5 | Cindy and Carrie Share Bad News and Good News
Release Date: 04/11/2019
The Injured Athletes Club
“Instead of being mean to myself and saying, ‘You’ve got nothing else outside of running,’ I said, ‘Look at all the other multi-faceted things you are. You are a son, you are a brother, you're a business owner. Humans are multi-faceted; you have an identity outside this sport. The sport may have helped you find more of your authenticity, but you're not bound to this sport. It's only a piece of the puzzle, a part of your identity.” When Merrell Professional Athlete Aum Gandhi first started running six years ago, he barely went a quarter of a mile—and he describes it now as...
info_outline 118 | Coach Carrie Answers a Question: Cecile’s SituationThe Injured Athletes Club
“ How can you let go of the injury? Sometimes when you spend a long time with a chronic injury, it shapes how you move, plan, and think about life and your body. How do you let go when the time has come?” In the seventh season of The Injured Athletes Club podcast, mental skills coach Carrie Jackson answers a question every other week about the mental side of overcoming injuries. This week, Coach Carrie delves into the complex issue posed by listener Cecile on letting go of the identity formed around a chronic injury. She points out how this attachment can make the...
info_outline 117 | Strongwoman and Author Alyssa Ages: Learning through FailureThe Injured Athletes Club
“Because I wasn't a competitive runner, I don't think I ever had to face failure in that situation … but in strength sports, when I compete, I'm doing that in front of a crowd and a judge who is just looking at me. And it's totally changed the way that I have to handle that fear of failure because it's right there in front of me. I can't escape that someone is looking directly at me and judging whether I've passed or failed. And what I've learned from that is just that it makes you, I think, a better person when you face failure in that way.” On this week’s episode of The...
info_outline 116 | Coach Carrie Answers a Question: Cassandra’s CocoonThe Injured Athletes Club
“ As someone in long-term recovery, likely 12 to 18 months before I'm running again, I've struggled a lot with the muscle loss and atrophy to the point it's causing identity struggles. I don't look or feel like an athlete anymore. My coach and I will have to literally rebuild my strength and my body. How can I cope?” In the seventh season of The Injured Athletes Club podcast, mental skills coach Carrie Jackson answers a question every other week about the mental side of overcoming injuries. This week, listener Cassandra is struggling with losing her athletic identity. Coach...
info_outline 115 | Former NCAA Basketball Player Britt Hunter: Pour Into OthersThe Injured Athletes Club
“You need to equip your young adult for how to get through it on their own. So shepherd them. Get them the tools and resources. Let them mess it up a little bit. It's natural to protect, protect, protect, and direct, direct, direct—but your child needs to explore this time on their own a little bit with the right resources and the right people around them. They're going to go through this again and again and again at different stages of their life and going through an injury at a young age, they're going to have to grow up a little bit faster. So help them, but don't control them.”...
info_outline 114 | Coach Carrie Answers a Question: Jennifer’s JunctionThe Injured Athletes Club
“ How do I walk the fine line between being independent and self-reliant in recovery—a positive—and opting to go it alone, which can be a negative? Separately, I’d love to know more about managing an injury in the context of a chronic condition. For example, I have epilepsy but seizure meds are not great for bone density. Flip side, reducing meds is good for bones but bad for the brain. Doctors can offer guidance but making the decisions is ours alone.” In the seventh season of The Injured Athletes Club podcast, mental skills coach Carrie Jackson answers a question every...
info_outline 113 | Ultrarunner Amelia Boone: The Best Days Are AheadThe Injured Athletes Club
“I would tell [Amelia of four years ago] that you may not believe it, but it's gonna get better, and recovery is possible, and honestly, your best running days are to come. And that's something that I've had to tell myself now too. I actually still do believe that, especially as we're seeing women in their 40s just blossoming in distance running.” In this episode of the Injured Athletes Club, Coach Carrie and Cindy are grateful to catch up with our first guest ever—and first repeat guest—elite ultrarunner, championship obstacle course racer, and eating disorder advocate Amelia...
