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Lifestyle choices threaten to compromise health and performance of trained athletes. This thesis presents a series of studies which broadly investigated the impact of nutritional and physical challenges to human health and performance. The potential causes and effects of fluid imbalances on physical health, immune function and athletic performance were investigated. Certain populations experience chronic low-level hypohydration and athletes often fail to rehydrate sufficiently between exercise sessions. The long-term implications of hypohydration are not fully understood, but are suggested to be associated with chronic disease. In this thesis, maintenance of fluid balance was observed in healthy males, despite a caffeine intervention thought to cause diuresis. Furthermore, when mild hypohydration was induced by 24-h fluid restriction, there was little impact on mucosal immunity during endurance exercise compared with euhydration. The impact of intensified training (IT) on the physical, mental, hormonal and immunological status of well-trained athletes was investigated. A performance-specific nutritional intervention was implemented to investigate the effects of nutrient availability during prolonged exercise training sessions. Phases of IT are a regular feature of a periodised training programme. However, an imbalance between training and recovery can have significant implications for long-term athletic performance and general wellbeing. Changes in neuroendocrine, neurobiological and mucosal immune function were observed during IT and some potential markers of overreaching and were identified. Further research is required before practical application of these markers can be used effectively in the field. A relatively short period of IT resulted in significant disruptions to mood state and sleep quality. Minor changes in exercise performance were observed. Markers of overreaching were highly individual, as were responses to training.

Millions of children participate in sport and through their participation come into contact with coaches who are there to guide and support them. However, it has been observed that not all children’s relationships with their coaches have been positive ones, and concerns have been raised about the nature of the child-athlete relationship within the sports context. This research sought to use theory from child maltreatment research and apply it within a sports context to investigate perceived child athlete experiences. The research used both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to investigate retrospectively athletes’ perceptions of, and emotional responses to their coach’s behaviour. The initial study used qualitative method to establish if key theoretical frameworks from outside sport had a resonance and relevance within a sports context. Twelve elite athletes, all of whom had been identified as ‘elite’ when children reported that they had experienced negative coaching behaviour on a frequent basis they also reported negative emotional responses to this behaviour, and emotional problems as a consequence of how they were coached when they were children. Study Two (n=229), focused on broadening the research to access a larger population of athletes in order to examine their perceptions and experiences of being coached. In order to achieve this aim a new questionnaire, the Sport Emotional Response Questionnaire (SER-Q), was developed. The SER-Q was grounded in the real-life experiences of those athletes in Study One, and as such represented their expert opinions of their coaches’ behaviour. Through factor analysis, a 22-item questionnaire was established which measured frequency of negative (i.e. emotionally abusive) coach behaviour, athletes’ emotional response and perceived effect on performance. Results from this study showed that frequency of negative coach behaviour and emotional response were significantly and negatively correlated such that, as the frequency increased so did the negative emotional response. Study Three (n=314), was a confirmatory study, and found similar results to Study Two. Study Four (n=543), sought to investigate, through the SER-Q, specific questions in relation to: competitive level, athlete gender, and type of sport (either team or individual) and gender of the coach. Results revealed that there were no significant differences between athlete gender, type of sport and coach gender. However, significant results were found in relation to competitive level. Elite athletes (international-level and national-level) reported experiencing significantly more frequent negative coach behaviour: they also reported a greater negative emotional response to it than any of the non-elite (recreational-level, club-level and regional-level) groups. Finally, Study Five examined the perceived performance effect, and found a significant negative relationship with frequency, such that has the frequency increased so did the perceived negative performance effect; and a significant positive relationship with emotional response. Further results from this Study Five also found that there were only significant differences in relation to competitive level. Again elite athletes reported significantly greater detriments to their perceived performance resulting from their coach’s behaviour than did non-elite athletes. A consistent finding across all the studies was that when athletes reported ‘never’ having experienced emotionally abusive behaviour from their coach, they always reported ‘no emotional response’, and no effect on their performance. Therefore, the SER-Q was able to discriminate between these two populations of athletes. Overall, the findings from these studies have contributed to the development of a theoretical model that describes the process of emotional abuse from a child athlete perspective. Secondly, the findings reveal that elite athletes report different experiences of being coached when children than non-elite athletes. Furthermore, these studies found that theories anchored in family settings can be used to explore issues within a sports setting, and thus the child maltreatment perspective has relevance in developing sports specific theory in relation to the coach-child athlete relationship. A consistent finding across all the studies was that when athletes reported ‘never’ having experienced emotionally abusive behaviour from their coach, they always reported ‘no emotional response’, and no effect on their performance. Therefore, the SER-Q was able to discriminate between these two populations of athletes. Overall, the findings from these studies have contributed to the development of a theoretical model that describes the process of emotional abuse from a child athlete perspective. Secondly, the findings reveal that elite athletes report different experiences of being coached when children than non-elite athletes. Furthermore, these studies found that theories anchored in family settings can be used to explore issues within a sports setting, and thus the child maltreatment perspective has relevance in developing sports specific theory in relation to the coach-child athlete relationship.

