ID Number
Information about the Athlete
Derrick Rose is one of the bankable players in NBA. Derrick was born in Chicago, Illinois on the 4th of October 1988. Derrick’s brothers influenced him to play at the court. They helped him learn about passing, dribbling, and shooting. Further, Derrick looks up to Michael Jordan as his role model. Being the youngest, Derrick was well-protected by his brothers and mother.
During high school, Derrick enrolled in a vocation school called Simeon Career Acadehis where he was able to exhibit his skills in basketball. Derrick led the team during the championship in the city. Toward the final part of the school year, Derrick was offered a position on the varsity team but he rejected the offer and gave way to the upper classmen. Derrick’s career continued to soar high. A lot of college recruiters eyed on having Derrick in their respective team. One tournament led to another tournament and soon after Derrick was chosen to play for NBA’s Chicago Bulls. In 2008 to 2009 NBA season, Derrick was named Rookie of the Year and in 2011, Derrick Rose won the Most Valuable Player Award.
In 2011 and 2012, Derrick started to experience injuries. Initially, Derrick had a left knee injury after he jumped. Diagnostic examination results revealed that Derrick tore his Anterior Cruciate Ligament. Because of this, Derrick did not play the rest of the season. On May 2012, Derrick underwent a knee surgery with an estimated healing period of 8 to 12 months. On March 2013, Derrick was given a clearance from the physician allowing him to play again. But he was not seen again after the first game. On October 2013, Derrick slowly went back to the game and tried to improve his performance. However, it appeared that Derrick’s performance was not at its best. On November 2013, Derrick injured his right knee. Results of the diagnostic test revealed a torn meniscus.
Three Issues Derrick Needs to Work On
Based on the gathered information, Derrick Rose needs to manage the three issues that keep him from achieving his maximum performance and improving his quality of life. The three issues include burnout or stress, lack of self-confidence, and incomplete recovery from injury.
Stress is defined as the body’s physical response to a perceived threat (Bradshaw, 2013). Stress is an inevitable part of everyone’s reality. The increased heartbeat and heightened senses encountered during normal stress is the body’s physiologic way of responding to stress. Alterations in living conditions, money, or family issues can trigger stress (Weinberg and Gould 2010, p. 83). These forms of stressors are designed to stay in the body for a longer term and can be difficult to manage. Stress triggers the discharge of stress hormones which reinforce the body and the brain. As time goes, the form of stimulation can bring about negative impacts. Long-term stress can be damaging the brain cells thus causing depression. People who experience burnout or stress are likely to experience memory loss and concentration, fatigue, failure to fight off illnesses, failure to recover from a sickness, heightened risk for chronic illnesses including cancer and heart disease, moodiness, irritability, and excessive alcohol consumption. Symptoms of stress include sadness, anxiety, pains, weight loss, difficulty in eating, and inability to get some sleep (Weinberg and Gould 2010, p. 83).
Lack of self-confidence affects the way people think (Weinberg and Gould 2010, p. 323). Self-confidence is essential in people’s lives; however, there are individuals who struggle to experience it. People who lack self-confidence are often unsuccessful. Pessimism is a product of low self-confidence (Weinberg and Gould 2010, p. 323). Nevertheless, self-confidence is something easy to work on. On the aspect of injury, when a person is injured, recuperation and full recovery is essential before going back to the normal course of daily living. Inability to give time for the injured part to heal often leads to further injury. An anterior cruciate ligament or ACL injury is a tear the knee ligaments that connects the bone in the upper leg with the bone in the lower leg (Paulos et al., 1981). The ACL helps in stabilizing the knee. ACL injuries range from mild, such as a small tear, to severe, such as when the ligament tears completely or when the ligament and part of the bone separate from the rest of the bone (Paulos et al., 1981).
This training plan for sports and exercise involves three different phases. The first two phases involve teaching Derrick to manage stress effectively and to increase his self-confidence. The last phase is the training Derrick to strengthen his knees by himself.
