Demystifying Mental Toughness
Episodes
212 33 Ideas That Will Optimise Your Performance
29 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to episode #212 of Demystifying Mental Toughness! This is the second part of two specially created episodes over the festive period to show ...
211 25 Ideas that will boost your Performance and Mental Health
22 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to episode #211 of Demystifying Mental Toughness. Today we bring you the 1st of 2 compilation episodes over the festive period. The key ta...
210 Why Breathwork is so Powerful
15 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever thought about whether you breathe properly? Or do you take breathing for granted as something that we as living humans do automatically?...
209 How To Create Better Decision Makers On The Football Pitch
08 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Mental toughness development is all about helping people deal with pressure better. In general, you'll see sports psychology practitioners advocate ...
208 How To Help Footballers Ensure That They Keep Their Foot On The Pedal When Their Team Is Winning
05 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today, in the last of this 10-part series for footballer or soccer players, coaches and parents, I talk more about managing expectations, this time wh...
207 And Breathe: How To Prevent, Manage and Master Difficult Conversations
01 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In business and sporting organisations conflict is widespread and there is a need for leaders and managers to be able to prevent, manage and master di...
206 How To Help Footballers Play To Their Optimum In Big Matches
28 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In episode 206, I add a further step to what I discussed in the previous episode, 204, when I talked about managing expectations. The situation I cons...
205 Rehabilitation And Returning To Sport: How To Support Injured Athletes
24 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today's podcast episode looks at how we as Sports Psychologists support injured athletes. My guest, Dr Carl Bescoby, the Injury Psychologist, goes on ...
204 How To Help Footballers Manage Their Expectations
21 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A phrase you often hear from football managers, coaches and pundits is that football and soccer players "need to manage their expectations." You also ...
203 How Boxing Can Help You Build Up Your Levels Of Resilience
17 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 203 of The Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast features Jack Sunderland, a former professional boxer, currently a boxing coach and entrepren...
202 How To Help Footballers Who Struggle With Fear Of Failure
14 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In episode 202, the 7th of our 10-part series I build on the previous episode, and again I look to help the footballer who places too much attention o...
201 Even The Mentally Tough Can Find Things A Struggle Without Self Awareness
10 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode is a special, landmark episode as we enter the 200's! As a result, I decided to clip out some bite-sized bits from previous episodes f...
200 How To Help Footballers Who Put Too Much Pressure On Themselves
07 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today I go on to discuss a very common challenge many football or soccer players find a problem. It's their focus, specifically when too much attent...
199 Leadership: How To Mentally Prepare Yourself For Public Speaking
03 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Audrie Woodhouse, who was a fabulous actress and performer and now a successful coach and speaking consultant, shares some great id...
198 How To Help Footballers Who Feel Flat On Match Days
31 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Some days as a footballer, for a variety of reasons you may feel flat and approach a match out of sync mentally and physically. So what should you d...
197 Mental Health: How To Overcome Executive Loneliness
27 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
"It's lonely at the top" - this is a comment many business leaders in organisations admit where trusted relationships, can often prove sparse. In sp...
196 How To Help Footballers Who Are Sensitive To Criticism
24 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Whether you play football at grassroots or in the Champions League one thing is for certain you will be criticised by someone. It may be a team-mat...
195 When Being Tough In Sport Can Negatively Impact On Your Mental Health #BITESIZE
20 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ideally, we'd be able to recognise the need for toughness when we train and play sport and be able to switch it on and off as we please. Unfortunate...
194 Footballers: How To Ensure Playing Out Of Position Is A Walk In The Park
17 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Footballers - how do you view the coach or manager asking you to play out of position? Negatively as a threat or positively as a challenge? In today...
193 How to Help Footballers Get Out Of Their Own Way #BITESIZE
13 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's short bite sized episode, taken from episode #093 of the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast, I was joined by prominent Sports Psychologi...
192 Coach-Player Relations: How To Support Footballers Who Are Feeling Powerless
10 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It is common for footballers or soccer players to have different values and ideas about the game than their coaches. On occasions, this can result i...
