Youth sports psychology podcasts and strategies for sports parents of young athletes to improve mental game and performance.
Positive Mindset for Young Athletes What’s one of the best ways coaches can communicate with young athletes? Give them high fives, and stay silent. That’s the word from Jarrett Robertson, former pro hockey player and author of “Make It a Great Day: How to Feel Awesome So That You Can … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Turning Feeling into Goals When Breanne Smedley was a college volleyball player, her roommate earned the role of starter in Smedley’s position. Smedley, who is now a certified female athlete Confidence Coach, at first felt as if her friend shouldn’t have gotten the position. “I started going down these holes … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Understanding Fight, Flight and Freeze Learning about the nervous system can help parents and young athletes better understand some of the feelings they experience, especially before games and competitions. “Our nervous system’s job is to protect us. Think about it as an early warning system, like an alarm system,” said … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Training Young Athletes to take their Sports Seriously Does Focusing Too Much on Fun Lead to Sports Kids Dropping Out? Often, parents focus too much on ensuring their kids are having fun in youth sports, which results in kids dropping out if the experience isn’t fun or entertaining, says Jonathan … Read Sport Psychology Tip
Helping Girls in Sports Feel Confident Body image worries. Fears of excelling and fears of being chosen to lead. These issues undermine girls’ experiences in sports. Girls and young women not only worry about how they look; they’re concerned that other girls will be angry with them for doing well … Read Sport Psychology Tip
How to Help Kids Bounce Back After Setbacks Communicating feelings, deep breathing and exercise are three activities that help boost resilience in sports kids, says Dr. Randall Bell, a former youth sports coach and sports parent, a socio-economist and author of “Post-Traumatic Thriving: The Art, Science, & Stories of Resilience.” … Read Sport Psychology Tip