Fitter Radio Episode 504 - Dr Philip Hurst: The Placebo and Nocebo Effect on Sports Performance

Join us for a fascinating conversation with Dr. Philip Hurst, former middle-distance runner and current academic from the School of Psychology and Life Sciences at Canterbury University. We discuss the intriguing world of the 'placebo effect', its negative counterpart - the 'nocebo effect' and their impact on sports performance. Drawing from his research and experience, Dr. Hurst shares the significance of these effects in the medical world and how they have the potential to shape athlete performance. We probe the mind-body connection and its influence on performance plus Dr. Hurst elaborates on how coaches and athletes can harness this connection for their own benefit. Lastly we explore the brain mechanisms involved in the placebo effect and how technology could potentially help us understand these mechanisms better, plus we look at the power of positive conversations, hypnosis and cognitive techniques in boosting athlete performance.  LINKS: Dr Philip Hurst's review "The Placebo and Nocebo effect on sports performance: A systematic review" at https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31414966/ Follow Dr Philip Hurst on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Phil_Hurst1