WELLNESS WORKBOOK IRedition
Greetings fromWellness!
The Wellness team at the NFLPA is here to ensure that you have the resources to maximize your performance on and off the field. While our primary goal is to provide you with the tools to keep you healthy, we’ve also got you covered when you’re injured.
The reason you’re receiving this outreach is because of your status on IR. We hope this workbook can help make the best of your time away from the game. Inside you will find information and activities designed as an aid for establishing your “mental weight room” learning about the impact that your time on IR can have on you emotionally and socially This can change how you think, feel, and act. While this is completely normal, it is important to make sure you are managing it productively. Focus your energy only on what’s in your control, and make your self-care and recovery your top priority.
We wish you a smooth and speedy recovery.
DIRECTIONS
Wheel of Emotions
The feelings wheel created by Dr. Gloria Wilcox, is a visual that can help us put words to our emotions experienced and awareness to what we are experiencing.
Throughout the workbook, the warm up and cool downs will include a feeling check in and check out. The feelings wheel graphic will help you put words to emotions experienced throughout your time on IR. The core emotions are at the center of the circle. Moving outward, you can identify more specific emotions within the core. Use this as a guide when identifying feelings for the day and throughout the week.
Goal Setting
WARM UP FEELINGS AND THOUGHTS CHECK-IN
WHAT ARE YOUR CURRENT STRESSORS?
“SET YOUR GOALS HIGH AND DON’T STOP TIL YOU GET THERE.” -BO JACKSON, MULTISPORT ATHLETE
TYPES OF GOALS:
Long-term goals: goals for the future (you determine how far into future)
Short-term goals: happen in shorter time frame
Outcome goals: goals related to desired result. Reaching this goal is not entirely within your control
Performance goals: refers to your performance in relation to previous performance. These types of goals are under your control. i.e.: wanting to improve exercise intensity from 40% to 50%.
Process goals: how you perform a specific skill; usually focus is on practice or training
WORKOUT
SET SMAART GOALS
S PECIFIC, M EASURABLE, A GGRESSIVE YET, A CHIEVABLE, R ELEVANT, T IMELY
MY LONG-TERM GOALS ARE:
MY SHORT-TERM GOALS ARE/WHAT IS NEEDED TO ACHIEVE LONG-TERM GOALS:
DAILY GOALS/PROCESS (STEPS NEEDED TO ACHIEVE SHORT-TERM GOALS):
COOL DOWN FEELINGS CHECK-OUT
LIST 3 THINGS YOU'RE GRATEFUL FOR. WHAT CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT YOURSELF THIS WEEK?
Gratitude
Gratitude is something we tend to forget in our busy lives. Practicing gratitude allows your brain to feel more positive emotions, reduces aggression, improves mental strength, and improves physical health. Challenge yourself to incorporate gratitude into your reflection process and notice what happens.
WARM UP WORK OUT COOL DOWN CHECK IN WITH FEELINGS AND THOUGHTS
EXERCISE IN GRATITUDE
AM I FEELING TODAY? WHAT IS MY CURRENT STRESSOR? I AM GRATEFUL FOR MY RELATIONSHIPS (FAM, FRIEND, ETC.) BECAUSE I AM GRATEFUL FOR WHO I’VE BECOME BECAUSE
3 MORE THINGS YOU'RE GRATEFUL FOR
FEELINGS CHECK-OUT
CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT YOURSELF THIS WEEK? REFLECT ON WHAT YOU ARE GRATEFUL FOR DAILY
TAKE A Use this page to capture any thoughts or general notes thus far .
Visualize a
healthy you
WARM UP
Imagery & visualization can help you accomplish your goals whether you are working back from an injury or trying to improve performance on the field. It’s important because we can use these skills to improve on tasks we may feel anxious about, and raise our confidence.
HOW AM I FEELING TODAY? WHAT IS MY CURRENT STRESSOR?
