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Matthew Mace

How Does Stress Affect Performance in Sports?

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Not all stress is created equal — here’s what you need to know.

It’s normal for an athlete to feel stressed before a big game or a competition. If they didn’t feel stressed in the slightest, then one could argue that they were not prepared to give their best performance. This is similar to the inverted U theory and how athletes need to experience the optimal amount of arousal — not too much or too little — to perform at their best [1].

Too little stress/arousal and an athlete feels no sense of urgency or motivation to perform. On the other hand, too much stress can limit the athlete’s ability to focus and may cause them to choke or crumble under intense pressure. It’s all about finding balance!

This blog post will explain more about stress and how it affects performance in sports, beginning with more details on what causes stress, and tips to help you deal with stress in sports.

What causes stress in sports?

Everybody experiences stress, but athletes often experience it more than others. But why is this the case? Because it’s a balancing act — athletes need to balance training, competition, family commitments, relationships, and everyday life. And for college athletes (and other Elite athletes), you can throw school and work into the mix for a little extra chaos. 

And let’s not forget the intense public scrutiny that comes with being an Elite athlete.

These stressors are compounded by competition, especially during a big game, whether that’s the NBA finals, the PGA tournament, or a football game that decides who gets relegated.

With so many external factors inducing stress in athletes (and coaches), controlling the internal has never been more important. 

“If you do things to the limit, and don’t purposely go over that limit, then I think it’s fine to do whatever you want. So long as you enjoy it. That’s what’s important.” – Michael Schumacher.

How does stress affect sports performance?

Stress has a direct effect on sports performance. If an athlete feels too much pressure, the stress can get to them and cause them to freeze up, crumble under pressure, or make vital mistakes when it matters most.

It can also cause athletes to involuntarily tense up their muscles, leading to poor form and technique, may lead to cramp, among other issues.

To better demonstrate this intense pressure, let’s use the example of a presentation at work as it’s slightly more relatable for most people… it’s a slight diversion, but I promise it will be worth it…

You’ve been preparing for this presentation for a few weeks, rehearsing what you’re going to say, and running through the slides daily. But when it comes to actually delivering the presentation, you freeze up, you’re unsure of what you’re going to say next, and your mind goes blank.

This is the exact same thing that happens to athletes when they freeze up — but instead of not knowing what to say, they don’t know what to do, what play to make, where to pass, or what the next step is they should take. It’s like a deer caught in headlights. Athletes commonly freeze and choke, making crucial mistakes because of intense pressure.

How to deal with stress in sports

Okay, now that you know what causes stress and how it can directly affect an athlete’s performance, how do you deal with it? You can do numerous things to reduce stress and anxiety, from practicing deep breathing exercises and mindset recovery sessions to creating a pre-performance routine to increase familiarity and reduce stress. 

Below you’ll find a list of things you can do to help deal with stress in sports:

  • Perform deep breathing exercises
  • Create a pre-performance routine
  • Practice stressful situations in training 
  • Focus on getting the basics right (sleep, nutrition, etc.)
  • Visualize success

We’ll now break these tips down into more detail.

Perform deep breathing exercises

When people hear the words “deep breathing,” they often think of meditation. And while it can be a form of meditation, deep breathing exercises can also be used in those crucial moments; before taking a free kick, putting the ball in golf, or moments before toeing the line on the track.

Diaphragmatic breathing, also known as “belly breathing,” involves breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. Studies show that this breathing technique can be useful to improve sustained attention while better regulating stress [2].

Practice and perform this breathing technique to help alleviate stress and anxiety, whether that’s before competition or something as simple as reducing stress before sleep.

Read more: Breathing Exercises for Stress Relief: How to Do 5-10 Breathing.

Create a pre-performance routine 

The best athletes have a pre-performance routine that they follow like a horse wearing blinders. A set routine increases familiarity, reduces stress, and allows the athlete to get into the right head space and mindset to perform at their best.

You can create your own routine by eliminating activities that cause stress, and replace these with activities that increase focus and concentration. For example, this could include deep breathing exercises, listening to your favorite playlist, mentally rehearsing what the performance will look and feel like, and so on.

