Unstoppable Athlete - Mental Resilience for Teen Athletes

What happens when the person driving you to practice is also the one running it? In this special roundtable discussion, Michelle sits down with three athletes—Callie, Emmy, and Jena—to explore the unique experience of being coached by their mothers. The athletes share honest insights about receiving feedback from a parent, navigating the blurred lines between coach and family, dealing with teammat...

Fresh off a weekend of graduations, Sara and Michelle reflect on the relationships, life lessons, and lasting impact that sports can have on young athletes. What begins as an emotional conversation about watching their athletes step into adulthood evolves into a powerful discussion about what truly makes a great coach. From caring about athletes beyond their performance and teaching accountability...

Many well-meaning parents and coaches believe confidence comes from praise, but confidence is actually built through effort, growth, and overcoming challenges. In this episode, Sara and Michelle explore the difference between empty praise and meaningful feedback, and why constantly telling athletes they’re amazing can sometimes undermine their development. Instead, they discuss how to recognize an...

Fresh off what may be her final Nationals as a youth volleyball coach, Sara reflects with Michelle on the lessons that mattered most—not the wins and losses, but the growth, resilience, and relationships built along the way. They discuss how controlling attitude and energy as coaches shaped their athletes’ experience, why fun and team culture matter more than the scoreboard, and how sport continue...

In this episode, Sara and Michelle explore the tender and tricky stage of adolescence, when teen girls naturally begin pulling away from their mothers while forming their own identities. Through the lens of coaching 12- to 16-year-old athletes, they discuss why girls need strong adult women outside their family, how sport provides healthy role models and peer examples, and why parents need to guid...

In this episode, Sara and Michelle unpack a provincial silver medal weekend that became a powerful lesson in team culture, resilience, and competitive maturity. Sara reflects on a group of athletes who had the team “rolling” together—competing hard, recovering quickly from mistakes, encouraging each other, and staying composed under pressure. The heart of the episode is a bench player’s reminder t...

In this episode, Sara and Michelle start with a conversation about travel, discomfort, and the value of being open to unplanned experiences, using Sara’s upcoming trip to Vietnam with her daughter as a metaphor for growth. That reflection leads naturally into a bigger conversation about coachability: the willingness to stay open, adaptable, and teachable even when things feel uncomfortable. They e...

This conversation unpacks the tension between confidence and performance in youth sports, highlighting how many athletes wait for success to feel confident, when in reality confidence must come first to enable strong play. Through reflections on volleyball and hockey experiences, the coaches explore how mindset, team culture, and coaching decisions (especially around playing time and competition)...

In this episode, Sara and Michelle unpack one of the toughest parts of youth girls volleyball: balancing playing time, confidence, fairness, and team success. Drawing on real tournament experiences, they explore why coaching decisions are rarely simple, how athletes earn roles through practice, and why coming off the bench can feel so emotionally difficult for girls. The conversation also highligh...

The drive home after a game is one of the most powerful moments in your athlete’s week. Emotions are high. Identity feels fragile. And what you say — even casually — can either build resilience or quietly chip away at confidence. When parents criticize coaches, compare teammates, or overanalyze performance, girls often internalize it as pressure or inadequacy. But when we shift the conversation to...

Sara’s long time friend, and former teammate, Kim is the mom of Sadie and shares about the experience of allowing her daughter to figure it out through her challenges.  Key learnings of doing your due diligence, but also to allow them to figure it out while continuing an ongoing conversation of what is in your childs control. The family moto of maintaining - PMA -positive mental attitude was essen...

Sara has a chat with Sadie about a pretty bumpy first two years playing US college volleyball. When a coach turns “bad” how to do you stick it out or decide to change plans.  Learning who you are without volleyball. And staying optimistic to move schools and bring your lessons from the challenge to your teammates as this new team struggles to find a few wins. Sadie maintained grateful for the stru...

