Mental Performance Playbook

Want your athlete to walk into every game confident? VTO is a 30-second pregame mental exercise that builds confidence before the game and between every play.Welcome to Day 26 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.VTO stands for Vision It, Touch It, Own It. Vision It means seeing the play like a movie in your head, reading the defense and watching it go exactly how you want it to.Touch It is the feel of the skill. Think of the basketball player shooting a fake free throw without the ball, the hitter taking a few swings, or the golfer's practice swing before stepping up.Own It comes from one question we ask every athlete. How many times have you done this before? Every rep and every past success is proof you can trust yourself and let your body do what it already knows.We use VTO on two levels. The macro level is before a game or practice, when you walk through how you want it to go, including the toughest, most tired moments, all the way to the win. The micro level is play by play and during timeouts, when you see and feel the next play before it happens.Then we break down the opening scene of Cars. Lightning McQueen sits alone before the race and sees it, feels it, and owns it. Later, when the big wreck hits, he reads the track and flies right through it. That's VTO on both levels.Parents and coaches, ask your athlete how many times they've done it before. That one question is where confidence starts.Your challenge today is simple. Run VTO for 30 seconds on the bench or during warmups before your next game.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and comment on what you want us to cover next.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#confidence #studentathlete #visualization #mentalperformance #athletemindsetKeywordspregame routine, pregame visualization, confidence before a game, how to be confident in sports, visualization for athletes, mental imagery, pre-shot routine, game day confidence, athlete confidence, muscle memory, Lightning McQueen, athlete mindset, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook

Your athlete gets in the car after the game and replays the one play they missed, over and over. The postgame Oreo is a 3-question mental exercise that turns that replay into a plan for tomorrow.Welcome to Day 25 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is the postgame Oreo. The top cookie is what you did well. After a rough game, athletes often can't find even one good thing, so we start there. It's how we open every training session at TAH.The cream is what you could do better, and it's the best part of the Oreo. Your athlete is going to think about that play anyway, so we put it to work. This builds on yesterday's episode about turning your don'ts into do's.The bottom cookie is what you're doing next. When you pair the cream with a clear next step, your athlete isn't just naming a mistake. They know exactly how they'll fix it, so they can sleep at night and walk into the next practice with a plan.This is not a compliment sandwich. It's a game plan built for competitors who always want to get better.For athletes who are really hard on themselves, we put a real Oreo in their locker. It's a little fuel after the hard work and a visual reminder to run the three questions after every game.Parents and coaches, give your athlete some time first. Even the pros get a few minutes in the locker room before they talk to the media. Then ask the three questions and let your athlete do most of the talking.Your challenge today is simple. Run the postgame Oreo on your next car ride home.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and comment on what you want us to cover next.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#postgame #studentathlete #sportsparents #mentalperformance #athletemindsetKeywordspostgame routine, post game reflection, what to say after a game, car ride home after a game, sports parents, how to talk to your athlete after a game, bouncing back after a bad game, athlete confidence, game review for athletes, compliment sandwich, athlete mindset, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook

Stop telling your athlete "don't turn the ball over." The second they hear it, a turnover is exactly what they picture. There's a better thing to say, and it takes about two seconds to switch.Welcome to Day 24 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is Don't Think About the Pink Elephant. Try it right now. Don't think about a pink elephant. It's the first thing your brain shows you. The brain doesn't hear the "don't," only the picture, and the harder you push a thought away, the stronger it comes back.So swap every don't for a do. "Don't turn it over" becomes "strong hands, eyes up." Telling yourself not to spill on your white shirt is how the stain ends up there. Even "I don't want to get up" becomes "I do want to get ahead of my day."When you do need to correct something, use contrast. Say one don't, then finish with one do. "Don't replay the strikeout, do run your at-bat routine." It works like a cold tub before a hot one, the contrast makes the do land harder.I tried this with a youth club we trained for a full winter season. When I told every kid not to think about a pink elephant, a few swore they pictured a blue one instead. The lesson still stuck. It's okay to be upset after a mistake. What matters is where your focus goes next, and the do keeps you moving forward.Parents and coaches, listen for your own game day don'ts. They're usually the first thing to change.Your challenge today is simple. Write down the 3 don'ts you say most on game day and flip each one into a do.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on a topic you want us to cover.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#sportsparents #studentathlete #mentalperformance #coaching #athletemindsetKeywordswhat to say to your athlete, positive coaching cues, dont think about a pink elephant, ironic process, self talk for athletes, how to stop replaying mistakes, youth sports parents, coaching language, mental reset, sports parenting tips, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, Mental Performance Playbook

