Love Your Inner Athlete

Beyond Mental Toughness: Avery Nelson on Psychological Flexibility, Shame, and the Power of Opening Up

Avery Nelson played basketball through high school and baseball at Hamline University, where a run of injuries left him burnt out, doubting himself, and trying to power through it alone. Working with a sport psychologist changed how he saw the game and pointed him toward a career. Two master's degrees later, he is a therapist and mental performance coach at Skadi Sport Psychology, helping athletes with both their mental health and their performance.In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with Avery to talk about why rigid, push-through-anything "mental toughness" falls short and what psychological flexibility offers instead. They dig into why shame is one of the worst long-term motivators, how phones make anxiety easy to avoid and harder to beat, the pressure social media and sports gambling put on today's athletes, and how knowing your three to five core values can simplify hard decisions. Avery also shares what he wishes his college self had known: admitting you're struggling is the moment the weight starts to lift. Whether you're an athlete, a coach, or a parent, this conversation offers a practical, human take on building a mental game that lasts.Connect with Avery:Website: skadisportpsychology.com (free discovery calls available)The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on resilience, mental fitness, and what sport teaches us about life.

The Roadmap to Resilience: Colin Owensby on Tragedy, Gratitude, and Building a Life You Control

At 15, Colin Owensby broke his back in a car crash, spent a week in a coma, and heard doctors warn he might never walk again. Three months later, still in a body cast, he watched his older brother collapse and die on a basketball court. What he built out of those years has carried him through college swimming, an international modeling career, five years as Ashton Kutcher's photo double, a 100-mile ultramarathon, and multiple Ironmans.

In this episode of Love Your Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with Colin to walk through his 10-pillar Roadmap to Resilience, what working alongside Hollywood's best taught him about mastery and work ethic, and the simple Notes app list a mentor gave him that still shapes his days. Whether you're an athlete coming back from injury, someone carrying grief, or just looking for something tangible to make today better, this conversation offers a practical, hopeful blueprint.

Connect with Colin:
Website: thecolinowensby.com
Instagram, TikTok & LinkedIn: @TheColinOwensby

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on resilience, mental fitness, and what sport teaches us about life.

Be Malleable: Charlie Curti on Adapting Your Game and Your Mind

Charlie Curti has played pro hockey for eight seasons across the ECHL, the AHL, Denmark, and the UK — but the lesson he keeps coming back to isn't about skating or shooting. It's about being malleable.

In this episode, Charlie joins Hans to talk about the identity crisis that hit him at Yale, when the offensive defenseman who'd never faced real adversity suddenly found himself in and out of the lineup. He reached out to Hans at his dad's suggestion, and what started as a hockey problem turned into something broader.

They get into why consistency beats talent over a 70-game season, how separating who you are as a player from who you are as a person protects you through slumps, and what changed in Charlie's game once he stopped insisting his way was the right way. He's candid about the setbacks — a torn ACL, a sophomore slump he blames on his own stubbornness — and about the call-up to the AHL at 28 that made the whole thing feel worth it.

A good listen for any athlete who's been told to adapt and didn't want to hear it.

NIL Is for the 40, Not the 4: Jessica Poole on Identity, Branding, and What Nobody Tells You

What if the most important question in NIL has nothing to do with money? Jessica Poole, founder of The Poole Collective and creator of the Own Your NIL program, has spent decades inside college athletics watching athletes chase deals before they even know who they are – and she’s built her entire approach around fixing that.

In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with Jessica to explore why identity work comes before brand deals, what parents and athletes consistently get wrong about NIL, and the one piece of advice from a women’s basketball coach that has shaped everything about how she operates.

Whether you’re a parent trying to figure out NIL, an athlete building a brand, or a coach wondering how to prepare your players for life beyond sport, this conversation offers a perspective you won’t hear anywhere else.

Connect with Jessica:

• Website: thepoolecollective.com
• Instagram: @thepoolecollective
• LinkedIn: The Poole Collective
• Free 1-hour consultation available on her website

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on athlete development, identity, and life beyond sport.

What’s the difference between studying athletes and actually caring for them? Dr. Mary Collings, official chiropractor for both the Dallas Mavericks and the Dallas Stars, has spent 33 years answering that question from inside the locker room – and her perspective on recovery, the brain, and what truly separates elite performers might surprise you.

In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with Dr. Mary Collings to explore how a chance encounter at a beach volleyball tournament launched an unexpected career, why recovery is not a reward but a requirement, and what a secret flight to Denver during the playoffs revealed about the mental side of performance.