It takes time to find a routine that works for you. But begin experimenting by adding/removing activities to best reduce stress and improve your mindset leading up to the performance. 

Practice stressful situations in training 

A lot of athletes do not experience intense stress until it matters most — the final few minutes of a game, during a penalty shootout, or when they are tied on points on the last hole on the green.

A great way to reduce stress is to practice these stressful situations in training to increase familiarity. For instance, if you know your muscles tense, you feel anxious, and your palms get sweaty when taking penalties, practice this in training to reduce stress when it matters most. Practice goes a long way!

You can also add techniques such as deep breathing and muscle relaxation exercises during these intense moments so you have them in your toolkit — and know how to use them effectively — when you need them most.

Focus on getting the basics right

Although it may seem obvious, even Elite athletes need to get the basics right. We’re talking about sleep, nutrition, and recovery.

If one of these is out of whack, then stress may increase, and performance may decline. Get the basics right and then implement other techniques and mental skills, such as visualization — more on this below.

Visualize success 

Visualization is a powerful mental skill that many elite athletes use. It involves picturing yourself performing successful skill performance, whether that’s scoring a goal, passing the ball to a teammate down the wing, or saving a goal. 

Athletes use visualization to improve confidence, reduce stress and anxiety, and calm their nerves. 

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Use Rewire to reduce stress and improve performance 

Some level of stress is needed to improve performance. But too much stress — and not knowing how to control it — can cause an athlete to freeze, choke, or make vital mistakes when it matters most.

Rewire can help athletes reduce stress by tracking their physical, cognitive, and emotional states. Athletes gain access to science-backed protocols from sports psychology, such as guided breathing, pre-workout priming, visualization, and sleep protocols to improve performance and reduce stress and anxiety.

“I have been using the app for a few months. It has helped me set the proper mindset before workouts, disconnect before bedtime, and gauge my mental readiness on a daily basis.” – Matt Hanson (Professional Triathlete and Coach).

Find out how Rewire can help you

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Matthew Mace

How to Recognise Burnout in Youth Sports

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Here’s how to recognise burnout to prevent a mix of physical and emotional stressors. 

Burnout in youth sports might just be more common than we think — with young athletes wanting to be professional football players, gymnasts, swimmers, runners, and everything in between, it can be difficult to find the line between “hard work” and “overtraining.” 

So, it likely comes as no surprise that it’s very common for young athletes to specialise in one given sport from an early age. Besides, it makes the most sense if they want to turn professional, right? Kind of — more on this below.

Whether that’s gymnastics, swimming, tennis, or running, for example, the physical and emotional costs of specialising in one sport are often quite large. Early sport specialisation requires increased training hours and may expose youth athletes to increased social isolation, including less time with family, increased stress and anxiety, and the big one: burnout.

Yep, burnout — hello again, old friend. 

But understanding burnout in youth sports is not as simple as reducing the time or dedication spent towards one given sport — it’s much more complicated than that. For instance, other factors may result in burnout, including increased school demands, a lack of recovery, success from an early age, low self-esteem, the list goes… These burnout risks are taken from Gustaffson and colleagues — although less is known about burnout and youth sport, we should still take these into consideration.  

So, this blog post will highlight what we do know — we’ll provide a quick burnout definition, we’ll touch on early sport specialisation, how to prevent burnout in youth athletes, and how to recognise the signs of burnout sooner rather than later.

What is burnout in youth sports?

We’ve covered athlete burnout in previous blog posts, but before we discuss how to recognise the signs of burnout — and how to prevent it — we need to provide a quick definition.

Burnout is often described as a lasting experience of physical and emotional exhaustion. 

For example, youth athletes who encounter burnout may feel unmotivated to train and are likely to experience a reduced sense of self-accomplishment. And most notably, the physical and emotional drain may lead to the young athlete quitting and withdrawing from their sport, as suggested by a 2007 study.

Early sport specialisation vs. early sport diversification 

Let’s start with what is thought to be the biggest risk factor for burnout in youth athletes…

Early sport specialisation involves a youth athlete focusing — or as instructed by a coach — on one sport. The two main sports culprits that come to mind are swimming and gymnastics. Although, it can be virtually any sport out there, from tennis to ping pong. 

