MOTIVATION / 003 [CAN LOVING YOUR SPORT TOO MUCH HURT YOU?]

Question
Is passion for your sport always a good thing?

Study
Researcher Robert Vallerand looked back on 30 years of his own research on motivation and passion. His first passion study included more than 500 students, and more than 100 studies around the world followed.

Findings
84% of the students had a passion for at least one activity, spending on average 8.5 hours a week on it. Vallerand found two types. Harmonious passion: you freely choose your sport, it fits with the rest of your life, and you can let go when needed. Obsessive passion: you feel you have to do it, and the sport starts to control you. Harmonious passion was linked to positive feelings, higher life satisfaction and better relationships with teammates. Obsessive passion was linked to negative feelings, especially when you can't train, more anxiety, taking unnecessary risks, chronic injuries and conflict with partners. Both types were linked to lots of practice and high skill levels.

What It Means for Athletes
The question is not how much you love your sport, but whether you control it or it controls you. Training through pain, feeling guilty on a rest day, or not being able to stop are not signs of extra motivation. They can be signs of obsessive passion. Most of this research is based on surveys, so it shows strong links rather than proof of cause.

Try this: on your next rest day, notice how you feel. Relaxed and recharged, or guilty and restless? If it's mostly guilt, plan your rest day as part of your training schedule, and fill it with something else you enjoy.

Also read: PERFECTIONISM / 001, on why high standards help but the fear of falling short does not.

Source
Vallerand, R. J. (2012). From motivation to passion: In search of the motivational processes involved in a meaningful life. Canadian Psychology, 53(1), pp. 42 to 52.

BEHIND THE SCIENCE
Translating sports science into information athletes can actually use.