Overcome

Rafael “Formiga” Barbosa has captured the BJJ Worlds Masters Championships multiple times and he is almost always on the IBJJF podium. Well known for his legendary Butterfly and X-Guards, Formiga joined us in this episode to talk about his evolution in Jiu-Jitsu, the importance of staying consistent in your training to evolve your game, the obstacles that he faced in his career and how to stay healthy in this sport. Formiga also give some tips for BJJ practitioners that are starting late in life and want to improve while avoiding injuries.

In this episode we chat with Jeff Dwelle. Jeff had a very successful National level bodybuilding and cover model career.  He is the CEO and Owner of Dwelle Athletics and has been in the fitness industry for over 20 years. During this conversation we discussed some aspects of physical training, the importance of strong mindset to get through the prep, key lessons that Jeff learned over the years as an athlete and coach. We also talked about being a competitive athlete after 40s and how to achieve longevity in this sport. 

How to incorporate morning habits that can boost your performance throughout the day in a consistent manner? In this episode Liz Gleadle (three times Olympian from Canada), explains how she changed her morning routine to produce an optimized mental and physiological state. Liz also talks about some obstacles that she had to overcome as an athlete, how to incorporate healthy habits that can help your longevity in the sport and the importance of mental toughness to achieve goals.

As an ambitious optimist, Pollyann Keller has chosen to pursue big dreams in the second half of her life. After experiencing physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, Pollyann believed in living a life of simplicity and gratitude. In this episode Pollyann talks about her journey from foster kid to ultra marathon athlete, the struggles to get start and to overcome her fears. Pollyann also talks about her mindset to continuous improvement and how her previous experience in life helped to shape her strong mindset. 

The world-renowned ballet dancer and choreographer, George Birkadze brings his perspective about the mix between dance and martial arts. George Birkadze is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, and believes that all dancers are fighters, and all fighters are dancers. In this episode George talks about the challenges that he had to overcome in each area to prove himself and to show that the two fields are correlated. George also talks about discipline and perseverance as main pillars to keep improving in each area.

Judo Black Belt and USA National competitor, Austin Cook put his passion for the sport aside to focus on his journey through Medical School. Now that he is already a Doctor, he is planning to join those two areas as part of his career. In this episode Austin talks about some common injuries in Judo, the time to recover and how to work your way back to your best performance post-surgery. Austin also covers his new project, where he is working with elite athletes to bring rich content about sport and medicine for his channel. 

In this episode, Brittany Bull talks about her journey from NPC Bikini Competitor to IFBB PRO Women's Physique. The reason she started competing, the transition to Women's Physique and her journey to become IFBB Pro. Brittany also talks about the challenges of prepping for a show and the importance of a strong mindset to stay focused on the competition while keeping the balance in other areas of your life. 

Catherine Zidell IFBB PRO started competing in bodybuilding at the age of 40, and got her PRO card after she was over 50. In this episode Catherine talks about longevity in the sport, the importance of a positive attitude when things don't go in the right direction and how she keeps herself motivated to keep establishing new goals and actively competing as an IFBB PRO at the age of 66. Catherine also talks about the importance of staying in a clean diet all year long.

Is it possible to become an IFBB PRO after your 40s? You bet it is and Clare Morrow is here to talk about her journey to recreate herself to become a professional athlete. Clare talks about how she was able to transform herself by incorporating proper nutrition and regular exercises in her daily routine. Clare goes over some of her own struggles that she needed to overcome in this journey and how she became an ambassador of the sport to educate others in living a better life.

How do you move forward in your life after achieving one of your biggest goals as an athlete? In this episode Ryan Reser, 2008 Olympian from USA Judo Team is going to talk about life after Beijing 2008 Olympic Game, the struggles and stress as a professional athlete and how he moved on to find happiness by giving back to the community. Ryan also talks about training, mindset for competition and he gives important tips for Judo players that are trying to evolve their game.