The main problem, however, is the risk factors that come with specialising in one sport. And yes, you guessed it correctly, burnout is a part of it.

Anyways, risk factors of early sport specialisation may include:

  • Excessive training 
  • Balancing school/work demands becomes difficult and energy draining 
  • Lack of recovery between training sessions
  • Social constraints 

These risk factors are taken from the integrated model of athlete burnout. Other risk factors around various personality, coping, and environmental factors exist, too. But the above factors appear the most relevant for youth sports.

So, this poses the question: should youth athletes specialise from a young age, or should they play a mix of sports (sport diversification)?

Well, this debate has been going on for years. But researchers have provided guidelines to prevent overtraining and burnout. These guidelines are as follows:  

  • Keep workouts interesting — add games and keep it fun.
  • Allow at least 1 to 2 days a week for rest — participation in other activities is allowed.
  • Add longer scheduled breaks from training every 2 to 3 months — focus on other activities or cross-train to prevent a loss of skill and/or conditioning.
  • Teach athletes wellness and how to be in tune with their bodies — this will help reduce overtraining and the risk of injury. The Rewire app has numerous mindset recovery sessions that can help young athletes sleep better, improve focus and concentration, and even enhance recovery. 

A few tips on how to recognise burnout 

Burnout and overtraining go hand in hand. And although the research on youth athlete burnout is not as well publicised, we can take research from the adult population to help recognise common overtraining and burnout signs, as suggested in a study by the National Library of Medicine.  

Overtraining and burnout signs to look out for include:

  • A loss of appetite 
  • Muscle soreness 
  • Difficulty sleeping/sleep disturbances
  • Muscle twitches
  • Decreased motivation
  • A lack of concentration
  • Decreased self-confidence 
  • Common colds, sniffles, and coughs

These are a few of the main signs of overtraining in athletes. Recognising these early and introducing rest, recovery, and a period of less intense training is one of the best ways to reduce the risk of burnout and overtraining syndrome. 

To summarise  

Increasing awareness of the risk factors associated with burnout and overtraining in youth sports is key to preventing burnout. 

Coaches, parents, teachers, and others should have an understanding of what causes burnout to reduce the risk. Also, those in a coaching position should strive to keep workouts fun and interesting, allow a minimum of 1 to 2 days of rest a week, and should schedule longer breaks from training every 2 to 3 months — perhaps during seasonal holidays, to further reduce the risk of burnout.

And finally, the argument against early sport specialisation should not be ignored. 

If a young athlete does not want to specialise in one sport, then they shouldn’t exclusively focus on that one sport. Instead, coaches, parents, and teachers may wish to consider encouraging multiple sport participation. Sport diversification keeps things fun and interesting, and may lead to enhanced skill development. And all the while potentially reducing the risk of burnout.

If you’re interested in reading more about burnout, you can read our blog post on athletic burnout and stress.

If you’re a coach reading this, check out Rewire for Teams – our platform that helps coaches train their athletes more effectively by prioritising mental wellness and preventing burnout. Book a free consultation here. 

References:

Brenner, J.S. and Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness, 2007. Overuse injuries, overtraining, and burnout in child and adolescent athletes. Pediatrics, 119(6), pp.1242-1245.

DiFiori, J.P., Benjamin, H.J., Brenner, J.S., Gregory, A., Jayanthi, N., Landry, G.L. and Luke, A., 2014. Overuse injuries and burnout in youth sports: a position statement from the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine. British journal of sports medicine, 48(4), pp.287-288.

Gustafsson, H., Kenttä, G. and Hassmén, P., 2011. Athlete burnout: An integrated model and future research directions. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 4(1), pp.3-24.

Gustafsson, Henrik. “Burnout in competitive and elite athletes.” PhD diss., Örebro universitetsbibliotek, 2007.
Winsley, R. and Matos, N., 2011. Overtraining and elite young athletes. The elite young athlete, 56, pp.97-105.

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Matthew Mace

5 Ways to Prevent Athlete Burnout in 2023

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Understand how to prevent athlete burnout to stay motivated and reduce your risk of injury.

