I have found that this in vivo experience with mental training enables them to ask questions, experiment, get feedback from me, and see the direct connection between doing the mental skills, being more mentally prepared, and, most importantly, performing best. If they see that connection between doing mental training and seeing improvement, I know there will be continued buy in. My goal on this path is to strengthen the five Prime Performance Pyramid factors so that athletes can gain the most benefit from their training and be maximally prepared to perform their best in competition.

The ability of athletes to fully develop these five factors, through the use of relevant mental skills, will determine their psychological readiness and their capacity to fully harness their physical, technical, and tactical skills, perform at their highest level, and achieve their competitive goals. My work with athletes as performers focuses on educating them about these five contributors to performance, providing them a “toolbox” of essential mental skills for strengthening these areas, and ingraining those skills through repetition so that they can be used in competition to enhance performance.

A well-stocked mental toolbox provides athletes with tools to strengthen or respond to breakdowns in the five Prime Performance Pyramid areas. Motivation tools that I use include goal setting, focusing on the long-term goal when short-term feedback (e.g., breakdowns, fatigue, pain) is de-motivating, pushing through what I call “The Grind,” that period in training when it is no longer fun, having a training partner, focusing on athletes’ greatest competitor, motivational cues and images, support from others, and, most importantly, having a clear and justifiable reason to work hard toward their goals.

Confidence tools that I teach athletes consist of quality preparation, developing the mental toolbox, exposure to adversity, support from others, experiencing small successes, focusing on what athletes can control, accepting that mistakes and failure will occur, and positive self-talk.

Psych-downs tools to reduce intensity I have found effective include deep breathing, muscle relaxation, calming self-talk and keywords, slowing the pace of the competition, maintaining a process focus, relaxing music, and smiling. Psych-up tools to increase intensity include intense breathing, physical activation, high-energy self-talk and keywords, high-energy body language, and fire-up music.

Focusing tools I use with athletes include training and competitive focus and distraction analyses (helps athletes identify what they need to focus on and what may distract them), controlling the eyes, focusing on what they can control, the four Ps (positive, process, present, and progress), and focus keywords.

Emotional mastery tools consist of understanding of athletes’ “hot buttons” (situations and issues that cause strong emotional reactions), emotion analysis (identify emotion, cause of emotion, assess value or harm of emotion, and options for expressing emotions), and frustration and anger training. Other “tools” used to develop emotional mastery will be described in the following section of my chapter.

Perhaps the two most powerful mental tools available to athletes that impact athletes-as-performers psychologically are mental imagery and routines. I think of mental imagery as weight training for the mind because it offers broad-based benefits in which it can strengthen all five of the Prime Performance Pyramid factors through rehearsal of positive thoughts, emotions, and behavior in training and competition. Routines are equally valuable because they ensure total preparation, create consistency of mind and body, and enable athletes to see and feel the maximum expression of the five key psychological contributors to performance.

The second path, related to the athlete-as-person, explores any obstacles that may have been put into place that prevent athletes from performing their best, for example, as noted above, habitual negativity, perfectionism, and fear of failure. As I noted above, I consult, coach, and counsel them in ways that help them understand why these obstacles interfere with their athletic efforts, how they developed, and provide insights and tools to remove the obstacles and allow the athletes to continue on the path toward their goals. This work occurs generally in an office setting, but I have also been able to be productive in exploring these issues in a sports setting. For example, I have found that athletes can be very receptive to deeper exploration while, for example, riding a chairlift skiing or out on a run or bike ride. I believe that this openness occurs because athletes are in a setting in which they are comfortable and confident, and they feel less pressure to “figure things out.” I also want to note that if I recognize that these obstacles are grounded in clinical issues, I will make the appropriate referral and may or may not continue to work with the athlete in areas, in which I have competence depending the how those issues impact the pursuit of the athlete’s goals.

Unique Features

I don’t really know what other consultants do, so it’s difficult for me to judge what is unique and what is not in the way I work. But I can highlight some of the features of my practice that are quite different from the usual in-the-office consultation approach.

