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What do you do when your athlete feels set up to fail?

In this episode, Jordan and Mariel unpack a real post from a hockey mom whose 9-year-old son is stuck on a struggling team and use it as a powerful entry point into one of the most important mindset tools in sport: controllables.

Together, they break down the five controllables every athlete (and parent) can focus on when outcomes, coaches, team dynamics, or politics feel out of reach: effort, attitude, self-talk, preparation, and focus.

This conversation is equal parts honest, practical, and reassuring with real stories from youth sports, elite athletics, and parenting. If you’ve ever felt frustrated watching your child struggle in a situation they can’t control, this episode will help you shift from helplessness to empowerment, and from pressure to perspective.

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What happens when the thing you’ve built your identity around suddenly feels uncertain or is taken away altogether?

In this episode, Olympian Andrea Wieland joins the conversation to speak honestly about the psychological side of competitive sport that athletes rarely get prepared for: getting cut, feeling overlooked, questioning your worth, and learning how to keep going when confidence takes a hit. Andrea shares her lived experience navigating high-pressure environments, setbacks, and moments where external validation disappeared, forcing her to confront who she was beyond performance.

Together, the conversation explores how athletes can rebuild self-trust after disappointment, why resilience isn’t about toughness but adaptability, and how reframing setbacks can become a turning point rather than a breaking point. This episode is a reminder that sport doesn’t just test physical ability, it tests identity, mindset, and emotional regulation.

Whether you’re an athlete facing rejection, a parent supporting a child through tough moments, or a coach trying to guide someone through uncertainty, this episode offers grounded insight into how growth actually happens when things don’t go according to plan.

Dr. Andrea Wieland is an Olympian, performance psychologist, Founder of Winning Systems Psychology, PC, and former DI national and league championship coach who has guided thousands, from elite athletes to business leaders, toward lasting confidence and transformational performance. Having held leadership roles at institutions such as the University of Pennsylvania, IMG Academy, Sensei-Porcupine Creek, and the United States Air Force Academy, she fuses deep systems thinking with powerful self-mastery strategies. Andrea challenges performers to own their identities, redefine success beyond results, and become forces for good in every arena they enter. Her work invites us all to lead with purpose, play with heart, and contribute with courage on the field, in the family, and across humanity.

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From the outside, Adrien Plavsic had everything young athletes dream of: a long NHL career, Olympic success, and years competing at the highest levels of professional hockey. But internally, his experience was very different. In this episode, Adrien opens up about what it was really like to live in constant survival mode while performing at an elite level.

He shares how fear quietly drove his training, games, and even recovery, keeping his nervous system stuck on high alert. Despite appearing confident and composed, Adrien describes feeling trapped in his own head, disconnected from the moments he had worked his entire life to reach. Sleepless nights, racing thoughts, and an inability to truly relax turned the dream into something that felt more like a nightmare.

Together, this conversation explores the difference between performing from fear versus performing from presence, why so many driven athletes miss their peak experiences, and how over-control can actually block learning, growth, and freedom. Adrien reflects on his journey of rewiring his mind and nervous system, redefining his relationship with pressure, mistakes, self-awareness and why learning how to be, not just do, is essential for sustainable excellence.

This episode is a powerful listen for athletes, parents, and coaches who want more than just results who want performance that feels grounded, free, and fully alive.

Adrien Plavsic is a former NHL player who spent eight seasons with the St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks. A second-round draft pick in 1988, he won an Olympic silver medal with Team Canada in 1992 and later played many years in Switzerland’s top professional league. Today, he works as a Certified Mental Performance Coach, helping athletes regulate their nervous systems, reconnect with presence, and build lives rooted in freedom, excellence, and meaning.

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Getting cut is one of the rawest, most emotional moments in youth sports and for many families, tryout season feels more like heartbreak season. In this Q&A episode, Mariel and Jordan break down what really happens to an athlete’s confidence, identity, and motivation when they don’t make the team, and why a parent’s reaction in the first 10 minutes can shape everything that comes next.

They share their own stories of being cut, the shame, the tears, and the turning points, while unpacking how to help young athletes process disappointment without spiraling into victim mentality. Instead of blaming coaches or shielding kids from discomfort, the episode digs into how to validate the pain and redirect it into growth, emotional regulation, and a clearer understanding of what being an athlete truly requires.

This episode reframes being cut as an essential part of the athlete journey: a moment that can ignite self-awareness, leadership, accountability, and resilience when handled with the right mindset at home. Whether your child is devastated, angry, embarrassed, or ready to quit altogether, this conversation gives you the tools to anchor them, support them, and help them find their next step with confidence.

If your athlete was recently cut or if tryouts are looming, this is the episode you’ll want to hear together.

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Dr. Claire joins the podcast for a powerful conversation that every parent, coach, and athlete needs to hear. With a background in neuroscience, physiology, and youth mental health, she breaks down what’s actually happening inside the bodies and brains of young athletes and why so many are struggling with burnout, fatigue, chronic stress, and emotional overwhelm.

Throughout the episode, Dr. Claire explains how sleep, screen exposure, stress hormones, and daily nervous system health play a larger role in performance than most people realize. She shares why kids today are showing up more dysregulated, more exhausted, and more anxious than previous generations and how that directly impacts their ability to focus, recover, perform, and adapt to sport.

