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Sport psychology is the study of how psychology influences sports, athletic performance, exercise and physical activity. Contemporary sport psychology is a diverse field that can help a range of areas, such as optimising performance, improving motivation, coping with pressure, overcoming injury or enhancing wellbeing of athletes, just to name a few.

Each month Helen Davis, a sport psychology consultant, will explore a different area of sport psychology and how you can relate it to you and your swimming.

This month: Controlling anxiety and coping with pressure – the art of thinking effectively

Open water swimming can be a source of anxiety for any athlete at any level; even the most confident swimmers can experience it. Most open water swimmers will talk about experiencing an array of physical feelings due to anxiety when entering a competition. These often include symptoms such as stomach butterflies, sweaty palms, tense muscles, nausea or restlessness. These physical symptoms are normal and are designed to help us out when responding to a pressure situation. A little dose of anxiety or pre-race nerves can be a good thing; it can sharpen our focus or give us adrenaline for that ‘extra edge’ in competition. Yet there is strong evidence that too much anxiety can impair performance.