Out Of Your Mind with Sonja Schroeder

A quick update before you listen: Michael had an accident after this episode was recorded. Please see the note at the end of this summary about his comeback.

Michael Kontos is a Nairobi-based lawyer with over thirty years of experience. He describes his work as high stress and sport as his stress release. He has competed his whole life, from swimming to rowing to rugby to triathlon, always searching for a challenge hard enough to create the right system for him to show up. That search led him to half Ironman events and one full Ironman.

Michael Kontos knows exactly how he works, and he has built his life around it: he enters races that scare him just enough so that he has to train, and creates systems around him to keep him motivated.

In this conversation, Sonja and Michael talk about how accountability keeps him honest, what goes through his mind when quitting would be the easier option, and the parallels he draws between endurance sport and being a lawyer. He is also open about the part his family plays and why quitting is not an option for him.

This one is honest, warm, and a lot of fun.

Note: After this interview was recorded, Michael was struck by a car whilst training for Ironman Leeds. He sustained multiple injuries and spent several weeks in hospital. Thankfully, he is recovering well and, although a long rehabilitation lies ahead, he has his sights set on the start line at Ironman 70.3 Venice in May 2027. We wish him all the best!

In this episode we cover:

• Why he enters races so that he has to train
• Knowing how he functions, and building systems around it
• How accountability works for him, and why it comes in layers
• How his motivation has changed with age and family life
• The family ecosystem that makes it all possible
• The parallels he draws between endurance sport and being a lawyer
• Why quitting is not an option for him, and what he tells himself when it hurts
• How global CEOs race Ironman too
• What he is still working towards, and why recovery is his weak spot
• His advice for anyone thinking about a first triathlon

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Michael Kontos

01:55 Michael's Journey to Ironman Competitions

05:55 Accountability and Motivation

10:31 Adapting to Life Changes and Training Needs

12:53 Importance of Performance for Michael Now

14:14 Structuring Training Times

15:59 Family Support and Understanding

18:47 Sacrifices and Balance

21:03 Parallels Between Endurance Sport and Being a Lawyer

23:53 Effects of Sports on Business Performance

26:11 Keeping Going When Things Get Tough

32:07 Ironman and High-Level Business Executives

33:38 Personal Goals

36:18 Effects of Sports on Life

38:19 Recovery

41:45 Inspiring Others Through a Personal Journey

43:41 Advice to Others

Follow Michael:

• Instagram: michael.kontos.1610

Connect with Sonja:

• Website: https://www.naakorperformancecoaching.com/
• Instagram: sonjanaakor

Out of Your Mind is hosted by Sonja Schroeder, a Mental Performance Coach. New episodes drop every 2 weeks. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review — it helps more people find the show.

Why is it that people can achieve real, lasting results — and still find themselves right back where they started, years later?

Victoria Peña has spent her career at the intersection of medicine, nutrition, psychology and behaviour change. Early on, she noticed something that intrigued her — clients would gain the knowledge to change, and then bounce back to old habits. That paradox set her on a journey to understand the real psychology behind change, and how to help people transform for the long term.

 A registered dietitian, the first licensed health coach in the world, and a mindful eating practitioner, Victoria has worked across Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Abu Dhabi and Norway, always bringing a mind-body approach that set her apart. She has also just completed her MSc with honours, scoring 100% on her thesis, and is now moving into a doctorate.

In this conversation, we go deep into what's really behind long-term change — and why it so often has nothing to do with knowledge or willpower. Victoria shares her own extraordinary journey and talks about running ultras, her 100-day challenge, waking up at 4:30am, and why she believes normal is broken. She's also refreshingly honest about her own relationship with time and the things she still wants to achieve.

Whether you're trying to build a new habit, recover from an old one, or just understand why change hasn't stuck before — this conversation will change how you think about it.

