Mind Gym : An Athlete's Guide to Inner Excellence for Outer Performance

by Mack, Gary; Casstevens, David

• ISBN13: 9780809296743
• ISBN10: 0809296748
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2001-04-10
• Publisher: MCG

Summary

Golfing great Bobby Jones said, "Competition is won or lost on the six-inch playing field between the ears." How do the best athletes gain an advantage on that playing field? In Mind Gym, noted sports psychology consultant Gary Mack teaches athletes the lessons he's learned about how the mind influences athletic performance as much as physical skill does, if not more so. Through forty accessible lessons and inspirational anecdotes from prominent athletes--many of whom he has worked with--Mack shares the same techniques and exercises he uses to help elite athletes build mental "muscle." Achieving this inner excellence requires time and effort. The more you work on the inside, the more it shows on the outside. These engaging stories--covering such themes as overcoming adversity, staying motivated, and following one's dreams--will enable you to perform at your best by choice rather than chance. Mind Gym will give anyone who spires to be a better athlete the "head edge" over the competition.

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
PART I Welcome to the Inner Game
Yogi Was Right	3	(5)
Mind Games	8	(5)
The Head Edge	13	(5)
The Pressure Principle	18	(6)
Mental Toughness	24	(5)
Know Your Numbers	29	(6)
Responsibility Psychology	35	(5)
Getting Over Yourself	40	(7)
The Next Level	47	(8)
PART II Living The Dream
Good Enough to Dream	55	(5)
Progress Not Perfection	60	(5)
Don't Shirk the Work	65	(5)
Fatal Distractions	70	(6)
Fate Loves the Fearless	76	(5)
Permission to Win	81	(6)
The Fire Inside	87	(5)
The Four D's	92	(7)
PART III Mind-set for Success
Attitude Is Everything	99	(5)
Riding the Pines	104	(4)
You Gotta Believe	108	(6)
Between the Ears	114	(5)
Servant or Master	119	(6)
Fear Lives in the Future	125	(5)
Breathe and Focus	130	(5)
Be Here, Now	135	(5)
Hurry, Slowly	140	(5)
Try Easier	145	(5)
Simply Observe	150	(5)
The Bottom Line	155	(8)
PART IV In the Zone
Trust Your Stuff	163	(5)
White Moments	168	(6)
Paralysis by Analysis	174	(6)
Paradoxes of Performances	180	(6)
Choice Not Chance	186	(5)
Inner Excellence	191	(6)
The Hero Within	197	(5)
The Well-Played Game	202	(5)
Game Day	207	(5)
The Mirror Test	212	(8)
The Big Win	220