High-performance athletes need, above all, willpower, discipline, motivation and a lot of psychological preparation to be able to face the tough challenges of surpassing their own personal records and goals in order to continue achieving objectives. Athletes, just as they train their body, also have to train their mind, for this reason, psychological preparation in high-performance athletes is also called psychological training.
The psychological preparation will always have to accompany the physical trainingespecially for those athletes who must participate in competitions or who just want to reach the maximum of their potential.
What does psychological preparation consist of?
Psychological training consists of a program structured and organized by a sports psychology professional where the main mental abilities that is required in the sport in which the athlete is immersed, always with an approach that enhances his entire interior but also with a preventive approach to avoid possible obsessions among other possible disorders.
Psychological preparation can be carried out at an individual level, for example for elite athletes or who compete alone, or in teamwork, for example for those athletes who compete as a team, for example for a football team, basketball team, etc.
What is the main objective?
The main objective is enhance psychological skills of the athlete, to reinforce what he already has, to learn new ones that help him to have greater performance and to adapt appropriately to all the situations he may face in terms of the sport he usually practices, but especially in competition.
What are the skills that are most worked on?
The skills that are worked on in the psychological preparation of high-performance athletes are those that could cause some type of emotional damage If you don’t know how to handle them properly, some of the most important skills are:
- Definition of goals and objectives.
- Proper stress management.
- Proper anger management.
- Activation control.
- Management of motivation and effort in sport.
- Organization and planning of available time.
- Perceptual acuity.
- Attention and concentration on what is being carried out.
- Logical reasoning and decision-making abilities.
- Relationships.
- Group cohesion.
- Healthy habits (diet, rest, recovery, etc.)
- Prevention and coping with injuries.
As you can see the most important thing is worked so that the athlete is not only prepared physically but also mentally.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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