Building Confidence in Young Athletes

Young athletes who forget skills, freeze up or make avoidable mistakes and who can't meet their practice performance during competitions are struggling with performance blocks. These blocks can be caused by excessive pressure, anxiety, worry, perfectionism or identity issues and self-judgement, said Albert Bramante, a

Andy Whittier knows how to cope with pressure. He transitioned from playing college football to representing the U.S. in the skeleton sport, a solo, head-first sled race down an icy track at speeds of up to 89 mph.  At first, it was terrifying, he said. But with constant practice, he started making some "good, fast cle

P.J. Glassey, personal trainer, "biohacker" at XGym.com, and author of Cracking Your Calorie Code, has identified 16 brain types that help determine how best to motivate athletes and boost their performance. Developed over a 5-year period, his 20-question brain type test–which combines psychology and fitness– helps peo

When sports kids face challenges such as injuries or mistakes, they're more likely to overcome them by being "all in"--committed to working hard and improving in their sport. Chad Dunn, CEO of Move Performance Center and former BMX racer, asks kids facing adversity, "Do you really want to do this?" The right answer, he

Parents are very emotional about their kids' youth sports experience, and they're pouring a lot of money into youth sports. Because of these factors, they may feel that coaches favor other players when their kids aren't getting the playing time they want, said Jen Fry, a TEDx speaker, owner of JenFryTalks and sports ge

Teen athletes experience anxiety when they can't be in the moment, said Kate Kelley-Schneider, a psychotherapist and sports mindset coach at Pure Health Center and Pure Sports Mindset. They are either stuck replaying a mistake over and over or looking to the future and worrying about the score.  "They'll check out of t