In this episode:

• Why some clients relapse years after real, measurable success — and what actually determines whether change lasts
• Her personal story that first showed Victoria the power of the mind
• The "break it down" principle Victoria uses in ultra-running, and in life
• The mindset behind running ultras and 100-day challenges
• Ways to get out of bed in the morning, and why accountability matters more than motivation
• What "normal is broken" really means, and why she lives by it
• Practical recovery tools, and why rest is so undervalued

Chapters:
(00:04) Intro
(01:44) Victoria's Journey to Becoming a Dietitian
(04:54) The Mind-Body Connection in Health
(07:49) Mindful Eating and Its Impact
(09:58) The Power of the Mind in Overcoming Challenges
(16:32) Identity and Its Role in Wellness
(20:54) Misconceptions About Mental and Physical Wellness
(23:11) Client Transformations and Success Stories
(27:36) Crafting a Morning Routine for Success
(35:50) The Effects of a Morning Routine
(40:14) Breaking Down Challenges: The Power of Small Steps
(47:27) The Role of Recovery in a Busy Lifestyle
(53:35) Living Authentically and Facing Judgment
(54:23) The Journey to Happiness
(59:21) Busting a Myth About Discipline and Healthy Routines
(01:00:00) Future Aspirations and Personal Growth
(01:03:07) Closing

Connect with Victoria:

• Instagram: iamvictoriapena

Connect with Sonja:

• Website: https://www.naakorperformancecoaching.com/
• Instagram: sonjanaakor

Out of Your Mind is hosted by Sonja Schroeder, a Mental Performance Coach. New episodes drop every 2 weeks. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review — it helps more people find the show.

What does it really mean to feel safe? To not driven by fear but grounded in empowerment?

For this powerful conversation around personal safety and mindset I sat down with Sanah Kassam, one of the youngest female advanced firearms instructors in the world, a Level 2 Brown Belt Krav Maga instructor, and certified life coach. At just 26, Sanah has built her work around one belief: that real self-defense starts in the mind.

We go deep into the psychology behind personal safety and how to train your mind. We talk about the mindset shift from victim to survivor, how to read a situation before it escalates, the colour-coded awareness framework used by law enforcement, and what it actually means to trust your gut.

You'll walk away with practical tools to sharpen your situational awareness, to know what to do when you find yourself in a threatening situation, and a clear way to tell the difference between fear and intuition.

We also get into how these principles translate well beyond physical safety — into decision-making, boundaries, resilience, and the importance of community.

Whether you've ever questioned your own ability to protect yourself, doubted your instincts, or simply want to move through the world with more confidence — this conversation is for you.

Hotlines if you need support:
Police: 999, 911, 112
Report a crime (DCI): 0800 722 203
Gender-based violence: 1195, 1193
Mental Health Support (e.g. Befrienders): 0722 178 177, 0800 220 000

Chapters:
(00:00) Introduction

(01:53) Sanah's Background

(04:24) Understanding Krav Maga

(06:41) The Survivor Mentality

(11:28) Training for Situational Awareness

(16:44) Overcoming Self-Limiting Beliefs

(18:13) Transformations Beyond Training

(19:47) Neuroplasticity for Rewiring the Mind

(21:50) Empowering Mindsets: From Victim to Survivor

(23:56) Tailored Training for Individual Experiences

(25:34) Understanding Stress Responses

(26:38) What to Do in High-Stress Situations

(28:46) Recognizing Easy and Hard Targets

(30:52) Creating Distance and Awareness

(33:34) Preemptive Strategies for Safety

(35:54) Maintaining Clarity Under Stress

(38:17) Intuition vs Stress Response

(40:28) De-escalation Strategies

(41:55) Long-Lasting Effects of Self-Defense Training

(43:50) How the Training Transformed Sanah's Life

(45:24) Dealing With Everyday Challenges

(47:18) Building Mental Resilience

(48:37) Importance of Community

(50:43) Situational Awareness as a Mental Skill

(52:14) No Self-Defense Without Mindset

(53:17) Finding & Following Sanah

Connect with Sanah and Warrior Women Kenya:

• Instagram: @warriorwomen_kenya | @ileta_kenya
• Email: [email protected] / [email protected] 

Connect with Sonja:

• Instagram: sonjanaakor
• Website: https://www.naakorperformancecoaching.com/
• Email: [email protected]

Out of Your Mind is hosted by Sonja Schroeder, a Mental Performance Coach. New episodes drop every 2 weeks. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review — it helps more people find the show.

Jason Dunford made history as the first Kenyan swimmer to qualify for the Olympics by making the Olympic qualifying time. He broke an Olympic record in his heat in Beijing, earned a Commonwealth gold medal by a hundredth of a second, and trained at Stanford — under the same coaches he'd been studying on VHS tapes as a young swimmer in Nairobi. And yet, some of the most honest moments in this conversation aren't about the wins. They're about what his journey into the Olympics and the transition out of it was like.