WORK
OUT CHECK IN WITH FEELINGS AND THOUGHTS
"DREAMING MEANS 'REHEARSING' WHAT YOU SEE, PLAYING IT OVER AND OVER IN YOUR MIND UNTIL IT BECOMES AS REAL TO YOU AS YOUR LIFE RIGHT NOW"
-EMMITT SMITH, NFL HALL OF FAMER
THINK ABOUT A GOAL YOU HAVE FOR YOURSELF. HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO PERFORM, AND WHAT DOES THE OUTCOME LOOK LIKE? LIST THEM BELOW.
*VISUAL/IMAGERYSHOULDINVOLVEALLSENSES(FEELING,SEEING,ETC). BEVIVID/DETAILED,CONTROLLEDANDPOSITIVE!
NOW PUT YOURSELF IN THAT ENVIRONMENT (THE FIELD, GYM, ETC.). THINK ABOUT YOURSELF ACCOMPLISHING THE GOALS YOU LISTED ABOVE. HOW DOES IT PAN OUT? HOW DO FRIENDS, FAMILY, TEAMMATES REACT? HOW WOULD YOU FEEL PHYSICALLY WITH EACH MOVE? WHAT EMOTIONS ARE YOU EXPERIENCING?
Sit back, close your eyes and run through how this might feel
THERE ARE ALMOST ALWAYS ADVERSE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT WILL MAKE IT MORE CHALLENGING TO ACCOMPLISH GOALS/PEAK PERFORMANCE. HOW WE REACT IS KEY.
NOW LIST SOME THINGS THAT COULD GO WRONG/ HAVE A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON YOUR PERFORMANCE
NOW LIST THINGS THAT YOU WOULD DO TO OVERCOME ADVERSITY AND ACCOMPLISH YOUR GOALS (DEEP BREATHING, JOURNALING, SELF-TALK)
LIST 3 THINGS YOU'RE GRATEFUL FOR. FEELINGS CHECK-OUT
HOW WILL YOU SUPPORT YOURSELF THIS WEEK?
COOL DOWN
Talk to Yourself
Talking to yourself can be therapeutic & build confidence.
“IF YOU LOOK GOOD, YOU FEEL GOOD. IF YOU FEEL GOOD, YOU PLAY GOOD. IF YOU PLAY GOOD, THEY PAY GOOD.” -DEION SANDERS
ON CONFIDENCE
WARM UP EMOTION CHECK
HOW AM I FEELING TODAY? WHAT IS MY CURRENT STRESSOR?
WHAT IS SELF-TALK?
Self-talk is what you say to yourself or others about your abilities It's constant and our thoughts and what we say to ourselves greatly impacts performance!
Positive self-talk can be especially difficult to do while injured, but studies show if we think and talk about ourselves in a positive light, the more confident we become and the better we perform.
YOU CAN USE SELF-TALK ANYTIME AND ANYWHERE
WORKOUT SELF-TALK
WRITE DOWN ALL NEGATIVE THOUGHTS/THINGS YOU SAY TO YOURSELF DURING INJURY REHAB PROCESS. FOR EACH NEGATIVE WRITE DOWN A POSITIVE STATEMENT I.E.: “I’LLNEVERGETBACKTOPEAKFITNESS”,“EACHDAYIAMWORKINGTOWARDRECOVERY”
SELF-TALK
COOL DOWN FEELINGS CHECK-OUT
LIST 3 THINGS YOU ARE GRATEFUL FOR. WHAT CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT YOURSELF THIS WEEK?
Managing Stress
Stress is unavo dable, but there are many strategies to manage stress. Think about the stress management techniques that have worked best for you in the past. What are they? Make a plan to implement them when needed.
WARM UP FEELING CHECK-IN
WHAT ARE THE STRESSORS FROM THE WEEK?
