Client Centered Training

Dr Roy Sugarman is thrilled to present a special edition of his highly acclaimed work on motivation and the coaching of emotion. Since the first two editions of this book were released, PTA Global have successfully integrated his science-based philosophies into their offerings. The result of this integration has been this Special Edition, with the addition of a chapter by Rodney Corn of PTA Global, and a chapter by chapter commentary by Robert J (‘Bobby’) Cappuccio. Together with Bobby’s illuminating writing, and the explanation Rodney offers of the technology developed by PTA Global around Dr Sugarman’s work, this Special Edition rounds off years of experience in applying the principles of Client-Focussed training and coaching. In proposing an entirely new paradigm for coaches and personal trainers, Dr Sugarman and PTA Global set out clear strategies, based in behavioral science, for trainers to forge warmer and more effective relationships with their clients. In this paradigm, coaches and trainers can help clients find their resolve to change on their own terms, and in doing so, became expert in the thing that matters most to their clients, namely their optimal performance. Already part of many personal training curricula worldwide, Dr Sugarman’s work on motivation in physical training and sport coaching settings is becoming the bible for those in the training community who want to drive growth in the industry by engaging more people in positive, healthy behavior change, as exemplified by PTA Global, Primal Fitness and other groups.

Now together with PTA Global, Dr Roy Sugarman presents a Special Edition of his highly acclaimed work on motivating positive performance and the coaching of emotion. Since the first two editions of his book, he has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from international trainers like PTA Global: the input from Rodney Corn and Bobby Cappuccio, two well-known luminaries in the field, has provided a platform on which thisSpecial Edition is based. The addition of a chapter by Rodney Corn of PTA Global, and a chapter by chapter commentary by Robert J (‘Bobby’) Cappuccio has demonstrated how Dr Sugarman’s science-based philosophy is applied at the training coalface. Together with Bobby’s illuminating writing, and the explanation Rodney offers of the technology developed by PTA Global around Dr Sugarman’s work, this Special Edition rounds off years of experience in applying the principles of Client-Focussed training and coaching. The result is the proposition of an entirely new paradigm for coaches and personal trainers in which Dr Sugarman and PTA Global set out clear strategies, based in behavioral science, for trainers to forge warmer and more effective relationships with their clients. In this paradigm, coaches and trainers can help clients find their resolve to change on their own terms, and in doing so, became expert in the thing that matters most to their clients, namely their optimal performance. Already part of many personal training curricula worldwide, Dr Sugarman’s work on motivation in physical training and sport coaching settings is becoming the bible for those in the training community who want to drive growth in the industry by engaging more people in positive healthy behavior change. The first edition was a testing ground for the opinions of people I value most, and much feedback has been received and incorporated into this second edition. I have expanded on several themes whilst still maintaining the core values of the first edition. More subtly, I have ramped up the level of abstraction of the language and concepts, to make it more challenging for those who read the first book, and in an attempt to address more controversial issues for a wider audience. Many trainers and coaches have given their feedback openly, thankfully mostly positive, and they have noted how much the first book helped their work and furthered the financial value of their practices, for which I am grateful and humbled. Personally, my sole motivation as I write these books is for the field to prosper and hopefully to collaborate with Ian O’Dwyer and others at PTA Global in driving a new paradigm in training and coaching settings. I am inspired by the work of those trainers and coaches who stick to their professions but still incorporate new ideas that will advance their often precarious industry and vulnerable tenure. In the competitive peak performance industry, getting results is what counts, not good intentions. Like any other business, it is all about managing people and attempting the optimisation of human capital in society.

Dr Roy Sugarman was born in South Africa in 1953 and trained in Clinical Psychology and Clinical Neuropsychology. Now a peak performance expert, he began his career working with amputees and spinal injuries. He rapidly saw the value of an integrated body and brain response to life’s challenges for both injured and intact athletes alike. Consequently he used his training across disciplines to develop an integrated approach to rehabilitation. After completing his undergraduate bachelor’s and honours degrees in biological and applied psychology, he went on to complete his Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology, which was awarded summa cum laude – his dissertation addressing Feminism and family violence. He then won a scholarship to complete his doctorate in Clinical Neuropsychology, which he achieved in 1992 studying the effects of fermented sugar in the brain and on cortical arousal mechanisms. Perceiving the need to train graduates to the level required for neuropsychology accreditation, in his private capacity Dr Sugarman developed the only tutoring course available, training some 190 candidates over the next decade. These experiences led him to further work in brain rehabilitation and he was instrumental in the founding of the Life Care Rehabilitation Centres in South Africa. These centres consisting of sixty bed units for which he provided training, supervision and clinical expertise. In 2000 Dr Sugarman moved to Adelaide, South Australia, where he joined the Royal Adelaide Hospital on their Glenside Extended Care program as Senior Clinical Neuropsychologist. He also held a joint appointment as Clinical Lecturer in the Department of Psychiatry at Adelaide University, as well as tutoring in neuroscience and as a member of the South Australian Psychiatry Training Curriculum Committee. At the same time Dr Sugarman held an appointment with the Special Needs Committee – a panel of experts established to provide solutions in complex psychiatric placements – where his talents for rehabilitation were recognized. He was invited to provide expert opinion for the Neuropsychiatry Grand Ward Rounds. This was created to deal with complex cases at the Royal Adelaide Hospital by Prof’s Thompson and Koopowitz of the University, where he continued teaching medical school students how to apply neuroscience to their work in psychiatric settings. Dr Sugarman moved to Sydney in 2003 to take up the position of Principal Psychologist as well as the Director of the Clinical Therapies program for South Western Sydney Area Health Services, where he oversaw services in mental health and complex depression/anxiety clients. He joined the Discipline of Psychiatry at the University of New South Wales Medical School, as a Conjoint Senior Clinical Lecturer. Leaving the SWAHS service in 2006, he worked as the Acting Director of Psychological Services for the year at the Royal Sydney Rehabilitation Centre in North Sydney. After this, he travelled extensively in the USA consulting with large corporate bodies and health management organisations, such as Optum Behavioral Health, United Health Group, Union Pacific Railroad, Cisco, and Athletes Performance (now ‘Exos’ see http://www.teamexos.com), exploring how the use of modern technology in applied neuroscience could optimise brain-related activities. In 2009, Athletes Performance in Arizona USA invited him to join them and their sibling company, Core Performance, as Director of Applied Neuroscience where he remains consulting in that capacity on the Performance Innovation Team, resulting in his serving as Mindset Coach for the USA National Men's Soccer Team (with Juergen Klinsmann as Head Coach) since October 2011. Dr Sugarman currently lives in Sydney Australia, and pursues his peak performance work, as well as operating small private practices in Sydney, Canberra and Adelaide.