Having just read the title of my new article, You may be thinking: “Has Dr. Jim finally lost it? What does sleep have to do with sports?” Let me explain. Have you ever tried to sleep? You lie in bed and tell yourself that you have to sleep and you try, try, try to sleep. [...]
If you want another sign that youth sports (and the parents and coaches that are behind it) have gone completely off the rails, read this truly unsettling article. No doubt that many aspects of youth sports are no longer about children, but rather about deluded and selfish parents and the 'youth sport industrial complex' in which children [...]
I was recently interviewed by Glenn Whitney of SportsCoachRadio.com about the many different aspects of the psychology of sport. A good listen (scroll to bottom) if you want to learn more about how the mind impacts athletic performance.
Here is a great article about Tour de France winner and multiple Olympic cycling champion, Sir Bradley Wiggins, and his approach to the mental side of cycling.
An eye-opening article in The New York Times about the high cost of youth sports these days. The biggest news of the article is the poor financial return on investment (e.g., college scholarship, professional or Olympic career) that comes from pouring $$$ into your children's athletic experiences. Plus, the self-serving and corrupt "youth sport industrial [...]
One of the first questions that I ask athletes and coaches I work with is: Should you compete like you practice or practice like you compete? By far, the most frequent response is: You should compete like you practice. This answer seems perfectly reasonable if you think about it. When you practice, you’re relaxed, feel [...]
Defining success in sports is a difficult task. When I ask most athletes and coaches how they define success, it is usually in terms of results, whether wins, rankings, or times. Though, admittedly, results are the ultimate determinant of success, I have found that a preoccupation with them can both interfere with achieving those results [...]
I recently had an old article I wrote (but don't think I ever posted on my blog) published on a running website. Given the time of the year, I thought it was timely and might be of interest to many of my followers.
I was recently interviewed for an article that explores the benefits of mental imagery for sports performance and injury rehabilitation. Some interesting research shows how imagery isn't just a mental experience, but can actually help muscles stay active following an injury.
If you or your child dreams of a college athletic scholarship, you better think again. According to this article, the chances are exceedingly slim (see the chart with all of the collegiate sports). For the vast majority of young athletes, an athletic scholarship is a pipe dream. Now consider how many thousands of dollars parents [...]