What do you do when the body that carried you to Olympic Legend Status changes in the blink of an eye? How do you stop comparing yourself to the athlete you used to be and build unshakeable mental resilience in the face of life-altering obstacles?

In this episode, six-time Olympic gold medalist Amy Van Dyken sits down with Kelly Palace to share how she completely redefined her identity, athletic drive, and relationship with her body after a traumatic 2014 ATV accident left her paralyzed from the waist down. Amy reveals how she transitioned from Olympic sprinter to adaptive CrossFit champion, why comparing your present times to your past self is a recipe for frustration, and the practical mental reframing technique she uses to turn paralyzing race-day nerves into pure excitement. Whether you are navigating an injury, battling an aging body, or seeking the grit to conquer daily setbacks, Amy provides the ultimate blueprint for choosing joy, grace, and relentless forward momentum.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• Adapting When Your Body Rebels: How Amy shifted from Olympic sprint dominance to floating and finding peace in the pool with paralyzed legs and minimal core.
• Ending the "Old Times" Comparison Trap: Why measuring your current performance against your younger self drains the joy from swimming—and how to give your body grace at every stage.
• Reframing Pre-Race Nerves: The physiological trick to turn racing anxiety into explosive excitement behind the starting blocks.
• Why Swimming Keeps Getting Faster: Amy’s expert perspective as an NBC Olympic analyst on training quality over junk yardage, hydrodynamics, and modern sprinting speed.
• The Training Shift That Saved Her Career: How leaving high-volume yardage for speed work and fun at Colorado State helped her claim four Olympic gold medals in 1996.
• The Power of Daily Micro-Wins: How conquering small, frustrating tasks builds true athletic resilience and gratitude on hard days.
• Channeling Competitive Fire: How Amy took her sprint drive to adaptive CrossFit and became the second-fittest seated woman on Earth in her mid-40s.

Email us at HELLO@ChampionsMojo.com. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

You can learn more about the Host and Founder of Champions Mojo at www.KellyPalace.com

Breaststroke is notorious for sidelining adult swimmers with groin, hip, and knee strain. But what if joint degradation isn't an inevitable part of competitive aging?

How do you step away from the sport for 13 years, return at age 40, and capture 13 World Aquatics Masters titles and nine individual world records—all while racing the most joint-punishing stroke on the program?

In this episode, City of Cardiff, Wales, UK, swimmer and Freestyle Media Podcast host Helen Gorman joins Kelly Palace to reveal the training routines and mobility habits that preserve joint health in the 50–54 age group. Helen breaks down why breaststrokers can't rely on in-water yards alone, how she maintains pace alongside teenagers without burnout, and the weekly volume balance required to keep joints functioning at an elite level.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• The 20-Minute Joint Armor Habit: Why showing up early for mandatory dryland mobility, foam rolling, and hip activation is non-negotiable for long-term breaststroke health.
• The 13-Year Layoff Reset: How Helen avoided the frustration trap at age 40 by starting the clock over and setting realistic targets within 5-year age bands.
• Surviving "Butting Kicking with the Kids": The tactical boundaries of swimming with elite youth squads—and why Helen avoids double workouts to preserve recovery.
• The 200 Breast Back-End Blueprint: Helen’s go-to broken sets and race-pace repeats to build holding power on the final 50 meters.
• Technique Over Brute Force: Why elite Masters longevity comes down to holding water rather than muscling through fatigue.
• The UK Breaststroke Legacy: Cultural coaching insights from the home of Olympic champions David Wilkie and Adam Peaty.

Email us at HELLO@ChampionsMojo.com. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

You can learn more about the Host and Founder of Champions Mojo at www.KellyPalace.com

If you've ever battled crippling race anxiety, felt air-starved mid-race, or wondered how to fall back in love with swimming, this on-deck conversation with 25-year-old coach and former collegiate swimmer Geffen Chang is a must-listen. Geffen opens up about overcoming panic attacks in the 400 IM, his go-to stretch for breaststroke groin pain, and the mental shift that helped him step onto the blocks purely for himself.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• Race-Day Panic Attacks & Air Hunger: Geffen addresses mid-race hyperventilation, anxiety, and the feeling of choking during grueling events (like the 400 IM and 200 Fly), sharing how mental self-talk ("I'm going to be okay") and high practice repetition desensitize fear.
• Post-College Burnout & Lost Motivation: Offers a blueprint for transitioning from rigid collegiate expectations (swimming for times/coaches) to Masters swimming for personal joy, autonomy, and fulfillment.
• Breaststroke Groin Pain & Tightness: Provides a specific pre-race mobility stretch (wide sumo squat with lateral shifts) to release hip and adductor tension before getting on the blocks.
• Event Overwhelm & Multi-Race Endurance: Demonstrates how to mentally approach a heavy, multi-event meet lineup (including long-distance events like the 1500m) as a test of will and celebration of racing rather than pressure for perfection.

If this resonates, subscribe to Champions Mojo, share the episode with a swim buddy, and leave us a review so more masters swimmers can find it. Thank you for listening!

Email us at HELLO@ChampionsMojo.com. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

You can learn more about the Host and Founder of Champions Mojo at www.KellyPalace.com