1. Skill practice imagery
Those who are injured to the extent that they are unable to physically practice their sports skills can mentally practice, in order to minimise losses of skill that naturally occur in the absence of physical practice. There is evidence to suggest that mental practice is better than no practice at all and that mental practice stimulates the muscles involved (Green and Bonura, 2007).
Optional
If you would like to see an example of skill practice imagery, watch the video below:
2. Relaxation imagery
Stress and anxiety are common responses to sport injury, but imagery is an effective way to combat them. Imagery of being in a relaxing place (for example, lying on a beach) can be used as a stress management or anxiety control technique.
Optional
If you would like to see an example of relaxation imagery, watch the video below:
3. Pain management imagery
Individuals can be encouraged to undertake imagery to distract them from the pain of treatment. For example, imagery of placing an ice pack on an injured area may help with pain management.
Optional
If you would like to see an example of pain management imagery, watch the video below:
4. Healing imagery
There is some evidence to suggest that imagining injured tissues healing can actually speed up the healing process. An individual might, for example, imagine healing blood cells being delivered to the injured area or tissues re-aligning. This might involve anatomically correct imagery or representative imagery (that is, imagery that isn’t anatomically correct but represents healing, e.g. imagining an army of soldiers rebuilding your injured tendon).
Optional
If you would like to see an example of healing imagery, watch the video below: