Photo Credit: Miranda McLean Photograpy

Request Appointment

Dr. Erin Ayala

she/her

With over a decade of clinical and sport psychology experience, I am a Licensed Psychologist and Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC). I provide virtual mental health therapy for athletes aged 14 and older, one-on-one performance coaching, CMPC mentorship, clinical supervision, and group workshops for teams and sport organizations. Based in Minnesota, I am licensed to work with athletes in 40 states.

Athletes seek my services for various reasons such as injury recovery, performance anxiety, depression, anxiety, pre-competition stomach aches, low confidence, pressure, perfectionism, and self-criticism. I specialize in working with women and non-binary endurance athletes, particularly in running, cycling, swimming, rowing, nordic skiing, and triathlon. However, I have experience with athletes of all levels and disciplines in various sports.

I approach my work with a feminist and multicultural perspective, creating a space to explore how cultural identities impact sports and beyond. I prioritize equality with my clients and utilize appropriate self-disclosure. As an advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion in sports, I actively support the LGBTQ+ athlete community, including contributing to legal briefings for trans athletes.

Drawing from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, I actively engage in sessions, using interventions, concepts, and strategies that help athletes deal with difficult thoughts, feelings, and situations (rather than avoid them). I use analogies and encourage athletes to embrace challenges while practicing self-compassion. I emphasize the importance of rest, quality sleep, and finding joy. When athletes work with me, they feel understood and supported, gaining valuable skills and strategies to enhance their performance.

Outside of my practice, I am an avid endurance sport athlete and advocate. With nine marathons, seven half-distance triathlons, and one full-distance triathlon under my belt, I co-founded a cycling team and non-profit in Minneapolis to promote diversity in cycling. I regularly compete in events in the Midwest as a cat 1 road cyclist and gravel cyclist. During winter, I participate in virtual racing, fat bike racing, and strength training.

I have experience volunteering for a "couch to 5k" program for domestic violence survivors in New York and as a mentor for "Little Bellas," a non-profit mountain biking organization for girls aged 7-13. I also sponsor the Minnesota high school mountain bike league by providing coaching education and a dedicated "chill zone" for student athletes to destress and recenter on race day.

Education & Licensure

There are thousands of mental performance coaches out there. It’s important to find the right one.

750 Certified Mental Performance Consultants are in the US.

Of those, 20% are psychologists.

18% are listed on the USOPC mental health registry.

And only 4% are able to practice in 37+ states.

Even fewer continue to publish research in sport psychology.

When you work with Dr. Ayala, you get one of the best.

Education

  • Post-Doctoral Fellowship, Albany Medical Center

  • PhD in Counseling Psychology, University at Albany (APA-Accredited)  

  • Pre-Doctoral Internship, Albany Psychology Internship Consortium (APA-Accredited)

  • BA in Psychology magna cum laude, St. Catherine University

 

Licensure & Credentials

  • Licensed Psychologist, Minnesota, License Number: LP6042

  • Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology, ASPPB 

  • Certified Mental Performance Consultant, Association of Applied Sport Psychology

  • Board-Approved Supervisor for LPC and LPCC clinicians in training

  • Listed in US Olympic & Paralympic Committee Mental Health Registry

Publications