Abstract
The relationship between athletic injury and stress is dependent on an individual's ability to use coping resources to deal with stressful events. A positive association between stress and sport-related injury has been shown for many sports including gymnastics. PURPOSE To examine the effects of a longitudinal stress management program on injury and stress levels in competitive gymnasts. METHODS Twenty competitive gymnasts were divided equally into two groups. Gymnasts in the stress management group (age 16.2 ± 3.6 y, mean ±SD) took part in 12 × 1-h stress management sessions over 24 weeks. The control group (12.6 ± 1.8 y) took part in a similar placebo program consisting of anthropometric measurements and lectures on nutrition. All subjects completed the Life Experiences Survey (LES) and the Athletic Experiences Survey (AES) at baseline, 3 months (half way through the intervention), 6, months (end of the intervention), and 9 months (3 months after completion of the intervention). Injury data were collected prospectively by weekly self-report over the 9-month study period. Repeated measures ANCOV As with age and relevant baseline outcome scores entered as covariates were employed to assess the effects of the interventions on each of the two LES and AES outcomes and, additionally, the number of training hours missed/modified due to injury. RESULTS The groups differed substantially in age but not in gender, gymnastic experience, level of gymnastic proficiency, highest level of competition, or baseline positive and negative stress scores on the LES and AES. Gymnasts in the placebo group altered their training due to injury by an average of 7.5 hours over the study, compared with 4.3 hours for the stress management group (p = .14). CONCLUSION Despite only a small impact of injury in these athletes, there is good indication of the beneficial effects of the intervention. Further research with larger sample sizes and in sports where injury has a greater impact is indicated. Supported by Auckland University of Technology Grant 00/134.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
