The PhD Journey Unplugged

Episode 72: Wake Up to Die Again – Breaking Who You Became So You Can Be Who You're Meant To Be In this powerful conversation, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with author, Army veteran, Ironman finisher, inventor, business leader, and transformational speaker Scott Lackey to explore what it truly means to become who we are meant to be. Inspired by his new book, Wake Up to Die Again, Scott shares th...

In Episode 71 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with endurance athlete, coach, author, and founder of Team B*REAL, Adina O'Neill. Adina's story is one of perseverance, inclusion, and the unwavering belief that movement belongs to everyone. After beginning her journey unable to run a single mile, she went on to complete more than 100 endurance events, including marath...

What if life isn't about finding one tribe—but about discovering the many communities that shape us along the way? In this special episode of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon shares a reading of The Tribe, a thoughtful and deeply personal essay written by Jerry Dunn. Through humor, wisdom, and stories spanning decades of life experience, Jerry reflects on the tribes that have influe...

What if the person you are becoming requires you to let go of who you once were? In Episode 69 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon welcomes fitness, performance, and wellness coach, entrepreneur, lifelong athlete, and founder of AE Fitness & Performance Coaching, Arwen Elaine, on the show. Together, Sarah and Arwen explore one of the most profound questions of personal growth:Who am...

"There are no shortcuts in the endurance journey." Maria Simone, Founder & Head Coach, No Limits Endurance. What happens when athletes step outside their comfort zones and immerse themselves in an environment designed for growth, connection, and performance? In Episode 68 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Maria Simone, Founder and Head Coach of No Limits E...

In Episode 67 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with World Champion endurance athlete, Team USA triathlete, and coach Jennifer Hoban, Founder of Finding Fast Again Coaching. Jennifer’s journey through sport spans more than three decades and reflects a life grounded in discipline, resilience, perseverance, and the relentless pursuit of excellence. Beginning as a competitive s...

What does it truly mean to use failure as fuel? In Episode 66 of The PhD Journey Unplugged Podcast, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with ultra-endurance triathlete, philanthropist, entrepreneur, and author JD Tremblay for a powerful conversation on resilience, discipline, faith, human performance, and the mindset required to pursue excellence. JD Tremblay is one of only three people in the world to com...

In this powerful spoken reflection, “America’s Marathon Man,” Jerry Dunn shares a deeply philosophical meditation on endurance, truth, and the lessons learned through long effort. Read by Dr. Sarah Gordon on The PhD Journey Unplugged Podcast, "The Hill Never Lies" explores the striking parallels between a child racing a gravity car downhill and a distance runner navigating the long road...

At nearly 90 years old, Dr. Steven Jonas continues to embody the principles of lifelong movement, resilience, and healthy aging. In this deeply meaningful episode of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Dr. Steven Jonas, whose remarkable life journey has carried him through medicine as a physician, academia as a professor emeritus, accomplished author, public health pioneer,...

What does it truly mean to compete on a global stage? In this episode of The PhD Journey Unplugged Podcast, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with professional triathlete Amy Vantassel for a genuine and thought-provoking conversation about the responsibility athletes carry when traveling the world to race. Triathlon is more than performance—it is an opportunity to engage with diverse cultures, communitie...

What does it truly mean to perform—not just in a single moment, but across the span of a lifetime? In Episode 62 of The PhD Journey Unplugged Podcast, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with endurance athlete and performance coach Christina Candio, founder of ENFLYTE, to explore a powerful mindset for navigating the long game of human performance. Drawing from her background in sports psychology, enduranc...

What if the trajectory of our health is not something we passively accept—but something we actively shape? In Episode 61 of The PhD Journey Unplugged Podcast, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Axay Shah—67-year-young marathoner, entrepreneur, and author of "In Nature We Trust: A Raw Food Manifesto for Energy, Healing & Longevity" to explore the transformative potential of nutrition in...

What does it mean to pursue excellence—not just for a moment, but across an entire lifetime? In Episode 60 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon welcomes distinguished guest Kurt Madden ("Coach K")—legendary coach, IRONMAN triathlete, CEO of KM Coaching & Consulting, and Director of Coaching Development at TriDot. Fresh off an extraordinary performance at Ironman Texas—a rac...