Though having been an accomplished athlete isn’t necessary to be an effective consultant (a perusal of the leading consultants supports this observation), my high-level athletic experience in a number of sports provides me with an unusual opportunity to connect and communicate with athletes (Warning: Don’t participate in a sport with a client unless you are competent, otherwise you’ll lose credibility). Being able to engage in their sport along with my athlete-clients allows me to get to know and work with them in ways that can’t be done in an office setting. I can see in action their motivation, self-talk, intensity level, focus styles, and emotional reactions. I can also observe their training and competitive habits and routines.

My in-depth, comprehensive, and usually long-term work with athletes enables me to do things with athletes that aren’t often possible for consultants who work in an office setting on an hourly basis. For example, I immerse myself in their world enabling me to conduct extensive assessment of the athletes that include subjective and objective evaluations, in vivo observation during training and competition, and interviewing of coaches and parents. Of particular value is my ability to be a “fly on the wall” in athletes’ lives and both gain valuable information and be able to intervene as life happens.

My strong experiential foundation in the sports sciences enables me to consider non-psychological causes of performance breakdowns. For example, I always examine whether there are physical, technical, or equipment causes of athletes’ performance problems before I consider psychological causes of the breakdowns. In fact, I typically ask for a complete assessment of areas that may be relevant to performance problems (e.g., illness, injury, nutrition, technical flaws, equipment problems, learning challenges). Because of the depth of my work with athletes, I often collaborate with their coaches, biomechanists, fitness trainers, and nutritionists, developing a holistic body of information for each us to use that isn’t typically available and working  together with experts in other fields enabling all of us to create an integrated program for athlete preparation.

Case Study

Jamie (not her real name) was a 15-year-old world-ranked junior tennis player who was referred to me by one of the USTA National Team coaches. Jamie had risen quickly in the rankings and was considered one of the future stars of U.S. tennis. But she had recently hit a bad patch where she was having emotional “meltdowns” during matches and losing in the early rounds of international tournaments in which she was expected to advance deep into the draw. Also, there had been talk about Jamie turning pro within the next year (with potentially hundreds of thousands of sponsorship dollars of on the line), so there was an urgency to get her back on track.

We arranged that I would spend three days a month with Jamie at the tennis academy in Florida where she trained and to have regular telephone contact with her during the rest of the month. During my first visit, it became clear that Jamie was one very unhappy girl who seemed to have the weight of the world on her shoulders. As we worked together over the first few months of what became a productive, satisfying, and, ultimately, successful relationship of more than three years, three areas of concern became evident. First, Jamie had progressed quickly on immense natural talent and a unsurpassed drive to be the best. And her successes came early and often. But she had little self-awareness or insight into what enabled her to play her best. Second, Jamie was a perfectionist with a profound fear of failure and habitual negativity that, up to that point, had served her well by driving her to be perfect and avoid failure. But, as the stakes rose and the pressures grew, those assets had become liabilities that resulted in a loss of motivation to work hard, a plummeting of her confidence, and emotional threat that expressed itself in on-court temper tantrums. Third, Jamie’s father, Karl, was as over-involved, angry, and demanding a taskmaster if ever I saw one, who had raised her with the dream, his dream mind you, that she would be a professional tennis player.

My work with Jamie focused on those three areas. We spent many hours on the court with Jamie practicing with her coach where I showed her how to incorporate mental skills into her game. We worked on retraining her negativity with positive self-talk and body language, relaxation techniques, better managing her focus to avoid over thinking, learning how to master her frustration, which was the first emotion that lead to her emotional breakdowns, and developing between-point and changeover routines.

Jamie and I also talked for hours on end about her pained internal life. We explored her negativity, perfectionism, and fear of failure, helping to identify where they came from, how they made her feel, and, importantly, changes she could make to the way she thought and felt about herself. It became clear that these perceptions and emotions came directly from her father who was punitive when she played poorly, but not complimentary when she played well. Jamie was, she admitted, in a constant state of fear of her father’s reactions. Plus, not unexpectedly, she wasn’t having any fun playing tennis either. To Jamie’s credit, she was incredibly motivated to change and we were able to develop a trusting, deep, yet also somewhat playful relationship in which we dealt with some tough issues, but she was also able to laugh at herself when necessary.

