Teach Your Child Athlete Healthy Perspectives
These days, children seem to be given every opportunity by their parents to experience success in sports and every other performance activity (e.g., school, the performing arts). Many young athletes receive extra help from personal fitness trainers, private coaching, and training camps. They are given the opportunity to develop every possible sports skill necessary to […]
Read MoreSet Healthy Expectations for Your Young Athlete
Setting expectations for your children is an essential responsibility of being a sport parent. Expectations communicate messages to your children about what’s important to you and establish a standard toward which they can strive. But expectations can be double-edged swords. They can be a tremendous benefit to your children’s athletic and personal development or they […]
Read MoreThe Reviews are In for Online Mental Training Courses
Apologies for tooting my own horn, but the reviews and survey results are in from my first two online mental training courses, Prime Ski Racing 101 and Prime Sport 101, and they were very gratifying (while also providing great feedback on how I can continue to improve them). Though they are a work in progress, […]
Read MoreCreate a Vocabulary for Individual and Team Success in Sports
Your goal as a coach is to have as great a positive impact as you can on your athletes. This influence starts with your specific coaching of them to make them better athletes and to help them achieve their competitive goals. To that end, you motivate them, build their confidence, try to relieve any pressure […]
Read MoreBuild a Team Culture for Athletic Success
It is a widely held belief in the sports world that team culture can have a big impact on how a team functions and performs. How team members, think, feel, behave, and perform are all influenced by the environment in which they practice and compete. For example, have you ever been on a “downer” team? I’m […]
Read MoreFour Reasons Why Sport Coaches Don’t Do Mental Training (as Much as They Would Like)
Let me preface this article with a few observations about sport coaching and mental training. First, I believe that great sport coaches are also great intuitive psychologists. They may not have the fancy degrees, but through experience and self-education (and sometimes formal education), capable coaches develop a deep understanding of the importance of the mind […]
Read MoreMichael Phelps and Mental Preparation
Michael Phelps has had a remarkable series of performances at the Rio Olympics. He is obviously a tremendously gifted athlete who trains incredibly hard. At the same time, as this video describes, Phelps commits a ton of time and energy to his mental preparation. And here’s another video that describes how Michael Phelps the athlete […]
Read MoreWatching Video is Great Mental Training for Athletes
Watching videos of yourself and the best athletes in the world in your sport is a powerful tool for your mental training and to strengthen important mental muscles such as confidence, intensity, and focus. It can also be used, when combined with mental imagery, to improve technique and tactics. Another benefit is that watching yourself […]
Read MorePrime Sport 101 Online Mental Training Course Begins in One Week
Just a quick reminder that my Prime Sport 101: Train Your Mind like a Champion 6-week online mental training course begins on August 1st. This course is for athletes who compete in all sports and of all ages and abilities. The course offers the same information that I use with the professional and Olympic athletes I work with […]
Read MoreFor Athletic Success, You Pay Now or Pay Later
Just about every sport has an off-season during which a key focus should be on building your fitness that acts as the foundation for all of your other sports efforts. Because all aspects of sports preparation have become so sophisticated in the last decade or so, regardless of your sport, without the necessary strength, agility, […]
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