WORK OUT WAYS TO MANAGE STRESS
CONTROL THE CONTROLLABLES:
Focus on what you can control i.e.: you can’t control the rate at which you heal from injury but you can control how much time you spend doing your exercises or working through this workbook.
NAME 3 THINGS IN YOUR CURRENT SITUATION THAT ARE WITHIN YOUR CONTROL:
Diaphragmatic breathing: deep breathing from your diaphragm is a relaxation technique that provides both immediate and long-term relief from stress and anxiety. It can help alleviate muscle tension and it can focus your mind on the right things so you can perform your best.
To practice, you want to make sure you are inhaling deeply and exhaling deeply from your diaphragm. To make sure you are breathing from your diaphragm, place one hand on your chest and the other on your stomach. Take a moment to notice your breath. The hand on your stomach should be moving outward as you inhale.
INHALE FOR 4 COUNTS, HOLD FOR 4 COUNTS, EXHALE FOR 4 COUNTS. FEEL FREE TO SWITCH UP THE COUNT IF 4 IS TOO SLOW OR TOO FAST; YOU WANT THIS TO FEEL NATURAL WITH NO DISCOMFORT. TRY COUNTING YOUR BREATHS IN YOUR HEAD IF THAT HELPS WITH YOUR PACE.
TAKE A MOMENT TO JOT DOWN HOW THAT EXERCISE WENT FOR YOU. WAS IT EASY, DID IT COME NATURALLY OR WAS THERE DIFFICULTY WITH THE DIAPHRAGMATIC BREATHING TECHNIQUES?
BODY SCAN: A body scan is an intentional focus on each part of your body. This technique is used to manage stress, anxiety and in some cases, chronic pain. It allows for acceptance of what is experienced in your body. A body scan can be done anytime, anywhere. Daily practice can lead to improved well-being and reduced pain-related distress.
GET INTO A COMFORTABLE POSITION (SITTING, LYING DOWN, ETC) AND CLOSE YOUR EYES. TAKE A MENTAL INVENTORY OF HOW YOU ARE FEELING PHYSICALLY. START FROM YOUR HEAD AND RUN IT DOWN. DO YOU NOTICE ANY TENSION ANYWHERE? PAIN? MUSCLE TIGHTNESS, MUSCLES THAT ARE RELAXED? WORK YOUR WAY DOWN UNTIL YOU GET TO YOUR TOES. MAKE SURE YOU ARE BREATHING DEEPLY.
COOL DOWN FEELINGS CHECK-OUT
WHAT WILL YOU DO TO MANAGE ANY STRESSORS THIS WEEK?
HOW DID YOU FEEL DOING THE BODY SCAN AND DEEP BREATHING EXERCIS ES?
Identity
WARM UP FEELING CHECK-IN
WHAT ARE YOUR STRESSORS?
REMINDER!
Sometimes when we get injured, we may feel a sense of loss because the routine is gone and in some cases, one might be removed from daily contact with their teammates, coaches, and staff because of rehabbing. It can be hard to cope when you aren’t able to participate fully in the one thing that has defined the course of your life to NFL. Honor and recognize those feelings It may feel like disappointment, frustration, sadness, etc.
Remembering who you are outside of being an athlete is important. Of your entire being, athlete is one part; a major part, but only one part.
WORK OUT
LIST OUT 3 OTHER IDENTITIES YOU IDENTIFY WITH OUTSIDE OF BEING AN ATHLETE (I E : BROTHER, CATHOLIC, ETC):
WHAT ARE SOME ACTIVITIES AND/OR PEOPLE YOU CAN ENGAGE IN OUTSID E OF YOUR REHAB AND RECOVERY?
WHO ARE 3 PEOPLE YOU CAN CONNECT WITH OVER THE NEXT WEEK?
LIST 3 THINGS YOU'RE GRATEFUL FOR. FEELINGS CHECK-OUT HOW WILL YOU SUPPORT YOURSELF THIS WEEK?
COOL DOWN
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