A. To reduce stress and increase self-confidence
There are varied methods of coping with stress. Included in these methods are progressive muscle relaxation, autogenic training, relaxation response, biofeedback, guided imagery, diaphragmatic breathing, transcendental meditation mindfulness-based stress reduction, and emotional freedom technique.
A. Meditation
Meditation is the quintessential respite to calm the mind from sensory overload (Lehrer et al, 1994, p. 353). At present, meditation is rapidly obtaining recognition in the West as a powerfully effective relaxation method. Meditation is not a religion but a solitary practice of reflection on internal rather than external stimuli (Lehrer et al, 1994, p. 353). Technically, meditation is an increased concentration as well as awareness, a process of living in the present moment to generate and enjoy a tranquil state of mind. The practice of meditation is the oldest recognized relaxation method known. Meditation is a tool to unclutter the mind and bring about mental homeostasis. When the mind is clear of thought, it becomes more receptive to new information, new perspectives, and new ways of dealing with unsolved problems.
B. Autogenic Training
The term autogenic implies self-generation or self-regulation (Lehrer et al, 1994, p. 355). It can likewise refer to a procedure or action that is self-produced (Lehrer et al, 1994, p. 355). Particularly, it implies that individuals have the capacity to control the physiologic systems – the power to control a number of bodily functions. During physical arousal, blood pressure, heart rate, ventilation, as well as muscle tension can increase in an attempt to prepare the body to fight or flee. Belief concerning the regulation of physiologic functions started to change in the nineteenth era, when Europeans travelled the world and returned recounting stories of human feats in far-off lands. Autogenic training was introduced by two European physicians, Wolfgang Luthe and Johannes Schultz in 1932. Autogenic technique makes use of selected awareness, which means receptivity of the conscious mind to acknowledgment and receipt of specific messages or thoughts (Lehrer et al, 1994, p. 355). In selected awareness, the censorship role of the ego is eliminated and thoughts can travel freely from the conscious to the unconscious.
C. Imagery and Visualization
Mental imagery pertains to the use of the imagination to observe images formed by the unconscious mind (Weinberg and Gould 2010, p. 295). Guided mental imagery is an exercise in which an individual is guided through a series of suggestions offered by a therapist, instructor, or counselor so as to enhance the imagination (Weinberg and Gould 2010, p. 295). Imagery and visualization when utilized to promote physical calmness involve a number of elements of meditation particularly increased concentration and expanded awareness of consciousness of the scene formed in the mind’s eye. The practices of imagery and visualization as healing modalities are relatively new to Western medicine and are not universally accepted among healthcare professionals.
B. To strengthen knee
1. Pilates Prone Knee Pull-In Exercise
This exercise helps to firm and strengthen the knees. A fitness ball is required for this exercise. The following are the procedures involved in performing this exercise. Climb onto ball and move forward until ball is beneath the knees. With hands on floor directly underneath the shoulders, slowly roll ball toward the abdomen, keeping knees and legs straight. Crunch once then slowly return to starting position. After completing everything, repeat the procedure 10 times.
2. Single leg squat
A single leg squat is performed using the following procedures: Stand on one leg with the other knee bent. Use a wall or banister to help keep your balance. Bend the standing leg and push your buttocks out behind you. Start with only a small movement. Make sure the hips stay level, do not let one drop down. Lastly, do not allow the knee to move forwards past the toes.
Plans for Maximum Performance and Increased Quality of Life
Establishment of Goals
Goals serve as guides that direct the individual in what needs to work on (Weinberg and Gould 2010, p. 345). For Derrick Rose, the main goal is to reduce stress and strengthen the knees in order to achieve maximum performance.
