The Mindful Athlete

Secrets to Pure Performance

By: George Mumford, Phil Jackson - foreword

Narrated by: J. D. Jackson

Michael Jordan credits George Mumford with transforming his on-court leadership of the Bulls, helping Jordan lead the team to six NBA championships. Mumford also helped Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, and Lamar Odom and countless other NBA players turn around their games. A widely respected public speaker and coach, Mumford is sharing his own story and the strategies that have made these athletes into stars in The Mindful Athlete: The Secret to Pure Performance. His proven, gentle but groundbreaking mindfulness techniques can transform the performance of anyone with a goal, be they an Olympian, weekend warrior, executive, hacker, or artist.

Mumford's deeply moving personal story is unforgettable. A basketball player at the University of Massachusetts (where he roomed with Dr. J, Julius Erving), injuries forced Mumford out of the game he loved. The meds that relieved the pain of his injuries also numbed him to the emptiness he felt without the game and eventually led him to heroin. After years as a functioning addict, Mumford enrolled in Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn's Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction program, and made meditation, on and off the cushion, the center of his life. He kicked drugs, earned a master's degree in counseling psychology and began teaching meditation to inmates and others.

When Michael Jordan left the Chicago Bulls to play baseball in 1993, the team was in crisis. Coach Phil Jackson, a long-time mindfulness practitioner, contacted Dr. Kabat-Zinn to find someone who could teach mindfulness techniques to the struggling team - someone who would have credibility and could speak the language of his players. Kabat-Zinn led Jackson to Mumford and their partnership began. Mumford has worked with Jackson and each of the eleven teams he coached to become NBA champions. His roster of champion clients has since blossomed way beyond basketball to include corporate executives, Olympians, and athletes.

©2016 George Mumford (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Amazing

This is a must-read (or listen) for any competitive athlete. I learned how to reframe my thoughts as I approach my workouts and competitions to a more constructive and conscious experience as opposed to doubt or fear.

A gateway book to mindfulness practice

I’ve started and stopped at least 10 books on mindfulness. This is the one that finally pulled me in. George Mumford puts mindfulness into a western frame of reference which finally helped me relate to it. I could picture his retelling of the Bulls, Lakers, Bruce Lee and Dr. J because that was my childhood. Those were my superheroes. Now I can look at them to see not just great athletes, but masters of their own mindful practice. This is a gateway book for deeper study.

Great book

Great book about mindfulness and how to practice mindfulness and awareness - to stay in the present moment which will ultimately help your performance.

Mind-body relationship.

I liked the clarity of speech and the great examples provided. It is very well explained and the story is very compelling.

Wonderful

Loved this book. An easy and yet inspiring read! Recommended for both athletes, coaches and sports psychs.