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In this episode, Chris Ryan breaks down how movement, efficiency, and mindset shape performance far beyond the finish line. Whether you're a young athlete, parent, or coach, you'll discover why understanding the power of form, emotional resilience, and efficiency can actually make you faster, stronger, and less injury-prone. Chris shares vivid stories, from the importance of mastering the power step to the brilliance of hill sprints, showing how a small shift in your approach can unlock extraordinary results. You’ll learn how to train smarter, move more efficiently, and develop mental toughness that prepares you for obstacles inside and outside of sport. This isn’t just about becoming a better athlete, it's about forging resilience, confidence, and leadership that will serve for a lifetime.With insights rooted in biomechanics, high-performance training, and raw human grit, Chris emphasizes the greatness already inside you. Whether you're coaching a young kid or trying to refine your own movement, this episode will inspire you to look beyond the scoreboard and start building character, grit, and legacy... one powerful step at a time.

Perfect for youth athletes eager to optimize performance, parents seeking to support without pressure, and coaches dedicated to developing resilient leaders. Remember: sport is a training ground for life and your journey is the destination. Train your mind. Build your grit. Forge your legacy.

About Chris

Chris Ryan is a renowned fitness expert and founder of the Chris Ryan Fitness App, known for energetic, encouraging coaching. A former Division I track & field athlete at the University of Florida, he’s been named one of America’s Top 10 Trainers, appeared on NBC’s STRONG, and served as a founding trainer for MIRROR/lululemon Studio. Chris has written for Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Men’s Fitness, and Shape, and consulted for brands like Nike, lululemon, and Polo Ralph Lauren. Raised in Michigan, he lives in Bronxville, NY with his wife Denise and their three children — Achilles, Athena, and Aristotle — for whom he happily makes protein-packed chocolate pancakes on weekend mornings.

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Is your greatest challenge in sport actually the story you’re telling yourself?

There are so many athletes and teams that fall into the trap of pointing fingers and losing sight of responsibility. Jordan and Mariel unpack how avoiding accountability limits your growth and how shifting your mindset to one of ownership can unlock resilience, leadership, and ultimately, the legacy you’re capable of forging. In this conversation, we break down why taking responsibility is power. You’ll discover how responsible athletes elevate their teams, build trust, and turn setbacks into setups for greatness. We dive into practical ways to cultivate a growth mindset, turn criticism into fuel, and lead from the front, on and off the field.

Whether you're an athlete feeling stuck, a parent wanting to nurture resilience, or a coach shaping future leaders, this episode gets real about the mindset shifts that make champions in sport and life.

Choose accountability, and you flip the script to one of growth, loyalty, and high performance. If you’re committed to showing up as who you want to become, and leading your team with integrity and strength, this episode is for you. Jordan Owens is a seasoned hockey player and leadership coach, known for turning team chaos into cohesive unity through simple, powerful shifts in mindset. Remember: Sport reveals what needs to be strengthened. Are you ready to shape a legacy grounded in responsibility? Train your mind. Build your grit. Forge your legacy.

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What does it really take to go from a small-town kid with big dreams to competing on soccer's biggest stages?

In this episode, former professional soccer player and World Cup veteran Jay DeMerit shares the remarkable journey that took him from Green Bay, Wisconsin, to the English football pyramid, the Premier League, international competition, and beyond.

But this conversation isn't really about soccer.

It's about embracing discomfort, trusting the process, and having the courage to bet on yourself when nobody else sees the vision.

Jay opens up about turning down a full scholarship, moving overseas with no guarantees, navigating setbacks and rejection, developing confidence through preparation, and why some of the greatest opportunities in life come disguised as failures.

We also dive into leadership, communication, identity beyond sport, the importance of community, and why today's athletes need to stop chasing outcomes and start focusing on growth.

Whether you're an athlete, parent, coach, or someone pursuing a dream of your own, this episode is packed with practical wisdom and powerful perspective on what it means to build a life—and a career—one courageous step at a time.

In this episode, we explore:
• Why development shouldn't be rushed
• The power of embracing discomfort and uncertainty
• Confidence, preparation, and performing under pressure
• Leadership and becoming the most relatable person in the room
• Why failure is often redirection, not rejection
• How support systems shape long-term success
• The mindset that helped Jay compete at the highest level

Train your mind. Build your grit. Forge your legacy.

Check out Jay on Social Media at:
https://www.instagram.com/d6merit/

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Athletes will spend hours chasing improvement, overlooking the one thing that sets the great apart: mindset. Still living his dream as a professional quarterback, Nathan Rourke knows this story firsthand and shares it with us this week on Forged Youth Podcast.