One minute, you’re enjoying training more than ever, and the next, you can’t focus, you don’t want to head out for that training session, and you feel as if that short-lived motivation has been zapped out of your system. So, what happened?

You could be experiencing early signs of athlete burnout — often described as a prolonged experience of physical and emotional exhaustion [4]. Knowing how to recognise and prevent athlete burnout is key — the more you know, the easier it is to stop burnout in its tracks, stopping you from experiencing more severe symptoms and perhaps even an increased risk of picking up an injury.

In this blog post, we’ll provide you with 5 ways to prevent athlete burnout — helping you stay motivated and focused on your training. 

What causes athlete burnout?

Before we dive into how to prevent athlete burnout, we first need to understand what causes athlete burnout.

We’ll give you the CliffNotes version — but if you want to find out more about the causes and how to overcome burnout, you can listen to our podcast with Joe Fuggle, a former Elite GB athlete.

The research surrounding athlete burnout is somewhat conflicting. Some researchers say burnout is caused by the inability to effectively cope with psychosocial stress involved with training and competition [3]. 

On the other hand, others suggest athlete burnout is caused by a mix of factors, including entrapment (high investment, low alternative attractiveness), antecedents (school/work demands, a lack of recovery), and personality and coping factors (low social support, lack of coping skills [5].

Athlete burnout is more complex than it initially appears… but knowing how to prevent it can keep those feelings of decreased motivation and drive at bay.

How to prevent athlete burnout 

Okay, now that you know what it is, let’s discuss how to prevent athlete burnout — after all, that’s why you’re here…

  1. Maintain variety and keep it fun 
  2. Monitor your training load and know the burnout signs 
  3. Prioritise getting quality sleep 
  4. Introduce scheduled periods of rest
  5. Use Rewire to reduce stress and lessen your risk of burnout

1) Maintain Variety and Keep it Fun

Dr Ralph Richards, a former swim coach and sports scientist at the Australian Institute of Sport, mentioned the importance of providing variety in workouts to reduce mental fatigue [6]. This is also a great way to keep your workouts and training fun and interesting.

If you’re a runner, that could mean switching up a session to include some fartlek work (unstructured speed training). A cyclist could add short sweet spot efforts in their weekly long ride. And a swimmer could combine short and long repetitions for a little variety.

Ultimately, if you can keep things interesting, fun, and even slightly unpredictable, you’re more likely to enjoy training. 

So, don’t be afraid to switch things up from time to time — this is also a great reminder for coaches and an excellent tool for keeping youth athletes motivated.

2) Monitor your training load and know the burnout signs 

You wouldn’t run a marathon without former training — so avoid taking the same approach with your training.

Progressive overload is key. Don’t jump in the deep end before learning to swim in the shallow waters.

Gradually increase your training demands over time, allowing your body to adapt and recover without increasing your risk of injury and burnout. 

You should also monitor your training load — note down each session, including what the workout comprised of, how you felt, and any other relevant notes. It also helps to track your recovery to improve your awareness of how your body adapts and responds to increased training loads.

You should also familiarise yourself with the symptoms of overtraining and burnout — the sooner you recognise these, the easier it is to dial back your training, prioritising recovery and preventing a more serious risk of burnout and physical injury.

Symptoms of overtraining and burnout may include [8,5]:

  • A loss of appetite
  • Muscle soreness & muscle twitches
  • A decrease in motivation and focus during training
  • Frustration over a lack of results
  • Increased stress
  • Mood disturbances
  • A lack of control
  • You find yourself getting sick easier (e.g., colds, sniffles, and coughs)

3) Prioritise getting quality sleep

You likely already know the importance of a good night’s rest, especially if you exercise regularly or compete at a high level — sleep is essential to recovery. 

Increased training loads, whether that means increasing your weekly mileage, adding more intensity, or adding an extra weights session, increase your risk of fatigue, injury, and overtraining.

But more importantly, an increased training load combined with inadequate rest (including sleep) could serve as a risk factor and an indicator of over-reaching and overtraining syndrome [7]. 

And for those unaware, overtraining syndrome is often associated with athlete burnout.

Ensure you get plenty of quality sleep to lessen the risk of over-reaching (the point before overtraining and burnout). 

