How Can Coaches Support Athletes’ Mental Needs During Travel for Competitions?

As coaches well know, travel is a standard part of competitive athletics. Athletes don’t want to leave their mental skills at home when they travel, nor should coaches. 

Travel can disrupt routines, increase stress, and bring up emotional challenges for athletes. Coaches play a vital role not just in logistics and performance, but in mental well-being during travel. 

Supporting mental health (especially through the challenges of travel!) is a part of inclusive and effective coaching. So, what does mental support actually look like on the road? 

Recognize the Unique Mental Load of Travel

Mental load is the cognitive and emotional strain caused by managing tasks, uncertainty, and pressure. 

Travel can have a significant mental load and trigger anxiety, disorientation, homesickness, sensory overload, and sleep issues. For example, an athlete who gets anxious on planes isolates from their team. Or, a long drive leads to crabby athletes due to reduced emotional regulation and fatigue. 

Additionally, some athletes may feel unsafe or hyper-aware of their identity (e.g., race, gender, disability, sexual orientation) in unfamiliar environments. For example, a Black athlete may experience microaggressions in a small-town hotel or public space. Coaches must be attuned to not only general travel stress but also these identity-based stressors. 

Awareness of the mental load of travel is step one for coaches. So, with more awareness, how can coaches prepare for travel proactively? 

Help Athletes Prepare Mentally Before Travel

To help athletes prepare mentally before travel, normalize the emotional challenges of travel. Don’t dismiss emotions like anxiety, fatigue, or irritability that can come up for athletes. 

Before leaving, talk about mental expectations, especially with a young team or athletes not used to frequent travel. For example, start a conversation with your athletes by saying, “It’s normal to feel off the first day of an away competition. Let’s have a plan to manage that.”

Encourage athletes to bring comfort items and plan for meals and downtime. When I worked in D1 athletics, a team consistently complained that their coach did not schedule enough meal breaks or proper re-fueling opportunities. Not only did this lead to irritated athletes, but it also led to decreased performance since athletes had difficulty fueling their bodies appropriately. 

While planning travel itineraries, be mindful of who may need extra prep (and potentially set aside time to work with these athletes individually). Some athletes who may need additional attention to prepare for travel mentally include neurodivergent athletes (planning for sensory shifts), LGBTQ+ and racial minority athletes (planning for identity safety), and first-time travelers or athletes from low-resource backgrounds (planning for expectations). 

While this preparation is key, your presence as the coach during travel matters just as much. 

Foster a Safe, Supportive Environment While Traveling

As a coach, you are a leader, and your attitude sets the emotional tone for everyone else, so model calm, flexible, and encouraging behavior. Make sure to prioritize psychological safety for your athletes and do not shame if someone is struggling. 

Furthermore, respect your athletes’ personal space and privacy, and build quiet time into the schedule. Be available to your athletes, but also not overbearing. You can check in casually by asking, “How are you adjusting?” or “Anything you need today?”. 

As the team leader, create team norms that respect differences. Each athlete may have different needs or preferences while traveling to stay centered. You can develop norms such as no teasing or “toughen up” comments and opt-in activities (e.g., a group dinner vs. a mandatory dinner). 

To accommodate diverse needs, consider housing, pronouns, dietary needs, and room assignments with inclusivity in mind. If possible, ask about roommate preferences rather than assigning.

Beyond individual support, strong teams are built on strong team culture. As the coach, you set this culture!

Maintain Routines & Promote Mental Skills

When possible, stick to consistent mealtimes, bedtimes, and pre-competition rituals. As a competitive synchronized skater, my team had pre-competition rituals for preparing hair and makeup and warming up off-ice. These routines helped us get focused before taking the ice.

As the coach, support athletes using mental tools such as breathing techniques, positive self-talk, and pre-performance routines. Provide space for athletes’ emotions as well. Not every moment has to be “tough” or “game face on.” Sometimes, athletes must release emotions to move on and be ready for competition. 

Encourage team rituals that promote connection and grounding, such as gratitude circles, team walks, and guided visualization. One of the most successful D1 programs I worked with prepared for every competition with a guided visualization to get all athletes on the same page and visualize success. 

When completing mental prep activities, make sure all athletes feel seen. Avoid language that assumes one-size-fits-all coping. Use inclusive metaphors and culturally sensitive tools. 

What coaches say–and how they say it–makes all the difference for how athletes prepare and feel going into competition. 

Communicate Thoughtfully & Adapt in Real Time

Stressful moments are bound to come up while traveling. Delays, complaints, and conflicts are all common during stressful travel situations. Use calm and clear communication to help athletes get through these challenging moments. Instead of assuming what an athlete may need, ask: “How can I support you right now?”. 

As the coach, the athlete's well-being should be your main priority. As such, adjust plans to protect athletes' mental and emotional health. For example, if athletes are clearly exhausted or overstimulated, postponing a meeting when they feel fresher is better than powering through. 

Given that many emotions can come up due to the stresses of travel, validate emotions (yes, even when performance is at stake!). You may say something like, “You’re allowed to feel off. Let’s figure out what you need to reset.” 

Your athletes likely come from different backgrounds and perspectives, so be open to learning when athletes share cultural, emotional, or accessibility needs that differ from yours. 

As you may have discovered through this post, travel offers an opportunity to coach the whole athlete, not just the competitor. 

Conclusion

Coaches have a unique chance to create a mentally supportive environment away from home, so how you handle travel sets the tone for performance and athlete well-being. 

Your leadership during travel isn’t just about trophies and medals–it’s about modeling care, flexibility, empathy, and growth.

Support your athletes beyond the game—connect with our sport psychology team to strengthen their mental game while on the road.

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