Terms that appear in articles and exercises – explained without distorting their meaning.
Physical arousal level – from totally calm to fired up.
Arousal describes how activated your cardiovascular system, breathing, and muscles are. For every task, there's an individual zone where performance is at its best. Too little is just as unhelpful as too much.
Attention on the effect of the movement, rather than on the body.
Instead of "elbows up", you think "ball in the short corner". Studies show that an external, task-focused approach reliably supports execution and learning more than an internal focus.
Interpret the same bodily reaction differently.
Reading tension as a sign of readiness instead of danger changes experience and sometimes performance. Reappraisal is not about suppressing feelings and doesn't work on command.
A goal you can influence yourself.
"I run back for every counter-attack" is a process goal. "I score five goals" is an outcome goal. Process goals keep focus on where action is possible.
Systematic mental skills training.
A collective term for structured programmes comprising goal-setting, self-talk, imagery, arousal regulation, and routines. PST is training, not treatment for mental health conditions.
How well a statement is supported by research.
We use four levels: strong, moderate, emerging, insufficient. The level doesn't say whether something will work for you – only how robust the overall research is.
Persistent imbalance between stress and recovery.
A drop in performance, exhaustion, irritability or losing the joy in sport are reasons to take a closer look. They don't prove a specific cause. If issues persist, seek qualified advice – don't just train more.
These contents are knowledge and training offerings from sport psychology. They do not replace psychotherapy, medical treatment, or professional sport psychological support.