Sport Athlete or Performing Artist? Shared Issues in Sports and the Arts
I’ve mentioned previously that some of my Rehabilitation Medicine (Physiatry) colleagues have additional training in Sports Medicine. While it is logical that there’s overlap between the two (for example: figure skaters can fall under both fields), there are similarities and differences between the athlete and the artist.
The Athletes and the Arts initiative was borne out of the common issues between the two. The mission of this collaborative effort among multiple organizations is “integrating the science of sport and the performing arts for the mutual benefit of both”.
For example, if you look at this list:
- Practice or play every day
- Play through pain
- Perform at all times of day or night
- Compete/perform in challenging environments
- Little “off season”
- Pressure to succeed
- Real risk of career-threatening injury
Do those apply to athletes? Or performing artists? The answer is these issues can apply to both groups of people. Addressing their common needs can help both athletes and artists.
Traveling and jet lag can make you tired, and the effects of being on the road/on tour can be worse for athletes and artists: they have to be at peak performance after a long trip. Along with fatigue, poor sleep and wonky body clocks can mess you up, making you at risk for errors and/or injury.
Nutrition isn’t the best when on the road either – think fast food places and quick snacks like energy bars. Same with hydration: people don’t want to go to the toilet very often when they know they’re going to be in a car/bus/train/plane for a long time, so they don’t drink as much; having caffeinated drinks and alcohol also dehydrate you (and there’s lots of that on the road!).
Both athletes and artists also can benefit from optimizing their performance by making sure they are physical fit and using mental imagery (practicing moves in their head, without actually doing them physically – this helps reduce injury risk because the rehearsal “occurs” without actual movement from muscle/bones/joints). This extra mental imagery practice can also build confidence and reduce performance anxiety – again, another shared issue among athletes and artists.
But how about unique issues in performing artists? What makes them different from the athletes? There are two blog entries for that: part 1 and part 2.
Notes:
Adapted from: Snyder J and Dick R. Athletes and the Arts. Lecture presented: American Medical Society for Sports Medicine 2014 Annual Meeting. https://www.amssm.org/2014_Annual_Meeting/SESSION%2013/Session-13_SNYDER.pdf
