Episode 80 of The Mental Game brings aboard former All-Pro NFL cornerback Jerry Azumah. Azumah played seven seasons for the Chicago Bears, earning a Pro Bowl and All-Pro selection in 2003. His NFL career came on the heels of a super successful four years at the University of New Hampshire. Under then-head coach Chip Kelly, Azumah starred as a running back, winning the Walter Payton Award as the top offensive player in all of Division I-AA. Given his college success, Azumah was blindsided when he...
Jun 28, 2025•43 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Episode 79 of The Mental Game features two-time Olympic track sprint cyclist, Sam Dakin of New Zealand. Not only is Dakin one of New Zealand’s top athletes, but he’s also among the nation’s foremost mental health advocates. As he deals with obsessive-compulsive disorder, Dakin has taken an active role in helping both himself — through therapy and active coping strategies — and others, by spearheading advocacy and communication efforts. Dakin also heads up Slow Coffee Roasters, which “uses coffee...
May 17, 2025•33 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Episode 78 of The Mental Game features one of the world’s foremost experts on sleep, circadian rhythm and performance: Dr. Alan Kubey. Dr. Kubey previously worked as a sleep consultant for NASA. He was recently contracted to advise the University of California, Berkeley basketball programs as they traversed the country in their first season as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Cal’s status as an ACC school presented myriad challenges for the program, including regular cross-country...
Apr 26, 2025•34 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Episode 77 of The Mental Game brings on one of the most mentally locked-in coaches in college basketball: Allison Guth of Loyola Chicago . Guth has been a coach in college hoops since 2004, when she left a corporate job at Coca-Cola to dive into a coaching career that has taken her to Missouri, DePaul, Yale, Northwestern and now Loyola Chicago. Guth values the mental game as much as any coach in the country, imploring her team to be vulnerable, to seek out help when they need it, and to remain c...
Apr 25, 2025•56 min•Season 3Ep. 1
Episode 76 of The Mental Game features one of the world’s top marathon runners: CJ Albertson. Albertson, 31, is fresh off his best marathon performance to date: a scorching time of 2:08:17 at the Chicago Marathon, where he was the top American finisher. He also bested all other U.S. runners at the 2024 Boston Marathon and will look to do so at the upcoming New York City Marathon on November 3. Albertson’s approach to running is incredibly unique ( see: incandescent heat lamps! ), and that extend...
Oct 24, 2024•42 min•Season 2Ep. 23
Episode 75 of The Mental Game brings award-winning sports psychologist, author and motivational speaker: Dr. Harold Shinitzky. Dr. Shinitzky has joined The Mental Game before to discuss his previous works like “A Champion’s Mindset.” Now, he’s joining to break down his latest book: “Me, Myself, and I: A Narcissist's Mindset: A Self-Help Handbook for Victims-Survivors of a Narcissist.” Dr. Shinitzky’s findings in this space are fascinating — and undoubtedly helpful to anyone who has dealt with a ...
Oct 08, 2024•45 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Episode 74 of The Mental Game features Julie Kliegman, author of Mind Game : An Inside Look at the Mental Health Playbook of Elite Athletes . Fueled by interviews with Olympians like Chloe Kim and McKayla Maroney, NBA players Kevin Love and DeMar DeRozan, and so many more, Mind Game illustrates the complete story of how elite athletes navigate mental performance and mental illness—and what non-athletes can learn from them. The project was Kliegman's first book (another is in the works already). ...
Sep 16, 2024•40 min•Season 2Ep. 21
Episode 73 of The Mental Game features the first-ever Director of Meditation Training in major college sports: Chad McGehee of the University of Wisconsin. Now in his fourth year at UW, McGehee trains student-athletes, coaches and teams on meditation, giving Wisconsin’s teams a mental edge few programs possess. He also collaborates with researchers and scientists on ground-breaking research, which has already produced massively impactful results in the field of meditation. McGehee first joined T...
Aug 28, 2024•34 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Episode 72 of The Mental Game brings on a guest that will blow your mind. Andy Donaldson is among the most impressive open-water swimmers in history. Last year, Donaldson set the Guinness World Record for fastest time completing the Oceans Seven marathon swim challenge, which consists of seven of the most challenging open water channel swims on Earth, including: The Cook Strait between New Zealand’s North and South Islands, 22.5 km (12.1 mi) The Moloka’i Channel in Hawaii, 42 km (23 mi) The Engl...
Jun 17, 2024•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 5
Episode 71 of The Mental Game features the second episode of our series highlighting the Mental Game of Pickleball. Pickleball is a sensation. It’s America’s fastest-growing sport, and it’s gone international. 48.3 million U.S. adults have played it in the last year, and organizations like the Association of Pickleball Players (APP) have heightened the sport to the professional level. In pickleball episode 2, Megan Fudge and Ryler DeHeart join the podcast. Why Fudge and DeHeart on The Mental Gam...
