What Sports Psychologists Do to Make Athletes Motivated?

1. Sports Psychologist

2. What Sports Psychologists Do to Make Athletes Motivated? Let’s first get to know what Sports Psychology is. Sports psychology is the study of how psychology influences sports, athletic performance, exercise, and physical activity. Some sports psychologists work with professional athletes and coaches to improve performance and increase motivation. Other professionals use exercise and sports to enhance people’s lives and well-being throughout the entire lifespan. Professional sports psychologists often help athletes cope with the intense pressure that comes from competition and overcome problems with focus and motivation. They also work with athletes to improve performance and recover from injuries. But sports psychologists don’t just work with elite and professional athletes. They also help regular people learn how to enjoy sports and learn to stick to an exercise program. Sports psychology attends to the mental health and well-being of athletes, as well as assisting them with reaching their maximum potential in their athletic career. Qualified sports psychologists have a doctorate in psychology, a license to practice psychology, and postdoctoral training on aiding athletes with sports performance and well-being.

3. Functions of a Sports Psychologist Sports Psychologists Role for Increasing Performance Sports psychologists cover many different aspects in treatment of athletes. In order to increase performance within, sports psychologists teach how to engage in positive self-talk; how to do positive visualization upon waking up the morning of a game. This involves closing eyes for 10mins and actually visualizing making a successful touchdown pass and winning the game. Role of Sports Psychologists for Stress Reduction Sports psychologists teach how to calm anxiety and stress before a game with deep breathing exercises and meditation. This technique often works to help cope with the pressures from family, friends, coaches, and the sports organization of which he is a part.

4. Functions of a Sports Psychologist Keeping a Consistent Workout Regimen Planning to keep a consistent workout regimen is able to help people with motivation, consistency, and focus to keep up with his goal of working out six days a week to stay in shape. Sports psychologists also teach the ways to keep practice fun and positive for athletes so that the players can continue to enjoy while having high self-esteem and self-worth as a permanent member of the team. Sports psychology seems like a vital component of getting athletes in the right mindset for optimal performance and well-being, and its benefits were first being realized in the early-to-mid 1900s. Sports psychology interventions are designed to assist athletes and other sports participants, administrators, parents from a wide array of settings, levels of competition and ages, ranging from recreational youth participants to professional and Olympic athletes to master’s level performers.

5. Specialized Knowledge Sports Psychologists Have • The proficiency of sports psychologists help protects the public by ensuring that those who seek services receive them from qualified individuals. The proficiency provides a recognized set of standards to guide appropriate training of psychologists who wish to practice sport psychology. Specialized knowledge includes: • Theory and research in social, historical, cultural and developmental foundations of sport psychology • Issues and techniques of sport specific psychological assessment and mental skills training for performance enhancement and participation satisfaction • Clinical and counseling issues with athletes • Organizational and systemic aspects of sport consulting • Developmental and social issues related to sport participation • Bio behavioral bases of sport and exercise • Specific knowledge of training science and technical requirements of sport and competition, International Olympic Committee, National Collegiate Athletic Association rules etc.

6. Skills and Procedures Utilized by Sport Psychologists • Many strategies and procedures are used to address problems faced by athletes and other sports participants. Some of the principal areas include: • Cognitive and Behavioral Skills Training for Performance Enhancement • Goal setting, imagery and performance planning; concentration and attention control strategies; development of self-confidence, self-esteem and competence in sports; cognitive-behavioral self-regulation techniques; emotion management, sportsmanship and leadership skills. • Counseling and Clinical Interventions • Athletic motivation; eating disorders and weight management; substance abuse; grief, depression, loss and suicide; over-training and burnout; sexual identity issues; aggression and violence; athletic injury and rehabilitation; career transitions and identity crises • Consultation and Training • Team building; sports organization consultation; systems interventions with parents and families involved in youth sports participation; education of coaches regarding motivation, interpersonal and leadership skills and talent development; education of coaches and administrators regarding early identification and prevention of psychological difficulties.

7. Contact Us At Sports psychologists choose to spread the word of advancing psychology to benefit society as well as improve people’s lives. Get in contact with sports psychologists at Mental Training Inc. for more information on developing mental toughness. Mental Training Inc. 6160 Warren Parkway, Suite 160 Frisco, TX 75034 Phone: 877-744-5365 Fax: 214-380-4885 Email: info@mentaltraininginc.com Website: www.mentaltraininginc.com