191 Sports Psychology Basics: Be Proactive If You Want to Succeed #BITESIZE
06 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's short bite sized episode, I chat with Dr Jim Afremow, the co-author of The Leaders Mind. Jim shares with you his thoughts about the fiel...
190 Attention Footballers! Are You Curious About the Mental Game?
03 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Many footballers are driven to improve. They strive day in, day out, to get better. They sleep, eat and breathe football. Football is on their brain...
189 Goal Setting: How To Re-Energise Yourself To Aid Your Sport Performance
29 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most people at some point experience demotivation, where they lack interest and enthusiasm about something that they have once really enjoyed. This ...
188 Soccer Psychology: Helping Soccer Coaches Reflect On Their Approach #BITESIZE
22 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's bite sized episode, I was joined by the author of the Modern Soccer coach series Gary Curneen, where he opened up on an expensive mistake h...
187 Task vs Ego Involvement: Do You Set Goals That Harm Your Performances?
15 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are you one of those people who sets goals for yourself, but you get frustrated at not achieving them? Or perhaps you're a coach or teacher who noti...
186 Intrinsic or Extrinsic Goals: Do You Set Goals That Harm Your Performances?
08 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Commitment, a measure of mental toughness is largely about making promises to yourself and then going on to follow through with those promises, withou...
185 Commitment: Leisure Athletes vs Performance Athletes #BITESIZE
01 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Commitment, setting goals and delivering on your promises without being derailed, is an important ingredient of Mental Toughness. In this BITESIZED ep...
184 Peak Performance: Considerations For A Good Night's Sleep #BITESIZE
25 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rest and recovery is hugely important for us all, especially highly motivated and driven people. In this bitesized episode, I chat with Nick Littleh...
183 Sports Coaching: How Being Compassionate Can Help Your Athletes Perform Better
18 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Supportive coaching is shown to be effective in having a positive influence on an athlete's development, particularly when athletes are unsure of them...
182 An Introduction to Mental Toughness and Psychological Safety #BITESIZE
11 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today I chat with a leading authority for Mental Toughness, Doug Strycharczyk, where I share a short bite from a conversation that we had about psycho...
181 How to Improve Teamwork using a 4Cs Mental Toughness Approach
04 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
"Teamwork makes the dreamwork" – John C Maxwell. This quote is the motivation behind the latest episode of Demystifying Mental Toughness, where I ...
180 How To Work With Team Units To Improve Culture In Teams
28 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are team development strategies taken seriously in elite sport when viewed from a psycho-social perspective? This question was the motivation for...
179 Great Captains: 8 Mental Toughness Characteristics That Can Inspire Others
21 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What makes a great captain in team sports? In this week's short solo episode I elaborate on this question where I focus on the 8 key sub-measures of M...
178 Helping Leaders Recognise The Benefits Of Showing Vulnerability #BITESIZE
14 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is a short episode where leadership is the topic that Paula Eddy Wilcox and I discuss, specifically looking at vulnerability in leaders, coaches ...
177 How to Help Young People Develop a "Can Do" Attitude
07 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #177 of the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast, Lisa Avery, a positive psychology practitioner talks to me about how to help young peopl...
176 How To Help Enhance The Psychological Wellbeing Of Children In Sport #BITESIZE
30 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, I share a short yet very important extract from episode 122, where Professor Camilla Knight chats to me about the wellbeing of spo...
175 Can't Focus? Stop Mind Reading Others So That You Play To Your Strengths
23 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 175 of the Demystifying Mental Toughness podcast is for athletes, coaches or parents that fall into the trap of spending too much time mind re...
174 How To Deal With Criticism So That You Don't Take It So Personally #BITESIZE
16 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Criticism is everywhere today, where people often share their opinions of other people very easily despite not knowing the person, online using social...
173 How To Deal With Other People In Professional Football #BITESIZE
09 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A measure of Mental Toughness is interpersonal confidence, which reflects your ability to deal confidently with challenges from other people. Those ...