My guest, Trevor Roe, and I decided to record this additional bonus content as an extended cut to our original podcast Episode 59. Trevor continues to share incredibly insightful information about "Thinking in a Complex World of Human Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence, and the impact on human performance.

What does it really mean to be intelligent in today’s world? In Episode 59 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Trevor Roe, an IT Specialist and Network Engineer, to explore intelligence not as a fixed trait, but as a trainable system—one that shapes how we think, learn, adapt, and perform in an increasingly complex and technology-driven world. Together, they break down a...

What does it really mean to train for performance—while still honoring the realities of everyday life? In Episode 58 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with endurance coach and founder of Capuzzo Multisport Coaching, Paul Capuzzo, to explore how training plans can move beyond rigid structure—and become something that truly fits the athlete. Paul is a USA Triathlon Level II Ce...

Welcome to The PhD Journey Unplugged. In this solo episode, Dr. Sarah Gordon explores a powerful and often-overlooked idea: what if kindness were not random but something we practiced with the same discipline and consistency we apply to performance, training, and personal growth? Drawing from the world of human performance, this episode reframes kindness as more than a fleeting gesture. It becomes...

What does it mean to stay committed to sport when life changes, priorities shift, and constant progress is no longer realistic? In Episode 56 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, competitive runner and triathlon coach Brady Hoover shares his passion for helping athletes unlock their potential through purposeful training—and a deeper, more human-centered approach to coaching. Guided by his philosophy, “I...

What does it mean to keep going—when things get hard? In this episode of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Alison Freeman, co-founder of NYX Endurance, USA Triathlon Certified Coach (Level III, May 2026), and contributing writer for Triathlete Magazine, to explore the deeper meaning of endurance—not just as performance, but as a process of becoming. Rooted in the mythology...

Episode 54: Aging in Motion – Identity, Adaptation, and the Lifelong Pursuit of Health with Guest: Vanessa Brown. What does it mean to stay physically active—not just in youth, but across an entire lifetime? In Episode 54 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Vanessa Brown to explore the concept of “aging in motion”—a lifelong relationship with movement shaped by adaptation...

Episode 53: The Courage to Show Up – Identity and Belonging in Athletic Spaces with Guest: Kyla Lupo, Founder of Go Big Triathlon Coaching What if the biggest barrier to sport isn’t physical — but the belief that you don’t belong? In this episode of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Kyla Lupo — USA Triathlon-certified coach and founder of Go Big Triathlon Coaching — to exp...

Episode 52: The Ironman Lifestyle – The Courage to Keep Moving ForwardGuest: Darrell Myrick, 15+ Ironman Finisher, Triathlon Coach, Retired Police Officer What happens when the identity you’ve built through sport is suddenly challenged by your health? In this powerful episode of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Darrell Myrick — retired Assistant Chief of Police, Ironman a...

Episode 51: The Academic Marathon – Resilience, Identity, and the Long Game of ScholarshipGuest: Dr. Abby Crew When we think about human performance, we often picture athletes pushing the limits of physical endurance. But there are other arenas where endurance is required—not of the ody, but of the mind. In Episode 51 of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Dr. Sarah Gordon sits down with Dr. Abby Crew, Ass...

Episode 50: Trusting the Effort - Confidence, Consistency, and the Endurance Mindset. Guest: Skye Johnson, Owner, Tri with SkyeIn endurance sport, it’s easy to become consumed by numbers — pace, power, heart rate, splits. But sustainable performance is built on something deeper: trust in the effort, confidence in the process, and the ability to stay consistent without burning out. In this episode...

What if lasting health isn’t about discipline — but about identity? In this episode of The PhD Journey Unplugged, Host, Dr. Sarah Gordon, and Guest, Andrew Schubauer of Mountain Wisdom, LLC, explore the powerful role identity plays in health, growth, and human performance. Health promotion is often framed around behaviors — exercise more, eat better, manage stress. But beneath these actions lies a...