Mental Training Lab

Today’s guest is Ashwin Patel. Ashwin is a Professor and Program Coordinator for the Sport Management and Recreation and Leisure Services programs at Humber College. He is also the co-founder of Sport and Wellness Consulting with Dr. Noah Gentner. Ashwin received his Ph.D. in Sport and Exercise Psychology from the University of Tennessee and upon graduating, Ashwin spent seven and a half years as an Associate Professor at Western Colorado University.

Since 2003, Ashwin has provided Mental Performance Consulting - both in corporate and sport settings. His primary passion is working with hockey players. In this capacity, he’s worked with the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League, the student-athletes at Victus Academy – a private hockey school in Kitchener. And with the Vancouver Canucks – focusing on the AHL team in Utica, NY. In 2020 he was a mental performance consultant with Hockey Canada's U17 team and in April 2021 worked as the mental performance consultant for Hockey Canada’s Gold Medal winning U18 team at the IIHF World Championships.

We cover so much ground in this episode that I needed to split it into two parts! In this first part, Ashwin and I dig into relationship building and how to introduce mental training in elite settings.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

In today’s deep dive, I’m going to dig into the concept of awareness. Awareness is the master key that opens the door to purposeful, sustainable change, and so it’s worth a little extra time and energy to deconstruct it and consider how we can train it on purpose. 

I start with why awareness matters, talk about the two different components of awareness, and finish up with two (familiar) skills and concrete exercise for both. 

I want to hear from y'all. If you have questions about this episode, or have thoughts on which skills or concepts you want to deep dive on next, head over to @alldaydr.k and drop a comment in the post for this week's episode.

For show notes and for other episodes of the pod, head over to mtl.academy!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

For today’s episode, we’ve got ultrarunner Addie Bracy (@addiebracy) in the lab. Addie ran track at the University of North Carolina, and is a three time qualifier at the US Olympic Trials. Since 2016, she’s embraced the world of trail running, winning three US National Championships and helping Team USA to gold and silver medals at the World Championships.

Addie represent Nike Trail, and at ultra distances, she’s finished 2nd at Leadville and 9th at Western States, and recently co-set the unsupported FKT for the Rim to Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon. 

Addie graduated from the University of Denver with her graduate degree in Sport Psychology, and specializes in working with runners and adventure/endurance athletes like skiers and climbers through her private practice, Strive Mental Performance. 

In this episode, Addie shares her lessons learned after interviewing the top athletes in ultrarunning on her way to publishing the book ‘Mental Training for Ultrarunning’. Her experience as both an elite performer and a mental performance coach puts her in the unique position to understand and explain what the best are doing with their mental skills. We cover the power of starting with a curious mindset, why confidence journaling is so effective, and how to dance with the uncertainty and discomfort that comes with performing at your edge. 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

Today’s guest is Dr. Aimee Kimball (@AimeeKimball). Aimee has worked in a variety of peak performance settings, starting with the UPMC center for sports medicine, and her own private practice in Pittsburgh. In a decade as the mental training consultant for the Pittsburgh Penguins, she was a part of two Stanley Cup winning teams, and is currently the Director of Player and Team Development for the New Jersey Devils.

Following the hockey theme, Aimee has also been tapped as the mental performance coach for the USA Women’s Hockey team as they prepare for the 2022 Olympics. As if her dance card wasn’t already full enough, she also works in the business world, facilitating an extreme growth mindset and creating a mentality that helps leaders succeed at work and in life.

In this episode we discuss the tools that make Aimee successful in her work with elite performers, we deconstruct high performing cultures, and we look at the one key skill that allows those at their best to continue to grow and excel. There are so many actionable tools tucked in here that you’re going to want to listen and then listen again.

For show notes and access to the Mental Training Lab newsletter (with a new worksheet delivered to your inbox each week) visit mtl.academy!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

Today’s episode is with Kirsten Cooper (@westriveunited). Who is Kirsten? Well, she’s a badass, and let me tell you why. She’s the co-founder of Strive United (www.westriveunited.com) , a company dedicated to supporting athletes as they transition out of sport. Kirsten was a professional alpine ski racer, competing for the United States Ski Team, and won a national championship with the University of Colorado. As you’ll hear, her experience leaving the sport of skiing really informs the work she’s doing now with athletes. 

Kirsten is currently a doctoral student in clinical psychology. She’s also earned her MA in Sport and Performance Psychology from the University of Denver, and she earned a BA and MA in integrative Physiology. 

In this episode Kirsten and I spend a lot of time unpacking the challenges and opportunities of retiring from athletics, she shares her own story of transitioning out of elite sport, and she lays out three keys to making a successful move into post-athletic life. Enjoy!

For show notes, transcripts, and to sign up for the weekly MTL newsletter, visit mtl.academy

This episode, we’ve got Jean Laurenz (@jeanlaurenz) in the lab. Jean is a trumpet player and Assistant Professor of Trumpet at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a dog enthusiast, and a succulent killer. As a performer, Jean has enjoyed appearances with Adele, The Hanson Brothers, The Boston Pops, The New York Philharmonic, and the Hong Kong New Music Ensemble. 

