Sport Psychology

Strong mental skills often give amateur and professional athletes an edge over their competitors. At Whole Athlete, we recognize that the mind is as important as the body in a complete training program.

Marvin Zauderer and Dr. Joan Steidinger lead our Mental Training program. They work with athletes, coaches, and teams on:

• Building self-confidence and motivation
• Managing stress, pressure, and disappointment effectively
• Stopping negative self-talk
• Increasing the ability to maintain and regain concentration
• Mentally preparing well for competition
• Improving communication with teammates and coaches
• Setting, resetting, and managing to individual and team goals
• Noticing, avoiding, and recovering from burnout
• Regaining mental fitness after injury

Check out our articles page for some of the articles Marvin and Dr. Joan have written on these topics.

Mental Training is not psychotherapy. It's brief, to-the-point, action-oriented consulting that gives you the tools you need to be successful. Marvin is a licensed psychotherapist and has experience with a wide variety of adult, child, and group psychology issues. He is also a Masters athlete, sport psychology columnist, husband of an equestrian, and father of three teenagers.

Prior to his change of career, Marvin had a successful 15-year career in high technology. He has graduate degrees from Stanford University and Dominican University, and an undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley. He is a member of the Positive Coaching Alliance, is a USA Cycling Level 2 coach, and has coached girls' softball. Growing up, he played AYSO soccer, Little League baseball, challenge-ladder tennis, and playground basketball.

Marvin works with Mental Training clients in person throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, and by phone and video chat with clients outside the Bay Area. He frequently gives presentations on Mental Training to teams, clubs, and coaches in person and via the Internet.

You can contact Marvin at 415.721.3737 or marvinz@pobox.com. His website is www.marvinz.com.

Dr. Joan Steidinger is a licensed psychologist who has worked with sports psychology clients for 20 years and has been in private practice for 26 years. She has worked with recreational, amateur and pros athletes in a wide variety of sports, including running, cycling, swimming, football, basketball, and golf to name a few. Her column, "Dr. Joan's Sports Psych Talk", appears on moremarin.com and sfgate.com. Currently, she has a special interest in female athletes and relationships impact on their performance.

Dr. Joan has an undergraduate degree from the University of San Diego, Master's in Marriage and Family from University of LaVerne, and a Ph.D. from CSPP-Berkeley. She's a member of Association of Applied Sports Psychology (AASP) and Marin County Psychologists Association (MCPA). She has taught sports psychology at UC Berkeley, to her peers in continuing education classes throughout California, and at the Western States 100 Training Camp.

She was a competitive ultra-marathon runner, Ride and Tie equestrian competitor, and double century cyclist. In 1993, She was on the first Tamalpa Runners Club's women's ultra running team that placed first in the Pacific Region's Ultra Grand Prix Series. She placed third in the Open Division of that same series. She's also completed the California Triple Crown (3 double centuries in one year). In 2001, Dr. Joan and her husband climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro on their honeymoon.

Dr. Joan works with sports psychology clients in person, over the phone, via email, and video in and out of the Bay areas. She gives frequent talk on sports psychology. Her offices are in Mill Valley and San Francisco.

You can contact Dr. Joan at 415-288-4252 or drjoans@earthlink.net. Her website is www.powerzonephd.com.