Mar 27, 2024•30 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Episode 70 of The Mental Game features Walt Norley, the founder, chairman and CEO of OnBalance. Why Norley on The Mental Game? Norley is a former NCAA Division I quarterback — who was initially recruited to Ohio State by then-assistant coach Nick Saban. His football career was riddled by injury, and he’s since immersed himself in an uber-successful business career. Norley, like millions, has managed bipolar disorder. With that and his passion for sports in mind, he founded OnBalance, a software ...
Mar 09, 2024•35 min•Season 2Ep. 17
Episode 69 of The Mental Game brings aboard Ryan Lidge, seven-year professional baseball catcher and now a mental performance coach with ZoneCoach. Why Lidge on The Mental Game? In a way, Lidge is a lifelong mental performance coach. During his time playing at Notre Dame, in the New York Yankees organization and with the Chicago Dogs, Lidge was constantly a leader, locking himself and his teammates in on the mental game. He retired after the 2023 baseball season and has officially joined ZoneCoa...
Feb 14, 2024•48 min•Season 2Ep. 16
Episode 68 of The Mental Game marks the beginning of our series highlighting the Mental Game of Pickleball. Pickleball is America’s fastest-growing sport. 48.3 million U.S. adults have played it in the last year, and organizations like the Association of Pickleball Players (APP) have heightened the sport to the professional level. In our first pickleball-focused episode, one of the sport’s young stars joins The Mental Game. Just 18 years old, Alix Truong has already skyrocketed through the ranks...
Jan 02, 2024•36 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Episode 67 of The Mental Game brings on Josh Reddick, a 13-year MLB veteran, World Series champion and Gold Glover winner. Reddick played from 2009-2021 for the Red Sox, A’s, Dodgers, Astros and Diamondbacks, winning the 2017 World Series with Houston. Why Reddick on The Mental Game? Reddick’s mental game journey is marked by resilience and a sharp edge. He was cut from his middle school baseball team and embraced a “renegade” mentality, one that lifted him to the sport’s pinnacle. And once he r...
Dec 18, 2023•42 min•Season 2Ep. 14
The Mental Game is now on Patreon. For just a few bucks per month, you can become a Mental Gamer and unlock access to exclusive bonus episodes, Q&As and more: patreon.com/TheMentalGamePod We’ve arrived at the second episode of My Playbook, an all-new Mental Game Podcast series. In case you missed the first “My Playbook” with Reggie Hearn, click HERE . To catch you up: On My Playbook, the world’s top athletes, coaches, psychologists and more will peel back the curtain on their personal pl...
Nov 20, 2023•17 min•Season 2Ep. 13
I’m thrilled to introduce a new feature of The Mental Game podcast: My Playbook. On My Playbook, the world’s top athletes, coaches, psychologists and more will peel back the curtain on their personal playbooks for dealing with the ups and downs of life, mental health and their careers. The first guest on My Playbook is former NBA guard Reggie Hearn. Retired from playing, Hearn now enters his second season working in the San Antonio Spurs scouting department. Out of high school, Hearn received no...
Oct 30, 2023•15 min•Season 2Ep. 12
Episode 64 of The Mental Game brings on Shannon Suffoletto, a certified mental performance consultant and licensed clinical professional counselor. I met Suffoletto this summer as she worked with the Chicago Dogs baseball team, who I broadcast for. Suffoletto consulted the team amidst their run to the American Association Championship Series. Why Suffoletto on The Mental Game? Suffoletto’s system and philosophy is unique. She specializes in leveraging connection, purpose and mind-body connection...
Oct 10, 2023•40 min•Season 2Ep. 11
Episode 63 of The Mental Game brings on Leslie Bonci (MPH, RD, CSSD, LDN), a nutrition consultant who has worked with professional and collegiate teams, including the Kansas City Chiefs, Toronto Blue Jays, Washington Nationals and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pirates and Penguins. Bonci is the owner of Active Eating Advice , a nutrition consulting company, and advises clients from Gatorade to General Mills to the National Peanut Board. Why Bonci on The Mental Game? What you eat doesn’t just affect y...
Sep 26, 2023•47 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Episode 62 of The Mental Game brings on Mads McKenna, Mental Health Advocacy Graduate Assistant at the University of Wisconsin–Parkside. Why McKenna for The Mental Game? First, she is a former NCAA student-athlete. McKenna played volleyball at the California University of Pennsylvania (DII) and experienced the unique life of a 21st century student-athlete. She’s also plugged in. For five years, McKenna has been involved with various NCAA committees, advocating for better mental health policies a...
Aug 29, 2023•38 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Episode 61 of The Mental Game brings on baseball pitching coach, former player and father Jim Bennett. Bennett boasts three decades of professional baseball coaching experience, including: Stints as manager for the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks and Lake Country DockHounds of the American Association Pitching coach for Team Australia and the Australian Baseball League’s Brisbane Bandits. Pitching coach for the Spire City Ghost Hounds (Atlantic League) In Minor League Baseball with the California/Anahei...
