What do you wish you could tell your coach, but for whatever reason never did?

That is the fundamental question Dr. Sara Erdner and I explore, as well as the theme for her book: Dear Coach, What I Wish I Could Have Told You.

If there’s one thing that’s clear about sport (especially at the collegiate and youth levels) it’s that coaches don’t just impact an athletes current physical skills, they also have a massive influence on their long term psychological well being, confidence, and motivation.

In this epsiode, we talk about things like:

• is there a downside to our emphasis on being “coachable”?
• the irony of coaches wanting athletes to take feedback, but not being open to it themselves
• why teams and organizations aren’t families and why they should stop saying they are
• why we ultimately need to focus on coach mental health and mental strength if we want to instill the same in athletes
• and even some questions a high schooler or parent might ask on a recruiting visit to really get a sense of how the culture and relationship the coach is fostering

If you haven’t already, I’d encourage you to listen to my conversation with Dr. Brian Zuleger on building mental strength from the inside out. As Dr. Erdner and I discuss, many coaches are outside in, meaning that when the team is performing great, the coach’s well-being, confidence, and motivation are high….but once the team performance starts to drop….then the coach’s well-being, confidence, and motivation, quickly follow.

Dr. Erder is a Certified Mental Performance Coach with a PhD in Sport Psychology and Motor Behavior. She’s worked with all levels of athletes, including being the mental performance coach for a major professional sports organization, and is currently one of my professors at Adams State University. Dr. Erdner has an incredible amount of knowledge and experience, but rather than just telling coaches what they should do better, she hopes that this conversation and her book are invitations for coaches, athletes, administrations and organizations to launch more conversations around creating needed and lasting changes so that we can create the kind of positive experiences for coaches and athletes alike that sport can and should be all about.

Find more about Dr. Erdner and her book at: https://www.dearcoachbook.com

Psychology of Sport Injury & Rehabilitation podcast

Nutcracker Syndrome podcast

Suggested reading: research on playfulness and performance:

Performance and physical activity. How playful activities implemented into training in Danish esports clubs influence players' performance experience

Playful sport design: A game changer?

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Coach Griffin and Forging Iron Training:

Coaching: https://forgingirontraining.fit/coaching-consult

Leave a comment: https://forgingirontraining.fit/ama

Sponsor the Podcast, Newsletter, and/or Training Squad: https://forgingirontraining.fit/becomeasponsor

Forging Iron Training Principles: https://griffinjaworski.substack.com/

YouTube: https://youtube.com/griffinjaworski

Max Stoneking is an accomplished triathlete, former collegiate swimmer, as well as a triathlon coach and physical therapist (DPT).

This episode is all about navigating the physical and mental challenges of sport and how to integrate it into your schedule alongside the demands and stresses of our work and social calendar.

We talk about relative energy deficiency syndrome and the red flags to look out for in your own training. I really appreciated Max’s honesty in handling RED-S, which is something I also talked a bit out on my episode with Ellen Davis, who's a a sports nutritionist as well as Brady Holmer, who just rocked a 2:26 marathon in Boston, so feel free to circle back to those if you’re fascinated by that.

One thing I loved about this conversation was Max’s approach as a physical therapist and coach and how he intentionally works to create an environment that people enjoy showing up to, and helping people think about the why or purpose behind their rehab and training.

If you're interested in creating a life of intention, helping others, and building the self-awareness necessary to thrive in the long run, this episode has something for you, let’s dive in.

This episode is brought to you by Forging Iron Training Principles, something infused in this conversation is training at the edge of our capacity, and essentially the repercussions that occur either from an injury, fatigue, hormonal, or mindset standpoint when we go too far. If you find that fascinating, I’d encourage you to check out our post on the Law of Diminishing Training Returns, where we talk about how, when it comes to long term improvement, sometimes less is more and what are some of those warning signs or things to avoid when we’re almost too motivated to push beyond our current limits.

I’d love to know what your takeaways from this episode are! Leave a comment or review, share it on social media (linked below), or send us a message here: https://forgingirontraining.fit/ama

Until next time, happy training!

Connect with Max Stoneking, PT, DPT

https://maxstoneking.substack.com

https://www.eliteedgecoached.com

https://x.com/max_stoneking

https://www.performancerehabkc.com/olathecollegeblvdandk7

Coach Griffin and Forging Iron Training:

Coaching: https://forgingirontraining.fit/coaching-consult

Ask a question or leave a comment: https://forgingirontraining.fit/ama

Sponsor the Podcast, Newsletter, and/or Training Squad: https://forgingirontraining.fit/becomeasponsor

Forging Iron Training Principles Substack: https://griffinjaworski.substack.com/

YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/griffinjaworski

More ways to connect:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/coach_grifjaws

Twitter: https://x.com/coach_grifjaws

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/griffin-jaworski

Gordo Byrn is the former Ultraman World Champion, which is a 3 day stage race covering 320 miles with a 6.2 mile swim followed by a 90 mile bike ride on day one, a 171 mile ride on day 2, and after all that, just your standard, run of the mill double marathon, 52.4 miles of running on the islands of Hawaii.

At the time of this recording, Gordo was dealing with an injury, but a few months later he’s winning the 55-59 age group at Ironman 70.3 oceanside, with a blazing time of 4:38 and a sub 1:30 run split, averaging 6:48 per mile and winning the age group by 10 minutes. This is all the more impressive not just from navigating injury, but by the fact that Gordo is coming back from taking 10 years off from racing, with virtually no running or swimming in a decade.

We talk about that return to sport, not only how he handled from the physical training, but the mental side as well, how his approach was to actually work easier instead of harder, and how being able to keep up with his kids and create incredible experiences with them inspired his return.

I love Gordo’s perspective not just on training philosophy, but his approach to creating his ideal lifestyle, aligning the type of person he wants to be with the problems and projects he finds fascinating, and allowing those to help steer his goals.

Gordo is an inspiration to so many athletes, coaches, and parents. Let us know what you get out of this episode by sharing it on social media, sending us an email, or leaving a comment or review on your podcasting app. Enjoy!

More about Gordo:

Endurance Essentials

True Wealth

Live Long and Prosper

How to Skate a 10k by Nils van der Poel: https://www.howtoskate.se

Twitter: @feelthebyrn1

Instagram: @feelthebyrn

Youtube

Strava

Gordo on Rich Roll podcast

Coach Griffin & Forging Iron Training:

Coaching: https://forgingirontraining.fit/coaching-consult

Ask a question or leave a comment: https://forgingirontraining.fit/ama

Sponsor the Podcast, Newsletter, & Training Squad: https://forgingirontraining.fit/becomeasponsor

Forging Iron Training Principles Substack

YouTube Channel:

More ways to connect:

Instagram: @coach_grifjaws

Twitter: @coach_grifjaws

LinkedIn