Performance, pressure and mental management are today determining factors both in sport and in high-level professional environments. La Academia del Alto Rendimiento has established itself as the number 1 mental preparation academy in Europe, with its own method that goes beyond classical tools and addresses mental blocks at their root, especially in high-demand contexts.
We speak with Daniel Gallardo, Head of Acquisition at the academy, to understand where the project originated, what its mission is and how they help athletes, coaches and professionals unleash their potential, perform at their best when it really matters and reconnect with enjoyment and focus, without tension or internal struggle.
La Academia del Alto Rendimiento has positioned itself as the number 1 mental preparation academy in Europe. Where does the need to create the project come from and what is your mission today?
La Academia del Alto Rendimiento was born from a very clear observation by its two founders, both former elite athletes. Throughout their careers they found that the mental preparation and sports psychology they had received did not address the problem in depth.
Despite having tried classic tools such as hypnosis, meditation, visualization or neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), the results were not stable or satisfactory enough in high-pressure contexts.
The need to create the Academy arises precisely from here: to develop a structured and reproducible method that acts in depth on mental blocks and allows people to perform at the highest level, but also to enjoy their sport and the present moment, without tension or internal struggle.
Today, our mission is clear: to unleash the performance potential of as many people as possible by eliminating the unconscious mental blocks that appear under pressure, both in sports and professional environments.
Who is your target audience and what common factors do people who decide to work with you on their mental preparation share?
We mainly work with:
The common point is not the level, but the context:
They are profiles very demanding of themselves, with great technical ability, but with internal friction that appears at key moments.
The Despolarización® method is your great differentiating element. What exactly does it consist of and what makes it especially effective in situations of extreme pressure or high level of demand?
The Mental Despolarización® method starts from a key idea: blockages under pressure are not due to lack of confidence or motivation, but to an unresolved internal conflict.
In high-demand situations —competition, critical decision-making, public exposure— an internal part that the person rejects is usually activated: fear of failure, extreme self-demand, need for control, pressure not to disappoint.
Most methods try to eliminate or cover up this part, which generates even more internal tension. Mental Despolarización® does exactly the opposite.
The method consists of identifying, reconciling and integrating these internal polarities that come into conflict precisely at decisive moments. It's not about "positive thinking" or forcing emotional states, but about eliminating the internal struggle that consumes energy and causes the blockage.
It works in three very specific stages:
This is what makes it especially effective in extreme pressure contexts: when the internal conflict disappears, mental energy stops fragmenting.
The athlete or professional no longer has to "endure," "control themselves" or "force themselves," and can access their real level while enjoying competitions in a stable and repeatable way.
This is why the method has been successfully applied to more than 2,500 people, including Olympic and world champions, and why its impact is greater the higher the demand.
Recovering confidence is key to performing at the highest level again. What is the support you provide to people, from the first mental diagnosis to the consolidation of results?
Our support is designed so that the person not only overcomes the specific blockage, but consolidates a stable change in their way of performing under pressure. It is divided into three main phases:
In a context where sports psychology and coaching are constantly evolving, how do you innovate and update your approach to maintain the effectiveness of the Despolarización® method?
At La Academia del Alto Rendimiento we understand innovation not as an accumulation of techniques, but as a constant improvement of the real impact on the person. That's why our method is not static.
Despolarización® evolves thanks to three fundamental pillars:
All coaches certified by the Academy go through a demanding process of training, supervision and constant updating. This guarantees that the method is applied with coherence, depth and fidelity to its essence, regardless of the coach or the country where it is applied.
This combination of real practice, continuous research and quality control is what allows us to maintain the effectiveness of the Despolarización® method in such a changing and demanding environment.
What is your main priority in the short term? And in the long term, what objectives do you set for yourselves?
In the short term, our priorities are:
In the long term, our objectives are:
From INDESCAT we favor the creation of collaboration bridges between companies. What type of companies do you think you can create synergies with and why?
We believe we can create synergies especially with:
The synergy is clear: mental performance is the invisible factor that conditions all others.
What do you think being part of a cluster like INDESCAT can bring you?
Being part of INDESCAT represents a key strategic opportunity for us. It brings us:
And at the same time, we believe that we can bring to INDESCAT:
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