What is Motivation?
Motivation is an internal process. Whether we define it as a drive or a need, motivation is a condition inside us that desires a change, either in the self or the environment. When we tap into this well of energy, motivation provides the person with the drive and direction needed to engage with the environment in an adaptive, open-ended, and problem-solving sort of way (Reeve, 2018).
While motivation is more complex in general it can be divided into 2 categories. Internal and external. Both are needed and should be combined however internal is a much stronger motivator and more robust then external factors.
Currently Struggling with Motivation due to Covid-19?
As an athlete you might fall into one of the following 4 categories:
- Season ended early
- Not sure if the season will continue. If yes when will it continue
- Not sure when your season will start
- Olympic as well as countries taking part in the UEFA European Championship as both have been postponed by a year
No matter which of the above you are in, you might be experiencing a decrease in motivation. These tips will help get you through it.
- Focus on the process, not the outcome. What skill sets can you STILL do even during lockdown? For example, if you are a runner you can still do certain strength work and endurance work at home. Link this to changing your goals a bit. Adjust your long-term goals to the new timeframe, set short term goals (process goals).
- Focus on your weaknesses. This is a great opportunity to focus on areas that you may have neglected or not thought to be as IMPORTANT. A swimmer I know mentioned that when he was injured, he was not allowed to swim. But it did not mean he couldn’t go into the water. He, therefore, focused on improving his sculling. Something he would never have worked on before. But he learned it was massively important and post injured, he kept it in his training plan.
- This is a great time to do a lot of imagery/visualization training. Work on making the experience as real as possible by using as many of your senses as you can. Change the view between internal (as if you are performing the skills) and external (as if you are watching yourself on TV). Slow it down, rewind it, zoom in, zoom out. Making the changes that you saw.
- Work on other body parts that might be neglected as they are not that important. For example, I don’t have much of an upper-body strength. I can barely do 2 push-ups so that is something I am working on. This might be a time to add more yoga to your training to become more flexible. Discuss this with your coach, strength and conditioning coach or physiotherapist maybe they have some tips on what you could/should focus on.
- Use the time to review game footage. Have a closer look at your performance, what can you work? Where are your weaknesses and your strengths? Discuss this with your coach. Set up some goals on what you can do at home to work on that.
- Take time for yourself, do some reflection, some “me-time.” During the season you might neglect yourself. Spend 10-30mins a day meditating if that is something that works for you. Or keeping a journal.
- Learn something new to get some balance into your life.
- Stick to your routine. It is important to have a schedule/routine during this time. So you do not get too lazy or put it off for another day because that day never seems to come. WRITE It DOWN so you know when you are doing what. Schedule one day in the week where you make the plan for the next 7 days.
- With your routine also make sure you are getting good quality sleep and eating healthy. As both lack of sleep and poor nutrition can impact your motivation level.
- Know your why!! Why are you doing this? Why is it important to you? This is where you explore the passion you have for your sport and what it really means to you. Focusing on the internal reasons.
- This is a great time to work on your mental game. Don’t leave it up to chance. At the top level, you all have the same skill levels, so it comes down to your mental game, your attitude, your mindset. What are some of the key characteristics that a world-class athlete has? Where do you rank on those? What could you improve? Get help and work with a sports psychologist or Mental Skills coach to help improve your mental game. To get the last 1% that you might be missing.