Motivation and emotion/Book/2019/Mindfulness and sporting performance

Overview

 * What is Mindfulness?
 * How does Mindfulness relate to sport?
 * Does Mindfulness have an effect on sporting performance?
 * How should athletes include Mindfulness into their training program?

What is Mindfulness
Mindfulness is an awareness of one's experience in the present moment (Davis & Hayes, 2011). Mindfulness involves and requires you to be intentionally paying attention and fully engaged to what is around you. When an individual is not mindful they can fall back into what is known as the default mode, which can create problems (Garrison, Zeffiro, Scheinost, Constable & Brewer, 2015).

Benefits of Mindfulness

 * Relieve stress
 * Help manage depression
 * Treat heart disease
 * Lower blood pressure

Exercise to develop Mindfulness
(*possibly include specific Exercises that achieve mindfulness eg yoga, running and how they can develop different aspects of mindfulness*)

Mindfulness and Sport


Modern athletes are reaching peak sporting performance and are looking to gain every advantage they can get, no matter how small. Recently, there has been a greater focus on the mental strength of athletes, and a focus in improving it. It has been found that many athletes perform inconsistently due to anxiety, lack of self confidence as well as other barriers (Mamassis & Doganis, 2004). Mindfulness training may be able to address these issues, resulting in an enhancement of sporting performance.

Dispositional Mindfulness

 * Many athletes are critical of past performances, and focus on possible future results, resulting in a lose of focus of the current moment.

Anxiety and Mindfulness

 * Can reduce sport anxiety

Mindfulness Interventions
(*avaliability of apps- could listen to will running or learning to listen to nature while running instead of music?*)