Hi, my name is Natalie Cornu! I am a Certified Mental Performance Consultant® (CMPC) who has a passion for helping equip athletes with valuable mental skills that can be used in both sport and everyday life. I am also passionate about helping individual athletes discover that their identity does not solely rest in being an athlete. The talents and gifts that they possess go far beyond the numbers on the scoreboards and sports reports. The confidence building, self-talk, goal setting, coping strategies, and other mental techniques that we work on during our sessions will help enhance their performance in all areas of life. I am open to working with athletes of all sports, as well as individuals in the performing arts.

 

I earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology degree in 2018 and a Master of Science in Sport and Exercise Psychology degree in 2020, both from the University of Kentucky (UK). I earned the title of CMPC ® in 2023 through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP). I first began my sport psychology work as an intern for Asbury Athletics in August 2019 and continued as a mental performance consultant there through Spring 2024. I have been teaching an undergraduate sport psychology course at UK since August 2021, where I serve as a part-time instructor.

 

As an undergraduate and graduate student, I was a member of the UK Club Running Team. During my time on the team, I competed in cross country and track meets at the regional and national level, along with serving terms as the vice president and president for my team. While competing in graduate school, I began implementing intentional imagery practice into my preperformance routine and believe the imagery techniques played a huge part in the achievement of my 5K PR in graduate school. I completed my first full marathon in April 2023 at the Derby Festival Marathon in Louisville, KY. Through all the intense training and a successful race day, I was able to experience first-hand how impactful mental performance strategies can be on any given day. I was very involved with my campus ministry during college and continue to prioritize my spiritual journey, which has helped inspire me to see how beautifully God works through sport and exercise in our lives. My faith values help provide a foundation for all the work that I do. I consider it a huge blessing to have the opportunity to help athletes from diverse backgrounds achieve success while growing valuable mental skills. I continue to marvel at the wonderful connection between the mind, body, and soul.

 

I currently live in Lexington, KY with my husband, Matt Cornu, and our son, Cooper. As a family, we share in a lot of activities together, including attending and watching many sport events, going on walks and jogs through the neighborhood, visiting parks around Lexington, and embarking on adventurous hiking trips. Along with running and talking about sports, my personal interests include listening to music, songwriting, discovering delicious coffee, exploring the National Parks, reading good books, and praying in the chapel. I am excited to continue my journey of helping athletes with their mental performance! I am available for virtual sessions for clients across the U.S. and hope to soon have in-person availability for individual sessions and team workshops in Lexington, KY. Check out more information about team talks in the Lexington, KY area here!