Parenting the High Performance Student-Athlete
Gain a solid foundation in mental performance and nutrition to help your athlete thrive in sport and life.
Topics covered
What you'll develop
Define the parent’s role as a strategic facilitator, moving beyond "spectator" to actively supporting the athlete’s well-being through an integrated approach of mental performance, nutrition, and recovery.
Master the application of SMART goals and mental performance skills to foster resilience and confidence, ensuring your athlete is as mentally prepared for competition as they are physically.
Acquire the technical skills to design balanced, performance-based meals and portion sizes tailored to training vs. rest days, while prioritizing recovery to prevent burnout and maximize long-term growth.
Course outline
About your experts
Dr. Emily Wright values helping others and sharing her passion for promoting mental performance training as an important component of holistic athlete development. As a former multi-sport athlete, Dr. Wright pursued every opportunity to excel athletically (e.g., extra practices, coaching, strength training, summer camps) but felt her performance results did not reflect the effort she was putting into her training. Thus, her interest in sport psychology grew from a desire to understand the mental side of athlete performance and why physical preparation alone is not always enough. Emily earned her Ph.D. in Sport Psychology from Michigan State University (Institute for the Study of Youth Sports) and a master's degree in Sport Leadership from Miami University (Ohio). She is the founder of her own mental performance coaching private practice (The Wright Mindset LLC) and has been part of the IMG Academy+ team since it began in 2022. Dr. Wright also served as Director of the Champions 4 Life Leadership Academy through Miami University (Ohio) Athletics, shaping not just athletic performance but the leadership and life skills development of Division I student athletes. Dr. Wright's coaching approach is athlete-centered and individualized. She works with each athlete's unique goals, challenges, and personality to develop practical mental performance strategies that translate to competition. Her most meaningful coaching moments come when athletes share how the work has made a real difference in their sport and life. Dr. Wright loves what she does and feels grateful for the opportunity to help athletes enhance their mental game (e.g., build confidence, manage pressure, learn to focus) and reach their potential both in sport and beyond.
Upon completing his PhD in Sports Psychology and Motor Behavior, Greg served as an Instructor in the Department of Kinesiology at Western Washington University (WA), Senior Lecturer in Sport Coaching & Sport Development at Liverpool John Moores University (UK), and as Assistant Professor of Kinesiology at James Madison University, while providing mental performance training services to Collegiate athletes. Greg originally joined IMG Academy in 2019 as Assistant Head of Mental Conditioning, working with boy's soccer, girl's tennis, and golf programs before becoming Manager for IMG+ Coaching and Development. Greg is a keen golfer and soccer player and lives in Bradenton, FL with his dog, Millie.
Brooke is a registered dietitian and board-certified sports nutrition specialist with extensive experience in professional sports. Throughout her career, she has dedicated herself to enhancing the performance and recovery of elite athletes and teams. Brooke excels at translating complex nutrition science into actionable strategies, offering personalized guidance on training and competition fueling, travel nutrition, meal prepping, and supplementation. She holds a Master of Science in Nutritional Sciences from Cal State Long Beach and a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition & Dietetics from the University of New Mexico, where she also competed as a Division 1 soccer athlete.
Taylor Cintron is a registered sports dietitian who has worked with athletes in the field of performance nutrition for the past 8 years. Taylor got her start as an on-site performance dietician at IMG Academy and has since worked with collegiate and professional athletes.
