ONE GREAT... BOOK

THERE was an interesting quote from Johnny Sexton earlier this year when the Ireland captain was addressing some recent criticism following the Six Nations in March. Sexton and his team-mates had taken plenty of heat following their poor display against England in Twickenham and the Leinster No 10 explained how the negativity could get to him at times. ‘I see some of it (the criticism), I don’t see it all and often you might just be walking down in Carton House and you see a headline and suddenly the chimp in you attacks,’ he said back in April. ‘Whereas maybe what is in the article isn’t too bad at all. So, that can be tough.’ It seems that Sexton is yet another sports star who has tapped into the wisdom of Dr Steve Peters’ book, The Chimp Paradox. The chimp in question is the impulsive and primitive part of the brain which Peters, a renowned sports psychiatrist, tries to help the reader curb and manage throughout this renowned self-help book. Complex brain circuitry is broken down into basic terms. The reader will learn about the different parts of the brain, how to deprogramme negative narratives — known as ‘gremlins’ in the book — while becoming aware of unhelpful routines, or the ‘autopilot’ as Peters explains. High-performing athletes or the average person on the street can learn plenty from a book that seeks to explain why humans behave and react the way they do. Peters has worked with a host of professional athletes, ranging from Olympic cyclists, Liverpool players, snooker world champion Robbie O’Sullivan and the Mayo footballers in recent times. The book offers a fascinating insight into the workings of the human mind.