Dewey Simon once said, “mental toughness is the strength to know yourself, to know your own truth, and to put forth even when others tell you you’re wrong. It’s the consistency in yourself (Ferguson 6-17).” For any athlete it is more important to be mentally prepared then physically prepared. The athlete that is both mentally and physically prepared has it all. That athlete has the right attitude, set goals, and has a game plan. They have visualized what could happen and are ready for anything. They are any coaches dream. Almost everyone is given the ability to play sports. Those who maximize their ability, both mentally and physically, are the ones that will excel to th

The worlds elite athletes have come to believe in and embrace the critical importance of sports psychology, in producing a positive, competitive effort. In the 1980 Olympics, eighty-three percent of the athletes practiced some form of mental preparation (Ungerleider 3). In the 1996 summer Olympics, there were twenty hired sports psychologists at the games to work with athletes. The man that broke Babe Ruths record for, the most home runs hit in a season, Mark McGwire, has been working with a sports psychologist since 1991 (Sugarman 1).

Some topics in this essay:
Ozzie Smith, Dewey Simon, Greg Loughins, Mark McGwire, Olympics Sydney, Julie Ogenhouse, , Babe Ruths, mental preparation, mental imagery, ungerleider 4, goal setting, goal set, prepared athlete, positive attitude, athlete mentally, physically prepared athlete, sugarman 1, physical practice, mental imagery visualization,