For example if you eat the right food for sport, you will have enough energy to stay alive as well as enough to compete in sports. If you do not have enough energy then you will feel tired and will not be able to perform at your best. Another positive affect is that a healthy diet will allow you to recover from illnesses quicker. This will mean an illness will not last as long and will mean you can get back to full training very quickly, so you don’t lose too much fitness during your period of illness. As well as this a healthy diet promotes concentration levels meaning when playing a sport you will be able to play better as you are more focused on your job therefore your performance level will increase.
Overall you should eat more Carbohydrates (starches and sugars) when exercising as they are the body’s fuel. Choosing a carbohydrate-rich balanced diet will help you to stay active for longer, train harder, feel less tired after exercise, reduce your risk of injury and stay fitter. On the other hand a bad diet can affect your performance negatively. If your diet consists of large amounts of fat, the excess fat consumption could lead to weight gain.
This excess weight will mean you will be less mobile and will mean you will get out of breathe more easily and become less fit. If you are less mobile you will not be able to do what you usually can, meaning your performance will dip as you will not be able to get around easily and perform at your best for a long period of time. If you ran out of breathe easily and are not fit it will mean you wont be able to keep up with your game as you will feel tired and wont be able to perform properly. This will mean you won’t get anything accomplished in your game and you won’t be a use to your team. It also means you can put your team under danger as by not performing properly you can let the opposition take advantage and score more goals which might cost you the match.
Motivation is a psychological factor that can have both a positive and negative affect on your performance. Motivation can be extrinsic or intrinsic; usually wanting to do well for self satisfaction (intrinsic) or because you win money or a prize at the end (extrinsic). This can have a positive affect on your performance as you will perform at your best and give that extra effort in order to win something, or feel good yourself. On the other hand, the lack of motivation can have a negative affect on your performance as if you are not motivated, you may not have the drive to do your best in an activity therefore your performance will drop significantly.
Arousal is another psychological factor the may both have a positive affect on your performance as well as a negative. These can act as both motivators and depressors of performance levels. If you are optimally aroused before a game (as shown in the inverted U theory), it will have a positive affect on your performance as you will be able to play at the best of your ability. However, it becomes a problem when you are over aroused or under aroused.
This will have a negative performance on the performer, as it will prevent them from achieving anything close to their best. This is because you are under aroused you will not care about the game and its outcome meaning you will not be up for it. On the opposite extreme if you are too enthusiastic you may do everything excessively (e.g. tackling) meaning as it is too rushed, it may be performed less accurately and can lead to fouls and you being sent off, in this case. This means the performance will dip as they will not be able to do what they usually can due to their imbalance stress levels.