71-Sam Lofton, the power of meditation for athletes

In today’s episode, I interview meditation teacher and former professional soccer player Sam Lofton.  I first met Sam playing with the Portland Thorns. We bonded over the fact that we were both obsessed with finding (often unconventional) ways to maximize our performance on the field and off.  Sam played soccer and studied Health Science with a pre-med track at James Madison University. After college, she was picked 20th overall in the 2015 NWSL College Draft by the Boston Breakers, making her the first James Madison University player ever to be drafted by a NWSL team. In 2016, she played for the Portland Thorns. She also played overseas in Sweden for Sunnana SK and in Iceland for Breiðablik UBK. While playing professionally, Sam discovered meditation and it changed her life.  Through her business “Meditation by Sam” {https://www.meditationbysam.com/sign-up-control-and-create )she teaches athletes how to gain control of their minds and their lives.    In this episode Sam talks about: -her all-time favorite hacks for improving performance  -how meditation helped her be confident playing against Tobin Heath -why visualizing  is so powerful for athletes specifically  -tips if you are a beginner meditator  -common misconceptions about mindfulness And, she guides us through a quick meditation! You’ll walk away from this episode feeling the zen.