Continuing the mission to explore the psychological aspects of performance, Eighty Percent Mental host Dr Pete Olusoga explores ‘The psychology of... Speed’ with two-time World Superbikes Champion, James Toseland. Also featuring Sport Psychologist, Shameema Yousuf, this episode explores the motivation, the risk, the psychological skills involved in going really, really fast!  James Toseland on Twitter: @JamesMToseland  Toseland Music: toselandmusic.com  Shameema Yousuf on Twitter:...

In this episode of EightyPercentMental, Dr Pete Olusoga gets to grips with ‘The Psychology of... Dance’ with Kit Holder, First Soloist with Birmingham Royal Ballet and Dr Sanna Nordin-Bates, Associate professor in sport psychology, at the Swedish School of Sport & Health Sciences in Stockholm. What are the mental challenges involved in such a creative art form? Find out in this inspiring episode of EightyPercentMental.  Kit Holder has been a professional ballet dancer for over 20 years,...

This episode is pure gold. With the help of two special guests, Coach Marc Steutel and Dr Kristen Dieffenbach, Dr Pete Olusoga investigates ‘The Psychology of... The Coach’. How do coaches incorporate sport and performance psychology into their coaching? How can coaches be vulnerable and authentic in their practice? How can psychologists and coaches work most effectively together? All of this and more is discussed in what turned out to be an incredible conversation.   Coach Marc Steutel is...

Welcome back to Series 3 of Eighty Percent Mental. In this series (or season if you’re American), Dr Pete Olusoga is going to explore some different areas of performance – and not necessarily just sport performance. In this first episode, Dr Pete talks to endurance athlete, Greg Hewitt, and Sport Psychologist, Dr Amy Whitehead, about The Psychology of Endurance. Why do people put themselves through the pain of ultra-marathons, adventure races, and ironman triathlons? What are the...

In this Super Special Winter Olympic Review, Dr Pete Olusoga is joined by Dr Chelsi Day, Sport Psychologist at ‘The’ Ohio State University, and Dr Leah Washington, resident Olympic Superfan and professor of sports medicine and sport psychology to talk about the ups, downs, ins, outs, and triple Salchows of the Beijing 2022 Winer Olympics. From drug scandals to ‘minor’ broken necks, and managing the post-Olympic comedown, this episode has a little bit of everything. Make sure you stay tuned to...

A ‘win at all costs’ culture can make it almost impossible for people in high-performance environments like sport to show any sort of vulnerability, to concede that pressure takes a toll, to admit that they are not in fact superhuman. But many sports performers are beginning to change this narrative. In the final episode of Series 2, Dr Pete Olusoga is joined by expert guests, Shakiba Moghadam and Dr Paul Gorczynski, for an open and honest conversation around mental health and well-being in...

At the start of Series 2, we ran a poll to find the Greatest Sports Movie of All Time… The Movie GOAT. Somehow, Remember the Titans won… still not sure how that happened, but pretty sure it’s your fault. Anyway, in this episode, Dr Pete is joined by Dr Meghan Halbrook, Dr Tammy Sheehy, and (not the first) returning guest, Todd Cauthorn, to discuss what we can learn from some of the great sports movies out there… and maybe more importantly, which is the Movie GOAT! Dr Meghan Halbrook is a...

From diving to doping to serious crimes, hardly a day goes by without an athlete getting themselves into some sort of trouble. In this episode Dr Pete is joined by Sport, Clinical and Forensic Psychologist, Dr Mitch Abrams, and Assistant Professor of sport and exercise psychology at Georgia Southern University, Dr Megan Byrd, to ask: do we deserve better from our sporting heroes? We talk about whether or not sport is inherently “good”, whether athletes should be role models, organisational...

The conversation should always be about more than just sport. In this EPM Special, Dr Pete Olusoga is joined by organisational psychologist and best-selling New York Times author, John Amaechi OBE, for an honest and inspiring conversation about racism, anti-racism, and what we all could or should be doing to make our communities fairer for everybody.   John Amaechi OBE on Twitter: @JohnAmaechi  APS Intelligence Website: www.apsintel.com  Read John’s new book: The Promises of Giants

Dr Pete and Hugh Gilmore (featuring in his penultimate episode) investigate how we might bring psychology into the weight room. Lead Strength and Conditioning coach at Sheffield Hallam University, Dave Hembrough, and ALTIS Programs Director and Performance Coach, Nick Ward, discuss the mental challenges they encounter, their use of psych ‘skills’, and what they wish they’d known about the mental side of performance when they started their coaching journeys. This one is not to be...

When words like diversity, inclusion, and cultural awareness are mentioned, they’re often met with a mix of confusion, defensiveness, and responses like “well I just treat everyone the same, I don’t see difference.” In this episode Dr Pete is joined by Dr Ale Quartiroli and Shameema Yousuf to talk about the need for Cultural Awareness, and the importance of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the spaces that we work in. Sometimes in life, you have to just go with what you've got. So that's...

2.08 – EPM Special: Pete & Hugh’s Olympic Review Less than a week after the closing ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 2021 Olympics, Dr Pete and Hugh are joined, once again, by Dr Chelsi Day, Sport Psychologist at ‘The’ Ohio State University, and Dr Leah Washington, a professor of sports medicine and sport psychology, to chat about literally everything that happened at the Games. We discuss our favourite moments and yours, the twisties, the impact of the new sports, and the need for more...

