The relationship between perfectionistic cognitions and burnout in rugby league

The relationship between perfectionistic cognitions and athlete burnout in junior elite rugby league players.  

Abstract

The aim of this study was to further develop the body of knowledge in relation to the relationship between the frequency of perfectionistic cognitions and athlete burnout and its dimensions, and to expand on the study by Hill and Appleton (2011). It is the intension to further examine if perfectionistic cognition frequency is beneficial in predicting burnout in young athletes. Ninety-five academy and reserve level rugby league players from 3 English Super League clubs were recruited for the study. A number of the participants had first team playing experience at their respective clubs and also international experience. The sample group were all male- aged 16-20 (Mean=17.914. SD= ±1.21). The participants had played rugby league between 1 and 15 years (Mean=9.1868. SD= ±2.92) and had been at their respective clubs between 0 and 11 years (Mean=3.037. SD= ±2.20). On a 9-point Likert scale (1= not at all important, 9= extremely important) the players reported their perceived importance of rugby in their life, when compared to other activities, as rating between 4 and 9 (Mean=8.3467. SD= ±0.87). The participants completed the multi-section questionnaire that included measures of symptoms related to athlete burnout perfectionistic cognitions prior to their training session. The findings of the study suggest that dimensions of burnout can have a significant relationship with perfectionistic cognitions. Perfectionistic cognitions should therefore be considered when assessing burnout in young athletes, as well as considering interventions that are aimed at reducing perfectionism related burnout. 

This was the study I did for my undergraduate dissertation. Having experience burnout myself and worked with a number of young elite rugby league players I feel it is important for clubs to recognise the danger of player burnout and the effects it can have. Personally I think that its important for conditioning coaches to have a good knowledge of burnout and its symptoms, to recognise when a player may be suffering from burnout or showing signs of perfectionistic cognitions so that something can be done to prevent the detrimental effects of these serious issues.

Any questions on burnout and perfectionistic cognitions and just about the study please feel free to drop me a question on Twitter @JM_Conditioning.

 

Supplement review - BSN NO-Xplode 2.0

Having tried BSN NO-Xplode 2.0 I wanted to give my review of the product.

What does it do?

Muscular Endurance, Strength and Resistance to Muscular Fatigue

Muscle Growth

Mental Alertness and Focus

Nitric Oxide Production, Muscle Fullness, Pumps and Vascularity

Anaerobic Working Capacity of Muscle Tissue

Oxygen Delivery to Muscle Tissue

Fat-Burning

Promotion of Electrolyte and Fluid Balance


What's in it? 

Calories: 25

Total Carbohydrate: 6 g
Sugars: 0 g

Vitamin B6 (As Pyridoxine HCL): 20 mg

Folate (Folic Acid): 300 mcg

Vitamin B12 (As Cyanocobalamin): 120 mcg

Calcium: 75 mg

Phosphorus: 200 mg

Magnesium: 60 mg

Sodium: 300 mg

Potassium: 75 mg

N.O.-Xplode's PROPRIETARY BLEND: 19.6 g

Advanced Strength & Performance Matrix: Modified Glucose Polymers (Maltodextrin), Beta-Alanine (CarnoSyn®), Di-Creatine-Malic Acid Interfusion, Betaine HCL, Sodium Bicarbonate, Creatine-Sodium Phosphate Matrix, Creatinol-O-Phosphate-Malic Acid Interfusion, Glycocyamine, Creatine Ethyl Ester HCL, Guanidino Propionic Acid, Cinnamon Extract (Bark) (Cinnulin PF®), Ketoisocaproate Potassium, Creatine-Alpha-Aminobutyric Acid Matrix (Creatine AAB™)

Ener-Tropic Xplosion: L-Tyrosine, Taurine, Glucuronolactone, Methylxanthine (Caffeine), L-Tyrosine-Alpha Ketoglutaric Acid, MCT's (Medium Chain Triglycerides), Lesser Periwinkle (95% Vinpocetine, 98% Vincamine, 98% Vinburnine [Whole Plant])

N.O. Meta-Fusion: L-Arginine-Alpha Ketoglutaric Acid, L-Citrulline-Malic Acid Interfusion, L-Citrulline-Alpha Ketoglutaric Acid, L-Histidine-Alpha Ketoglutaric Acid, NAD (Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide), Gynostemma (90% Gypenosides) (Leaves & Stem)

Phospho-Electrolyte Composite: Di-Calcium Phosphate, Di-Potassium Phosphate, Di-Sodium Phosphate

Glycerol Polymer Complex: Potassium Glycerophosphate, Magnesium Glycerophosphate, Glycerol Stearate

Right so after all that jargon it basically comes down to; theres lots of caffeine in it, plenty of vitamins and the lovely Beta-Alanine. Contrary to what it says on the tin it doesn't help grow muscle (proteins and amino acids do that job) and it doesn't exactly burn fat. You can train harder for longer and that causes those two changes to happen.

