“Clearer Mind, Better Performance” is Mind of the Athlete’s central message, and sleep and nutrition are a big part of that.

Erin Sparrold, a former swimmer and dancer, is Mind of the Athlete’s sports nutritionist.

“You can have someone on the Twinkie diet, and then have someone on the wheat-grass diet. It’s about lifestyle change and behavior modification,” Sparrold said. “We see kids struggling, and we provide solutions. We genuinely care.”

Sparrold realized she was receiving lots of texts from her clients while they were grocery shopping, so now she offers to walk through Wegman’s with them.

“I also teach them food preparation- quick, healthy, easy, and convenient,” she said.

Owner, founder and sports psychologist, Dr. Jarrod Spencer, also a former football player and wrestler, has worked with sports teams from Lehigh University, Lafayette College, Moravian College, and Princeton University, just to name a few.

Racing driver, Sage Karam, is a Mind of the Athlete client as well.

“In his first Indy 500, he went from 33rd place to finishing in ninth place. I was there as soon as he got out of the car,” said Spencer. “I’ve worked with him for years. He did a sports psychology program here.”

Working with mostly high school and college students, Mind of the Athlete has clients who come from as far as Chicago, Texas, Norway, and South Africa.

Dr. Julie Amato, a former basketball player, recently spent a week with the University of California, Berkeley women’s basketball team.

While there, she delivered one-on-one coaching with each athlete, small group leadership, conversation, and educational talks to the team.

Amato also attended practices and games, and coached the coaches on creating the optimal performance culture.

Rick Neff is a sports counselor for Mind of the Athlete, and Bill Horn is its drug and alcohol counselor.

Mind of the Athlete is not just for athletes, however. Students involved in theatre, for example, can benefit from the same lessons that will help them perform better.

Spencer said, “For parents whose kids are struggling, we’re here. We’ve got an entire team. There’s help, and there’s hope.”