Category: psychology

Athlete’s Guide to Mental Training and Kicking Butt

Full of tips and suggestions, this is a good book to keep on the coffee table at the Gym. Coaches, parents and gymnasts can browse anytime for positive self-talk inspiration.

Focused and On Fire: The Athlete’s Guide to Mental Training and Kicking Butt by Lisa Mitzel

Lisa Mitzel is a motivational speaker and a mental training coach. A former Head Coach at Stanford. An NCAA National Champion at Utah. A 2-Time Junior Olympic National Champion and former Elite. She has a BA in Psychology.


$17.95

via Gymnastics Coaches Skills & Drills

inspirational sports comeback stories

It starts with Diego Hypolito.

Click PLAY or watch it on Twitter.

Nick Ruddock’s advice for your Gym

It All Starts With a Vision
INVEST Time in Communicating Your Culture
Leadership Should be Demonstrated at All Levels
It’s Your Ship
Be Accountable
Develop ‘Buy In’
Be a Role Model
Encourage Diversity
Remove Toxicity
Avoid the 3 C’s
… Complaining, Comparing and Criticizing

10 Quick Tips

Click through for details.

Gabby Douglas apologizes

Woe is Twitter. 😦

Gabby couldn’t have picked a worse time to contradict her two time Olympic teammate and captain.

Aly Raisman, came forward last week to claim that ex-team doctor Larry Nassar had sexually assaulted her for years. 

Instead of voicing her concern, sympathy, and support of Raisman, Gabby Douglas decided to take issue with the way that some women dress, as a way of victim blaming women who are sexually assaulted.

She wrote on Twitter, which has since been deleted: “However, it is our responsibility as women to dress modestly and be classy. Dressing in a provocative/sexual way entices the wrong crowd.”

Statements such as these put the responsibility and onus on the victim instead of the perpetrator …

Celebrity Insider

Gabby deleted the tweet. Tried to apologize.

The backlash was severe. A low percentage of girls and women are harassed because of the way they dress.

I hope people can find their way to accept Gabby’s apology. It would help if the 2012 Olympic Champion worked towards protection of gymnasts into the future.

the ‘Shalane Flanagan Effect’

Did you catch the story of Shalane Flanagan winning the New York City Marathon?

… She’s the first American woman to win in 40 years, and she did so in a blistering 2 hours 26 minutes.

But perhaps Flanagan’s bigger accomplishment lies in nurturing and promoting the rising talent around her, a rare quality in the cutthroat world of elite sports. Every single one of her training partners — 11 women in total — has made it to the Olympics while training with her, an extraordinary feat. Call it the Shalane Effect …

NY Times 

should male gymnasts train shirtless?

There’s a good thread on this topic on  Gymnastics Coaches Skills & Drills. (Closed Facebook Group. You’d need to apply to join.)

Plenty of pros and cons. Some Gyms discourage training shirtless. Some do not allow it. Most do.

At the end of the day, however, it’s not going to be easy to change the culture. I expect most older male gymnasts will be training shirtless for decades to come.

positive approach to problem solving

Tony Retrosi was inspired by an AdWeek post.

Good reminders. Post this somewhere in the Gym.

Wendy Bruce Martin – mental blocks

Great article on one of our biggest coaching challenges.

… opportunity to empower our athletes to overcome and breakthrough anything they want …

Breaking Through a Mental Block