I saw a reel of a guy whose walls were covered in sheets of paper, each one with a word or saying he lives by. It looked funny at first. But what we see all day, every day, has a huge impact on how we push, how we bounce back, and how we perform.Welcome to Day 23 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is Visibility. Your brain takes in way more signals than it can notice, like a room slowly getting warmer until you suddenly realize it's hot. What your athlete sees over and over shapes their thoughts even when they aren't paying attention. So we walk through five ways to put the right things in front of their eyes.First, the 3 G's on the bathroom mirror. Give, Great, and Grow, so every morning and night they see their own growth. Second, a vision board. Build it in Canva, a Google Doc, or PowerPoint, then make it your phone wallpaper, your computer screen, or print it for the wall.Third, the performance pulse. It's a sticky note or sheet of paper with a short list of what you're doing right now, placed right on top of your phone so you finish the task before you scroll. Fourth, a timer. Practice and games already have one, so put one on schoolwork too.Fifth, flip what you see. Cut back on what pulls you down, like the lazy effort or the party scene, and surround yourself with what pushes you forward, like pros you look up to and the words and quotes on your wall. Even when you aren't reading them, you're still noticing them.Parents and coaches, you control a lot of what your athlete sees at home and in the locker room, so use it to their advantage.Your challenge today is simple. Pick one of the five and put it somewhere your athlete will see it tomorrow morning.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on what you want us to cover next.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#visionboard #studentathlete #mentalperformance #athletemindset #goalsKeywordsvision board for athletes, visual reminders, goal setting for athletes, motivation for athletes, phone distractions, focus for student athletes, sticky note goals, timer for practice, environment design, athlete mindset, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook

The calls aren't going your way. School was rough, or you just aren't feeling it today. Then it's time to step on the court. What you do with those emotions decides how you play.Welcome to Day 22 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is Use the Emotion. I heard a line on a college football broadcast that sums it up: play with emotion, don't play emotional. Emotions can drive you further than almost anything, but making emotional decisions in the moment usually hurts you.The mental exercise that makes this possible is the alter ego. It separates your sport self from your everyday self, like Clark Kent and Superman or Peter Parker and Spider-Man. Your alter ego takes whatever emotion you bring into the day and spins it into fuel for practice or the game. It also lets you set the rest of the day aside so you can lock in.Your alter ego can be built a few ways. It might come from a sport style or an athlete you look up to. It might be an animal, like a gorilla that owns the post. It might be a superhero or even a vigilante. Then you load it up with your resets, your pregame routines, and your recovery, so it's the alter ego handling the pressure and not the everyday you.This works for some of our more quiet, even-keeled athletes too. An alter ego can help them become a more vocal leader and get noticed at the next level.Parents and coaches, watch for the switch. The kid who's nice off the court can still be someone else on it.Your challenge today is simple. At your next practice, notice whether you're playing with emotion or playing emotional, then start sketching your alter ego.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on what you want us to cover next.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#alterego #studentathlete #mentalperformance #athletemindset #emotionalcontrolKeywordsplay with emotion not emotional, alter ego in sports, emotional control for athletes, how to control emotions in sports, sports identity, game face, frustration in sports, vocal leader, athlete mindset, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook

