The impact of mindfulness interventions on elite athletes' levels of recovery : a pilot study

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of two types of psychological interventions on the cognitive performances and recovery levels of elite athletes. In a world that has always lived by the “I work while you sleep” mentality (Bellezza et al., 2017), it is becoming increasingly important to investigate recovery and how to help athletes cope with the mental and physical demands that come with competition (Bahnert et al., 2013). Additionally, there has been very little research on the psychological side of recovery and what can be done to increase or aid an athlete’s recovery aside from physical rest. This project aimed to address these gaps in the literature by testing the effects of two mindfulness-based interventions on athletes’ perceived recovery and raw recovery scores gathered through recovery-focused technology. The intervention spanned over five weeks during Spring of 2022 and consisted of five professional baseball players. Each individual was randomly allocated to one of two groups: one participant was in the traditional mindfulness group while four participants were allocated to the mindfulness-based technology group. This unequal sample size was due to the exclusion of participants. The traditional mindfulness intervention included face to face meetings with a certified consultant while the mindfulness-based technology included using the Bodysound technology that is comprised of vibrations, brainwave training, and biofeedback. Both groups participated in one to three- 15 minute sessions per week for five weeks. Recovery, resting heart rate, and heart rate variability were measured via Whoop straps, while cognitive functioning was assessed via the NIH Toolbox. Participants attended an average of 1.6 sessions a week (SD = 0.71). The participant in the mindfulness group attended a total of 9 sessions, with an average of 1.8 sessions a week. The four participants in the Bodysound group attended an average of 1.6 sessions a week (SD = 0.57), with an average total of 7.8 sessions. Results suggest that engaging in mindfulness can increase cognitive functioning (pre: M = 68, SD = 0 vs post: M = 94, SD = 0) and recovery (pre: M =60, SD = 0 vs post: M = 95, SD = 0) while engaging in Bodysound can keep the two (cognitive functioning and recovery) relatively stable (CF pre: M = 60, SD = 31.36 vs post: M = 65.75, SD = 22.56; recovery pre: M = 65.25, SD = 9.78 vs post: M = 72.75, SD = 8.70). Results from this study can provide researchers and mental performance consultants with ideas regarding factors that might affect athletes’ needs when it comes to recovery, and how recovery might be enhanced through the application of specific sport psychology strategies. This pilot study creates the potential for the topic of psychological recovery in athletes to gain traction within the sport psychology world, possibly leading to the discovery of what strategies might be the most helpful for athletes to reach a maximized level of recoveryThesis (M.S.