Mind Gym : An Athlete's Guide to Inner Excellence

Golfing great Bobby Jones said, "Competition is won or lost on the six-inch playing field between the ears." How do the best athletes gain an advantage on that playing field? In Mind Gym, noted sports psychology consultant Gary Mack teaches athletes the lessons he's learned about how the mind influences athletic performance as much as physical skill does, if not more so. Through forty accessible lessons and inspirational anecdotes from prominent athletes--many of whom he has worked with--Mack shares the same techniques and exercises he uses to help elite athletes build mental "muscle." Achieving this inner excellence requires time and effort. The more you work on the inside, the more it shows on the outside. These engaging stories--covering such themes as overcoming adversity, staying motivated, and following one's dreams--will enable you to perform at your best by choice rather than chance. Mind Gym will give anyone who spires to be a better athlete the "head edge" over the competition.

Gary Mack is a leading sports psychology consultant and counselor who was worked with athletes in the NBA, NFL, NHL, WNBA, and Major League Baseball. He is president of two consulting firms, Sports Assist and Planning Solutions; the director of sports psychology for Griffey International; and team counselor for the Seattle Mariners. Gary and his wife, Marie, live in Paradise Valley and Flagstaff, Arizona.

David Casstevens is an award-winning newspaper columnist and former executive sports editor of the Arizona Republic. He is the author of the Charles Barkley biography, Somebody’s Gotta Be Me. David, his wife, Sharon, and their three children live in Tempe, Arizona.