In this episode, Jason and Sonja dig into the mental side of performing at the highest level — the flow states that came and went, getting too caught up in the "what ifs," the importance of sleep and recovery, and what lessons he took from sport into business. They talk about the path after retirement, how useful therapy has been for him, and how he's come to redefine success on his own terms.

In this episode we cover:

• What it felt like to be the first Kenyan swimmer to qualify for the Olympics on qualifying time
• The mental tools Jason tried — visualization, hypnosis and meditation
• What "being overawed" in the Olympic final felt like and what he'd do differently
• An athlete's transition into business and why "good enough" was a challenge at first
• How identity is built around sport — and what happens when you transition out
• The role of therapy, sleep, and support networks in a high-performance environment
• How he measures success now
  

Chapters:

(00:00) From Dreams to Reality: Jason's Olympic Journey

(08:21) The Olympic Experience: Triumphs and Challenges

(11:47) Using Mental Skills

(19:07) The Challenges in Swimming

(22:35) Life After the Olympics: Transitioning to New Goals

(27:31) Transitioning From Swimming Into Business

(29:21) Focusing Too Much on the Process and Details

(30:53) Dealing With Challenges

(32:09) Lessons Learned: The Impact of Swimming on Life

(34:05) Taking Lessons From Swimming Into the Business World

(37:14) Measuring Success Beyond Competition

(37:56) Setting New Goals

(41:48) Inspiring Others Through Personal Journey

(43:21) Advice for Others Pursuing a Similar Path

(44:19) How You Can Follow Jason's Journey

Connect with Jason:

·      Instagram: samakimkuu

Connect with Sonja:

·       Website: https://www.naakorperformancecoaching.com/

·       Instagram: sonjanaakor

Out of Your Mind is hosted by Sonja Schroeder, a Mental Performance Coach. New episodes drop every 2 weeks. If you enjoyed this episode, please eave a review — it helps more people find the show.

What do a former electrician, a prison psychologist, and a high-performance coach have in common? They're all the same person — and this week he's on the show.

Brett Mabberley is an international high-performance coach, author and keynote speaker with over 22 years of experience coaching more than 2000 people across 30 plus industries. He's worked with world champion athletes, Fortune 500 CEOs, and Hollywood actors — and in this conversation he pulls back the curtain on his own journey and on what's really going on in the mind of a high performer.

We get into the success paradox — why self-doubt doesn't get easier at the top, it gets louder. We talk about the mental strategies Brett uses ringside and on set to get world-class performers back into their zone when the pressure is at its highest. And Brett shares the story of the moment that nearly derailed his entire career.

This one is honest, practical, and genuinely inspiring. Whether you're chasing extraordinary heights or quietly working on your own breakthrough, there's something in this conversation for you.

Chapters:

(00:00) Introduction to Brett Mabberley

(01:41) Brett's Career Transition and Early Experiences

(04:16) Working with Vulnerable Populations and in Prison

(10:19) Transitioning to Coaching and Consulting

(14:52) Challenges of High Performers: Self-Doubt & The Success Paradox

(22:09) Strategies for High Performance

(27:24) The Power of Routines in Performance

(30:01) The Relationship Between Outcome Goals and Anxiety

(31:52) Self-Talk and Overcoming Limiting Beliefs in Crucial Moments

(34:36) Personal Challenges: Facing Fears and Imposter Syndrome

(45:55) Rewiring Your Mind for Success

(50:14) Key Mental Skills for High Performers

(52:40) Finding Your Why: The Key to Motivation

(54:40) Discipline vs. Motivation: The True Drivers of Success

(57:49) Transformative Breakthroughs: Real-Life Client Stories

(01:03:47) The Next Level: Expanding Coaching Beyond One-on-One

(01:07:15) The Importance of Environment and Support Systems

(01:07:51) Reframing Failure: Lessons Learned from Setbacks

(01:10:59) The Role of a Mental Coach: Why Everyone Needs One

(01:14:10) Taking Action: Brett's Book & The Coaching Room

(01:17:36) Where to Find & Follow Brett

Connect with Brett:

• Website: www.brettmabberley.com
• Instagram: brettmabberley
• The Coaching Room free 24-hour trial: https://www.thecoachingroom.online/brett-247-trial
• Book: New Levels, New Devils – Get it now on Amazon

Connect with Sonja:

• Website: https://www.naakorperformancecoaching.com/
• Instagram: sonjanaakor

Out of Your Mind is hosted by Sonja Schroeder, a Mental Performance Coach. New episodes drop every 2 weeks. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review — it helps more people find the show.