Stress Reduction
Derrick must engage in stress reducing exercises by spending two hours each day for reflection and relaxation. To relieve the symptoms of stress, Derrick must be able to perform the following techniques: breathing, progressive relaxation, applied relaxation, focusing, refuting irrational ideas, facing worry and anxiety, and enhancing coping skills. Derrick must also perform physical exercises as well as goal setting and time management. Diaphragmatic breathing is the most vital exercise to perform prior to the start of any activity. Under normal resting events, the average individual breathes about fourteen to sixteen times per minute. On the other hand, in a state of arousal, breathing becomes more rapid and shallow with pronounced muscular contractions of the chest. During heavy exercise, ventilations per minute can escalate to as many as sixty as the body attempts to meet the escalated oxygen demands. In a relaxed condition, the body’s metabolism is greatly decreased, permitting for a deeper and slower breathing cycle. When pressure brought about by the expansion of the chest wall as muscular contraction is taken off the thoracic cavity, sympathetic drive is reduced. Parasympathetic drive overrides the sympathetic system, and homeostasis results. Diaphragmatic breathing is the most basic relaxation technique; breathing from the lower stomach or diaphragm rather than the thoracic area. Diaphragmatic breathing is a relaxation technique however due to its compatibility and simplicity; it is often integrated into other methods including autogenic training, muscular relaxation, and mental imagery for a combined relaxation effect.
When Derrick feels tension mounting, he must perform deep-breathing exercise by putting his feet flat on the floor and resting his hands on his lap. Derrick must relax his body by dropping his shoulders and closing his yes. He must then take a deep breath through his nose while slowly counting to four. Derrick should then exhale through his mouth to a slow count of four. Derrick must try to spend time relaxing by engaging in a hobby and must deviate from things that are not important and focus more on this that are within his control. Derrick must also refute irrational ideas by viewing stressors in a logical and in an objective way. Further, it is important for Derrick to face his worries and anxieties by confronting stressors headstrong and by objectively analyzing the root causes of stressors. Through this, Derrick will be able to seek ways to eliminate the activities or events that cause him stress. Derrick must also engage in physical exercises and activities that can relieve the tension from his body.
Knees Training
Derrick must spend more time rehabilitating his knee injury in order to regain strength the soonest time possible. Derrick may perform the exercises mentioned such as Pilates training, quad setting, single leg squat, and isometric knee extension exercises. Each day, Derrick must perform the following: Warm-up exercises for 15 minutes. Warm-up exercises may include stretching and deep breathing. During the exercise proper, Derrick must perform the following:
five repetitions of 20 sets of single leg squat; five repetitions of 20 sets of isometric knee extension exercises; and Pilates. Each week, weights will be added on Derrick’s leg until such time that he is able to gain greater strength on his knees. After the exercise, Derrick must perform the cool down activities before he finally ends his knee strengthening exercises each day.
Motivation and Self-Confidence
Derrick must constantly review his goals so that he will be motivated to perform the training routine every day. Derrick must also learn to develop a more positive approach and confidence in his capabilities. To boost self-confidence, Derrick must learn how to plan and prepare ahead. People sense some lack of confidence when they are placed in an unfamiliar situation. To gain confidence, Derrick must acquire new skills and trust more in his ability to manage situations, tasks, and roles. Further, Derrick must learn to do away with perfectionism. Trying hard to make everything perfect can rob the person of its personality. It will reduce self-confidence and peace of mind. Perfectionism can lessen the person’s time to enjoy life. Detaching oneself from perfectionism may take a while but this can significantly reduce the level of stress and increase self-confidence. For Derrick’s training, he will be asked to jot down the traits which he feels often lead him to perfectionism. Derrick must go over them every day and recall the times when he failed to avoid such traits. This will be of great help to him in becoming increasingly aware of perfectionistic behaviours as they arise in the future. Derrick can improve his self-confidence by setting realistic goals.
References
Barlow, D. H. (2007). Principles and practice of stress management. P. M. Lehrer, R. L. Woolfolk, & W. E. Sime (Eds.). Guilford Press.
Lehrer, P., Carr, R., Sargunaraj, D., & Woolfolk, R. (1994). Stress management techniques: Are they all equivalent, or do they have specific effects?. Biofeedback And Self-Regulation, 19(4), 353--401.
Paulos, L., Noyes, F., Grood, E., & Butler, D. (1981). Knee rehabilitation after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction and repair. The American Journal Of Sports Medicine, 9(3), 140--149.
Weinberg, R., & Gould, D. (2010). Foundations of sport and exercise psychology (5th ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