Tidigare undersökningar av skadade idrottare på både elit och motionsnivå har visat att under skador upplevs ledsenhet, ilska, sorg och ofta hög stress från både sig själv och andra. Syftet med undersökningen var att ta reda på hur svenska elitidrottare som utövar en lagsport upplever skador samt se om det finns antydningar till könsskillnader. Fyra män och fyra kvinnor i åldrarna 18–36 som samtliga spelar i högsta eller näst högsta divisionerna i handboll, fotboll, ishockey, innebandy samt bandy deltog. Datainsamlingen skedde genom intervjuer, intervjuerna meningskoncentrerades och analyserades till ett resultat som visade att de upplevde (1) ilska, (2) ledsenhet, (3) stress, (4) oro men samtidigt (5) revanschlust samt (6) att de lärt sig någonting under en skada. Studien önskar kunna bidra till att öka förståelsen för en skadad elitidrottare genom att lyfta fram både de positiva och negativa följderna av att vara skadad.

Student-athletes often miss class due to travel and competitions (Diersen, 2005; F. Wiseman, personal communication, September 30, 2010; Hosick, 2010; NCAA On-line, 2008; Rhatigan, 1984). Missing class is negatively associated with grades (Park & Kerr, 1990; Romer, 1993; Schmidt, 1983). Therefore, as classroom instruction time is replaced by athletic-related commitments, student-athletes may be negatively affected academically. As technological advancements continue to evolve, it is possible to mitigate the effects of missed class time. One such technology being employed in 2012 is lecture capture. This case study examined the academic effect of lecture capture on student-athletes at Big Time University using a mixed-method approach with an online questionnaire, individual interviews, and a focus group. Findings indicate that 52.7% (n=19) of student-athletes who participated in the questionnaire are accessing recorded lectures, 60% (n=18) reported lecture capture had made learning more enjoyable and 92.9% (n=39) reported that their grades had improved since having had access to recorded lectures. Additionally, participants reported preferring to have class recordings available, even if they choose not to watch them, as they provide a sense of security. Lastly, student-athletes reported to prefer physically being in the classroom and that recorded lectures should only be used as a supplement, not a replacement, for classroom lectures. Themes, implications, and areas for future research are discussed.

Equestrian sport has been present on the Modern Olympic programme since 1900 with Para-Equestrian Dressage making its debut at the 1996 Paralympic Games. Due to the combined governance of Olympic and Paralympic versions of the sport, the mixed gender of competition and the potential age range of competitors, equestrian sport provides an opportunity through which to understand a unique context of athlete experience. This thesis has sought to identify and evaluate athlete experience within the context of the Olympic and Paralympic Games and to place this experience within the wider career histories of members of the British Equestrian Team. This study utilised a combination of a systematic literature review methodology and ethnographic data collection and analysis with a critical realist approach, creating a framework that values interpretive insights into how the subjects perceive and construct their world whilst at the same time considering ways in which the literature and individual subjects identify, comment on, and frame the reality of the world of equestrian sport. This study has resulted in the emergence of six themes pertaining to experiencing the games; equestrian sporting culture, identity, values, challenges, performance support and success. Results show many similarities and shared experiences for both the Olympic and Paralympic equestrian athletes. The differences regarding the lived experience for these athletes are predominantly associated with the development of the sport, the relative short Paralympic history of equestrian sport in comparison to the Olympic disciplines, and the place of the Games in the context of the riders career histories. Recognising and understanding the kinds of satisfactions and challenges that individuals experience, the significant features of their athlete identity, and the structural constraints and opportunities of their environment may help identify and design the services and provision required to support the athletes through this elite sporting experience.

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Magister Artium (Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science) - MA(SRES) / Coaches have been found to have a remarkable influence on the physical and psychological development on their athletes and that their main responsibility is to help their athletes perform at their maximum level and reach goals that they could not attain on their own. Coaches are responsible for developing athletes’ mental, physical, technical, and tactical abilities, and in addition to all of these responsibilities, they are also expected to win. The coach-athlete relationship can thus be regarded as the conveying of technical skills and mentoring from coach to athlete. Despite the responsibilities of a coach, the athlete-coach relationship is fundamental in the process of coaching because its nature is likely to determine the athlete’s satisfaction, self-esteem and performance accomplishments. The aim of this study was to investigate female university track and field athletes’ lived experiences within the athlete-coach relationship to gather psychological effects relating to performance. The objectives were to explore the lived experiences of female university athletes within the athlete-coach relationship, investigate the psychological effects, and explore the impact it has on performance within the athlete-coach relationship. The researcher adopted the qualitative research method approach using the phenomenology design to explore and obtain a better understanding into the psychological effects of the athlete-coach relationship on an athletes’ performance. Semi-structured interviews were used to gather data. Following the interviews, all data was analyzed using the 3+1C’s conceptualized model as the theoretical framework. This model was used as it defines the coach-athlete relationship as a situation in which coaches and athletes’ closeness, commitment, and complementarity are co-orientated. The 3+1C’s model explored the athlete-coach relationship from the athlete’s perspective which elicited positive and negative psychological and performance effects within the athlete-coach dyad. The research findings of this thesis it can be concluded that the behaviours of coaches have an influence on female athletes’ psychological state as well as performance; and found that when coaches and athletes work together to achieve goals the relationship is more likely to be successful and the athlete is more likely to achieve goals. Furthermore it was concluded that affective emotional feelings of female University athletes are important in developing an effective athlete-coach relationship and facilitating positive psychological effects.