ATHLETES

The Nurturing of Elite Athletes

The Nurturing of Elite Athletes

Introduction

The term "athlete" covers a wide variety of individuals who participate in regular physical activities that range from golf to ultra-marathons. While some athletes need only a minimal amount of physical exercise to perform at peak levels, others may dedicate over 20 hours of exercise per week for their sport. Endurance athletes are among those whose training requirements include many hours of intensive training to attain peak performance levels. Endurance sports require athletes to perform their sport for an extended length of time, often over a long distance (Zhou 2006, p. 988). These sports include distance running, triathlons, cycling, cross-country skiing, and rowing.

Discussion

Optimal physical fitness and the ability to maintain consistent maximum effort for prolonged periods of time requires adequate training and proper nutrition. A challenge to the endurance athlete is consuming enough calories daily to support endurance sports, another challenge is getting adequate rest to allow for recovery following intensive periods of training. An overview study of sport psychiatry suggests that endurance athletes can be at risk for harmful behaviours. Research suggests that genetic factors may predispose the individual to be at risk, while environmental factors (stress, sports, relationships, etc.) facilitate the onset of unhealthy behaviours such as excessive exercise or eating disorders. This suggests the need for a broader conceptualization of the interaction of psychological factors, neurology, environment, and their impact on athletic cognitions and motivations (Zhou 2006, p. 988). Athletes exhibit differences in personality characteristics. The differences are notable among athletes who participate in endurance sports. It has been found that the most desirable of mental health profiles are found among successful athletes. For example, successful athletes have lower scores in depression, anxiety and neuroticism, and have higher scores in attitudes of vigour.

Athletes in endurance sports are highest in novelty seeking and lowest in persistence when compared to athletes in combat sports, individual and team sports. Individuals with novelty seeking traits tend to be impulsive, explorative, fickle, excitable and quick-tempered. Individuals with persistence traits are motivated to try to please others (Yates 2003, p. 251).

Nutrition, Eating Disorders, and Energy Availability

The NCAA (2008) lists nutritional guidelines for elite athletes in its handbook. Emphasis is placed on sufficient carbohydrate intake to support energy for endurance sports. Recommendation for carbohydrate intake is between four and five grams per pound of body weight per day. Caloric intake for endurance athletes is more than 23 calories per pound of body weight per day. This concurs with Eberle's (2007) concern that endurance athletes face the challenge of consuming enough calories to support their training and their event. Some of the challenges faced by these athletes are decreased appetite from rigorous training, difficulty meeting the increased caloric requirements of the body, and inadequate rest due to increased training requirements (Weltzin 2005, p. 186). Allowing the body to bring physical and psychological stress levels down through adequate rest and nutrition cannot be attained without deliberate efforts. The athlete that refuses to reduce stress levels, ...