4) Introduce scheduled periods of rest

Professional athletes take breaks during their season and once their competitive season is over. 

For example, Formula One drivers have a summer break midseason and a longer break before the next season begins. Road cyclists take a few weeks off in the winter before the next year of competition begins. And football players have anywhere from 1 to 3 weeks off training each year.

For elite athletes, these scheduled periods of rest are not only a time to physically recover from any niggles, pains, or injuries, but it’s also a time to mentally recover and prepare for the next season.

Competing and training at the highest level is physically, emotionally, and mentally demanding.

Even if you’re not a professional athlete, introducing your own off-season into your training can help you recover. It’s a time to switch off, mentally recharge, and assess your goals going forward. Moreover, if you train for countless hours, then it’s time to spend doing other things you enjoy — whether visiting family and friends or just sitting on the sofa catching up on the latest Netflix thriller.

You can also use periodisation in your training — add 1 week of less intense training every 1 to 3 months to reduce your risk of burnout.  

5) Use Rewire to reduce stress and lessen your risk of burnout

The relationship between stress and burnout has been studied extensively — some research [1] suggests stress causes burnout, and other work [2] proposes the opposite: stress is a burnout symptom. 

Nevertheless, we all experience stress — whether you’re a professional athlete, you run marathons, you participate in ultra-endurance cycling events, or perhaps you enjoy a parkrun on the weekends.

But I’m sure we can all agree that reducing stress is not a bad thing…

You can start using the Rewire Fitness app today for free to help reduce stress, improve your mental fitness, and reduce your risk of burnout.

FAQs

What causes athlete burnout?

There are many possible causes, but minimising stress, prioritising rest, and keeping training fun are great ways to reduce the risk. 

How do athletes recover from burnout?

Rest is key to recovering from athlete burnout. Athletes often need time away from their sport to rejuvenate and recover.

How to prevent burnout?

Keep training fun, monitor your training load, prioritise quality sleep, use periodisation in your training, and use the Rewire app to prevent athlete burnout.

References:

ACSM_CMS. 2022. News Detail. [online] Available at: <https://www.acsm.org/news-detail/2021/08/09/the-american-college-of-sports-medicine-statement-on-mental-health-challenges-for-athletes#:~:text=Professional%20and%20elite%20athletes%20also,%2C%20depression%20and%2For%20anxiety> [Accessed 20 December 2022].

Coakley, J., 1992. Burnout among adolescent athletes: A personal failure or social problem?. Sociology of sport journal, 9(3), pp.271-285.

Eklund, R.C. and DeFreese, J.D., 2015. Athlete burnout: What we know, what we could know, and how we can find out more. International Journal of Applied Sports Sciences, 27(2), pp.63-75.

Gustafsson, H., 2007. Burnout in competitive and elite athletes (Doctoral dissertation, Örebro universitetsbibliotek). 

Gustafsson, H., Kenttä, G. and Hassmén, P., 2011. Athlete burnout: An integrated model and future research directions. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 4(1), pp.3-24.

https://memberdesq.sportstg.com/assets/console/customitem/attachments/burnout-rrichards.pdf 

Lastella, M., Vincent, G.E., Duffield, R., Roach, G.D., Halson, S.L., Heales, L.J. and Sargent, C., 2018. Can sleep be used as an indicator of overreaching and overtraining in athletes?. Frontiers in physiology, p.436.

Winsley, R. and Matos, N., 2011. Overtraining and elite young athletes. The elite young athlete, 56, pp.97-105.

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Matthew Mace

Swimming and Burnout: How to Avoid It

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Swimmers are prime candidates to experience burnout — here’s everything you need to know to set yourself up for success.

Swimming and burnout go hand in hand — to become a great swimmer, you need to put in countless hours in the water. But the depths of training don’t end once a swimmer steps out of the pool…

There are other strict routines that make up their weekly schedule — an intense diet, a recovery routine, gym sessions, and the pressure to succeed from themselves, their supporters (friends and family), and their coaches.

Swimming is intense, it’s difficult, and it requires a lot of dedication, perhaps more so than any other sport.