info_outline 112 | Coach Carrie Answers a Question: Amy’s InquiriesThe Injured Athletes Club
“ I have a question about the mental roadblocks when you are coming back from an injury. How can you handle the sensations you feel when you return to movement and the worry whether you made it worse; the patience to progress back slowly; and the fear that you won’t ever feel 100 percent again?” In the seventh season of The Injured Athletes Club podcast, mental skills coach Carrie Jackson answers a question every other week about the mental side of overcoming injuries. This week, in response to Amy’s uncertainty about her recovery, Coach Carrie outlines various...
info_outline 111 | Ballet Dancer John Lam: Open to GrowthThe Injured Athletes Club
“Dancing on a high level is—you have to be open. You have to be open that you can get injured. You have to be open that you will have to face things that you don't want to face. Because if we are not open and instead are close-minded, we cannot grow.” In this week’s episode of The Injured Athletes Club, principal dancer at the Boston Ballet, John Lam, discusses his journey from a catastrophic injury back to the stage. He details the physical and mental struggles he encountered during his recovery, emphasizing the importance of patience, personal growth, having a...
info_outline 110 | Coach Carrie Answers a Question: Kathleen’s QuandaryThe Injured Athletes Club
“ For the athlete who doesn't have a "staff": coach, trainer, PT. How do you get emotional support and guidance on a regular basis from doctors and PT you may see one or two times a week?” In the seventh season of The Injured Athletes Club podcast, mental skills coach Carrie Jackson answers a question every other week about the mental side of overcoming injuries. This week, she discusses all the different types of support injured athletes need—and which types you can reasonably expect to get from your healthcare providers. She explains how to manage expectations in the healthcare...
info_outlineWe’re sorry you’re here, but we’re glad you’re with us!
It’s the week before the Boston Marathon, and I—Cindy Kuzma—won’t be running the race, for the first time in six years. I’m disappointed and know I’ll feel left out on Marathon Monday. But I’m also excited to watch an amazing elite field and cheer on my friends who are racing.
Sitting with all those conflicting emotions has proven a bit challenging. So I’m glad that this week on The Injured Athletes Club, my co-host and mental skills coach Carrie Jackson Cheadle talks me through a mental exercise that’s all about making peace with feelings that seem opposite or incongruous at first.
We started by calling it Good News, Bad News—but flipped it to Bad News, Good News midway through, as we realized we naturally think of the challenges first (and that it’s more helpful to end on a high note).
On this episode, we discuss:
- Some of the positive emotions that can accompany injury—including looking forward to improving other parts of your performance or spending time with friends and family
- Why it can be hard to accept those upsides or square them with your disappointment or other negative emotions; why we fight for one side to “win”
- How thinking back to high-school or college graduation, with its blend of melancholy and anticipation, can help us remember it’s possible to honestly feel a whole range of things at one time
- Why getting stuck either in the positive or negative side—or in either defying or conforming to others’ expectations of how you “should” be feeling—can be detrimental
- The way staying open to the lows is necessary to experience the highs; after all, they’re both an essential part of the human experience
- Situations in which Carrie’s seen her athletes use Bad News, Good News, including overcoming new pain, setbacks, and other obstacles
- How, practically speaking, to make it work (including some fun variations, such as writing your own clickbait headlines)
- The way this quick, simple exercise can build over time into greater resilience to handle more serious situations
- The definition of psychological flexibility, and its potential link to levels of anxiety or depression
- Other tools you can use to cultivate psychological flexibility, including redefining obstacles as opportunities and staying open to possibility
Resources we mention:
- Our website,
- www.injuredathletesclub.comThe Injured Athletes Club Facebook group
Thanks for listening, and please reach out anytime at [email protected] with questions, guest suggestions, or other feedback.
DISCLAIMER: This content is for educational & informational use only and & does not constitute medical advice. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may have heard in an episode of this podcast. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult with a qualified medical professional for proper evaluation & treatment. Guests who speak on this podcast express their own opinions, experiences, and conclusions, and The Injured Athletes Club podcast hosts nor any company providing financial support endorses or opposes any particular treatment option discussed in the episodes of this podcast and are not responsible for any actions or inactions of listeners based on the information presented. The use of any information provided is solely at your own risk.