Its the week of the big game, exam or even a job interview, you start to feel ‘butterflies’ in your stomach, you start to think “I’m Nervous” or “Something’s not right” you ‘freak out’ and you eventually under-perform or freeze under the spotlight. Well the good news is… everyone, whether athletic or not will have experienced […]
“Get comfortable being uncomfortable” – Jillian Michaels Seek out challenging situations that push you to your limits more often. Spending more time attempting to overcome difficult conditions or opponents in your sport will help you to find a way to come out on top when the odds are against you and when it really matters. […]
Now 2016 is fully upon us, many of us will have noticed an increase in the amount of people in your local gym. A diverse range of individuals, some of whom may never have taken part in any exercise before, will be busting a gut on the cross trainer, hoping to burn off the calories […]
Mental toughness is hard to quantify and define, and it is increasingly evident that the concept can mean different things to different people. UK researchers Jones et al. (2002) carried out an in-depth study with top international athletes and concluded mental toughness to be: ‘having the natural or developed psychological edge that enables you to […]
Unfortunately injury is a common threat when it comes to both elite and non-elite sport. How we cope with it may determine our path to either full recovery or re-injury. We often participate in major competition despite ‘having a niggle’ or carrying a larger injury and passing it off as nothing much (Lopez & colleagues, […]
Abraham Lincoln once described an a optimist as someone who “finds opportunity in every difficulty” whilst a pessimist to be someone who ‘finds difficulty in every opportunity”. Another way to look at optimism is in terms of explanatory style. Explanatory style examines the way an individual explains their experiences, successes and failures (Scheier & Carver, […]
At some time or other I suspect all athletes find it hard to maintain the intensity of exercise. We’ve all been there; the days when you had planned to go for a run but didn’t have the resolve to do it. This is when an athlete’s psychological tools come into their own-helping you stay motivated […]
My sport psychology program at “The Mental Game” is a mixture of cognitive behavioral therapy, imagery rehearsal, relaxation, hypnosis and other tools designed for self actualization. When a client comes to my office, one of the first things they learn is that we start to focus on the positive things that happen in their lives. I borrowed […]
As a Positive Psychologist with a background in, and passion for, sport and exercise, I often get asked about the link between the areas, and where the disciplines of Positive Psychology, and Sport Psychology fit together. Positive Psychology may be defined as, ‘the science of how to make individuals, businesses, and communities thrive’, with physical […]
To be healthy is not just about ridding yourself of disease but it is also about being in a state of complete physical, mental and social well being (Edwards, Edwards & Basson, 2004).. Recently positive mental health has been studied in much depth and wellbeing is now being acknowledged as extremely important for every athlete. […]