Sport and exercise psychology
is a subtopic of psychology that focuses on understanding why people participate in sports and exercise, including motives and barriers to participation.
Extrinsic motivation
happens when someone does something for rewards or recognition.
Intrinsic motivation
describes the motivation to do something that comes from within an individual; it is strongly related to long-term adherence.
Social physique anxiety
refers to people feeling anxious about how others perceive their bodies and can be a barrier to exercise participation. Helping clients find activities that reduce this type of anxiety will help create a comfortable exercise environment.
Ambivalence to exercise
occurs when someone has mixed feelings about exercise and likely sees pros and cons to participation.
Social support consists of
a source (who or what provides it) and a type (instrumental, emotional, informational, and companionship), and clients will have different needs and expectations of social support.
Instrumental support
includes the tangible things that assist people with the ability to exercise, such as providing transportation to a fitness facility, assisting with childcare, or packing someone's gym bag.
Emotional support
comes from being caring, empathetic, and concerned about someone's experience with exercise.
Informational support
support is one of the main reasons why someone will seek out a fitness professional; it includes providing accurate and current information about fitness andexercise.
stages of change
precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance.
Self-efficacy
One's belief that they can complete a task, goal, or performance; also known as self-confidence.
Self-monitoring
Observing, measuring, and evaluating one's own behavior, often in the form of a diary or log.
Decisional balance
Reflects the clients' weighing of the pros and cons of changing.
Amotivation
Describes when someone is not motivated to engage in an activity or behavior.
self esteem
The way someone evaluates their own self-worth physically, emotionally, and socially.
body image
The way someone views their physical self or visualizes their body.
sleep apea
A sleep disorder in which a person's breathing repeatedly stops and starts, which disrupts the body's natural sleep cycle.
autonomy
Acting in accordance with how one wants to behave.
third space
A communal space, separate from home or work, where the client experiences their own sense of identity and relationship to others.
behavior change techniques (BCTs).
Client interventions that are used to change some determinant of behavior.
self-determination theory
A broad theoretical framework for the study of human motivation.
Autonomous motivation
When motives for exercise relate to valuing the outcome, when exercise is consistent with the client's identity, or when the client enjoys exercise.
Affective judgment
Referring to expected pleasure or enjoyment.
Collecting summaries
Short sentences that continue the client's thoughts and add momentum to the conversation.
Linking summaries
Summaries that tie together information the client has presented, perhaps even from previous sessions.
Transitional summaries
Summaries used to wrap up a session or announce a shift in focus.
Motivational interviewing
Client-centered, directive method for enhancing intrinsic motivation to change by exploring and resolving ambivalence.
Self-discrepancy
An internal conflict that occurs when an individual compares their actual self with their ideal self.
Sustain talk
Talk that represents and predicts movement away from change.
change talk
Talk that reflects movement of the person toward behavior change.
Implementation intentions
A behavior change technique that links a goal-directed response to situational cues by specifying when, where, and how to act.
Coping plans
A behavior change technique that involves anticipating barriers to goal action and proactively preparing strategies that prioritize intentional behavior over counterproductive habitual responses.
Reverse listing
Replacing negative statements with positive statements.
stopping
The act of saying "stop" out loud to undesired statements.
Cognitive fusion
When people believe the exact content of their own thoughts.
Imagery
The process created to produce internalized experiences
Appearance imagery
When a person imagines appearance or healthrelated outcomes.
Energy imagery
When a person creates mental images that increase energy and/or relieve stress.
Technique imagery
When individuals mentally rehearse their technique.
Psyching up
The process to get oneself into a state of psychological readiness for performance.
attitude
The degree to which a person has a favorable or unfavorable evaluation of a behavior