172 Working With Your Subconscious Mind To Achieve Better Results
02 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we look at working with the subconscious mind to improve self-awareness, overcome self-doubt and reduce your chances of choking whe...
171 How To Raise Your Levels Of Vitality
26 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #171 of the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast, former Professional Australian Rugby League player and now an inspiring speaker and pers...
170 How To Help Perfectionists With Their Mental Approach
19 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Supporting athletes with perfectionist tendencies is a large part of our work at Inspiring Sporting Excellence. They often display the following chara...
169 How To Perform Under Pressure Close To Your Best #BITESIZE
12 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One of the hallmarks of Mentally Toughness is the ability to perform well under pressure. Whether you play golf or cricket, or enjoy gymnastics or n...
168 How To Navigate Youth Sports So That Children Enjoy The Experience More
05 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today's guest, trainer, coach and author Andrew Simpson and I chat about the youth sport experience today for kids, parents and coaches. We discuss ...
167 How To Manage Your Emotions To Improve Your Golf #BITESIZE
28 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode of Demystifying Mental Toughness we dip back into the archives and take a short bite from episode 13 where leading performance coac...
166 How To Help Athletes and Coaches Reflect On Their Performances
21 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Many athletes and coaches understand that one measure of Mental Toughness, COMMITMENT, showing maximum effort, making promises and keeping them, setti...
165 How To Master the Mental Challenges Goalkeeping Throws at You
14 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Goalkeeping is arguably the most difficult and mentally challenging position on the football or soccer pitch. Common psychological challenges goalke...
164 How To Bounce Back From Trauma To Thrive #BITESIZE
07 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Trauma refers to a deeply distressing or disturbing experience or event that can overwhelm an individual's ability to cope and potentially cause lasti...
163 How To Beat The Yips In Golf So That You Enjoy The Game More #BITESIZE
31 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The "yips" is a term commonly used in golf. It describes sudden and unexplained losses of fine motor skills which impact on putting strokes and golf...
162 How to Find a Flow State to Improve Your Performance
24 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today in episode #162 of the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast I chat with Sun Sachs and Ed Gibbins, owners of Rewire Fitness about flow states. ...
161 How to Create a Culture of High Performance in Professional Rugby Union
17 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #161 I chat with Author, Coach Educator and Performance Rugby Consultant, Paul Phillips. We discuss his experiences of developing high pe...
160 Golf Psychology: What You Can Expect and Why It Can Help You
10 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Golf Psychology is only for top, elite professionals such as Rory McIlroy or Jon Rahm. Only work with a Golf Psychologist if you have a problem. A ...
159 How To Prevent Burnout In Elite Professional Football To Maximise Performance
03 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you've got to the point where you've experienced physical, emotional and mental exhaustion you may have experienced burnout. This can happen to p...
158 How to Develop and Implement Mental Health Literacy Strategies
24 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Mental Health in sport is a topic which over the last decade has become more significant and a big talking point with many elite athletes and coaches ...
157 What Is Sports Psychology and How It Can Help You
17 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode of Demystifying Mental Toughness is where my colleagues at Inspiring Sporting Excellence, Olivia Scott, Aditi Gandhi, Tom Short and Al...
156 There is Hope: How to Overcome Focal Dystonia
10 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In mainstream sports psychology when helping individuals to develop their mental toughness and overcome performance challenges sport psychologists are...
155 How Do You Help a Young Athlete Get Better Organised?
03 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Avoiding procrastination and becoming better organised as a young athlete is the topic of today's short solo episode. In Mental Toughness term's we'...
154 How Do I Go About Controlling The Controllables To Help My Sport Performance?
27 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this short solo episode, I discuss an important component of Mental Toughness – control. In sport, business and in everyday life it can be very...
153 Rugby Psychology: 25 Ways You Can Improve Your Performance
20 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to episode #153 of Demystifying Mental Toughness. This is the final part of four specially created episodes to celebrate reaching 150 episo...
