'True Sports Psychology Is The Next Frontier': John Brenkus Discusses Sports Science, Career, Upcoming Livestream With Kill Cliff On How To Be Resilient

(WJZ)- John Brenkus is best known as the host and creator of the Sports Science series that aired first on Fox then ESPN at various points over the last 10-15 years. His interest in the science behind the performance of the world's top athletes began at a young age, when as a child in Virginia, he grew up watching the Orioles star Cal Ripken Jr., the Redskins Super Bowl runs and the Washington Bullets take home an NBA championship.

The passion for understanding the performance of the world's top athletes has extended to other areas of performance as well, which is what led to his partnership with the Kill Cliff brand which produces energy, endurance and performance drinks for athletes. The brand, which was founded in 2013 by former United States Navy SEAL Todd Ehrlich, aims to provide a more natural energy drink made with clean ingredients for athletes looking to improve their performance.

But, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, workouts and sports performance, while a part of the wellness equation, aren't the entire picture. That's why the brand is hosting a livestream on its YouTube channel on Friday, April 17 from 7-8pm EST titled "How To Be Resilient." The stream which will feature both former Navy SEALs and sports luminaries like Baltimore Ravens legend Ray Lewis, MMA fighter Ryan Bader, Man vs. Wild's Bear Grylls and more, aims to help provide people the tools they need to remain resilient in these uncertain times.

"What's incredible about this current situation is, there are a lot of times when people say, 'oh my god, I made a bad decision and this bad thing happened'. We happen to be in a situation as a country and really the world, where I didn't do anything. And then all of a sudden I'm locked up in my house so the feeling is this is unfair and this is out of nowhere," said Brenkus in a phone interview. "That feeling is one that we want to address. We need to tap into being resilient and there's nobody better on the planet than a Navy SEAL to tell you, look, things are not fair. Life is not set up to be fair, and your mindset is really a choice. There are a lot of tools that you can use to reframe the situation that you're in, to be able to get yourself out of any kind of mental funk."

Brenkus says that the company feels this event is really more of a public service than anything, giving people the tools that they need to be able to handle the adversity that life is currently throwing at all of us. It is that toolbox that Brenkus says he hopes is the main takeaway that people get from tuning into the stream.

"You learn how to ride a bike and you can ride a bike forever. Many of us are challenged and we need to learn how to be resilient and, you know, you can always refine those skills," said Brenkus. "Whether or not you're somebody who is just super down right now or whether you feel like you're just not operating at your optimal level, this is something that you can really benefit from."

"I feel like we as a world are stitched together as one more than ever, and I feel like when there's an authentic message out there, it's something that we're all going to listen to and, this is certainly designed to be a source of positive inspirational content that can help you today. And everyday moving forward," Brenkus continued.

The psychology of human performance is an area that Brenkus really feels is the next area of exploration for the sports science field.

"What we're finding the numbers and what I can really conclude through Sports Science is look the numbers are only part of the story," said Brenkus. "Many people fall in love with what I refer to as the top of the curve, they want to be the biggest, strongest, and fastest. But you hit a certain point and it's proven over and over when you look at athletes that are undersized that the metric aspect of it is only one aspect of the equation. Those intangible aspects, the psychological aspect of how you deal with adversity and how you bounce back from failure. The difference between good and great are those who are more confident of their ability to try and humble enough in their ability to get better. So, when you have that combination, that's what really defines greatness."

Brenkus' passion for sports performance and quantifying it has led to a career with six Emmy nominations, a best-selling book (The Perfection Point), and partnerships across the sports world. But, what he really values most is the relationships that he has built with athletes over time.

"I've always been drawn toward storytelling but very truthful honest storytelling. That's really centered around perpetuating positive energy," said Brenkus. "And if you just look at the practice of Sport Science really featuring the world's greatest athletes, being pushed to their limits, through different tests that we end up creating. We've never paid a single athlete ever to enter the lab. I believe that people who are the best at what they do will do things not out of desire for financial gain but out of desire to be truly great, and part of being truly great is to recognize that you can always get better. So that's why we are so blessed and fortunate to have been part of a movement of looking at sport through the lens of science and also being introduced to some incredible human beings men and women from every sport who are the best at what they do."

Now, Brenkus, in conjunction with Kill Cliff, is trying to make a wider impact with an audience here in the United States that may need some positive messaging right now. The livestream, set for 7-8 pm EST Friday night, is part of that effort. All funds raised by the event will benefit the Navy SEAL Foundation.