Ian Reardon, M.S.

Ian Reardon has always believed the mental component of sport is equally—if not more important than—the physical training, allowing athletes with a strong mental edge to beat competition that may have the physical upper hand.  His passion for sport psychology began reading biographies of elite athletes such as Michael Jordan, Michael Johnson, and Michael Phelps, noticing similarities in the competitive drive, composure under pressure, and unwavering dedication to their sport.  Ian took what he learned from these great athletes and applied them to his own athletic endeavors in baseball, soccer, swimming, and water polo. 

As a four year varsity swimmer at Kenyon College, he earned 12 All-American awards and 4 NISCA Academic All-American awards.  He earned 7, top-8 finishes at the NCAA Championships, including one Individual National Championship in the 200-yard breaststroke, and two team NCAA Championships.  He was awarded the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship upon graduating Cum Laude with Honors in Psychology.

Ian went on to earn his Masters of Science in Psychology concentrating in Athletic Counseling from Springfield College. During his training at Springfield, Ian worked with athletes in Football, Tennis, Baseball, Volleyball, Swimming, Gymnastics, and Track and Field. He also worked alongside Athletic Trainers helping injured athletes with their readiness to return to sport. Over a two year period, Ian conducted over 300 hours of individual counseling and presented his Master’s Thesis titled “The Effects of Autonomy Supportive Coaching Behaviors and Season Success on Coach Perception”.

Upon graduating with an MSc, Ian moved on to become an assistant coach at Brandeis University. During his time as assistant coach, the program had several NCAA B cuts, 17 new records and over 75 new Top 10 program finishes as well as Scholar All American and Team awards.

Ian returned to Kenyon College as the Men’s and Women’s Assistant Swim Coach. In his first season coaching back at Kenyon, the Ladies won their first NCAA Championship since 2009. Setting over a dozen team records and several national records. In his second season with Kenyon, the Men placed 2nd and Women placed 3rd at the NCAA Championships. Ian now works with athletes of all ages through The Mental Barbell Midwest located in Western Michigan.