152 30 Ways to Optimise Your Performance and Mental Health
13 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to episode #152 of Demystifying Mental Toughness. This week we bring to you the 3rd of 4 compilation episodes. The key takeaways from this...
151 Football Psychology: 50 Ways You Can Improve Your Performance
06 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to episode #151 of Demystifying Mental Toughness. This is part two of four specially created episodes to celebrate reaching 150 episodes! ...
150 30 Ways You Can Improve Your Performance
30 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to episode #150 of Demystifying Mental Toughness! This is the first part of four specially created episodes to celebrate reaching 150 episodes...
149 How Do I Help My Children Deal With Strong Emotions?
23 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this short solo episode, I answer a popular question that we get asked by sporting parents - how do I help my children deal with strong emotions? W...
148 How to Build Your Mental Toughness Through Skiing
16 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Our guest today is Derek Tate, an experienced ski coach and author. We go on to discuss his book Six Steps for Training the Mind as well as mental t...
147 The Application of Mental Performance Coaching in Elite Professional Rugby
09 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #147 I chat with Aaron Walsh, a performance coach for the Chiefs rugby team in New Zealand as well as a consultant to many more elite teams...
146 What Is The Role Of A Sports Psychologist In Football?
02 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I chat with John Nassoori, a freelance writer and sports journalist for BBC Sport and The Guardian, in the UK. We go on to discuss ...
145 How Can I Help My Children Who Suffer With Nerves Before They Compete?
25 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this short solo episode, I answer a question posed by a parent. "How can I help my son, a goalkeeper who gets very grumpy and nervous the evening b...
144 Mental Strength: What You Can Learn About Resilience From The Special Forces
18 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I chat with Jon Watkins a resilience and transformation coach and a former special forces soldier. Jon shares insights into some ...
143 How Your Money Mindset Influences Your Behaviour
11 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I chat with the author and the founder of The Money Confidence Academy, Lesley Thomas, where we discuss a subject some people are u...
142 Is Striving for Perfection a Good Thing in Gymnastics?
04 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In episode 142 of Demystifying Mental Toughness, Dr Alessia Bruno and David discuss perfectionism in gymnastics as well as across other sports and wal...
141 How to Help a Child Who Wants to Quit Sport
28 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this short solo episode, I answer a question posed by a parent. "My son has had a tough time recently and often talks about not wanting to contin...
140 How to Improve Your Mental Strength: Secrets from an Olympian
21 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode double Olympian and former Commonwealth champion swimmer, Chris Cook joined me. We discussed his journey to becoming an Olympian and...
139 Steve Beharall's Journey from Football Coach to CEO
14 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In episode 139 of Demystifying Mental Toughness I had the pleasure of speaking to the head of The Newcastle United Foundation, Steve Beharall. Steve...
138 Why do the Mentally Tough see Sleep and Recovery as Important
07 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
If you're Mentally Tough you don't need to sleep you can simply push through… Wrong! The mentally tough person, as research suggests is more likely ...
137 Mindfulness and ACT in Sport: Helping Athletes Perform Better
30 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this short solo episode, I explain 5 reasons why you should look in more detail at the use of mindfulness and ACT in sport. How and why this appr...
136 Overcoming Tough Times in Professional Women's Football and Bouncing Back Stronger
23 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I was joined by professional footballer Charlotte Potts where we had a deep and fascinating conversation about different challenges th...
135 David Charlton Gets Grilled By Grant Henderson
16 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, I chat with Grant Henderson a former professional rugby player, Chief Operations Officer at The MCG Group and Co-Founder of i3prof...
134 Observations: 3 Things That Stop You Achieving Your Goals
09 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this short solo episode, I share 2 short clips from the previous 2 episodes where I chat with Kevin Stansfield and Christina Flach to inspire and m...
133 Why Mental Toughness is Important: Lessons from Sport, Business and Loss
02 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Following on from last week, again we look at what we can learn from the business world, entrepreneurship and sport and how they overlap. Mental Tou...
