We know agility drills can improve speed, nutrient dense foods fuel optimal performance, and hyperbaric chambers speed up muscle repair. These methods have become truths, and common place in serving athletes striving to win championships. Believe it or not, there was a time these methods were not widely used and became the competitive edge for early adopters.
The world of sport spends a lot of time and money developing, supporting, and rehabilitating the physicality of athletes. The “why” makes sense - you want to prepare and enable your athletes to perform at their highest level. Developing, supporting and rehabilitating athletes also feel like controllable factors that coaches and organizations feel comfortable and confident making decisions around.
When we are talking about athlete mental health there is less of an understanding of the direct correlation to performance and the completive edge. Sport specific mental health likely feels less controllable, less black and white, and more unpredictable. It might even feel like something that won’t shift regardless of what you do.
We are here to tell you differently.
There is a way organizations, leagues, and coaches can have a better pulse on how their athletes and teams as a whole are managing stressors that impacts athlete mental health. Here are a few tips:
1. Win the Pause
Don't wait for COVID to be over to learn more. This is the perfect time to better understand sport specific mental health and how athlete stressors impact mental health and performance. Games might be on hold but athlete stress isn't.
2. Know what the sport specific stressors are
Learn what stressors specifically impact athlete mental health by heading to the HONE website to find out more.
3. Do something about it
Seek to understand how these stressors impact your athletes by asking the experts... the athletes themselves.
4. Watch them fly
When athletes feel they are being considered and recognized as people in addition to incredible athletes, we will see their performance capacity increase significantly.
Regardless of what you call it—resiliency, grit, "clutchness" or sheer power of will, the mental health of athletes is the new competitive edge. Embrace the possibilities that come with supporting athletes for the betterment of their sport and, perhaps more importantly the betterment of the individual.
Learn more about HONE
Sign up for an info session to discover how HONE can work for your organization. We’ll walk you through the platform and answer any questions you have about integrating HONE into your team’s periodization training plan.
