Is phone time impacting athletes’ performance?
Signs of Phone/Gaming Addiction
• Constant phone/gaming use. Staying up late.
• Lazy, anxious, irritable, depressed.
• In their rooms on devices 24/7.
• Won’t spend time with family or friends.
• Going over data each month.
As an Educational Behaviour Consultant, mother of three, and coach of 20 years, I can safely say that phones are changing athletes’ mindsets and behaviours. I have learned from physicians, administrators and teachers in interviews that they want athletes to curb the use. I asked them to elaborate on this statement.
“It is like coaching robots that don’t interact or care to learn anymore about being a better athlete.”
“We can manage coaching with hormones, but not with phones.”
Coaches are seeing athletes show up fatigued, lazy, unmotivated, and confused with no energy. What is collectively observed is the lack of social skills and mental skills that don’t allow athletes to handle any challenges. More kids are dropping out of their sport every year. They simply can’t handle the pressure or feedback as well.
How to Prevent Addiction
1. DELAY, delay, delay.
More parents want to delay – but don’t. Unless parents parent, children won’t put screens down. Kids look at their phones 80 times a day on average. This is training their brain to do it and want that dopamine. We are allowing them to feed this habit.
2. Set boundaries and rules for your home.
Don’t cave – ever. Stick to the rules and create them as a family. Set consequences together, too. This can be fun. No phones in their rooms. Keep alarm clocks in their rooms. Teach them to use their phones and where to use them (See 30 DAY Phone Addiction DETOX Program).
3. Routines are as healthy as love for kids.
Maintain routines as best you can. First, set up homework, chores, playing outside, sports, etc. Create clear expectations so kids do things. Routines for practice and games are important to create. Watch, there will be no more nagging. Well, not as much…
4. Sports, Arts, Music. Sign them up!
Keep children engaged athletically and find them a hobby. Activities are multifactorial in their development. This helps to build socialization skills, resilience, and confidence. They are invaluable.
5. Face time, not FaceTime, for family.
Family dinners, family events with grandparents are a good start. However, playing cards, reading to them, hugging them and affection is more important now than ever in these times of isolation. Create traditions and go on holidays (age dependent, of course).
6. Socialization.
If children don’t bond and form secure attachments to their parents, they can’t develop the remaining psychological steps concretely. If children don’t pass through this stage, they will have gaps in their overall development.
Email mentalgameacademy@gmail.com for TIPS, strategies, podcasts, courses, and videos to set up rules, expectations, and guidelines for children at all ages to balance life with technology. In order for athletes to reach optimum performance, they need to focus on mental skills.
by Larissa Mills for The Mental Game Academy
