Importance of sportspeople communicating during pandemic

Karate kids can earn their stripes from their lounge room and netballers can follow a 9am-3pm online program three days a week.

Meanwhile, one club is encouraging a more traditional approach - ring up a mate and have a chat or ask for help.

Sportspeople can't see each other like they used to, but they aren't letting that stop them from keeping in contact.

Dr Lisa Olive, a clinical psychologist, is a senior lecturer at Deakin University's school of psychology in Melbourne.

Dr Olive has worked in community mental health and high-performance sport with positions at the ACT Academy of Sport and Australian Institute of Sport.

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She believes sport has an essential role in Australian culture and it's important for clubs and organisations to keep their communication lines open during the coronavirus pandemic.

She added it was also vital people were prepared to receive support.

"We know when we're feeling overwhelmed and anxious in times like this pandemic, there's a lot of uncertainty and there's the tendency for us as individuals, to want to withdraw and avoid things we used to do," she said.

"It's really important to maintain contact with those groups that all of a sudden have dropped away."

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Dr Olive said people could take for granted the level of social interaction they typically had in their day such as going to work, grabbing a coffee or playing sport.

She said those activities may have been all the interaction someone had before the pandemic restrictions.

Dr Olive said sport could be a major part of someone's identity.

"We derive a sense of self through the groups we're part of," she said.

"In this climate, many of those groups have gone away."

One way clubs are responding is by using their social media - especially Facebook pages - to communicate both serious and light-hearted messages.

"Social media has a role to play and online technologies have a role to play here," Dr Olive said.

"It's a matter of striking a balance between all the good we know about social media and the detrimental things (too much screen time etc.)."

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She said sports groups were in a good position to help people during the pandemic.

"Supporting each other is the norm," she said of clubs.

"There's that social spirit and commitment to helping each other."

She added some clubs might be finding the transition to online communication easier "because the building blocks were already there".

Hampden league club North Warrnambool Eagles is using video to communicate with its members.

Coaches Jaime Barr and Adam Dowie spoke in a Facebook video, in the past fortnight, about staying connected and doing physical exercise at home.

Dowie said it was important players kept up exercise for their mental health.

Warrnambool and District league club's South Rovers (Adam Matheson) and Kolora-Noorat (Ben Walsh) can also see video messages from their coaches on Facebook.

Meanwhile, Timboon Demons has set up YouTube channel, Timboon Demons TV, which includes training videos, classic matches, and links to other helpful clips.

Both Hampden and WDFNL clubs have taken the opportunity to introduce new recruits through a 'quick ten' with questions such as "what's your favourite holiday spot?".

Some clubs are giving fans the chance to know current players better.

Portland has jumped on board this concept with players asked about pre-game rituals and if pineapple belongs on pizza.

Hamilton Kangaroos, to lift club spirits, has posted a final quarter video of one of its classic encounters - a 2014 thriller against Warrnambool.

The Greater Western Victoria Rebels has started up a trick shot challenge on social media where players have to film themselves kicking a trick goal into an object such as a bucket.

They then have to nominate another player to kick a trick goal.

The player, from each age group, with the most social media likes on their video wins a footy.

Away from football and netball, some groups have opted for more traditional communication.

Dennington Bowls Club has started up a buddy program, with members encouraged to ring each other up for a chat or ask for help.

Right across the board, league and club presidents have been writing letters to their members which they have posted on social media.

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Above all, groups are encouraging members to support their sponsors who are missing out on the typical advertising they get from sport.

The mantra has been "support those who support us".

Dr Olive said it wasn't clear which form of communication was best.

"We don't know, in terms of evidence-based research, whether video or a written platform is better," she said.

The senior lecturer said it depended on the audience.

"Some people are visual and like to hear and see their leaders," she said.

"Other people like to relax and take something away and read it at a time that suits them."

Dr Olive said the most important thing was the message and that clubs are remaining present for their members.

The clinical psychologist said positive messaging involved encouraging members to live out club values and remain active to reap the benefits of exercise.

She believes club leaders have a crucial role.

"These coaches and leaders in these sports clubs, can be real role models," she said.

Dr Olive said it was powerful when club leaders displayed a willingness to talk honestly about their feelings during the pandemic.

Especially in contrast to the competitiveness of sport.

Perhaps the biggest fallout of sports being cancelled or postponed is that millions of Australians are without their usual routine.

"It depends on the individual, some people do better in uncertainty than others," Dr Olive said.

"Generally, as humans, we like certainty and structure."

The psychologist said maintaining some structure was helpful.

She said keeping up regular exercise at home was a great idea and coping mechanism.

That is becoming easier with the explosion of online exercise tutorials during the pandemic.

South-west martial arts school Funakoshi Karate International Australia is providing virtual lessons on its Facebook page.

Student Josh Suringa demonstrates exercises while head instructor Frank Mckenzie records videos and provides verbal instructions.

It means students can gain attendance credits that go towards their attendance record for their next grading.

While there are plenty of online options for sportspeople at home, maintaining good mental health is a challenge.

Dr Olive said it was important to have a "willingness and acceptance of the things we've lost and the change we're experiencing".

She said that was a better approach than trying to control uncomfortable feelings or negative thoughts.

"It's remembering this is a situation that's not going to last forever," she said.

While phone applications such as Smiling Mind are often recommended for people to practice mindfulness, Dr Olive said they might not be everyone.

She said it could be difficult for people to practice mindfulness - paying attention to the present moment without judgement - when they hadn't done it before or they were highly anxious because of the pandemic.

Dr Olive said it was important people found their own forms of self-care such as taking a walk in the park, reading a book or cooking.

"Find those activities that bring joy and value to your life," she said.

Dr Olive added it was important people were gentle on themselves and realistic about what they could achieve.

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