The U.S. Could Learn a Lot from Norway about Youth Sports
The New York Times just published a revealing article about Norway’s approach to youth sports that provides a painful juxtaposition to the often-times toxic “youth sport industrial complex” that currently has gone off the rails in the U.S. The article offers some valuable insights into how youth sports can be returned to its original health […]
Read MoreA Powerful Message to Young Female Athletes
In an era in which young women are receiving so many mixed messages about who they can be and who they should be. In a time when so many young women are spending too much time staring at screens that are shaping the way they think and feel about themselves, mostly for the negative. At […]
Read MoreDon’t Violate the Laws of Insanity and Stupidity as You Prepare for Your Next Sports Season
Every sports season comes to an end whether you want it to or not. After a long and demanding season, if you’re like most athletes, you’re probably tired of your sport (regardless of whether the season was a triumph or a disappointment). You just want to hang up your gear, kick back, relax, and forget […]
Read MoreSprint, Don’t Stagger, to the Finish of Your Sport Season
I was speaking to an Olympic athlete with whom I work after his country’s national championship recently and he told me that all he could think about before the event was how much he didn’t want to be there. He was burned out and just wanted the season to be over. Yet, this athlete also […]
Read More
Prime Sport: Triumph of the Athlete Mind (Podcast)
Drawing on his own elite athletic experience and decades of consulting with professional, Olympic, and junior-elite athletes, Dr. Taylor demonstrates the importance of mental preparation for sports performance. This podcast, based on his book, Train Your Mind for Athletic Success: Mental Preparation to Achieve Your Sports Goals, focuses on five mental “muscles” that most influence […]
Read More
Let Your Young Athletes Be Disappointed
As parents, you hate to see your children disappointed. They are sad, downtrodden, and seem to have the weight of their lives on their shoulders. Your hearts ache for their pain and you want to do everything you can to relieve them of that disappointment. But that would be a mistake! Certainly, disappointment is not […]
Read MoreMental Tips for Performing Your Best in Your Championship Season
Regardless of what sport you participate in, you have a championship season within your competitive season in which the stakes rise and how you perform counts the most. Yet, this is also the time of year when many athletes and teams aren’t performing at all well because of fatigue after a long regular season and […]
Read More
What Kind of Sport Parent are You?: Rate Yourself
In addition to working with young athletes in many sports, I also consult with sport parents to help them to provide to their young athletes the most positive support they can. Being a great sport parent is no small feat or easy task these days for several reasons. First, we live in a youth-sport culture […]
Read More
Be a Scientist and an Artist in Your Sport
The tough question that every athlete asks is: How do I perform my best when it matters most. Especially for young athletes who are still developing, it is essential for you to continue your technical and tactical development because without it. At the same time, on game day, I believe that too much thinking about […]
Read More
You Have to “Risk it for the Biscuit” for Sports Success
I’ve been working with a world-ranked junior athlete over the last few months and, in exploring why she doesn’t take more chances when she competes, she told me that a big goal of hers recently has been to “risk it for the biscuit.” I had never heard this expression and I laughed hysterically for almost […]
Read More