Mental toughness and overtraining behaviours

The idea of mental toughness (MT) is bewitching. The construct is consistently associated with success and being able to overcome great difficulties while demonstrating dogged perseverance regardless of adversity (Gucciardi, Gordon, & Dimmock, 2008; Jones, Hanton, & Connaughton, 2002). It is no wonder sport psychology researchers strive to understand how to develop and display MT. The increase in published research in this topic attests to the popularity of becoming mentally tough. A clear understanding of MT, what it does and does not enable athletes to do, however, has not yet arrived. The purpose of this thesis was to gain an understanding of MT, with specific attention paid to the relationship with stress/recovery imbalance (SRI)