There’s a reason why so many elite swimmers encounter burnout or face a myriad of mental health issues. Take Michael Phelps, for example; the most successful and decorated Olympian of all time struggled with depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts for years while in the pool, later opening up about his struggles which inevitably helped others. Whether part of the problem was burnout or not, it signifies a serious issue for competitive swimmers and other athletes.

Then there’s Simone Manuel, a professional American swimmer who revealed her burnout diagnosis back in 2021. And let’s not forget the countless other swimmers who are unable to reveal their burnout as they risk losing sponsorship or a spot on the team.

So, this blog post will discuss swimming and burnout in more detail — what burnout is, what causes it, and how to avoid burnout in swimmers.

What is athletic burnout in swimming?

Athletic burnout is seen as a lasting experience of emotional and physical exhaustion. It’s typically met with a mix of symptoms such as a lack of motivation, a reduced sense of accomplishment, and even withdrawal from sport. 

One study takes it a step further, saying: “burnout in swimming is characterised by mental and physical exhaustion, a devaluation of swimming, and successes often become less meaningful.”

But why are swimmers most at risk? According to one study, individual sports presented a higher risk of burnout and other depressive symptoms. Furthermore, competitive swimmers typically dive into the pool and begin training anywhere from the ages of seven to twelve.

From a very young age, swimmers put in two-plus-hour training sessions multiple times a week. Often, it starts off as fun or, for Phelps, a way to burn off extra energy. But for many swimmers, it can be challenging to know why they started in the first place. 

It’s a sport that demands an excessive time and energy commitment, with those wearing the goggles and performing laps left to their own thoughts. You can likely already see why burnout is a risk and is perhaps more common than it should be.

What causes burnout in swimmers?

It’s rare that you’ll hear the term burnout spoken of without the mention of overtraining syndrome.

Overtraining syndrome is when an athlete engages in excessive exercise with inadequate rest and recovery, increasing their risk of burnout, but also physical injury. Stress also plays a key role — stress is essential for adaptation, but too much stress can contribute to overtraining and burnout. The stress can be out of the pool, too. For example, it could be academic pressures, family issues, or other social demands. 

It’s when the stress gets too high (physical and emotional) that an athlete is at risk of both overtraining and burnout, as mentioned by Dr Ralph Richards, former swim coach and sports scientist at the Australian Institute of Sport.

The more we understand the risk factors and what causes burnout in swimmers, the easier it is for coaches and athletes to counter it.

How to avoid athletic burnout in swimming 

There are numerous ways for coaches and swim athletes to avoid burnout in swimming.

Typically, the athlete will display signs of burnout and overtraining in training — this is likely to manifest as a decrease in training performance for 1 week or longer. It’s vital that the coach and athlete react to the symptoms early to prevent injury or a more serious case of burnout.

So, what can they do?

  • Ensure good communication between the coach and athlete
  • Create individualised training programs for swim athletes 
  • Increase training loads in a progressive manner 
  • Maintain variety and keep it fun
  • Include activities that ensure success

Continue reading to find out more about each prevention strategy. 

Ensure good communication 

As Dr Ralph Richards mentions, it’s important to ensure good communication between the coach and athlete. 

The swim athlete should feel comfortable with the coach — able to tell them if they feel a lack of motivation, confidence, or other risk factors associated with burnout.

But the same should be true for the coach-athlete relationship — the coach should be aware of the athlete’s performance and know when there’s an increased risk of burnout.

Good communication allows for early detection of burnout, making treatment easier.

Create individualised training programs for swim athletes

No two athletes are created the same in the pool or in any other sport — some athletes respond better to more intense training than others.

So, when creating a swim training plan, coaches should create these with each athlete in mind. It’s no good prescribing a dozen high-intensity intervals for an athlete who responds better to slightly less volume but equal intensity.

Also, if possible, the athlete should be involved when creating the training plan.

Increase training loads in a progressive manner

It’s the age-old rule for any type of training — progressive training is key to avoiding injury and burnout.

A good training plan should become progressively more difficult as the season goes on. Likewise, it’s important to include periods of low-intensity training and rest to ensure proper physical and mental recovery from the previous season or swim meets.

