How to use this workbook

If you have arrived here from the corresponding e-book, you can skip the Background section and move to the Reminders section. If not, feel free to read the background section below to get a stronger sense of what this workbook is for and how it was designed before moving forward. Read through the reminders section then proceed to Section 1 where you will find a small introduction. After reading the introduction, follow the links to each exercise accordingly. Make sure to download the PDF and print a copy so you can handwrite your responses. Once Section 1 has been completed, move to the "Choose Your Own Adventure Quiz" which will help you determine the rest of your journey with this workbook. Based on your answers to the quiz, move to the corresponding activities within Section 2, then Section 3. Each time you access an activity or exercise, be sure to download the PDF and print the document so you can write on each activity. This is your workbook so you are welcome to do more activities as your recovery or rehabilitation progresses or re-print and do some of the same exercises as you need. Additionally, while you can start with this workbook to learn and begin to practice these activities, all these exercises can be done far past the use of this workbook. I also hope that you recognize it as a starting point and choose to continue to work some of these things into your daily life as an athlete.

Background

Injury is common in the world of sports, and yet even the best athletes in the world often struggle with rehabilitation and returning to competition. Why is that, and what can be done to help them? The combination of sport psychology and cognitive psychology helps to answer these questions. Injury can take a large toll on an athlete’s sense of self and motivation. This is where the framework of the working self, the Self-Memory System, and goal setting can be useful for these athletes. The Self Memory System informs identity by guiding us to think about past experiences and using that to set future goals. When past and present do not line up, goal setting and motivation suffer. The words we use to guide and adjust this process matter. Language can help alter their self-perceptions, and the words we use allow them to seek coherence and find meaning (Pennebaker & Graybeal, 2001). This is a general way to help athletes’ well-being. The purpose of this project is to help recovering athletes better understand this process and work through them in a workbook format. A self-help workbook is a powerful, positive tool for these athletes as long as it is grounded in psychological science. This kind of self-help is called a wise intervention and can be a beneficial tool in giving psychology away to athletes. These athletes often need help re-discovering their focus, confidence, consistency, and motivation to excel in their sport once again. Athletes need to be able to create a personal action plan through goal setting that helps them track and facilitate their own growth. As they work through this goal setting and growth process, it also helps to share their goals with others. In this case, athletes use language and communication to further their social connections with teammates, coaches, trainers, etc., and to help themselves cognitively work through experiences and feelings. An assortment of activities, such as executive function exercises, mindfulness practices, and instructions for effective goal setting, that will be included in the workbook can be used to help athletes set and accomplish their goals, to return to high performance, and increase their overall well-being.