This conversation goes well beyond “mental toughness.” Dr. Claire offers a clear, compassionate look at how modern stress loads are shaping athlete development, why traditional coaching methods often fall short, and what adults need to understand about the brain-body connection if we want kids to succeed long-term.

If you’ve ever wondered why your athlete can’t sleep, can’t calm down, can’t recover, or can’t seem to feel confident consistently, this episode gives you the science and the solutions in a way that finally makes it all make sense.

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In this conversation, Daria Albers opens a window into what true high-level performance really requires. A world-class mental performance coach and former professional fighter, Daria works globally with UFC athletes, Special Operations Forces, and top-tier performers across sport and business. Her approach blends psychology, mindfulness, nervous system training, and embodied awareness into a style of coaching that is as grounded as it is transformative.

Drawing from backgrounds in physical therapy, psychology, MBSR, MBCT, and systemic theory, Daria has built a powerful mental training system that helps people stay calm under pressure, sharpen their focus, and untangle the patterns that hold them back. Her work is rooted in values, responsibility, and presence, offering athletes a way to come back to themselves instead of constantly chasing outcomes or relying on forced “mental toughness.”

Throughout the episode, Daria reflects on her own evolution from fighter to coach, a journey marked by discipline, humility, and a deep commitment to understanding the mind. She talks about the emotional and spiritual layers of performance, the importance of inner alignment, and why real confidence comes from awareness rather than suppression. Her perspective challenges the traditional model of pushing harder and instead invites athletes to train with clarity, curiosity, and heart.

This conversation is for anyone who has ever felt stuck, burnt out, overtrained, or disconnected from the passion that once fueled them. Daria’s insights offer a new way forward that integrates science with humanity and teaches athletes to perform from a place of internal strength, not external pressure.

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In this week's Q&A, Mariel and Jordan dig into one of the most confusing issues facing youth sports today: the blurry line between a firm, well-intentioned coach… and one who crosses into harmful territory.

Throughout the episode, they dive into the pressures today’s coaches face, the rise of “old school” intensity, and the ways young athletes (especially girls) respond differently to certain coaching styles. Mariel reflects on growing up under a brutally demanding coach and how those high-pressure environments both shaped her resilience and revealed where the line gets crossed. Together, they talk through when discomfort becomes growth, when it becomes damage, and how parents can support their athletes without becoming over-involved.

This episode is full of hard truths and practical guidance for anyone trying to navigate the realities of modern sport. Whether you’re a parent who’s unsure how to interpret a coach’s intensity, an athlete learning to advocate for yourself, or a coach striving to get it right, this conversation offers the perspective and nuance that’s been missing from the sidelines

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In this episode, Dr. Joel Kerr breaks down what young athletes actually need to thrive and the answers may surprise you. He calls on parents to step into the role of “recovery coach”: creating a safe emotional environment, supporting real nutrition, and protecting sleep, rather than critiquing performance or chasing stats. He explains how the student athlete exists in a triangle alongside the coach and the parent, where all three need aligned goals and values to support healthy development

Dr. Joel Kerr or as his athletes affectionally call him, "Dr. J" is an accomplished performance manual therapist, educator, and the visionary founder of BASE – Building an Athletic Structure for Exercise – a comprehensive clinical framework and educational system built to bridge the gap between manual medicine and performance care. With over 17 years of experience working with professional athletes, particularly within basketball, Dr. J has earned a reputation as a forward-thinking leader committed to redefining how clinicians and coaches assess, treat, and train the human body. Holding a Doctor of Chiropractic degree and over 5,000 hours of postgraduate training in Sport Neurofunctional Acupuncture, Dr. J brings a deep understanding of integrated systems, movement science, and evidence-informed care. His ability to seamlessly blend manual therapy, exercise prescription, and neurofunctional techniques has made him a trusted provider among pro athletes seeking longevity, recovery, and performance optimization. Beyond the treatment table, Dr. J is a passionate educator. He has served as a clinical instructor and mentor to hundreds of aspiring clinicians through continuing education programs, college courses, and private mentorship. In 2022, he co-developed the BASE curriculum alongside his wife, Dr. Claire Bacareza, with the mission to equip a new generation of manual medicine clinicians with the tools to observe movement, apply clinical reasoning, and intervene with purpose. BASE emphasizes passive and dynamic interventions, functional anatomy, movement literacy, and performance rehabilitation. BASE is not just a course—it’s a community. At its core, it supports the development of what Dr. J calls the “BASE Eye”: the cultivated skill of observing movement quality before intervention. This concept is central to the BASE system, which prioritizes effectiveness in real-world conditions, blending clinical experience, anatomical understanding, and human connection. The result is a powerful and flexible framework that enhances patient outcomes and builds clinician confidence. Dr. J's work has recently extended into international sport, where he is currently involved in building partnerships with Olympic organizations, athletic federations, and emerging sport performance hubs.Driven by purpose and guided by values of resilience, observation, and collaboration, Dr. J is on a mission to elevate the standard of care in performance and rehabilitation. He continues to build a "homeBASE" of clinicians, coaches, and movement professionals who are committed to learning the language of the body—and helping others return to, or remain in, motion.

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