Remember stacking building blocks as a kid? One block on top of another, each one making the tower taller. That same idea is one of the simplest ways to build success for a student athlete.Welcome to Day 21 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is Blocks Build, and it comes down to two kinds of blocks and how they work together.The first is self blocks. Your athlete has a school self, a home self, a basketball self, and maybe a baseball self too. Keep those blocks separate and define what you do in each one. An athlete who doesn't always listen at home can still be the most coachable player at practice. Separating these blocks is also the first step to building an alter ego, like Kobe Bryant's Black Mamba, and we'll cover that in a future episode.The second is time blocks. Break the 24-hour day into chunks the same way a coach plans out practice. The tool that works best for the families we work with is a shared Google Calendar. The kitchen calendar is great for the month, but a shared calendar shows the whole family what's happening each day, wherever they are.Then we put them together. Drop the self blocks into the time blocks on the calendar, and color code each kid. Now your athlete knows who they need to be, where, and when.Parents and coaches, this builds an organization system your athlete can carry into college or a job. It even helps with the small stuff, like remembering to pack their shoes and getting to practice on time.Your challenge today is simple. Set up a shared Google Calendar and add one block for tomorrow's practice or game.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on what you want us to cover in the next two months.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#timeblocking #studentathlete #mentalperformance #athletemindset #sportsparentsKeywordstime blocking for athletes, Google Calendar for families, student athlete schedule, family calendar, alter ego in sports, athlete identity, compartmentalize, coachability, organization for student athletes, building habits, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook

What's better than 100? It's 200, and this is our 200th episode of the Mental Performance Playbook, and if we had stopped at 100, none of what came after would exist. That's the whole idea behind today's session.Welcome to Day 20 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is Do Double. Whatever you're doing, double it. It came out of a session with an athlete who told me their big goal was to make the league. So we mapped out where they could double down, and we built a 3 by 3 grid. Across the top is when, the start, middle, and end. Down the side is how, with time, intensity, and reps.At the start, show up earlier and give yourself a longer warm-up. Ramp up your intensity more gradually so you're primed and less likely to get hurt. Then double your warm-up reps, like extra free throws, serves, or swings before the drills begin.In the middle, add time by adding training days across the week, not by making team practice longer. Push your intensity past where it was, even if today's 100% looks different. And add reps, or slow them down so every one is intentional.At the end, cool down longer so you recover better. Push one more at the peak, and remember the old track lesson that in four hard reps, the third one should be the hardest. Then double your stretch, holding it for 30 seconds instead of 15.Parents and coaches, you don't need all nine. Pick one and share it with your athlete.Your challenge today is simple. Choose one box on the grid and do double at your next practice.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on what you want us to cover next.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#dodouble #studentathlete #mentalperformance #athletemindset #workethicKeywordsdo double, double down, work ethic for athletes, extra reps, how to get better at sports, warm up routine, cool down and recovery, practice intensity, stretching for athletes, athlete goals, 200th episode, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook

The sprints at the end of practice. The last minute of a plank. The final stretch of a match when your legs are gone. Every athlete hits that moment, and it's where they either break down or break through.Welcome to Day 19 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session covers 4 keys to breaking through. The first is knowing that stress is good. We can't grow without it, just like a muscle can't get stronger without more weight. Stress is what forces us to adapt, and sometimes to adopt new behaviors that get us to the next level.The second key is physical. When stress hits, your heart rate climbs and your breathing gets short and shallow. The one thing you can always control is your breath. Slow it down, breathe deep into the belly, and use your nose when you can.The third key is mental. Hard moments make time feel slow, and your mind starts racing in every direction. Give it something to do. Focus on that breath, then lock your eyes on one visual focus point so everything else fades out.The fourth key ties it all together. A heuristic is a mental shortcut, and your breath and your focus point become the shortcut that takes you from overwhelmed to locked in, fast.Parents, this works for you too. Try it in your next tough workout or stressful day.Your challenge today is simple. The next time practice gets hard, control your breath and pick one focus point to lock in on.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on what you want us to train next.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#mentaltoughness #studentathlete #mentalperformance #athletemindset #breakthroughKeywordshow to handle stress in sports, mental toughness, breaking through, hard workouts, breathing for athletes, nose breathing, visual focus point, heuristics, mental shortcut, stress and adaptation, push through fatigue, composure under pressure, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, Mental Performance Playbook

