Relaxation as a Coping Strategy:

College Swim Team

Introduction:

In February of this year, the captains of both the men's and women's swim teams at my college met with a sport psychologist with a request to help them deal with some of the problems that they were facing in the competitive environment. With very little time to the target meets of the season (6 weeks to conference and only 8 weeks to the NCAA meet), the project took on more of a "fix-it" approach than an educational approach.

Intervention:

A "trouble-shooting" meeting was set up so that the athletes could help prioritize their concerns. A simple strengths/weaknesses chart was filled out by each swimmer. From this list a list of perceived weaknesses were used to develop the focus of the program. The most frequently occurring weakness responses were:

a . Lack of Confidence
b . Fear of Failure
c . Inability to Relax

Following the initial meeting, an impromptu meeting was scheduled to help the athletes put their perceived weaknesses into perspective. At this time, the progressive implementation strategy was explained. The strategies were implemented every Sunday evening until the target meets (with each athlete received a paper fully explaining the strategy at each session). The strategy meetings consisted of:

I . Troubleshooting Meeting
2. Self-led Relaxation
3. Visualizing Success
4. Affirmation
5. Mastery Rehearsal and Mastery/Coping Tapes

Each session lasted from 1-11/2 hours and were well attended. After completion of the Conference Swim Championships, the athletes evaluated their performances and the
effectiveness of the program on their performances. Eleven participants completed a survey asking for responses based on a Likert scale. We also asked for responses to open-ended questions and for comments on each section.

Overview:

Troubleshooting: The Likert scale indicated a very strong positive response to the troubleshooting section. Most respondents agreed with the question regarding whether this portion aided in identifying weaknesses and focusing, with only one person disagreeing.
Relaxation: The relaxation portion showed similar positive responses. The athletes found the guided exercise to be the most helpful, but seven athletes were able to successfully utilize this strategy independently two or more times each week. The athletes had the most difficulty implementing the relaxation strategy during the meet situation.

Imagery: Responses were also favorable for the imagery portion of the project, illustrating to the athletes and us that we all have the ability to visualize. The guided exercise was once again the most helpful section. The response to the independent usage was moderate. Visualization requires practice, and the time was limited for implementation, therefore, we assumed that the swimmers did not feel as comfortable using this strategy on their own. We inquired about the type of situation the athletes visualized. Ten respondents visualized their event at race pace. Many also used a combination of visualizing different speeds and particular points of their event as well as the total performance. Seven athletes visualized one or more times each week. Five utilized imagery daily or nearly every day.

Affirmation: The respondents felt that this section was very important. The written exercise to identify low confidence areas appeared to have been very helpful. Affirmation is a very personal tool and, as a result, is very subjective. The Likert scale indicated a positive response overall. However, the athletes felt that setting their own strategies was more helpful than the written exercise we provided. All respondents felt the affirmation exercises had a positive effect outside of swimming. The methods of positive affirmation most commonly used were talking to oneself and signs and notes in visible places. One respondent also commented that "Believing" was an important aspect of affirmation.

Mental Rehearsal and Coping Scripts: Most respondents felt that the guidelines we provided were helpful, although there were three requests for more detailed instructions and possibly samples of tapes and scripts. The responses to questions based on the Likert scale were more widely distributed than those for the other sections. It is our belief that the more moderate positive feedback is due to the lack of time necessary to become comfortable with the tapes.

The athletes concentrated on the areas of imagery most frequently. Affirmation and relaxation were commonly combined with imagery or used alone. One comment identifies an important feature of mental arousal, "And I was nervous, but was 'OK' about it." Arousal is necessary for performance as long as it is under control. Mental Rehearsal and Coping tapes help build the confidence necessary to attain this control.

Nine respondents answered affirmatively when asked whether our method of mental training was effective in helping to achieve their goals. One respondent answered negatively, and one was unsure. One swimmer responded that simply making the script and tape had a strong effect on her concentration level and performance, even though she only listened to the tape two or three times.
We also inquired as to how each respondent felt the program was effective. Relaxation, focus, and positive feelings helped the respondents believe they were capable. The aspects of the program found to be most helpful were the affirmation and relaxation phases. One respondent found the affirmation "extremely helpful." One respondent felt that the troubleshooting session was useless, but the overall response to this was positive.

When we asked if the athletes would recommend the program to another coach or athlete, eight participants responded positively. Comments included the assertion that the athlete must wholeheartedly believe in the method of it to work. Another felt that "even with limited involvement the method works." Five felt the program would be beneficial to sports other than swimming, cross-country and baseball specifically. Other comments included feelings of being rushed throughout the whole process, with which we fully agree. The program should be initiated during the first weeks of the season. Another respondent had difficulty with every aspect of the program and didn't feel it was especially helpful other than making him slightly more relaxed.

Overall, the responses to the program were positive. Very few respondents did not agree that the methods helped to some extent. The comments and open responses were positive and helpful. The comments expressing problems with the athlete or the program were enlightening and were taken into consideration when recommending changes for future use of the program.

(3) The swimmers in the case study above found it difficult to practice the relaxation during the actual swim meet. The four relaxation methods discussed in our text takes hours and weeks to master. How then could any of these methods be utilized by an athlete who must be able to bring on the relaxation response in a matter of minutes or even seconds? Be sure to support your opinion with research in the field.

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