Nathan opens up about his journey from Canadian high school football to NFL hopes, and then to CFL stardom. He shares how he learned to break down his goals into actionable steps, like acting as the athlete he wanted to become before he was there, and how this mindset built the grit that fuels him today. If you’re ready to elevate your confidence, embrace adversity as an advantage, and see performance as a reflection of your mindset, this episode is your playbook for life.

You’ll discover:

• How to reverse-engineering your goals to build discipline
• Why confidence is a byproduct of action, not a feeling to chase
• How routine and preparation create consistency and trust in your abilities
• The importance of separating your identity from your results
• Practical tools for emotional regulation that shift performance in seconds

Nathan reminds us that sport is a laboratory for leadership, resilience, and character... which a foundation for forging your ultimate legacy.

Perfect for young athletes, parents eager to support without pressure, and coaches shaping future leaders, this episode will leave you inspired to think bigger about your potential and more grounded in the core habits that turn dreams into reality.

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What if the thing holding your athlete back is what they're eating, how they're sleeping, and who they're spending time with?

In this episode, Mariel sits down with Coach Elliot Allen, sports performance coach, former college football player, and founder of Eight Six Speed & Athletics, for a conversation packed with practical, no-fluff tools for teen athletes and the parents who support them.

Elliot knows what it's like to have natural talent and still come up short. And he's spent years building the system he wishes he'd had at 16: simplified nutrition, smart training, solid recovery habits, and the mindset to stay consistent when it gets hard. In this episode, he breaks all of it down in a way that actually makes sense for families.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why nutrition is the most undervalued piece of the performance puzzle and what "fueling for a purpose, not for pleasure" actually looks like day-to-day
• How to track your food the same way you track your training (and why it's the most boring, most important habit you can build)
• The truth about hydration: why electrolytes alone won't save you, how much water your muscles actually need, and what happens when you overdo it
• Why sleep is when you actually get stronger and the specific habits (phones, TVs, bedtimes) that are wrecking your recovery
• How your environment and your circle shape your results more than almost anything else, and what to do if you're in a small town with no high-achieving athletes nearby
• The self-talk shift that took Elliot from wanting to quit his freshman year to finishing out and coming back stronger
• The "5-minute rule" for processing hard moments without getting stuck in them

This one is as much for parents as it is for athletes. Practical, honest, and full of real talk from someone who learned most of this the hard way.

About Coach Elliot Allen:

Elliot Allen is a sports performance coach and founder of Eight Six Speed & Athletics, where he mentors teen athletes and their parents on speed, strength, nutrition, and mindset so they can set themselves up with the best chance to play at the next level.

A former college football player, Elliot learned the hard way that talent alone isn't enough — and that experience drives how he coaches today. He helps athletes build the structure and discipline he wishes he'd found at a younger age, combining simplified speed work, progressive strength training, and athlete-focused nutrition to produce measurable performance results.

As a father and coach, Elliot leads by example and stays committed to helping young athletes build the habits that separate them from the rest.

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What does it actually take to perform at your best without burning out, breaking down, or trying to squeeze yourself into a system that was never built for you?

In this episode, Mariel sits down with Dan Mickle, Mental Performance Coach, Head Women's Volleyball Coach at York College of Pennsylvania, founder of Soul Performance Academy, and host of The MentalCast podcast, for a wide-ranging conversation that covers everything from breathwork and journaling to neurodivergent athletes, hustle culture, and why "mental toughness" might be the wrong goal entirely.

Dan brings 30+ years of coaching experience and a deeply personal perspective on what it means to truly know your athletes. As a father of three neurodivergent children, a doctoral student researching coaching considerations for neurodivergent populations, and a former coach who once made his team do burpees during a timeout (his words), Dan keeps it refreshingly real throughout this whole conversation.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• The three mental skills Dan carried from being a player into 34 years of coaching and why breathwork is the foundation of all of them
• Why journaling doesn't have to be a page a day (and what a quick prompt in the parking lot can do for your growth)
• How to build intention into every practice and what deliberate practice really means
• Why neurodivergent athletes are just coping and what coaches can do differently
• The difference between emotional control and emotional suppression, and why fighting your nerves wastes energy you need
• Dan's take on why "mental toughness" misses the mark and what "mental flexibility" gets right
• Why the youth sports system is broken, who's responsible, and what it would actually take to fix it

If you're a coach, a parent, an athlete, or anyone trying to perform with more clarity and less chaos, this one's for you.

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About Dan Mickle:

Dan Mickle is a Mental Performance Coach, Head Women's Volleyball Coach at York College of Pennsylvania, educator, and founder of Soul Performance Academy. With over a decade of experience working with athletes, teams, coaches, and organizations, Dan specializes in helping performers build focus, confidence, emotional control, and sustainable high performance — especially for neurodivergent athletes and those who think and learn differently.

