Articles for sport parents and young athletes for tips on how to build confidence, perform more consistently, and overcome challenges.
Does Bad Officiating Derail Your Athlete? One moment your young athlete is focused, competing well, and in control. Then the referee makes a call they disagree with. Suddenly, everything changes. Their body language drops. Their focus disappears. Their performance falls apart. This is one of the most common challenges young … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How Does Mental Coaching Help Youth Athletes? SUMMARY: Young athletes train their bodies every day, but mental training is just as important for long-term success. Many young athletes struggle with fragile confidence, performance anxiety, or difficulty focusing during competition. Mental coaching helps them develop skills like self-talk, reset routines, and … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Improve Mental Toughness by Playing Pickleball Pickleball’s popularity is growing quickly, with many schools offering it for the first time. That’s the word from Mike Nielsen, the AAU’s new pickleball chief, and In Pickleball president Richard Porter. In fact, the two pickleball enthusiasts are working to ensure the sport is … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Easing Young Athletes Back into Seeing Friends and Teammates Sports kids may feel anxious about changing the routines they developed during the shutdown, says Elizabeth Englander, a Ph.D psychologist, researcher, professor and author of “The Insanely Awesome Post-Pandemic Playbook.” However, playing sports is a good way to transition to normal … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How to Separate Training from Competition What is a competitive mindset? Can young athletes learn to develop a competitive mindset? They can, but first they need to understand the difference between the training mindset and the competitive mindset. When kids are in the training mindset, they focus on improving the … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How to Handle the Pressure of Tryouts Trying out for a new team will rattle the nerves of many young athletes. They may make constant comparisons to other players or try to play perfectly to impress the coaches. The mental game and mindset is super important for having a successful … Read Sport Psychology Tip