As a parent we can rush to protective mode, but can we get curious first? Asking our athletes questions to help them self-reflect. What is the coaching looking for from you? Skill or effort wise? Are you clear where  you might not be meeting expectations? Are there things the coach has communicated that you are working on? And if not can you approach the coach to ask? Where did you show up in supp...

Sara and Michelle turn their camera on while they debrief from the past weekend. A few themes came up around team dynamics and the potential appearance of mean girl behaviour. What can parents and coaches do about it and what can an athlete recognize as her own responsibility in team relationships? Attitude and Energy are what you are in control of.  Connecting with teammates doesn’t mean you need...

Sara has a question for Michelle about when players choose to quit playing. What can we do as coaches, and what part can the athletes take responsibility for? Top 3 Take Aways Coaches care a lot but we can’t be everything to everyone. Parents are biased in their expectations and coaches can have a strong boundary to not take on coaching advice from these parents. Find your support with others who...

Michelle shares her key takeaways from the Empower Her Sport Summit she attended in Calgary, Canada this past weekend. https://www.empowerhersportsummit.com/ Visit www.skool.com/unstoppable2026 to join our community, watch the Parent Intro Video, join a workshop or have your athlete on our waitlist for upcoming Unstoppable Athlete Program offerings. 

Develop the habit of goal setting.  Start by writing them down. This will give you a map of where you want to go and also helps you keep your intention and motivations clear. You will build confidence as your stick to your plan, and can also notice when you might need some problem solving to get you back on track. Start with performance goals - This is what you want to achieve, include both sport,...

Habit of goal setting.  Process vs performance goals. Bounce back - the skill of recovering from a setback. For perfectionism - focus on effort and know that change comes from stretching the edges, not staying safe in the middle. Fail fast so you can learn more and go further Top 3 Take Aways Be an example - lead your athlete by doing your own goal setting and tracking where they can observe your...

Celebrating the journey and not just the final result. Sara and Michelle riff on the podcast and their volleyball seasons both club and high school.  Highlights include - shining your light, focusing on the things we can control  - redefining success - instead of winning we made it about trying new things and the success was in being brave and making the attempt to try something new (not the resul...

#17 -  Importance of Self Talk - winning the mental game - Our call to action for athletes - DON’T IGNORE THIS CONVERSATION! You have to do the mental work. Learn about self talk, recognize when what you tell yourself is not helping, RESET, and choose a different story. Become accountable to yourself and also to your teammates. If you notice them being hard on themselves, invite them to reset. "I...

Michelle surprises Sara with a prompt about playing time philosophy which leads into a conversation about the different strategies coaches may take. They also touch on all the ways coaches are considering different perspectives and maybe where both parents and coaches can become aware that their beliefs colour their reality. Top 3 Takeaways There is no right answer Confirmation bias can cloud your...

Check out our upcoming dates at www.unstoppableathlete.ca Parent Workshop and 12 week Unstoppable Athlete workshop waitlist open now! Is not keeping score or giving MVP awards actually a good thing? Are we allowing our girls to change, learn how to embody their competitive fire. Can we teach them to find their people who inspire and support excellence within them? You can be competitive and kind a...

Check out our upcoming dates at www.unstoppableathlete.ca Parent Workshop and 12 week Unstoppable Athlete workshop waitlist open now! Michelle and Sara know what its like to watch athletes underperform, end up in tears and struggle to let go of perfectionist tendencies. Learn what this may mean and where you can go to learn how to support your athlete. Top 3 Takeaways 1. Parents can embody a growt...

Sara and Michelle talk about a recent volleyball tournament their team was in and how the attitude of the players translates into playing opportunities. Are you stuck in past mistakes? Is your attitude a detriment to the team? Can you learn the skills to move on? Self awareness is a key to being able to say “next”, and control the things you can control, your attitude and energy.  Know your role a...

How athletes need to take ownership for what they are learning from coaches or programs. Where does your fire from within come from and how does it motivate you to move towards your goals? Learning skills to take you to the next level and being motivated to apply them on a consistent basis will define your results. Top 3 Take Aways Be accountable to yourself What am I willing to do to actually ach...