Adrenaline in Athletes

An athlete may experience a rush of adrenaline before an important game. This means the athlete is directing their energy more specifically and properly, and the sped up heart and respiratory rate is advantageous towards him/her during performance. The body sweats more, cooling the muscles and temporarily strengthens them. If an athlete is unable to control the hormonal flow of adrenaline, it can potentially negatively affect the athlete's performance and overall health.

How does the brain of an athlete work to benefit from adrenaline?

Adrenaline works best in athletes participating in extreme sports;

scuba diving
mountain boarding
parasailing
surfing
hand gliding
bobsledding
ice climbing
sky diving
bungee jumping
and much more

A research article posted in 2004 in the journal of Kinesiology found that athletes who are involved in extreme sports scored highest in emotional stability, conscientiousness, and energy (compared to non-risk and non- athletes. Research by Bruce Ogilvie Ph.D. suggested that risk takers push their physical, emotional, and intellectual limits, releasing themselves of the stress they experience in everyday life (work, school, etc.). Athletes involved in both extreme and non-risk sports generally have higher levels of dopamine (a neurotransmitter that helps manage the brain' reward and pleasure centers, while also regulating physical and emotional responses) and/or serotonin (a neurotransmitter regulating mood, sexual desire, sleep, and social behavior). Adrenaline is present in both extreme and non-risk sports and is beneficial to the body's sensory system because of the dopamine and serotonin that is released after and during the sport. In other words, all three of these hormones help the athlete use the 'rush' feeling of adrenaline to perform better.

Initial Question: Can an athlete channel when to use adrenaline to improve their performance?

Final Response:

There is no question that controlling adrenaline is a skill many successful athletes have. It's not so much something you can "channel" as it is something you learn to embrace. Those who struggle or 'choke' during performance generally are dealing with some form of anxiety and should focus on anxious reappraisal. To conclude, an athlete can not exactly choose when to use adrenaline (as it is an involuntary reaction), however, they can train their bodies to use the adrenaline they experience to improve their performance through a positive mental state.

Anxious Reappraisal

Something that can be potentially negative to an athlete is if he/she is not able to take the 'rush' feeling from these hormones and use it to improve their performance. Being able to transform an anxious thought/feeling into excitement is a very helpful skill for athletes called anxious reappraisal.

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