Coaching to enhance the mental toughness of people learning kickboxing

A Killy, C van Nieuwerburgh, P Clough International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring 2017

This pilot study investigated whether combining Positive Psychology Coaching (PPC) and kickboxing would progress the development of mental toughness compared to kickboxing alone. The data were derived from 28 participants who voluntarily took a four-week kickboxing course and completed the Mental Toughness Questionnaire (MTQ48) a week before the course commenced and after its completion. Using stratified randomisation for age and gender, 14 participants received a one-hour individual face-to-face coaching session while the other 14 only engaged in kickboxing. The results suggest that PPC may have a role in developing mental toughness when it is combined with vigorous physical exercise.