Maintain variety and keep it fun 

Even if you’re competing for Olympic gold, you should be having fun in training. Granted, not every training session in the pool will be enjoyable — but there should be one or two sessions that you look forward to.

This will pique your interest and keep you motivated for training.

Include activities that ensure success

And finally, the coach should include activities and training sessions in a swim athlete’s training plan that ensures success.

The cognitive appraisal model is all about stress — how an athlete interprets an event or situation and whether they see it as stressful. If an athlete has had success in similar events, then they are likely to see the situation as less stressful, reducing the overall stress load. 

This is important because cognitive appraisal is seen as an important variable in athletes experiencing burnout, as found in a 2017 study. By adding these periods of success, you can build up the confidence in swim athletes, reducing their overall stress levels and risk of burnout.

Use Rewire to combat stress and burnout 

Whether you’re a swimmer, a triathlete, a cyclist, or anything in-between, you’re at risk of burnout. However, if you can reduce stress and better control your immediate environment, then you can likely reduce your risk of burnout.

Begin using the Rewire Fitness app today for free and begin mental training to help combat burnout and reduce stress.

Interested in finding out more about burnout? Read our guide on athlete burnout and how to prevent it. 

Check out our podcast episode with Joe Fuggle as he shares his personal experience with burnout as a former elite GB athlete.

References:

Campbell, T.S., Johnson, J.A. and Zernicke, K.A., 2013. Cognitive appraisal. Encyclopedia of behavioral medicine, pp.442-442.

Gomes, A.R., Faria, S. and Vilela, C., 2017. Anxiety and burnout in young athletes: The mediating role of cognitive appraisal. Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports, 27(12), pp.2116-2126.

Gustafsson, H., 2007. Burnout in competitive and elite athletes (Doctoral dissertation, Örebro universitetsbibliotek). https://memberdesq.sportstg.com/assets/console/customitem/attachments/burnout-rrichards.pdf

Kreher, J.B. and Schwartz, J.B., 2012. Overtraining syndrome: a practical guide. Sports health, 4(2), pp.128-138.

Martin, J., Byrd, B., Hew-Butler, T. and Moore, E.W.G., 2021. A longitudinal study on the psychological and physiological predictors of burnout in NCAA collegiate swimmers. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, pp.1-17.

Nixdorf, I., Beckmann, J. and Nixdorf, R., 2019. Prevention of burnout and depression in junior elite swimmers. In Mental health and well-being interventions in sport (pp. 31-44). Routledge.

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Matthew Mace

Is Athletic Burnout More Than Just Stress?

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It could be more than stress – you could be tip-toeing your way to burnout.

Whatever it is, just know that it’s completely normal to feel stressed from time to time.

Do you feel a lack of interest in your sport? Maybe lapses of motivation, increased stress, or little drive to participate or compete in a sport you once loved? If so, you could be experiencing what is known as “athletic burnout.” 

Athletic burnout is described as a lasting experience of emotional and physical exhaustion. It’s often accompanied by a lack of motivation, a reduced sense of accomplishment, and in some cases, the need to withdraw from sporting activity, as stated in a 2007 study.

It’s common for burnout and stress to intertwine, especially in the workplace and in our personal lives. And it’s certainly possible for burnout to find its way into your training. So watch out, burnout stress is lurking around many corners, but there’s a difference between stress and burnout, especially when it comes to sports.

So, this blog post will explain more about stress and athletic burnout – how they are connected and what you can do to better manage your stress levels.

Burnout and stress – where’s the link? 

A good amount of research on athletic burnout suggests chronic stress to be a key driving factor behind burnout. 

The American College of Sports Medicine mentioned the physical, emotional, and academic pressures University and college-level athletes encounter regarding burnout. For example, student-athletes commonly miss lectures, are exposed to social isolation, limited privacy, inadequate recovery, the pressure to perform, the list goes on…

These physical and emotional stressors may contribute to athletic burnout – creating a link between stress and more severe burnout symptoms. Other researchers suggest that burnout is more than a side effect of chronic stress. 

Similarly, world-leading sports sociologist, Coakley, argues that stress is not the cause of burnout – it is a symptom. Other academics also view burnout as a result of entrapment in sports. 