It does the usual jobs you expect from a pre work out and it does that well. Personally I definitely felt more switched on and focused, it increased my endurance and reduced the effect of on set muscle fatigue. I can say I felt a good pump from this pre workout and noticed increased vascularity. You can really feel the Beta-Alanine kick in which I liked.

I got my tub for £34.75 which I think is a good price for a 50 serving tub from Dolphin Fitness. Direct Link - http://www.dolphinfitness.co.uk/en/bsn-no-xplode-2-advanced-strength-1130g/27582

I got the lemonade flavour and it tastes pretty good, but if the blue raspberry Amino-X is anything to go by I'd 100% get that flavour next time.

I'd give this product an 8/10

It did what I wanted to use it for and I can say the performance of the product was very good and solid. I wasn't quite sure about the powder:water ratio on the guide, I tended to use a lot less water personally. Having not had that many pre workout supplements in my time I cant really give a well rounded judgement of this product but I think it sets the bar pretty high for many other pre workouts just due to how effective it was.

If you want to splash out a bit more money I'd always suggest Grenade 50. calibre. I had a sample pack of it once and it blew my face off!

Supplement review - BSN Amino-X

I tried BSN Amino-X for the first time last month and wanted to give you guys a review of the product.

So what does it do?

Protein Synthesis / Anabolism

Glycogen Resynthesis

Insulin Sensitivity

Anti-Catabolism / Muscle Sparing

Recovery from Training Sessions

Muscular Endurance

Resistance to Muscular Fatigue

What's in it?

Carbohydrates: less than 1 g

Vitamin D (as Cholecalciferol): 500 IU

Sodium: 160 mg

Anabolic Amino Acid Interfusion: 10 g

[L-Leucine (Micronized), L-Valine (Micronized), L-Isoleucine (Micronized)], L-Alanine, Taurine (Micronized), L-Citrulline (Micronized)

Efforsorb EnDura Composite: 2 g

Citric Acid, Malic Acid, Sodium Bicarbonate and Cholecalciferol

Main features of the product:

BCAA's (Branched-chain amino acids)

So in Amino-X you have the three main BCAA's: leucine, isoleucine and valine. These beauties help support muscle recovery and offset muscle break down. They also stimulate protein synthesis in the muscles so you're getting the most out of your protein intake.

EAA's (Essential amino acids)

Amino-X also delivers essential amino acids L-Taurine, L-Citrulline and L-Alanine. L-citrulline promotes the production of nitric oxide. L-taurine promotes the uptake of nutrients into the muscle cells. L-alanine is known to convert to pyruvate in the body which may help aid in the production of glucose during intense training.

I found Amino-X to be very effective when taken before or after training sessions. It did a great job at aiding muscle recovery so I could perform to the best of my ability in the next session. It reduced fatigue during sessions so I was able to maintain high quality training for much longer. The main benefit I found was its ability to increase protein synthesis so I really found myself packing on some muscle mass thanks to those all important BCAA's.

Value for money was very good, I bought the 435g tub for £19.95 from Dolphin Fitness.

Direct link - http://www.dolphinfitness.co.uk/en/bsn-amino-x-435g/27590 

I tried Blue Raz flavour and really liked it. To me it tasted a bit like bubble gum.

Overall I would give this product a 9/10.

It ticked all the boxes for me and did exactly what it said on the tin. The main feature being the ability to stimulate protein synthesis but remember its important to be getting an adequate amount of protein intake for it to have its full effect. I'll definitely be getting BSN Amino-X in the future.

Rotator Cuff

The importance of training the rotator cuff muscles is something that is generally overlooked. This small group of muscles are very important to a wide range of exercises as they stabilise the shoulder, and without stabilisation of the shoulder, technique will pretty much go out of the window and theres a good chance you'll get hurt. Let me just say from personal experience that shoulder injuries suck and stop you from doing almost everything! So lets be smart about how we train and do everything we can to prevent a shoulder injuries from occurring.

Rotator exercises only require a small weight to isolate the correct muscles otherwise you start using your deltoid to perform the movement.

- 90 degree angle at the elbow.

- Set the shoulder.

- Arm parallel with the floor.

- Rotate the shoulder while keeping 90 degree angle at the elbow.

- Ensure the back of the arm stays parallel with the floor.

Alternatively the exercise can be performed on a cable machine.

- Set the shoulder.

- 90 degree angle at the elbow.

- Keep elbow tight to the body.

- Watch out for morons in the mirror flexing their guns.

- Keep 90 degree angle at the elbow.

- Keep elbow close the the body.

- Rotate at the shoulder

- Bring arm across the body.

There are other alternatives to working your rotator cuff, mainly the positioning of the resistance. As long as there is good rotation at the shoulder, it is kept stable and the resistance is low then you're on the right track to building up the muscles and reducing the risk of injury.

