Sports Psychology Coaching
The Sports Psychology Coaching Podcast by Eli Straw is a mental training podcast for athletes, competitors, coaches, and performers who want to improve confidence, focus, and performance under pressure. This podcast teaches practical sports psychology strategies to help athletes overcome fear of failure, performance anxiety, overthinking, and loss of confidence after mistakes so they can trust their training and compete freely.
Each episode covers key mental performance topics, including:
• Sports psychology and mental training for athletes
• How to build confidence in sports
• Overcoming performance anxiety and pressure
• Trusting your training and competing without fear
• Focus, composure, and mental toughness in competition
• Letting go of overthinking and perfectionism
• Visualization, mindfulness, and present-moment performance
• How to perform consistently in games, races, and competitions
Hosted by mental performance coach Eli Straw, this podcast provides simple, practical mental game coaching used with athletes from youth to elite levels. Learn how to stop playing scared, compete with freedom, and unlock your true performance.
If you’re an athlete, parent, or coach looking for sports psychology tips, mental toughness training, and performance mindset strategies, this podcast will help you build the mental skills needed to perform at your best when it matters most.
*This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute psychological or medical treatment. I am a mental performance coach, not a licensed psychologist. For clinical concerns, consult a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist.
Sports Psychology Coaching
Practicing Poorly Before a Game? Here’s How Athletes Should Handle It Mentally
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What should you do if you have a big game, competition, or tryout coming up—but your recent practices haven’t gone well?
This is something I see athletes struggle with all the time. When practices go poorly leading up to a performance, confidence drops. Doubt increases. Athletes begin to question whether they can perform well.
In this episode, I explain how athletes can mentally prepare for competition even when recent training sessions haven’t gone well.
I discuss why many athletes base their confidence on their most recent performance, how that can hurt you mentally going into a game, and what you can do instead to compete with more trust, freedom, and present-moment focus.
In this episode you’ll learn:
- Why bad practices before a game can damage confidence
- How athletes accidentally use the wrong point of reference before competing
- How to mentally reset before a competition or tryout
- How visualization can rebuild belief in your ability
- Why true confidence is about playing freely, not guaranteeing success
If you’re an athlete who struggles with confidence, performance anxiety, or performing worse in games than in practice, these strategies can help you compete with more composure and trust in your abilities.
I work with athletes from around the world through my 12-week 1-on-1 mental performance coaching program, where I help athletes build confidence, improve focus, and perform better under pressure.
Learn more about mental performance coaching here:
https://www.successstartswithin.com/mental-performance-coaching/
🧠 If you want to strengthen your mental game and work directly with me, you can learn more about my personalized 1-on-1 mental performance coaching program here: https://www.successstartswithin.com/mental-performance-coaching
🥇Team Mental Performance Coaching Program: https://www.successstartswithin.com/mental-coaching-for-teams/
📖 Mind Games Book: https://a.co/d/gXZfORN
📖 Athlete Mental Training Book: https://a.co/d/bfojamY
Free Training: Top 5 Mental Mistakes Athletes Make
*This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute psychological or medical treatment. I am a mental performance coach, not a licensed psychologist. For clinical concerns, consult a licensed professional.