In addition to coaching at the collegiate level, Dan is an adjunct professor in sport behavior and psychology and is currently pursuing his Doctor of Health Science (DHSc) with a research focus on coaching considerations for neurodivergent populations. His work blends science, real-world coaching experience, and practical tools athletes can use immediately.

Dan is also the host of The MentalCast podcast, where he explores mindset, performance, leadership, and growth through conversations with coaches, athletes, and experts across disciplines. He has authored multiple books and created digital programs designed to make mental training simple, effective, and accessible.

Whether on the court, in the classroom, or behind the mic, Dan's mission is to help people perform at their best without burning out, breaking down, or trying to fit into systems that were never built for them.

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What happens when a Swiss national champion swimmer finally gets access to the mental tools that could have changed? That's exactly the question David Karasek sits with, and it's the reason he now dedicates his life to giving young athletes what he didn't have.

David is a former competitive swimmer, Swiss national record holder, and Olympian who spent the final four years of his career swimming for the University of Virginia where he worked with the same sports psychologist who coached Michael Phelps. The mental tools he discovered there didn't just improve his performance; they rewired how he thought about competition, failure, and what it means to be a real athlete.

In this conversation, David and Mariel unpack the mental performance toolkit that transformed his career and how you can start using it right now, whether you're 14 or 40. They cover conscious breathing techniques (including the exact method David used in competition, standing poolside next to Phelps), the right way to visualize before a race, why your brain is not a truth-seeker, and the real reason so many talented young swimmers crack under pressure.

David also gets candid about what it felt like to be a late developer and why that actually became his greatest mental advantage. Plus, Mariel shares her own visualization framework built around skills, senses, and struggle, and both coaches get real about the phone addiction crisis that's quietly sabotaging the next generation of athletes.

About David Karasek

David Karasek is a former Olympic swimmer and Swiss national record holder. At 38, he brings nearly three decades of elite competitive experience to his work as a performance coach and mentor. David is the founder of swimpros.com, where he runs performance camps for competitive swimmers and an online mentoring program on Skool. Most of the mental tools he teaches were learned directly from the sports psychologist of Michael Phelps during his time swimming for the University of Virginia. David is married with one child (and a second on the way), and is based in Zurich, Switzerland.

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What does it take to coach athletes hurtling down an icy track at 140+ km/h and build the mental toughness to match? This week, Mariel sits down with Robert Fegg, Head Coach of the Canadian National Luge Team, for a conversation that goes far beyond sliding sports.

Robert shares why he believes we're rushing youth athletes toward results at the cost of their long-term development, and what he's learned from decades of coaching across Germany, Canada, Korea, and the United States. From the start of his own luge career to guiding Team Canada at the 2026 Cortina Olympics, Robert brings raw honesty and hard-earned wisdom to every topic.

In this episode, you'll hear:

• Why enjoyment is the #1 predictor of athletic success and why we're undermining it
• How trust between coach and athlete has fundamentally shifted with Gen Z, and what coaches need to do differently
• The pre-performance routine story that changed how Robert coaches every athlete individually
• What luge teaches us about learning to crash and why avoiding failure might be the biggest mistake in youth sport
• The mindset shift required when transitioning from athlete to coach
• Why Robert says it will take 8 years to build the Canadian Luge program into what it needs to be

Whether you're a youth athlete, a coach, or a parent navigating the sidelines, this episode is packed with perspective on development, grit, communication, and what it truly means to give sport everything you've got.

About Robert:

Robert Fegg returned to Canada for his second stint with the Canadian Luge Team in the spring of 2022, this time to take the head coaching reins of the national program and guide the nation's best luge athletes into a new era.

The German has lived in the Calgary area with his family since completing his first stretch with the Canadian program from 2003 to 2011. After two seasons as the Junior National Team coach for the United States Luge Association (2018–2020), Robert served as head coach of the American luge program before coming back to Canada, where he guided the team to the Beijing Winter Games.

Coaching has been in Robert's blood since he wrapped up an eight-year career sliding on the German National Team in 2002. He cut his teeth in the coaching ranks the following year when he became the Assistant Coach of the Canadian Luge Team. After playing a key support role in developing Canada's luge athletes into medal winners for seven years, Robert took on head coaching responsibilities of the Junior National Team in Canada from 2010–14.

Robert was recruited as National Team Coach of the Korea Luge Federation in 2014, where he led many new athletes toward their first Olympic Games at home while also building the team's competitive sleds. Following the 2018 Olympic Winter Games, Robert returned to North America for a four-year stint with the Americans.

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