132 How Lessons from the Great Game of Golf can Help You Win the, Equally Great, Game of Business
26 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I chat with author and Business Growth Expert Kevin Stansfield where we discuss what the golfer or sports enthusiast can learn from...
131 How to Deal with Self-Criticism using Self Compassion – Final Part
19 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is the final part of a three-part series where I've tried to help people recognise that to develop Mental Toughness it is not simply abou...
130 How to Deal with Self-Criticism using Self Compassion – Part 2
12 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today is the second part of a 3-part series, where I share 2 more clips, this time from former England Cricketer and Senior Leadership Coach, Jeremy S...
129 How to Deal with Self-Criticism using Self Compassion – Part 1
05 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is a short solo episode and the first of 3 episodes where I share 2 reminders of what Mental Toughness is and apply it to different domains. Th...
128 Can You Show Vulnerability and Be Mentally Tough? Yes!
29 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I speak to a well respected leadership coach, The Natural Leadership Coach and host for The Game of Leadership Podcast, Paula Eddy ...
127 The Application of Mental Toughness Training in Elite Professional Rugby League
22 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #127 I chat with fellow Mental Toughness Licensee, Paul Trainor. Paul is a former professional rugby league player, currently a director ...
126 How does Golf Psychology Work to Lower Your Scores on The Golf Course
15 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's solo episode I talk about golf and what my role as a Sport Psychologist or Golf Performance Psychologist looks like, common challenges that...
125 How is Psychology used in Professional Football Clubs
08 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today I chat with HCPC Registered Sport Psychologist, Jack Hicks- Flynn about his love for the profession. He goes on to offer helpful insights into...
124 Long Term Injuries: How to Confront Difficult Thoughts and Emotions
01 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today's podcast episode looks at long-term serious injuries, the psychological impact and helpful strategies to help you manage your mental health dur...
123 Supporting People: What Can You Learn About Resilience From The Military
24 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I speak to Richard Dorney MBE. Richard served in the military for almost 39 years and has a wealth of experience in dealing with ...
122 Parental Support: Helping your Children get the Most from their Sporting Experiences
17 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today's guest, Camilla Knight is an associate professor in sports psychology at Swansea University in Wales, United Kingdom, and she is an expert in ...
121 What Is New? Developments in Mental Toughness Research and Practice
10 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today marks a landmark in the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast where the show has been running for 2 years without missing a week. As a result,...
120 Sport Coach Development: Helping Athletes Perform Better by Adapting How You Communicate
03 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this solo episode I share some ideas for sport coaches so that they help develop mental strength in their athletes and teams. The methods I discu...
119 An Applied Sport Psychologist Viewpoint: How to Become an Effective One
27 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode of Demystifying Mental Toughness, I chat with my colleague James Lau, where we discussed his journey to qualifying as a Sport Psych...
118 How to Help Golfers Overcome their Mental Game Challenges
20 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode of the Demystifying Mental Toughness Podcast, I was delighted to be joined by Dr. Bob Winters, an internationally recognised sport ...
117 How to Help Footballers Who Have Been Released – Part Two
13 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week's solo episode is part two where I build on last week's episode and share 4 more ideas and further resources to help footballers who come ac...
116 How to Help Footballers Who Have Been Released – Part One
06 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this solo episode, I discuss an obstacle many of our clients come across, being released from football clubs. This episode is part one, of a two pa...
115 Mental Strength to Succeed: Learning Lessons from International Cricket
29 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today, I'm joined by a former international cricketer and Senior Leadership Coach, Jeremy Snape. We go on to discuss mental toughness in cricket, th...
114 Because I Can - How To Get Out Of Your Own Way
22 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today I'm joined by Tim Bradshaw author of Because I Can, a former surveillance and target acquisition patrol soldier and covert human intelligence of...
113 The Relationship Between Mental Fitness, Mental Health and Mental Toughness
15 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's podcast episode #113, I'm joined by the adventurous and inspirational Polly Brennan, founder of Adventurous Coaching and creator of The Men...