Whether you’re an elite athlete, a weekend warrior, or just someone trying to perform better in daily life, Dr. Mary’s insights on sleep, recovery, and treating people as people offer a masterclass in what real care looks like.

Connect with Dr. Mary:

Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Stars Official Chiropractor

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on performance, recovery, and what it really takes to compete at the highest level.

What does a guy who quit hockey after Bantams, rediscovered the game in Southern California, and built a performance center from scratch actually know about developing elite athletes? Turns out – everything that matters.

Dave Brown, owner of The Base Sports Performance and head coach of the Rogers Royals, has spent years watching talented kids hit invisible walls, and he’s figured out exactly why. In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with his longtime friend and neighbor Dave to explore why the pressure to perform is hitting younger and younger kids, what coaches are afraid to say to families, and the two-word piece of advice that reframes everything about youth sports.

Whether you’re a coach, a parent, or someone building something from the ground up, this conversation will make you stop and think about what you’re actually building – and why.

Connect with Dave:

• The Base Sports Performance
• Minnesota Lakers Hockey
• Rogers Royals Hockey

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on coaching, athlete development, and what hockey really teaches us about life.

What’s it like to grow up in one of hockey’s most legendary families – and then find your own path in the game? Chris (Critter) Johnson, assistant coach with the Minnesota Frost in the PWHL, has seen hockey from every angle: as a player, a youth coach, a college coach, and now at the professional women’s level. And the most important thing he’s learned? It has nothing to do with winning.

In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad reconnects with his Augsburg connection to explore what coaching professional women athletes is really like, why nothing matters until puberty when it comes to youth development, and the piece of advice from his dad that has shaped everything about how he shows up – on and off the ice.

Whether you’re a hockey parent, a coach at any level, or someone trying to figure out how to separate your identity from what you do, this conversation will make you think differently about the game.

Connect with Chris: Minnesota Frost / PWHL Minnesota

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on coaching, athlete development, and what hockey really teaches us about life.

What does it take to go from national championship player to Division I head coach — and what does the rapidly changing landscape of college hockey mean for the next generation of athletes? Bethany Brausen, head coach of the University of St. Thomas women’s hockey program, has seen the game from every angle, and her perspective might challenge everything you think you know about what makes a champion.

In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with Bethany to explore what two national championships really taught her about culture and team building, why the transfer portal and NIL are changing the game in ways nobody fully understands yet, and what she wishes every parent of a young female athlete would hear.

Whether you’re a coach, parent, or athlete trying to figure out your path, this conversation offers an honest, thoughtful look at what it means to develop people — not just players.

Connect with Bethany: University of St. Thomas Women’s Hockey

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on coaching, athlete development, and building championship culture.

Building Championship Culture from the Bench: Sam Terres on Coaching, Relationships, and the Game

What does it take to build a program that sends the first Bantam A team in Armstrong Cooper history to the state tournament - and then do it again? Sam Terres’s journey from Armstrong Cooper captain to youth hockey coach reveals how relationships, compete level, and doing things the right way create something special that players remember long after the final buzzer.

In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with longtime coaching friend and former Armstrong Cooper Bantam A head coach Sam Terres to explore what separates good coaches from transformational ones, why mental fitness changed his approach, and what every hockey parent needs to hear right now.

Whether you’re a youth hockey coach navigating pressure and expectations, a parent wondering how to best support your athlete, or someone who loves the game and the community it builds, this conversation offers honest insights from someone who lived it.

Connect with Sam: Lead Instructor, MAP Hockey - Plymouth Location

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on coaching excellence, youth development, and building winning culture.

The Accidental Sports Psychologist: Erin Ayala’s Unconventional Path to Elite Performance

What happens when a self-described mediocre JV athlete accidentally stumbles into sports psychology and discovers it’s exactly where she belongs? Erin Ayala, founder of Skadi Sports Psychology, has built a practice around the athletes who don’t see themselves in traditional sports performance spaces - and her approach is changing what mental fitness looks like.

In this episode of the Inner Athlete Podcast, host Hans Skulstad sits down with his office neighbor Erin to explore how her own endurance athletic career shapes her work with athletes, why the “leave it at the door” approach to life stress is a myth, and what parents are getting wrong about the car ride home.

Whether you’re an athlete, parent, or coach, this conversation offers a refreshingly honest look at what mental fitness actually requires.

Connect with Erin:

• Practice: Skadi Sports Psychology
• Website: https://www.skadisportpsychology.com/

The Inner Athlete Podcast explores mental fitness strategies for athletes at every level. Subscribe for more conversations on mental performance, athlete development, and building sustainable athletic careers.