In this 3 part series I’m going to break down three of the very best sports psychology books on the market. These are critical tools for both the athlete and the coach, both for competition and practice/training- whether you’re in Martial Arts or a team sport like baseball or soccer.
First up is “The Mental Edge” written by Kenneth Baum with Richard Trubo. At 174 pages, it’s a concise and straight-to-the-point read.
Highlights:
Perception Stretchers
These are 10 concepts to help an athlete better understand how the mind-body connection works. They include, “Limitations are temporary,'” “Events have no meaning except what you give them,” and “Getting better is more important than winning.”
Learning How to Visualize
Coaches and athletes always talk about visualization and how important it is. But rarely do they teach how to properly visualize. The Mental Edge breaks it down with simple, easy to follow instructions. This is arguably the best chapter in the book.
Real Life Examples
For an athlete, it’s incredibly powerful to see or hear about other athletes who’ve experienced the same challenges and they’ve faced- and overcome it. This book gives numerous examples of athletes in all types of sports- basketball, wrestling, golf, etc.
Stay tuned for the next review, on the book I consider the very best coaching resource I’ve seen. It’s also a great resource for parents of young athletes.
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