By Mike Clayton, USA Wrestling In today’s fast-paced world, we’re constantly bombarded with messages about instant gratification and overnight success. We see perfectly curated social media feeds for our heroes in sports, entertainment, and business and it can be easy to feel envy for the achievements of others as we yearn to replicate their journeys – but in a compressed timeline.  The truth is, true excellence, be it in our careers, health, or personal growth, doesn’t happen overnight. Rushing Success: A Recipe for Burnout Imagine trying to learn an entire language in a week. You can ta ..read more

By Reilly Dampeer, Head Coach and High Performance Program Manager at OKC National High Performance Center This letter shares the messages that I needed as a young athlete. No words are able to replace experience so I cannot honestly say that I would have heeded the lessons of each story in this letter, but I know that they would have impacted my success and most importantly: I hope that the lessons motivate aspiring young athletes today.  Dear Athlete, I have been coaching 15 years and I am grateful for the privilege to coach aspiring Olympians everyday. I get to work with athletes who b ..read more

Jim Davis, EdM, MA, RSCC*E The coach started practice at 5:30am. He believed these early mornings would teach toughness and discipline. The team responded well to the challenge and 4:30am wakeup calls became the norm. With puffy eyes and heavy feet, they would stroll in, tired but ready to work. This part of his approach was successful. His team was tough. “But they’re just not listening,” said the coach, referring to the fact that the students did not seem to be retaining information from practice. Whether it was a new skill or a logistical note, like when to be on the bus for an upcoming tou ..read more

By Dr. Zachary Shutler Have you heard of North Carolina State Men’s Basketball Coach, Jim Valvano?  His story is the epitome of faith, belief, purpose, and optimism. When Jimmy Valvano was a child, he believed he was going to be a head coach. He had faith he would one day lead a team to a national championship. He had a defined purpose and unshakable optimism in this belief before he even graduated high school. One day, young Jimmy shared this ambition with his father. He was very clear in his belief.  He said, “Dad, one day I am going to be a head basketball coach for a division one ..read more

By Yesol An Imagine an apple orchard with trees that have an overabundance of apples. From an amateur perspective, this seems amazing because of the prospect of a large harvest. However, this can be detrimental. Having too many apples results in less nutrients for each one, resulting in small and less tasty fruit. To combat this, trees need to be pruned to the optimal number of young fruit on the branches. Now, think of each tree as a muscle group of the body while time and energy are its nutrients. If you try to incorporate too many exercises, each movement won’t receive enough time and energ ..read more

By: David Gardy Ermann[1] Super Bowl 58 featured the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers.  Quarterback Patrick Mahomes, a seventh-year pro and former first round draft selection, led the Chiefs to his fourth Super Bowl appearance.  Brock Purdy, a second-year pro and former Mr. Irrelevant (last player selected in the draft), led the 49ers to his first Super Bowl appearance.  Although on paper and from the game tape, the quarterbacks seem to have a number of differences in resumes and skillsets, they share at least one key trait: remaining calm in high-pressure situatio ..read more

By: David Gardy Ermann[1] Sunday afternoon’s NFC divisional round playoff match-up between the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers will feature Jared Goff and Baker Mayfield as the starting quarterbacks.  Both players were once the first overall selection in the NFL Draft.  Goff in 2016 and Mayfield in 2018.  Although a playoff match-up featuring two former number one overall draft picks at quarterback would not seem out of place, neither Goff’s nor Mayfield’s careers have met the lofty expectations of that draft spot.  As their careers progressed, both players experienc ..read more

By Gary McChalicher, Justin Loudon, and Jim Davis Sports offer the most powerful learning environment on the planet, IF we decide to use that platform wisely. Power does not always elicit positive outcomes. While ‘sports gone wrong’ is still a daily headline, intentional, thoughtful coaching can teach lessons that last a lifetime. For those who are willing to go beyond strength and teach those lessons, the weightroom offers a unique opportunity to teach them. The season lasts three months, offseason training spans the rest of the year – in training, we have an extended teaching period. With a ..read more

Novak Djokovic has been ranked as the top tennis player in the world for 403 weeks over 13 different years. He has won 24 Grand Slam titles, including a record 10 Australian Open titles. He pushes back against the idea that his mental strength is a ‘gift’, acknowledging that he has worked hard for it. His focus, his resilience, his presence of mind in the midst of competition is something he has earned – a skill that requires deliberate training. He stresses that it’s a quality honed through hard work, comparable to training one’s serve or forehand. It does not happen automatically. In the hea ..read more

By Carissa Gump, OLY, MPA At a certain point in their athletic journeys, athletes inevitably confront the daunting inquiry: “Now what?” This pivotal question is not exclusive to seasoned professionals or Olympians but also resonates with young athletes at the recreational level, middle school, high school, and collegiate level as well. The timing of this question varies, arising organically for some and forcibly for others, due to factors such as injuries or the inevitable aging-out process in sports (Encyclopedia of Applied Psychology, 2004). When the moment arrives, it is crucial for the ath ..read more