The Sport Psych Show

I’m joined by Jeremy Holt and Dr Will Thomas from the Centre for Team Excellence in this episode. Jeremy and Will’s pioneering research has shown that people in great teams think, feel and behave differently to those in ordinary teams. Jeremy and Will have worked in a range of sports, with the Royal Marines and with a number of organisations. We speak about social identity; the reasons people are more likely to identify with a team; Individual distinctiveness; and co-creating team values.

In this episode, I speak with Professor Sophia Jowett. Sophia is a Sport Psychologist who lectures and researches at Loughborough University in the UK. She is an Associate Fellow and Chartered Psychologist of the British Psychological Society and she consults with athletes and coaches in a range of sports. Her research work mainly revolves around interpersonal relationships in sport with an emphasis on coaching relationships.

I have the pleasure of having my former mentor Rob Robson on this week’s episode. Rob is a People and Change Consultant and Psychologist working mainly within organisations to help them achieve their transformation and growth objectives. Rob trained as a Sport Psychologist and has worked in high change environments for over 20 years. He is also a competitive Masters swimmer and holds several British records. We speak about finding the balance in sport; quality vs quantity; Reversal Theory.

I’m delighted to be joined by Dr Alice Boyes on this episode. Alice is a former clinical psychologist and researcher turned writer. She has a PhD in the Psychology of Relationships and is author of two bestselling books: The Anxiety Toolkit and The Healthy Mind Toolkit. In this episode Alice and I talk about Self-sabotaging; looking for patterns; Prepare and Plan mindset; having the skills to dealing with rumination; Labelling; what to do with emotions and self-compassion.

I’m joined by Sydney based Performance Psychologist Steve Johnson in this episode. Steve was a Sport Psychology and Sport Coaching lecturer at Sydney University, Western Sydney University and University of Wollongong for 7 years. He’s worked with elite players and teams including from tennis, rugby league, super rugby, swimming, football, and cricket.

In this episode, I speak with former professional cricketer and now yoga instructor Lewis Hatchett about his journey to becoming an elite sports competitor. Lewis experienced a slightly different development pathway in his sport. He was born with Poland Syndrome, a rare condition that means he’s missing his right pectoral muscle and two ribs. When he was born the doctors said that he wouldn’t be able to play any sport. He defied all odds and eventually became a professional sportsman.

I’m lucky enough to be joined by Todd Beane on this episode. Todd is a soccer coach and Founder of TOVO Training and TOVO Academy Barcelona. In TOVO Training, Beane has combined proven pedagogical practices of experts in the field of education with the visionary components of a total football legend into a dynamic and practical training methodology. Todd worked with Johan Cruyff for 14 years to create the Cruyff Institute for Sport Studies.

In this episode, I had the opportunity to sit down with former Spurs, Sunderland and now Bournemouth and England footballer Jermain Defoe and ask him about the psychology of being a striker in the English Premier League. Jermain and I spoke about the toughest defender he ever played against and what made him so tough. We discuss the specific preparation he’s always used to prepare for matchday and highlighted his use of visualisation as a mental tool to prepare for a game.

I have the pleasure of having Iain Highfield on this week’s episode. Iain is a performance coach specialising in helping golfers develop their mental skills. He has implemented psychological conditioning programmes at two leading Junior Golf Academies and he was voted one of the best young golf teachers by Golf Digest Magazine in 2017. He is co-founder of Game Like Training Golf, where he introduces cutting-edge research to coaches.

In this episode, I’m joined by 2-time Olympian Laurence Halsted. Laurence competed in the London and Rio Olympics for the British Fencing team. He won a silver and bronze medal in the European Championships and finished 6th in the World Championships. He now works as performance director for the Danish Fencing Federation. As a coach, he has developed a passion for the mental side of sport. He works as a mentor for a not-for-profit organisation called The True Athlete Project.

I’m delighted to have Vern Gambetta join me on this episode. Vern has been a sports coach for over fifty years and he’s worked with some of the greatest sporting teams and athletes of all time. His CV reads like a who’s who of sporting royalty having worked with the Mets, the Chicago Bulls, the 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs. Vern is an athletic development coach using functional training to build foundations in movement skills and physical literacy.

I’m delighted to speak with Lara Mossman in this episode. Lara is currently studying a PhD in Positive Psychology and Sport at La Trobe University. Her interests are in Autonomy Support, Achievement Goal Theory and Positive Psychology in football. She is the co-founder of The Strengths Exchange, a strength-based positive parenting website. During this conversation, we chat about a range of Positive Psychology topics including promoting player wellbeing and player motivation.

In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Martin Turner. Martin is Senior Lecturer in Sport Psychology at Staffordshire University. He’s worked in a wide range of sports and is currently Lead Psychologist for the English futsal team. Martin is interested in using a counselling framework called Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) to improve the performance and enhance the mental health of competitors from all sports.

I’m lucky enough to be joined by international speaker and best-selling author Professor Damian Hughes on today’s podcast. Damian is the trusted adviser to the business, education and sporting elite, specialising in the creation of high performing cultures. Damian and I look in detail at this latest book The Barcelona Way honing in on the ‘culture of commitment’ that Barcelona have instilled. We discuss how Barcelona have put people at the forefront of their culture and how they’ve sustained succ

In this episode, I chat with teacher, teaching mentor and bestselling author Doug Lemov. Doug believes that teaching is a performance profession and spends his time learning what the very best teachers do. During our conversation, Doug introduces practical methodologies that coaches can use to improve their ability to teach, including the craft of coaching on the run, the difference between teaching and learning, how to data collect as you coach and thoughts on using ecological dynamics as a coach.