High school season ends, and the next day it's club tryouts. Then AAU. Then a different sport starts up. For a lot of student athletes, there's no such thing as an off season.Welcome to Day 18 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is No Off Season. On the whiteboard, we map out a year at three levels using basketball as the example. Pros have preseason in August, the peak around New Year's, playoffs in April, and a short break before they're back to work. College looks similar, with maybe a couple of months off before the grind starts again.Youth sports are different. Fall tryouts start in August, the school season peaks in winter, and when it ends in the spring, club and AAU take over. On top of that, most kids are playing another sport.So what does off season training actually look like? We break it into two groups. The first is physical, meaning strength and coordination like speed, agility, and body awareness. Playing more than one sport helps here, so cross-training is a good thing, especially for younger athletes.The second is mental, and this is the big one. Physical training has to go up and down so the body can recover. Mental training doesn't burn the body out, so you can train it every day, in every sport, at school, and at home. The same mental exercises carry from basketball to baseball to the classroom.Parents and coaches, if your athlete never gets a true off season, the mental game is the one piece you can keep building all year without wearing them down.Your challenge today is simple. Take one mental exercise you use in your main sport and use it in a different sport, class, or part of your day this week.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on a question you want answered on the whiteboard.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#offseason #studentathlete #mentalperformance #youthsports #mentaltrainingKeywordsoff season training, youth sports off season, year round sports, multi sport athletes, cross training for athletes, sport specialization, athlete burnout, AAU and club sports, mental training year round, off season mental training, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook

Picture a busy airport terminal. People rushing in every direction, and it looks like total chaos. But ask any one of them and they know exactly where they're going. Sports work the same way.Welcome to Day 17 of 75 on the Mental Performance Playbook. Every day until January 1, 2027, we're dropping one whiteboard mental training session built for student athletes, parents, and coaches to use right away.Today's session is Order in the Chaos. To the untrained eye, football looks like 22 people running around and basketball looks like 10 people bumping into each other. Gymnastics looks like a bunch of mats and bars, and baseball looks like one person throwing while everyone else stands in the grass.To the trained eye, it's all order. Zones, plays, and blocking schemes in football. Screens and set plays in basketball. Pointed toes, straight legs, and stuck landings in gymnastics. Pitch types and hitting approaches in baseball and softball. Knowing the game helps you see that order, and mental training helps you hold on to it when the game speeds up.That's where resets come in, and we share one for each sport. In football, a physical reset like grabbing the face mask to get your head on straight after a big hit. In basketball, wiping off your shoes between plays. In gymnastics, a breath out through the mouth and a quick cue word before the routine. In baseball and softball, a visual reset, locking your eyes on a point past the pitcher or right on the catcher's mitt.The more you train these, the more the game slows down for you while it still looks fast to everyone else.Parents and coaches, use this when you're watching film or learning the game alongside your athlete. Ask them what order they see.Your challenge today is simple. Pick one reset for your sport and use it the next time the game starts to speed up on you.If this helped, share it with an athlete, parent, or coach who needs it. Subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's session, leave a five-star review, and drop a comment on what you want us to cover next.New mental exercises drop every day on YouTube at @gaberummeltah, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.Free resources and training links are below.#mentalperformance #studentathlete #athletemindset #sportspsychology #composureKeywordshow to slow the game down, game slowing down, mental reset in sports, reset routine, physical reset, verbal cue word, visual focus point, sports IQ, reading the game, chaos theory for athletes, composure in sports, mental performance, sports psychology, mental training for athletes, mental exercises for athletes, student athletes, sports parents, youth sports, Mental Performance Playbook