As a Cognitive Behavioural Sports Specialist, Larissa Mills knows all about the negative effects social media can have on athlete performance.

Since this presentation, Mills has continued to build The Mental Game Academy, her program for developing athletes' mental skills, resilience, and phone habits, and has taken her message to coaching audiences including the National Soccer Coaches Association of Canada. For more from Mills, listen to Managing the Negative Effects of Social Media, with Larissa Mills on the Glass and Out Podcast.

Mental IQ Comes First

In order for athletes to master their sport's IQ, Mills says they need to master Mental IQ first, and that starts with their phones.

According to Mills, athletes touch their phones 176 times a day. From those touches, they spend 200 hours a month on their phones and only 20 hours training. Phones are also keeping athletes up later than any generation of kids before them, and Mills says 84% of kids are addicted to their phones.

What It Does to Performance

Nearly 75% of the athletes who come to Mills for help with social media addiction arrive with no confidence or mental skills. Her conclusion is that phones are having a negative impact on player performance. She says brains are working 35% less than previously recorded levels because of phones, which hurts decision making. In sports, decision making is a core fundamental.

"If your screen time is more than your practice time, don't complain about your play time."

Helping the Person First

Mills has dedicated her career to helping athletes understand these trends in phone addiction and usage. Through her research and practice, she continues to find new ways to help athletes perform better by limiting social media time. Her goal is to help the person first, and then the athlete.

Social media also takes a toll on an athlete's self esteem. When you scroll, you pay for it. By limiting social media use, the artificial dopamine hit athletes get from their phones decreases, and that energy gets redirected into athletic performance and an eventual uptick in cognitive development. For a look at the same issue from the coach's side, check out our piece on what kids and coaches actually get out of social media.

Noteworthy Timestamps:

• 1:00 Mental IQ and phone regulation
• 1:30 Stats on phones
• 3:45 Coach survey
• 5:40 Coaches top behavioural concerns
• 7:55 Development slows at 2+ hours/day
• 10:55 5 impacts of phones and social media
• 13:40 High hockey IQ athletes