FROM BRAIN TO MUSCLE WITHOUT ANY TUSSLE
The On-Line Newsletter of the Sierra Center for Peak Performance
Volume XII, Number 1  January 2009

Welcome to the one hundred and twenty first issue of the free Newsletter of Applied Sport Psychology. This is a special issue intended to celebrate and share the joy of accomplishment experienced by a good friend, remarkable athlete and client  . The following is taken from a recent email from Arty and includes a copy of his surfing club newsletter and a picture of Arty and the board he used on January 17, 2009 .

PLAYING MIND GAMES THAT HELP YOU WIN:
"Making it Real"
 by Arty

I extending the offer to produce a Personalized Subliminal for you at the price that you name. The only requirement is that the price be within the realm of reasonable expectations. For example, most of us would not reasonably expect to receive a personalized and hand crafted item for a only few dollars.  Make me an offer by sending an email  that includes the price that you're willing to pay.

The winner of the drawing for the free Personalized Subliminal CD for this time period is Naomi Bailey.

Naomi has until  midnight, Hawaii Time, on January 30th to claim the free Personalized Subliminal CD.

FROM BRAIN TO MUSCLE WITHOUT ANY TUSSLE
The On-Line Newsletter of the Sierra Center for Peak Performance
Volume XII, Number 3  March 2009

Welcome to the one hundred and twenty third issue of the free Newsletter of Applied Sport Psychology. This month's newsletter begins a series of articles that will explore several psychological techniques that can help you flourish during the economic recession. 

PLAYING MIND GAMES THAT HELP YOU WIN:
"Flourish During the Economic Recession"
Part II
 by Gary A. Beale, Ph.D.

Most of us have learned to be effective managers of everyday stress. This is especially true if we’re eating nutritiously, getting enough sleep, exercising regularly, keeping a positive and productive frame of mind and are generally in good health. The problem for many of us is that one of the impacts of the economic recession is an elevation of daily stress to unusually high and sustained unhealthy  levels. The volatility of the stock market, the rapid and unprecedented losses in the job market, the over-night collapse of banks and other financial institutions and the generally bleak news about the economy and the future that bombards us on a daily bases all add up to mega-stress levels on families and individuals. While almost no one can totally avoid the stress of the recession there are actions that can be taken to successfully face and overcome the added challenges as well as ameliorate or reduce the negative effects. Here are just a few of them:

1. Take lots of deep, belly breaths. Several times each day take time to breath in slowly through your nose as you force your stomach out; hold your breath for several seconds and then allow it to slowly escape through your mouth as you draw your tummy back in. Breathing in this way is a natural trigger for the Relaxation Response.

2. Make your health and wellness a priority by emphasizing proper nutrition, adequate sleep, ( rest) and regular exercise. 

3. Write your goals down. Spend time each day visualizing the actions you are taking to reach your goals. Visualize your successful achievement of each goal. Just before bed each night and when you awaken in the morning are two good times to visualize goal-oriented actions.

4. Turn your goals and action steps into affirmations and say them out loud with feeling at least once every day.

5. Smile and laugh at every opportunity. If opportunities don't arise often enough increase your chances by watching comedies, reading or telling jokes and looking for the humor in everyday life.

Give these suggestions a try and find out which ones work best for you. There are many more ways to reduce the life-threatening and performance eroding effects of excess and sustained stress. My next article will continue to outline practical steps that you can take to stay healthy and productive and flourish during the current economic recession.

I am extending the offer to produce a Personalized Subliminal for you at the price that you name. Overcoming stress could be the focus of your subliminal.  Make me an offer by sending an email  that includes the price that you're willing to pay.

The winner of the drawing for the free Personalized Subliminal CD for this time period is Polly Johnson.

Polly has until  midnight, Hawaii Time, on March 30th to claim the free Personalized Subliminal CD.