One-leg SLDL

This is an exercise I often use in my own training and find it very effective. The One-leg SLDL targets the hamstrings, glutes and is great for balance and stability. This exercise is also fantastic for proprioceptive work at the ankle. It is good for a wide range of sports but I do highly recommend it for ice hockey players to incorporate into their training. Due to the exercise not requiring high loads it reduces the risk of injuries, particularly to the back. The One-leg SLDL can be used as a dynamic warm up exercise too.

So what are the key points to the One-leg SLDL?

- Keep good posture ensuring the back is flat and shoulders are engaged.
- Hold dumbbell in one hand and keep the opposite foot planted.
- Lean forward causing hip flexion.
- Elevate none planted foot while keeping leg straight and point toes to the floor.
- Keep hips square.
- Lean until torso and extended leg are parallel with the floor.

Perform 5 - 12 reps on each leg depending on training level. This exercise is very effective when incorporated into a super set.

So there you have it, the One-leg SLDL! Top exercise for hamstrings, glutes and stability. Great for a wide variety of sports and highly recommended for ice hockey.

Medicine ball training

The medicine ball is a great functional training tool for upper and lower body power as well as rotational power of the torso. As we know rotational power is a a key aspect to performance in many sports such as; baseball, ice hockey, rugby and golf.

The key to medicine ball training is velocity so therefore your main target when doing medicine ball training should be speed. Selecting the appropriate weight of the medicine ball is important so you get the most from your training. If you are struggling to throw the ball then the chances are its too heavy so you need to reduce the weight. Reduce the weight so that you can increase the speed at which you perform the exercise and you will benefit from this and develop your rotational power.

Some examples of rotational power training with a medicine ball are:

- Front twist throw
- Alternating front twist throw
- Side throw
- Side throw with step
- Back twist throw
- Single leg front twist throw

Start with the basic exercises before progressing onto more complex movements. Also build up the effort over a 3 week training period so by the end you are performing 100% efforts. This will not only develop your rotational power if performed correctly but also reduce the risk of injury in training and competition.

HELP the less technically fortunate

I hate to see poor technique being used in the gym. Dead lifts with arched backs, cleans that are predominantly lifted with arms, bicep curls that don't involve full extension at the elbow, all of which as a gym going make my skin crawl, but as a conditioning coach fill me with an obligation to correct these woeful techniques. I don't feel big headed when I say "Hey buddy you might want to try and do A, B and C or you're going to hurt yourself and you'll benefit more from that exercise", and you shouldn't either! If you see someone who looks like their going to snap their back in half then do the right thing and give them some advise. More often than not people are willing to take all the good advise they can get and this is especially true for people who are new to the gym. 

I also often see instances when a couple of guys coming to the gym together, both will be pretty new to lifting but one of the two will have his own set of dumbbells he got for Christmas and will think he's the master of techniques because he saw a video on youtube or something on a popular mens fitness magazine's website. The worrying thing about this is that that guy's own technique is incorrect and he's giving this poor soul advise on how to lift. In this situation I insist that if you have any sympathy for your fellow human-being then you don your Super Man cape and jump in to the rescue and attempt to help educate both the offender and poor victim. 

Some of the key points to look out for:

- Bent backs
- Movements that don't actually have any extension at the joint which should be extended
- Feet agonisingly close together
- Swinging of weights
- Rotator cuff exercises that are clearly working anterior deltoid. 

So remember, the gym is a place of learning as well as exercising! The majority of people are willing to take advise. 

Designing your training programme

When designing your training programme it is important to analyse the demands of your sport. Yes this may seem simple but its true and important when designing an effective training strategy. You need to consider what type of sport you take part in. Is performance based on endurance or power? The main fitness component of your sport creates the platform for your training programme. Who are the top performers in your sport and what qualities do they share? In terms of team sports the most successful players are generally the most powerful and who can efficiently apply that power to movement. For example; in ice hockey Alexander Ovechkin is undoubtedly one of the top performers. Ovechkin has tremendous power which he is very efficiently able to apply to movements such as skating, shooting and hitting. 

So in this case the training programme for an ice hockey player it should focus on power and speed as that is the most important fitness component for performance. If your sport is sprint orientated like ice hockey and players are stopping and starting frequently while performing high intensity efforts you need to think about who long the players perform these bouts of exercise for and over what time scale, i.e. how long does the game last? This is important because the training programme needs to mirror the energy systems used during competition.

The training programme needs to follow simple but effective principles. We must learn to walk before we can run and sprint. This is the same when designing a training programme. It is vital to master the basic movements before learning complex movements. Something as simple as a body weight squat must be performed correctly before progressing. Only once the basic movement patterns are mastered should players begin to perform complex exercises. I believe that it is important for even the most experienced trainers to go back to basics a number of times during a training programme. Players may be performing very complex exercises but it is possible to lose mastery of those basic movement patterns that form the base of complex movements. In my opinion basic movement patterns are great to apply during de-load phases of a training programme so athletes don't lose their muscle memory of those basic movement patterns.

Image: http://www.russianmachineneverbreaks.com/tag/knubles-knights/ (Photo credit: Mitchell Layton)