Entrapment occurs when athletes no longer want to participate in their sport, but feel like they have to. This is more common in youth athletes – perhaps continuing to swim or run track to achieve a scholarship or to impress their peers, parents, or coaches.

The integrated model of athlete burnout

Many theories and models have described burnout and its association with stress, entrapment, and personality factors.

Trying to understand the main cause of athletic burnout when there are so many theories and models can be confusing. So, Gustaffson and colleagues created the integrated model of athlete burnout to best represent the many causes of burnout in sport.

Image credit: Gustaffson and colleagues – I’ve linked the paper in the image. I’ll also include a link below to the figure as a png.

The integrated model of athlete burnout takes into account the most popular explanations for burnout in sports. This combined model of burnout helps us better understand how different stressors and other factors out of our control may contribute to burnout, eventually leading to maladaptive consequences such as withdrawal and a performance decline. 

How to identify athlete burnout

There are a few telltale signs of athletic burnout that you should look out for. These symptoms may include:

  • Mood disturbances
  • A lack of motivation
  • Increased stress
  • A decrease in performance

You may also have other symptoms that go beyond stress – a sign that it’s more than a single episode of stress.

What are the side effects of athletic burnout? 

Athletic burnout is unique to the individual. But there are a few common side effects of burnout that many athletes encounter, such as:

  • Withdrawal from sport
  • Chronic inflammation
  • Depression
  • A further lack of motivation

Read our blog post on how to prevent athlete burnout for further tips and actionable strategies to help you beat burnout.

How to treat athletic burnout

It’s not uncommon for athletic burnout to go undetected. Often, athletes do not speak about stress, and how they’re feeling emotionally with their coaches, peers, or even parents. For many athletes, there’s too much at risk. And for others, they don’t know why they’re feeling how they do, whether that’s lapses in motivation, increased fatigue, or one of the many other burnout symptoms.

So, how do you treat it? The main way to overcome athlete burnout is to rest – taking time off from your sport to fully recover. However, you can also manage your emotional fatigue and stress to better understand when you are at a higher risk of burnout.

You may also consider adding stress relief sessions to your daily routine to better cope with stress, increasing relaxation when you need it most, whether after a challenging training session or a long day. If you are reading on mobile, you can complete the Rewire Fitness stress relief session here. On average Rewire users report a 70% decrease in stress after completing a 2 minute session.

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So, the big question: is athletic burnout more than just stress?

Burnout and stress have some correlation. However, whether stress is the cause of burnout or a symptom remains academically challenged. But we do know this: managing your stress, emotional fatigue, and controlling your immediate environment is likely to help prevent burnout. And if you’re looking for immediate stress relief, you may want to check out our blog post on 5-10 breathing. 

Start using the Rewire Fitness app today for free and begin mental training to help combat burnout and reduce stress.

FAQs

What are the signs of athletic burnout?

Telltale signs of athletic burnout include a lack of motivation, mood disturbances, increased stress, and a performance decrease.

What does sport burnout feel like?

Sport burnout is often described as physical and emotional exhaustion. You may also experience a reduced sense of accomplishment and less interest in your sport.

How long does it take to recover from burnout?

Burnout recovery varies from person to person. It can takes weeks or months to fully recover from burnout. 

References:

Coakley, J., 1992. Burnout among adolescent athletes: A personal failure or social problem?. Sociology of sport journal, 9(3), pp.271-285.

Gustafsson, H., 2007. Burnout in competitive and elite athletes (Doctoral dissertation, Örebro universitetsbibliotek).

Gustafsson, H., Kenttä, G. and Hassmén, P., 2011. Athlete burnout: An integrated model and future research directions. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 4(1), pp.3-24.

Raedeke, T.D., 1997. A sport commitment perspective. Journal of sport & exercise psychology, 19, pp.396-417.
The American College of Sports Medicine. 2021. The American College of Sports Medicine Statement on Mental Health Challenges for Athletes. [online] Available at: <https://www.acsm.org/news-detail/2021/08/09/the-american-college-of-sports-medicine-statement-on-mental-health-challenges-for-athletes> [Accessed 8 October 2022].

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