I also spent a lot of time with Karl. He was a bully of a man who used his aggressiveness to become very successful financially, but who was decidedly poor at relationships. Karl was not prone to introspection or admitting that he was the cause of his daughter’s problems, but he loved Jamie more than life itself (though he didn’t know how to express it) and, deep down, wanted what was best for her. Karl was also accustomed to bullying people into submission and not used to others confronting him, which I did. Though he later told me that he almost slugged me on a number of occasions for standing up to him, he developed a begrudging trust in me, partly because he respected my willingness to not be cowed by him and partly because he saw how committed I was to helping Jamie (the fact that she was playing better was another factor that allowed our relationship to continue). I set some ground rules about his involvement with her tennis, for example, he could only attend her practice in the mornings, he wasn’t allowed on court during practice, and he couldn’t talk to either Jamie or her coach during practice. I wanted the tennis court to be “sacred ground” where she felt safe rather than a threatening environment where she felt scared. I also referred him to a psychiatrist who immediately diagnosed him as clinically depressed, and prescribed psychotherapy and depressants, which made an immediate and big difference.

As Karl gave Jamie more ownership of her tennis, her motivation began to return, she was having more fun on court, her emotional over-reactions declined in intensity and frequency, and she began to play outstanding tennis again. Everyone around Jamie noticed that she no longer seemed to be living under a dark cloud and was happier and enjoying herself more.

We concluded our professional relationship after more than three years and I followed Jamie from a distance as she turned pro and began to climb steadily up the rankings. We stayed in touch by email and phone for the first year after our formal work ended to periodically discuss new challenges, insights, and changes that was occurring. I then didn’t hear from Jamie for several months, then out of the blue, I got a call from her telling me that she quit tennis. I was, of course, surprised by her decision because of the success that she had been having. When I asked Jamie why, she said, “How can I be truly successful and happy at something that I hate so much.” That made sense to me; tennis had been her father’s dream, no hers. I subsequently got a call from her father pleading with me to convince Jamie to change her mind. For professional and ethical reasons, I didn’t. Instead, I assured him that this decision was the right one for her. In time, Karl accepted her choice because he saw how much happier she was with tennis no longer in her life.

Over the decade since my work with Jamie, we have stayed in touch with some regularity. After she left tennis, she enrolled in and graduated with honors from a top state university, was accepted into and graduated from an Ivy League medical school, and is now finishing her residency. From a struggling and unhappy 15-year-old tennis player a happy and successful 27-year-old woman has emerged. Sounds like a victory to me.

Bibliography/Recommended Readings

I must confess that I can’t think of any books or other literature that significantly influenced my development. I did, however, find that my own writing, particularly my books, had a huge impact on my professional thinking and consulting. I have included a list of my books that may be of interest to students and professionals alike:

Taylor, J., & Taylor, C. (1995). Psychology of dance. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Taylor, J., & Taylor, S. (1997). Psychological approaches to sports injury rehabilitation. Gaithersburg, MD: Aspen Publishing.

Taylor, J. (2000). Prime tennis: Triumph of the mental game. New York: iUniverse.

Taylor, J. (2000). Prime ski racing: Triumph of the racer’s mind. New York: iUniverse.

Taylor, J. (2001). Prime sport: Triumph of the athlete mind. New York: iUniverse.

Taylor, J. (2001). Prime golf: Triumph of the mental game. New York: iUniverse.

Taylor, J. (2002) Positive pushing: How to raise a successful and happy child. New York: Hyperion.

Taylor, J. , Stone, K., Mullin, M., Ellenbecker, T., & Walgenbach, A. (2003) Comprehensive Sports Injury Management: From initial exam to return to sport. Austin, TX: Pro-Ed.

Taylor, J. (2005). Your children are under attack: How to protect your kids from American popular culture. Chicago: SourceBooks.

Taylor, J., & Wilson, G. (Eds.) (2005). Applying sport psychology: From researcher and consultant to coach and athlete. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Taylor, J., & Schneider, T. (2005). The triathlete’s guide to mental training. Boulder, CO: VeloPress.

Taylor, J. (2011). Your children are listening: 9 messages they need to hear from you. New York, NY: The Experiment.

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