FROM BRAIN TO MUSCLE WITHOUT ANY TUSSLE
The On-Line Newsletter of the Sierra Center for Peak Performance
Volume XII, Number 5  May 2009

This is a Special Edition of the Newsletter dedicated to the memory of Tom "Spider" Johnson who passed away on May 4 around 3:30 PM while skiing the Granite Chief run at Squaw Valley USA in California.

Dear Spider, 

I've been thinking about you all day with tears running down my smiling face. I know my eyes being dry from my thyroid condition caused the tears. I couldn’t be crying because my heart has been so full and warmed by memories of all the good times we had skiing together.

I know you remember.

Man, do you remember the time we were skiing down the Mountain Run going home early for once, late one Sunday morning? You were on two skis way back then. Remember we saw two of "our people" in the KT-22 lift line and decided to join them? They surprised us by how well they skied the bumps. We played all the rest of the day in the moguls on KT with them. All of us having too much fun! Got back to the Bay Area tired as usual but feeling like it was worth it.

I know you remember.

Man, how about the time we were on our way to Snowmass for a Summit? I was driving early in the morning before the sun had come up? We were somewhere past Vail and almost there. It was cold as Hell, dark and isolated. When you took over driving I hadn't seen a car in miles. I remember the last thing I said was "Watch out for the Mule Deer. They'll be crossing the road going back up the mountain about this time in the morning." I dozed off to sleep for what seemed like five minutes when I was suddenly jarred awake by a big “THUD!” and shudder as the van lurched to a stop. When we hit that deer it crushed the grill of your van and took out the radiator. The van and the deer were dead in the water. Damn that was a big-ass deer! You bundled up against the cold and stayed with the van while I walked to the last phone booth about a mile back to call for help. I called a tow truck and George. I remember I called him because it was the only Snowmass number I had and we needed a ride there. We were lucky I had gotten the hook up for the house where he and the others were staying or we would have been even further up the creek. 

I know you remember.

We skied all of two days at that Summit. On the way back, after the van's radiator had been replaced, we pulled back onto the highway out of an anonymous gas station somewhere in Utah. Almost immediately a policeman with a radar gun pulled us over. Wanted to cite us for speeding! I told him we could not have been going that fast because #1. You were driving and you always drive the van like you were driving the UPS truck and #2. We had just pulled into traffic when he flagged us down. Told him he must be clocking the cooling fan through the naked radiator because we didn't have a grill after the deer took it out. I still can't believe that he agreed and didn't give us a ticket. 

I know you remember.

Let's take this last run together OK Man? - You on your Mono and me on my two. I'm going to keep on past the lift and go non-stop to the bottom …you know how much I love to cruise. I know you’ve got to stop at the lift and take another run without me. When we got off the chair I saw Ray and George start down the hill. They’ll be waiting in the lift line for you. My Brother, my friend I just know that we will all ski together again. Until then Man I am going to miss you.

I know I’ll (always) remember.

Love, 

Gary

Note: Ray and George were members of a group of skiers that Spider and I skied with often. They both passed away prior to Spiders death.

The  six winners of this month's drawing for the free Personalized Subliminal CD are as follows:

Rachel Interrante, Doug Cornelson, Courtney Brandon, Stacey Orcutt, John Robert McAuley and Polly Johnson.

Winners have until  midnight, Hawaii Time, on June 3rd to claim the free Personalized Subliminal CD.

The winner of the drawing for the free Personalized Subliminal CD for this time period is Alana Nichols.

Alana has until midnight, Hawaii Time, on July 30th to claim the free Personalized Subliminal CD.

Welcome to the one hundred and twenty seventh issue of the free Newsletter of Applied Sport Psychology. Recent events within my private practice have once again drawn my attention to the importance of Self-Discipline as a predictor of athletic success. This month's edition of the Newsletter is a continuation of last month's article focused on the relationship between discipline from an internal locus of control, goal attainment and success.

The winner of the drawing for the free Personalized Subliminal CD for this time period is James Komar.

James has until midnight, Hawaii Time, on July 30th to claim the free Personalized Subliminal CD.