Humbled

We are getting conflicting messages regarding productivity in this time of chaos. Some are telling us to learn new skills, master sourdough making, and take online courses. Others are encouraging us to take it easy, watch a movie, do less. For athletes, who were mentally prepared to be working hard and staying focused before competitive seasons and training plans were derailed, the path forward is uncertain. Dr. Justin Tausig, a former pro fencer turned sports and performance psychologist, is encouraging athletes to stay productive during this crisis. Focus on what you can do, rather than what you can’t, and do at least one productive thing a day.

We are taking a week off to prepare for the next few episodes! Kristin is just checking in, giving you an update on the next few weeks of Humbled, letting you know how she's doing during this nuts time, and would really love to hear from you.

Prematurely ended sports seasons, cancelled races, and a year-long Olympic delay are rocking athletes’ lives. When athlete identity can play such a strong role in how we see ourselves, suddenly losing the ability to play your sport can feel like a major loss. Dr. Julie Amato is a sports psychologist who works with college athletes, professional athletes, and former athletes, and she is here to help. As a former elite athlete herself, she understands the importance of sport in athletes’ lives, and the complex role it plays in our health. Dr. Julie has solid wisdom for athletes weathering any storm, and wants us to start talking, and have some more compassion for ourselves in hard times.

Kaitlin Sandeno was 17 when she competed at the 2000 Olympics. And then she went back to finish her senior year in high school. Eight years and four Olympic medals later, she retired from professional swimming and moved immediately into the next phase of her life: giving back. Kaitlin approaches all of her uphill battles with the mindset that hard work and compassion will get her through. But what is her advice now, when so much is up in the air? In this special episode, we share our originally planned interview with Kaitlin, and added a follow-up interview with her to get an update on how she is weathering the global pandemic, and to get her perspective on how we move forward. Her answer? Control what you can, and stick to your true priorities.

The Olympics are just one of those predictable events that take place every four years. For the past four years, French sabre fencer Sara Balzer has been training for Tokyo 2020, excited to represent her country on the world stage. Four months from Opening Ceremonies, the Olympics were postponed, throwing into question thousands of athletes’ plans, and ending Olympic dreams for many. Sara is taking the news in stride, and is the perfect example of just how important the athlete’s mindset is. She’s riding out this storm by controlling what she can, and is not taking her eye off her goals.

Two weeks ago, Griffin Luce was balancing life as a student athlete, enduring grueling practices, and excited to see how far he and his teammates could go in his final season as a college athlete. He was given a couple of days to pack up his things, leave campus, and finish out the semester at home. Life as he and his teammates knew it was over. With such a sudden and dramatic change to his life, it would be understandable if Griffin were looking hard at the past and what could have been in the future. Instead, he is looking to the future, focusing on the joy in spending time with his family, and finding ways to continue to connect with his teammates.

Keeth Smart walked away from the fencing world for the second time after a devastating loss at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where his team missed out on winning a medal because he choked in two critical competitions. He went back to his college campus defeated, ready to leave the sport forever and move on to a promising career in business. What followed was a story of perseverance, heartbreak, and a pursuit of excellence that not only led to a silver Olympic medal, but a successful business career after he retired. Keeth’s ability to train as a professional athlete while preparing for life after sport demonstrates that it’s possible to have an optimal transition from professional athletics.

Water polo had been a way of life for Betsey Armstrong for nearly half of her life when she retired in 2014. She had two Olympic medals, water polo was her livelihood, her teammates were like family to her, and her identity had slowly become blurred with her sport. When she retired, Betsey knew she was ready to move on and find where she could make a mark outside of the pool. 6 years after retiring, Betsey is taking a hard look at where to channel her energy. Having spent so many years working hard to climb to the top of podiums, she knows she has what it takes to take on her next big challenge. But the question is, what is she going to tackle next?

In 2017 Bruce Smith had been involved with rowing for nearly 30 years, leading crews to the World Championships and building one of the largest rowing programs in the United States. After years working to make rowing accessible to his community, Bruce was witnessing an increasing trend of loneliness and isolation all around him, and he wanted to impact even more people. He launched Hydrow in 2018 with the goal to create a piece of fitness equipment that could change human connection as we know it. Bruce is aiming to bring the athlete experience to your living room, creating fitness communities around the world, and solving loneliness one workout at a time.

In 2008 Burckle won an Olympic bronze medal and was destined for a promising and lucrative future in the swimming world. When she abruptly retired just over a year later, she managed to ward off speculation by immediately transitioning to graduate school and founding a company mentoring young athletes. For so long she was defined by her athletic success, even though years of verbal abuse, depression, body image and control issues drove her out of swimming and into years of suppressed emotions. Twelve years after the Beijing Games, Burckle is just now starting to reconcile her past, fit it into the larger context of who she is, and ready to own her story and lean into a totally separate identity.