Reprogramming the Inner Critic – Why Neuroencoding® Is a Game-Changer for Pro Athletes
- Brainz Magazine
- Sep 15
- 5 min read
Updated: Sep 16
Written by Kerdu Lenear, Athlete Transition Coach
Kerdu Lenear is a former pro basketball player, Athlete Transition Coach, keynote speaker, and Certified Neuroencoding Specialist. Through her Mindset Fitness™ methodology, she helps elite athletes train the part of themselves no one ever coached, so they can step into their identity, confidence, and purpose, on and beyond the game.
When I walked into the arena at EuroBasket 2025, the energy was electric. I was there to cheer for Estonia and to support one of my clients on the national team. From the stands, I could feel the pressure radiating from the court. Every decision mattered, every possession carried weight.
And that’s when it hit me again, the difference at this level isn’t just talent or physical preparation. It’s the mindset.
In my work with athletes, I see the same patterns over and over again, hesitation after a missed shot, frustration from a tough referee call, overthinking at exactly the wrong moment. These invisible loops are often what separate good from great. The body knows what to do, but the mind gets in the way.
That’s why I believe so deeply in Neuroencoding®.
My journey started years ago when I attended Unleash the Power Within (UPW), Tony Robbins’ four-day immersive event that pushes you beyond limits. It was there I saw Joseph McClendon III on the stage, a doctor of neuropsychology and one of the most sought-after performance coaches in the world.
For more than 35 years, Joseph has helped Olympic athletes, entrepreneurs, and leaders rewire their brains to perform at their best. His approach was different from anything I had seen before, not theory, not endless analysis, but practical tools to reprogram the nervous system so you can shift instantly.
I trained directly with him, became a Certified Neuroencoding Specialist, and have since applied these tools in my work with both athletes and coaches. What I’ve seen is nothing short of transformational.
How I help my athletes
When I work with athletes, I see the same things again and again, a missed shot that lingers too long in the mind, hesitation at the free throw line, overthinking when the moment demands instinct. These aren’t flaws in skill, they’re mental loops that hold players back from what they’re truly capable of.
That’s where my knowledge and expertise come in. Neuroencoding® simply means training your brain the same way you train your body. With specific techniques, I reprogram the nervous system so that your best responses, confidence, focus, and resilience become the default instead of frustration, hesitation, or doubt.
In practice, that looks like teaching athletes how to interrupt unhelpful patterns in the moment and replace them with empowering ones that actually stick. It’s not about analyzing for hours, it’s about shifting instantly.
In earlier articles, I wrote about the Toxic Ten, the sneaky patterns like procrastination, self-doubt, fear of failure, hesitation, and overwhelm that steal potential. Every athlete I’ve coached has battled at least one of them. Neuroencoding® is how we neutralize those patterns and install new ones that serve the player.
For my athletes, that means:
Resetting quickly after mistakes so they can keep playing with confidence.
Walking into high-pressure moments already anchored in belief instead of nerves.
Showing up calm and clear, even when the stakes are high.
Building habits that serve them not just during the game, but in their daily lives and beyond sport.
I think of it as mental conditioning, the part of training most athletes never received. Once they do, it changes everything.
Voices from the court and sidelines
What excites me most is how quickly athletes and coaches feel the results.
Artur Konontšuk, Estonian National Team & Pro Basketball Player, told me, “During a game, I had a slow start and lacked confidence in the first half. At halftime, I used one of the techniques to shift my mindset, and in the second half, I was a completely different player, setting my personal scoring record in the German Basketball League.”
Mailis Pokk, Estonian National Team & Pro Basketball Player, shared, “At halftime during a crucial match, I reset my mindset. I came back calmer and focused and landed key three-pointers I had missed earlier.”
And from the sidelines, coaches are seeing the same transformation. Jukka Toijala, former head coach of Estonia’s men’s national basketball team, put it this way, “Basketball is a very tactical and extremely fast game. A coach needs to make many decisions during the game. The STOP technique helps me focus on the right things during high-pressure moments. In situations where I would have acted nervously before, I stayed calm and composed.”
When athletes and coaches both train their minds this way, the effect ripples across the entire team.
Why it matters
Professional sport leaves no room for hesitation. The difference between winning and losing can be a single decision, a single free throw, a single response to pressure. You don’t have time to overanalyze or dwell on the “why.” You need tools that help you shift right now.
That’s what I deliver, the ability to step into confidence, clarity, and focus on demand. It’s not about becoming fearless, it’s about fearing less. And it’s about making your best self your default setting.
Final thought
At EuroBasket, watching the pressure build and release with every possession, I saw again what I see in every locker room and coaching session. Physical ability can take you far, but mental conditioning takes you further.
What I teach isn’t just motivation that fades. It’s a science-backed system that helps athletes and coaches silence the inner critic, break unhelpful patterns, and perform at their best consistently and on demand.
And this is exactly what I teach through Mindset Fitness™ coaching. Whether you’re an athlete in the middle of your career or preparing for life beyond sport, my techniques give you the tools to reset under pressure and step into lasting confidence.
It’s not theory, it’s training your mental muscles for identity, clarity, and peak performance on and off the court.
Read more from Kerdu Lenear
Kerdu Lenear, Athlete Transition Coach
Kerdu Lenear is a former pro basketball player turned Athlete Transition Coach, keynote speaker, and Certified Neuroencoding Specialist. As the founder of the Mindset Fitness™ methodology, she helps elite athletes train the part of themselves no one ever coached—their identity, confidence, and purpose. After navigating her own identity shift post-retirement, Kerdu is now building her Inner Game™ coaching experience and leading the emerging Athletepreneurs™ movement. Her mission: Empower pro athletes to thrive on and beyond the game.
