This study examined the relationship between mental toughness, pain catastrophizing, and pain following exercise-induced delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). 37 participants completed measures of mental toughness and pain catastrophizing before performing an eccentric exercise protocol designed to induce DOMS. Participants reported pain intensity and interference before and 48 hours after exercise. Results showed increases in post-exercise pain intensity and interference. Higher pain catastrophizing correlated with greater reported post-exercise pain intensity and interference, while higher mental toughness correlated with lower reported post-exercise pain intensity but not interference. Thus, pain catastrophizing may be particularly important in influencing pain experiences in athletes.

1. The role of mental toughness and pain catastrophizing on
the magnitude and nature of muscle pain following
experimentally induced delayed onset muscle soreness
Kayleigh Watts, Oliver Whitton, Stuart Ballantine, Fleur Peoples, Bryan Taylor & Martin I. Jones
Sport and Health Sciences University of Exeter
m.i.jones@exeter.ac.uk
Introduction and Objectives
Design
Methods
Results
Conclusions
Pain represents an unpleasant sensory
or emotional experience associated
with actual or potential tissue damage.
Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS)
is a painful experience related to
physical exertion that is easily
manipulated in healthy populations.
Previous researchers have examined
the relationship between psychological
variables and DOMS and have shown
that pain experiences are influenced by
specific psychological constructs (e.g.
fear and pain anxiety).
Typically researchers have studied
clinical samples (e.g. lower back pain
patients), but they have not considered
whether similar psychological
constructs influence acute pain
experiences (e.g. muscle acidosis &
DOMS) that are experienced in sport.
Mental toughness (MT) and pain
catastrophizing (PC) have been linked
to pain in sport, but no one has tested
these constructs in the context of
experimentally induced pain. MT is a
collection of attributes that allow a
person to persevere
through difficult circumstances, such
as pain, and emerge without losing
confidence. PC is an exaggerated
negative mental set brought to bear
during actual or anticipated painful
experience. In this pilot project, we
tested whether MT and PC are
associated with post-exercise pain
interference (i.e. the extent to which
pain is interfering with normal
activities) and pain intensity following
exercise-induced DOMS.
We adopted a prospective correlational
design. Each participant completed
measures of MT (Gucciardi et al.,
2015), and PC (Sullivan et al., 1995)
and reported their pre-exercise pain
intensity and pain interference (using a
100mm VAS). We then invited the
participants to complete an
exercise protocol designed to induce
DOMS. The exercise protocol
comprised concentric-eccentric
(extension-flexion) isokinetic exercise
of the knee extensors on an isokinetic
dynamometer. Repeated concentric-
eccentric muscle actions have
previously successfully induced DOMS
(Behrens et al., 2012). Participants were
invited back to the lab approximately
48 hours after the exercise protocol to
test the intensity of muscle soreness
and pain interference.
Results of paired t tests revealed
increases in DOMS pain intensity, t(36)
= -3.608, p = .001, d = -.0621, BF10
= 66.680 and pain interference, t(36)
= -2.459, p = .019, d = -.0472, BF10
= 4.841, from pre to post exercise.
Results revealed associations between
PC and post-exercise pain intensity (r
= .434, p = .004, BF10 = 12.970) and
pain interference, (r = .381, p = .010,
BF10 = 5.491).
Results also revealed smaller
associations between MT and post-
exercise pain intensity (r = - .340, p
= .020, BF10 = 3.072) and pain
interference, (r = - .158, p = .175,
BF10 = 0.509).
The results of this preliminary study
demonstrated that pain catastrophizing
and mental toughness are associated
with pain experiences in an athletic
sample. Pain catastrophizing was the
strongest correlate of pain intensity
and pain interference which support
previous theorists who have suggested
that this variable is particularly salient
for competing athletes (e.g. Jones &
Parker, 2015). Despite the relatively
small correlation of mental toughness
with the pain variables, the current
study demonstrates preliminary
evidence that mental toughness
warrants further examination,
particularly with larger samples.
Researchers may wish to consider goal
expectancy as a potential moderating
variable between pain
catastrophizing and pain experiences.
Moreover, researchers may also
consider examining objective muscle
damage as a predictor of pain and to
consider whether pain catastrophizing
and mental toughness contribute to
the variance in pain experiences after
controlling for muscle damage.
19
males
18
females
MT Index
(MTI: Gucciardi et
al., 2015, Journal
of Personality, 83,
26-44)
Pain
Catatrophizin
g Scale
(PCS: Sullivan et al.,
1995,
Psychological
Assessment, 7,
524-532
Pre exercice Pain
Intensity score
Pre exercice Pain
Interference score
Post exercice Pain
Intensity score
Post exercice Pain
Interference score
48 hours
rest
Descriptive Statistics
Mental Toughness
Pain
Catastrophizing
Pre Exercise DOMS
Intensity
Pre Exercise Pain
Interference
Post Exercise
DOMS Intensity
Post Exercise Pain
Interference
Valid 37 37 37 37 37 37
Missing 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mean 42.57 14.95 0.8919 0.2622 2.600 1.076
Std. Deviation 6.072 7.431 1.374 0.4639 2.566 1.950
Skewness -0.4048 0.4725 3.320 2.730 0.7999 2.207
Std. Error of
Skewness
0.3876 0.3876 0.3876 0.3876 0.3876 0.3876
Kurtosis -0.1328 -0.5612 13.29 8.615 -0.4889 4.148
Std. Error of
Kurtosis
0.7587 0.7587 0.7587 0.7587 0.7587 0.7587
Minimum 29.00 3.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Maximum 56.00 33.00 7.300 2.200 8.500 7.700