Jean’s also a vocalist and stage performer who curates interdisciplinary performances which combine theater, singing, trumpet, and visual arts. She recently developed an award winning multi-media work, DESCENDED (trailer here)

Jean holds degrees in trumpet performance and Choral Education from Yale University and Northwestern University. She is a passionate educator, social activist, and teaching artist, and you can hear throughout the interview how thoughtful and engaged she is with the process of creating art.

In this episode, we cover a LOT of ground. Jean shares the evolution of her pre-performance routine, strategies for how to practice to create a trusting mindset, and why trying to get things RIGHT can sometimes get in the way of your best performance.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

Today's episode is a little bit different. There have been a ton of ideas and concepts that have only gotten touched on briefly in previous episodes that are worth spending more time unpacking. In the first of what will hopefully be many, I'm taking a look at what we actually mean when we say 'mindset'. 

I then break down two different skills that I think are critical when it comes to building awareness and purposefully shaping a more effective mindset.

I want to hear from y'all. If you have questions about this episode, or have thoughts on which skills or concepts you want to deep dive on next, head over to @alldaydr.k and drop a comment in the post for this week's episode.

If you want access to the Mental Training Lab newsletter, which includes a worksheet based on each week's episode, head over to mtl.academy (pro tip: you can find show notes and transcripts for each episode there as well).

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

Today I had the opportunity to sit down with my friend and colleague Jeffrey Siegel (@jeffsiegelwellness). Jeff's holistic background in Mind and Brain Education from Harvard University and Buddhist Studies from The University of Hong Kong provides a way towards lasting wellbeing that feels as good as it looks. Jeff coaches clients to help integrate the deep inner work of personal transformation while developing a bold vision, clear goals, and healthy routines. In addition to wellness coaching, Jeff teaches mindfulness and mediation at Harvard and Tufts, and leads corporate wellness workshops and classes for innovative companies that care about making the office a place that supports people's health and happiness.  

In this episode we cover a ton of ground. As you can tell from the bio, Jeff’s expertise is wide ranging, and we zoom in on how to create lasting behavior change, how values and vision unite to draw us closer to our best self, and then we unpack a few practices you can use to build the connection with your body. This one is a long one, and it’s well worth the time. I hope you enjoy! 

For show notes, transcripts, and to sign up for the MTL newsletter (hint: access to a new mental training worksheet for each episode), visit mtl.academy!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

Today’s conversation was so much stinkin fun to have. My guest is 3x Olympian Gevvie Stone (@gevgevs). Gevvie, a native of the Boston area, is a three-time Olympic rower. She raced for the USA in the women's single at the London games (where she placed 7th) and 2016 in Rio, where she took home a silver medal. She will represent the USA in the women's double in the upcoming 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. 

She’s also represented the USA at a variety of levels, including two Under-23 World Championships and six senior national teams, including nine World Cups and four World Championships. She studied history at Princeton University before graduating from Tufts University School of Medicine in 2014. Just in case you missed it, yes that’s correct, she completed medical school IN BETWEEN two trips to the Olympics. She has completed the first year of her emergency medicine residency at the Beth Israel-Deaconess Hospital in Boston and has been taking a leave of absence to train for Tokyo.

In this episode we touch on everything from the evolution of her performance mindset to her approach to pre-race imagery. You’ll also notice her twin superpowers throughout the conversation, the first being her capacity for motivational flexibility and the second being her skill at listening and being open to the next opportunity to learn, grow, and improve.

You’re really going to love this one - for show notes, transcripts, and to sign up for the MTL newsletter (hint: access to a new mental training worksheet for each episode), visit mtl.academy!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.  

Today’s guest is Dr. Vanessa Shannon (@cardinalmindset). Vanessa has served as the Director of Mental Performance for the University of Louisville Athletic Department and Norton Sports Health since October 2015.

Prior to moving to Louisville, Vanessa spent two years at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL, where she served as the Mental Conditioning Coach for several programs, coordinated Psychological Test Preparation for IMG’s NFL Combine Training Program. 

She also has experience as an Assistant Professor of Sport and Exercise Psychology at West Virginia University, and prior to that was the Department Chair of Exercise and Sport Sciences at Tennessee Wesleyan University.

She holds a PhD in Kinesiology, Recreation, and Sports Studies with a specialization in Sport Psychology and concentration in Counseling from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and competed as a member of the Women’s volleyball team while attending Rice University.

This episode, we deep dive into the necessity of emotional agility. Vanessa outlines the consequences of neglecting these important tools, and we spend a ton of time laying out an approach to developing higher levels of emotional intelligence. There is so much packed into this episode - if you’re looking for links to any of the books, talks, and concepts we discuss, you can find the show notes at mtl.academy.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Learn more about The Mental Training Lab
Connect with Pete on Instagram | LinkedIn | Website
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple | Spotify

This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.