Softball icon Jennie Finch-Daigle is our guest on this episode of The Pure Athlete Podcast. Jennie shares her youth sports story with us as a multi-sport athlete, and how that helped her develop her softball skills and abilities. She talks about the role her parents played in her development, how she developed as a young pitcher, and compares her college recruiting experiences to those of today. Jennie also shares about playing travel softball as a high schooler, and shares some incredible stories and memories from her Olympic experience, including a profound story from standing on the podium receiving her gold medal. Finally, as a mom of three young athletes trying to navigate the crazy world of travel baseball/softball, football, club volleyball, and more, Jennie gets very real about the challenges and the fun of making this journey as a parent, and provides advice to today's young athletes and parents.

One of the top players in MLB, Royals SS Bobby Witt Jr is this week's guest, and you don’t want to miss it. In 2024, Bobby was the runner-up in the American League MVP voting, posting incredible offensive numbers and winning a Gold Glove at shortstop for the Kansas City Royals in only his third big-league season. Not long ago, Witt was playing travel and high school ball in Colleyville, Tx. The son of a MLB pitcher, Witt bucked current trends and never had a private hitting lesson until after high school, and instead of focusing on launch angles and hitting bombs (which he did plenty of), he focused on hitting the ball hard to all fields and eliminating strikeouts. Bobby shares some of his approach to hitting, his commitment to getting better which led to a Gold Glove in 2024, what his mom and dad taught him about character and humility, and much more.

How can we help our kids develop grit? How do parents help, or hinder, their kids from reaching their full potential, in sports, or life? What are the keys to developing mental toughness in our kids? Do your kids suffer from FOMU (Fear of Messing Up) and how can you help them overcome it, in sports and life? These are just some of the questions we explore this week as we welcome Dr. Tim Elmore, founder and CEO of Growing Leaders, Inc. and a sought-after expert on parenting and leadership development of Gen Z and Gen Alpha kids. The author of more than 30 books, Dr. Elmore is a sought-after speaker and expert, appearing on numerous news shows, TED, dozens of Fortune 500 companies, and has worked with numerous professional sports teams in the MLB, NBA, and NFL, as well as some of college’s top programs. Parents and coaches don't want to miss this episode.

Future first-round NFL draft pick, Inky Johnson’s life changed forever with a single tackle at the University of Tennessee. A ruptured artery left his right arm paralyzed, almost taking his life, and Inky shares the challenges he faced to even get to the University of Tennessee, as well as his story coming back from the life-altering injury. You will be inspired as he shares about his faith and determination, the importance of character, and his own experiences as a sports dad.

This week's guest is 2024 Olympic Gold Medalist and 2019 World Cup Champion MALLORY PUGH SWANSON. As the USWNT’s leading scorer in the 2024 Olympics, including scoring the only goal in the gold medal game, Mal has overcome injuries, doubt, and much more along her journey to the top of the soccer world. Her journey began like many young girls today, playing youth soccer from an early age, as well as playing basketball, and running track until high school. Mal talks about the areas she excelled from the beginning, as well as the areas she had to work hard to develop in her teen years. She also authentically shares about various periods of adversity she faced, including a time when she thought she had lost her passion for the game. She talks about the pivotal moments of life that helped her regain her belief, the role her faith has played in her journey, and the joy of winning a gold medal.

At the end of the day, Youth and High School sports should always be fun, but what if a young athlete has big goals and aspirations? What if they want to become the best athlete they can be, pursing a dream of playing for their high school varsity team, at the college level, or even becoming a professional athlete? Many sports families are pursuing those goals from a young age, and we think that’s fantastic. But you should be aware of the challenges you’ll encounter. You should have a roadmap to help your young athlete become the best version of themselves on the field, court, pool, or track. On this episode the guys discuss all of this...Britt as an "all in" dad of a D1 athlete, Brad as an "all-in" sports dad and high school AD, and Jeff as a former highly accomplished athlete and current sports dad and coach.

Join us today as we welcome former 6x Silver Slugger and 7x MLB All-Star catcher Brian McCann! Brian shares his experiences growing up as the son of a college baseball coach and how his dad played a key role in helping shape his sports journey, which ultimately led to a very successful career in the MLB. Brian gives his thoughts on the current state of youth baseball today and sheds some light on some of the struggles that he has with the evaluation process of youth baseball players.

Brian also dives into his thoughts on the 2024 World Series as well as shares some entertaining stories during his own MLB career, including some of his favorite moments playing alongside Pure Athlete's own Jeff Francoeur. You don't want to miss this one!

Fueling your body with the right fuel is critical to an athlete's ability to operate at peak performance. Professionals in every sport have discovered the value of regulating what they eat, how much they eat, and when they eat. Young athletes are no different...adapting strong nutritional habits can be a key factor in taking performance to elevated levels, impacting energy levels, stamina, and recovery for young athletes. On today's episode, former college basketball player and current sports nutritionist Kelsey Poulter shares her experience and expertise with us as we discuss the importance of nutrition to athletic performance, answer specific questions related to training, recovery, game preparation, and so much more as she shares information and practical advice for parents, coaches, and young athletes.

If you're a sports parent, and especially if you have multiple kids, you know what we're talking about. Today's youth sports culture is so consuming, it's a challenge to keep sports from dominating our family life. We want to do all the things to help our kids achieve their sports goals, but we also have family goals that are equally important (or maybe more important in the long run). How do we juggle it all? How do we ensure that our families aren't going in five different directions all the time, and missing out on simply being together? How do we ensure that our non-sports kids aren't constantly taking a back seat to the high-level athlete in the family? ON this episode, Jeff, Britt, and Brad (with 14 kids between them) discuss their own challenges in these areas including some tips and ideas that will help you come on on the other end of the sports journey with a healthy family dynamic.

11-year NFL QB Nick Foles is our guest on this episode, sharing great insights from his sports story that began as a multi-sport athlete growing up in Texas to becoming the Super Bowl MVP for the Philadelphia Eagles. Foles discusses how he developed his abilities as a youth and high school player, how he handled disappointment and adversity in college including how close he game to quitting, how he handled being a backup in the NFL who rose to the occasion to lead his team when his number was called. He also talks about becoming a sports dad himself, sharing his thoughts on the challenges in youths sports today. Finally, Nick answers five fun, rapid-fire questions from Jeff that allow us to get to know him a little better. Nick is known for being one of the best, high character guys on and off the field, and you will be inspirited listening to him.