Dr Pete and Hugh find out everything you’ll ever need to know about resilience, with help from Dr Mustafa ‘Resilience’ Sarkar, a Chartered Psychologist and Associate Professor of Sport and Performance Psychology at Nottingham Trent University, and Wendy Searle, the 7th woman in history to ski 700 miles, unsupported, from Hercules Inlet to the geographic South Pole. If you want to know what resilience is, what it isn’t, how to demonstrate and build resilience in individuals and teams, and...

This one is long! Just to mix things up a little, we decided to get you, dearest listeners, to come up with the questions for Dr Pete and Hugh to answer. “Ask us anything,” we said… and you did. From tips on imposter syndrome to getting in ‘The Zone’ to the greatest crisps of all time, Pete, Hugh, and special guest Elliott Newell talk for what turned out to be bloody ages, answering your questions. It’s good though. You’ll like this one! Elliott Newell is a Senior Performance Pathways...

There are some sports for which athletes might spend a lifetime preparing for one shot, one opportunity. Other sports require a long push through a season, competing day in, day out, for months, only to start again the next year. The EVENT and the GRIND.   Dr Pete and Hugh are joined by Dr Karen MacNeill, who has experience of preparing athletes as a performance consultant and psychologist at four Winter Olympics, but also of competing on the world stage as an international hockey player....

In this episode, Dr Pete and Hugh consider the psychology of injury with special guest experts, Dr Monna Arvinen-Barrow, a Chartered Psychologist, Mental Performance Coach, and Associate Professor at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Dr Damien Clement, Associate Professor of Sport and Exercise Psychology/Athletic Training at West Virginia University. From exploring the link between stress and injury, to thinking about how we can understand and work with injured athletes more effectively,...

In this episode, Dr Pete and Hugh think about how to work with and how to be good sports parents. Dr Camilla Knight, Associate Professor at Swansea University and a specialist in parental involvement in youth sport, and Andy Bradshaw, Senior Coach Developer at UK Coaching and a coach with over 30 years’ experience, talk about the positive and negative influences that parents can have on their children’s sport experiences. We discuss what coaches and clubs can do to engage parents in positive...

If you’re part of a team, you do not want to miss this episode. Dr Pete and Hugh talk to two absolute legends to find out how to get team culture right. Performance psychologist, Rebecca Levett, and culture coach, author, and Global Chief Culture Officer at Right to Dream, Dr Pippa Grange, talk about defining success, the benefits of creating an environment where people can freely express themselves, and the potential dangers of romanticizing ‘winning’ cultures. There’s something for everyone...

In the opening episode of Series 2, Dr Pete and Hugh talk to chartered sport and exercise psychologist and lecturer, Dr Darren Britton, and registered sport and exercise psychologist, Matt Cunliffe to find out how to think straight about psychology. In a world full of Instagram experts and 'media psychologists', we explore how we might separate the pseudoscience from the evidence-based practice, and talk about how to tackle the problem of the relentless positivity that seems to invade our...

Dr Pete and Hugh were invited onto the No Lift Podcast, hosted by Arthur Lynch, to discuss burnout and drop out in athletes specifically powerlifting athletes.  Arthur Lynch is a bit of an enigma. Having competed at multiple IPF World Championships representing Ireland, he knows a thing or two about strength. But he's not just a very strong dude; he has a PhD in muscle physiology and BSc in Sport and Exercise science. Arthur coaches’ competitive lifters and those interested in just getting...

Danny Lennon claims on his Instagram to be an expert at nothing and curious about a lot. We think only one of those things is true.  Danny is the founder of Sigma Nutrition and head of content creation for the company. Known for hosting the top-ranked podcast Sigma Nutrition Radio, Danny is also a respected educator in the field. Danny has a Master’s degree in Nutritional Sciences from University College Cork, and a BSc. in Biology and Physics Education and spent a year teaching these...

In this festive edition of Eighty Percent Mental, Dr Pete and Hugh look back at Series One, look forward to Series 2, and try to spread some festive cheer at the end of what has been... well let's just say a memorable 2020.   

Welcome to EPM Extras! In this mini-podcast episode, you can hear some of the extra bits from Episode 1.02, where Dr Pete and Hugh talked to Prof. Dave Collins, Director at Grey Matters Performance Ltd., about the controversial idea of a 'Winning Mindset' Dave Collins on Twitter: @DCGreyMattersUK Grey Matters: www.greymattersuk.com 

In this, the penultimate episode of Series 1, we talk to one of the world’s leading experts on Mindfulness, Joe Mannion, to find out just what all the fuss is about. What is mindfulness really, and perhaps more importantly, what is not mindfulness? What’s the theory, and is there actually any evidence to show that it’s helpful? Who shouldn’t do it? We answer all of these questions and more on Episode 10 of EightyPercentMental. Joe Mannion on Instagram: @dr_overcomer and...

In this episode, we learn how to practice bobsleigh in the bath! We discuss the idea of mental rehearsal and see what the benefits of using it might be. Along with special guest Eoghan McNeill, a PhD researcher from the University of Limerick in Ireland, we explore the differences between imagery, visualisation, and mental practice. We talk about how imagery is thought to work, and what the potential benefits might be, not only for performance, but in other areas of our lives too.Eoghan...