The Importance Of Stress Management In Sports

Stress management is an important skill that should be integrated into sports. Athletes’ performance can suffer due to the manner in which they handle the stress. In addition, athletes may experience physiological complications due to stress. Each individual approaches stress differently. Considering stress is an important part of competition, it is important for coaches to understand common stresses, how athletes address these common stressors, and coping skills that will help reduce the amount of stress felt by the individual. The level of competition and stress in sports has increased over the years. The first step for addressing this increased amount of stress is exposing coaches to common stressors and the proper ways to approach them.

Coaches should be able to recognize athletes who are more vulnerable to stress and the types of situations that will increase their feeling of stress. Similarly, it has been established that coaches have near maximal heart rates while sitting on the bench watching their team play. Coaches not only need to help manage the stress of their players, but for their health, coaches need to properly develop their own stress management skills. When the athletes see that their coach is able to handle stress, they will be more inclined to learn from their coach. If a coach understands how to cope with stresses felt by athletes, he or she will be able to show the athletes personal examples which will help the athlete feel like they are not alone. Also, the coach will perform better and make better decisions for the team if their stress level is managed.4 In addition, the coaches should learn how to determine the individual’s current coping style.2 Even if the coach is working with young children, stress management is still an important concept. The age of the athlete should be taken into consideration because the