EDITOR’S NOTE
Felicia TomaskoC
ultivating peak performance is not just for Olympians and superstar athletes but we can
all integrate some of their methods. In this issue’s cover story, Zoe Kors and Jeff Skeirik
spent time with members of the Los Angeles Galaxy soccer team. The players shared
meaningful insights into their evolving personal and group practices to train for their
physical and mental game, as well as their nutrition, injury prevention or recovery, and
even their definitions of success. Sebastian Lletget shared, “The game starts long before you step onto
the field. It starts when you get in your car to drive to the stadium, not just when the whistle blows.”
Sometimes, we may find ourselves waiting for the whistle to blow, but in actual fact the day’s game
has already begun. The ball is already in motion and we need to dive in, catch up, race back and forth
on the playing field in the sport of life. Time-outs don’t exist in soccer, and they can be hard to come by
in life. This is why we cross-train. Why we practice on our mat. Why we meditate. So that we chase less
and feel empowered more often.
LA Galaxy defender Rolf Feltscher says, “The most important part of the sport is the mind. You have
to train the body, and that’s true, but you have to be more in shape with your mind.”
Being in shape with the mind is where everything begins. It’s not taking a time out, but a time in. Yet
it can also be where we feel overwhelmed, or even horrified and confronted by our fears and personal
demons. Dean Sluyter is a meditation teacher as well as the author of the new book Fear Less: Living
Beyond Fear, Anxiety, Anger, and Addiction. In this issue, Dean suggests that we are the director of our
own mind and our own life. All too often, we may find ourselves directing a horror film. Through the
art of meditation, we can shift our awareness so that we can recognize our feelings and tell a different
story. A story that allows us to shape our positive potential to achieve peak performance, whatever that
means for us.
March marks the annual Los Angeles Marathon, one of the largest of such races in the world. Whether
you are planning to run, to cheer, to enjoy the spectacle, or to simply avoid the closed-off streets, this feat
is a reminder of the training each one of us must do daily to excel in the marathon of life.
I’d like to take a moment to thank my sister Joy (pictured with me here) for coming out to visit from
NYC. Joy regularly helps edit this magazine and is a key player on my team of life.
May you share in moments of fun and gratitude with your loved ones that both support and chal-
lenge you to achieve the best version of you.Photo of Felicia and Joy Tomasko by David Young-Wolff