You may be more likely to experience sports performance anxiety if you already have an anxiety disorder. But other causes include fear of failure, expectations from parents or peers, and more. You can, however, overcome it.
Sports performance anxiety, also called sports anxiety or competitive anxiety, is common. Estimates suggest anywhere from
It involves experiencing signs of anxiety in competitive or sports-related settings.
You can take steps to manage and even prevent sports anxiety. Knowing why it happens and how you can overcome it can help make a difference, so you can get your head back where you want it — in the game.
Experts have come up with a couple of theories around why sports performance anxiety may happen.
Yerkes-Dodson law
The Yerkes-Dodson law, first suggested in
Your performance may be at its worst if your arousal levels are too low or too high. When your arousal is at an optimal level, your performance should peak.
- Low arousal: This means you find the sport boring, so you might not put forth your full effort.
- Optimal arousal: This means you feel engaged enough in the sport to push yourself a bit harder than usual.
- High arousal: This means the sport feels so stressful that you may panic or freeze as a result. You might experience sports anxiety in this situation.
The Yerkes-Dodson law applies to any performance-based task, not only sport models.
Keep in mind that everyone has a different idea of stress. A match your teammate finds boring could feel overwhelming for you.
Smith and Smoll model
The
According to this model, multiple dimensions of anxiety feed into one another:
- The mental element: You may anticipate how tough your upcoming match will be and wonder whether you can win. You could also start worrying about the consequences of losing.
- The physical symptoms: As you become more anxious, your body’s fight-or-flight response might kick in. This response may lead to physical symptoms like sweating and shaking.
- The in-the-moment impact: Physical and mental anxiety symptoms could easily distract you from the game and affect your ability to play. As your performance declines, you may feel increasingly worried. Anxiety about losing, then, may become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The signs of anxiety can be organized into mental and physical categories. You may experience these symptoms before or during a sporting event that you’re participating in.
Physical signs of sports anxiety
Common physical signs of anxiety that may occur in sports settings include:
- tremors or restlessness
- racing heart
- hyperventilation
- muscle tension or head pain
- frequent trips to the bathroom
Mental signs of sports anxiety
Common mental signs of anxiety that you may experience if you play sports include:
- intense fear of failure
- disrupted focus
- overthinking or forgetting how to do things that come naturally to you
- doubt that you can win or in your abilities
What sports anxiety may lead to
- Self-sabotage: You may unconsciously set yourself up to fail. Self-sabotage provides an “excuse” for a bad performance, so you don’t lose face. A lack of preparation can also worsen your anxiety.
- Lashing out: Sometimes people express their worries through anger, shouting at teammates, or getting physical with opponents. According to a 2019 report, this is especially likely if your coach yells at you a lot.
- Hindered performance: If you feel distracted and discouraged, chances are you won’t bring your A-game to the competition.
Sports anxiety may affect certain populations more than others. You might have a higher chance of experiencing other types of anxiety if you already live with an anxiety disorder.
Other potential risk factors include:
- Being a competitive athlete: If doing well at sports makes up a big part of your identity, then a loss could be a large blow to your self-esteem. The outcome of a game may matter more to you than to someone who plays for fun.
- Age: A 2018 review of 59 studies found adolescent competitors may be more likely to have sports anxiety than adults. They also tend to experience physical symptoms more often.
- Experience level: Someone attending their first competition may have a higher chance of experiencing sports anxiety than a longtime competitor. The level of competition, on the other hand, may not impact performance. In other words, junior varsity players may be just as likely to experience sports anxiety as college players.
- Gender: A 2019 review found that girls and women tend to
report sports anxiety more frequently, though experts aren’t entirely sure why.
Even if you don’t identify with any of these traits, you can still experience sports performance anxiety. Certain factors may increase the risk for anyone:
- An important game: Big games may yield big rewards. This can create a lot of pressure.
- Social expectations: If a whole stadium is watching you play, it might be easy to feel like a single game can make or break your reputation.
- Parents: In child sports, parents may contribute to anxiety.It can feel mortifying to witness your parent yelling at you or the referee every time the opposing team scores. Even if your parent behaves well in public, you may worry about them criticizing your performance in private.
- Past failure: Past mistakes may loom in your head. You might feel obligated to try to redeem yourself with a better performance this time around.
- Solo competition: If you compete by yourself, you may feel a heavier burden or desire to win.
You can take a few different steps to navigate sports anxiety, both in the moment and ahead of the event.
Positive self-talk
Self-talk is exactly what it sounds like: a conversation you have with yourself.
You can consciously stop doomed thoughts and replace them with more encouraging messages, such as “Let’s do what I practiced,” or “I can play a great game and win this.”
A 2019 study on 117 junior athletes found that self-talk may help athletes in a wide variety of sports. Athletes who practiced positive self-talk tended to notice:
- more self-confidence
- fewer physical anxiety symptoms
- improved athletic performance
Music
If you feel anxious before a big match, consider listening to some calming tunes. Music may help reduce anxiety for athletes and nonathletes alike.
Research on exactly which genres of music might be most beneficial for helping to calm anxiety is more limited. For now, you might choose to stick with your favorite beats.
Meditation
Research suggests mindfulness meditation may help decrease sports anxiety.
A moment of quiet or reflection before a big competition might be what distinguishes an “OK” game from a “great” game for you.
To give it a try:
- Grab any nearby object.
- Focus your entire mind on that object. Examine the color, texture, and smell.
- Keep your attention on that object alone. This might prove more challenging than it sounds, since anxious minds can easily wander.
- If you catch your thoughts drifting, gently shift your thoughts back to the object.
- Assess how you feel after 5 to 10 minutes of this exercise.
When your mind tries to jump ahead into an anxious future, this approach can help reset your focus and return your mind to a calm present.
To put it another way: Where worries once flooded your mind, now there is only one object of your choosing.
Don’t forget about your physical needs
While feeling hungry and thirsty may not directly trigger anxiety, your mind and body wellness are connected.
Staying hydrated and eating nutritious meals and snacks before or during physical activity can go a long way toward helping you feel at your emotional and physical best.
Professional support
It’s natural if you feel anxious every now and then before a competition, but frequent and intense sports anxiety may have a negative impact on your mental health without treatment.
It’s time to consider professional support if:
- You begin to have panic attacks, which can involve extreme symptoms like muscle weakness and chest pain.
- Your heart rate stays high even during rest.
- You start noticing sudden, frequent changes in mood.
- You find yourself wishing you would get seriously injured or sick so you don’t have to play anymore.
Remember, therapy is confidential, so you don’t have to tell your coach or teammates about getting support unless you want to.
Many therapists offer specialized support in sports psychology, so support is out there, but you might have to do a little digging first. Get started with:
Sports performance anxiety is common among elite and amateur athletes. If your emotions run high enough, your performance may take a hit.
It can help to try the relaxation techniques outlined above if you’re worried or anxious about making a major mistake during a game.
But if your anxiety doesn’t improve and begins to affect your performance, consider speaking with a trained therapist who can offer more personalized guidance and coping support.
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Emily Swaim is a freelance health writer and editor who specializes in psychology. She has a BA in English from Kenyon College and an MFA in writing from California College of the Arts. In 2021, she received her Board of Editors in Life Sciences (BELS) certification. You can find more of her work on GoodTherapy, Verywell, Investopedia, Vox, and Insider. Find her on Twitter and LinkedIn.