Aug 07, 2023•42 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Episode 60 of The Mental Game features Brent Sass , one of the greatest dog mushers in the world. A titan of the industry, Sass has etched his name as one of just six to win the two biggest sled dog races: the Iditarod (2022) and the Yukon Quest (2015, 2022). Born in Minnesota, Sass has desperately wanted to live in Alaska and pursue dog mushing since he was a little kid. Now, he lives a life completely removed from the outside word, dedicating 100% of his energies to his craft: training and bon...
Jul 13, 2023•46 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Episode 59 of The Mental Game features Reed Myers, a recently graduated men’s basketball student-athlete out of Rice University. In April, Myers penned a cogent essay in The Rice Thresher titled “I hope to be an example for future Asian-American hoopers.” Myers attended Rice for four years after earning All-State honors at Arizona’s Scottsdale Christian Academy. In high school, he earned a state championship and was even named the Arizona Republic’s Small Schools Player of the Year as just a fre...
Jun 21, 2023•37 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Episode 58 of The Mental Game brings on Chris Helbig, quarterback for the European Football League’s Vienna Vikings. Helbig is in his second season quarterbacking in Europe. Last season, he starred for the Potsdam Royals in the German Football League. The European chapter of Helbig’s career follows college football stints at Butler Community College (KS), Southern Utah University and Eastern Michigan University. Helbig thought his football career was finished after suffering a pair of severe inj...
May 22, 2023•42 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Episode 57 of The Mental Game features Freddie Stevenson, a former NFL and Florida State fullback, author and, now, filmmaker. His film, “Trials to Triumph” was recently released and is available on Prime Video, Apple TV and more. Stevenson first joined The Mental Game in January 2022 and detailed his dramatic rise from a childhood of homelessness and poverty to the NFL. His football career featured a National Championship at Florida State and a stint with the Chicago Bears. But once he retired,...
May 07, 2023•36 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Episode 55 of The Mental Game features Dr. Harold Shinitzky, a world-renowned sports psychologist, author and motivational speaker. Shinitzky makes his third appearance on The Mental Game after appearing in November 2020 and July 2021. Shinitzky works with Olympic and professional athletes from every major association (PGA, NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL). He also serves as president of the Florida Psychological Association and is the author of A Champion's Mindset: 15 Mental Conditioning Steps to Becom...
Apr 19, 2023•43 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Episode 54 of The Mental Game features Sha Carter, a basketball standout who just finished her fifth-year senior season at Florida Gulf Coast. In this year’s NCAA Tournament, Carter’s Eagles pulled off a 12-over-5 upset of Washington State in the first round before falling to No. 4 Villanova in the Round of 32. Carter dives into the mental game of a March Madness upset in this episode. Prior to joining FGCU, Carter was a four-year standout at Division II Walsh University in North Canton Ohio, wh...
Apr 06, 2023•48 min•Season 2Ep. 2
After four months Down Under broadcasting in Australia , The Mental Game is back ! A Note From Sam: Thank you for bearing with me during this hiatus. I had a life-changing time in Australia (working in the Australian Baseball League), and I missed producing The Mental Game immensely. I'm thrilled to be back and am thrilled to be making several significant upgrades to the show, including a video simulcast. Thank you, as always, for your support of The Mental Game. Now, onto this week's show... Ep...
Mar 27, 2023•54 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Episode 52 of The Mental Game features Lee Elias, an award-winning author, professional speaker, podcast host and coach. Elias, a former athlete himself, has long been dedicated to helping young athletes reach their full potential by teaching them about the importance of trust, teamwork, and mental fitness. He also serves as the director of GRIT, a Pivotal Moments Media Channel, which aims to break the stigma surrounding mental fitness by sharing stories from sports and athletics that can serve ...
Oct 15, 2022•54 min•Season 1Ep. 52
Episode 51 of The Mental Game features Solomon Bates, a fifth-year professional pitcher and former San Francisco Giants prospect. In August, Bates publicly came out, becoming just the second Minor League Baseball player to come out publicly as gay. In an Instagram post on August 9, Bates wrote, “Being gay in this sport you don't know what comes at you! … I’m still going to open up doors for gay athletes like me. Still will strive to be one of the greatest to do it. … Gay men can play a manly spo...
Sep 19, 2022•26 min•Season 1Ep. 51
Episode 50 of The Mental Game features Reggie Hearn, a nine-year professional basketball guard who played for the Detroit Pistons in 2018 and spent the majority of his career in the NBA G League. Hearn played his college basketball at Northwestern University, where he grew from a walk-on to the team’s leading scorer and an all-Big Ten honoree as a senior. In 2020, Hearn joined for the second-ever episode of The Mental Game and detailed his harrowing journey through anxiety amidst the peak of his...
Sep 08, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 50
