Transitioning into fall has me reflecting on true self-care. Moving past the surface, I’m sharing simple, intentional ways I plan to nourish my mind, body, and soul this season.
Tag: mental health
What the World’s Best Athletes Teach Us About Rest, Recovery, and Performance
When we talk to teens about health, sleep often gets treated as an afterthought - or worse, a luxury you sacrifice to get ahead. But if you ask the world’s greatest athletes, they’ll tell you the exact opposite: sleep isn't something you do when your day is over, it's the foundation of how you perform …
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You Didn’t Make the Team. Now What?
Let's get over the awkwardness straight away. If what brought you to this blog post was disappointment at not making the team that you really hoped you would make, I'm sorry. Regardless of the situation, that's not a nice feeling, and I know it hurts. I've been there, as a player and a coach. Being …
From Health Class to Game Day: Using What We Teach to Build a Champion Mindset
After 29 years of coaching gymnastics, I’ve learned something that shows up season after season: The athletes who succeed aren’t just the most skilled - they’re the most mentally prepared. They know how to respond to pressure, reset after mistakes, communicate with teammates, and stay focused on what they can control. Here’s the part we …
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Yes Teens Are Anxious, But That’s Nothing New
It’s easy to look at the current conversation around young people and conclude that stress and anxiety are significantly worse now than ever before. The data tells a more complicated story. While it is clear that too many of today's teens are struggling, and about 21% of adolescents today report anxiety symptoms, national data from the early 2000s already …
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Destination Disease
Are you looking forward to the holidays? How about spring break or the summer or simply Fridays? Or how about just coffee? What about retirement? Do you know teachers that have their retirement date worked out to the year, month, week, day and depending on how things are going in a particular movement, they may …
Rethinking Productivity for School Practitioners
Rethinking Productivity for School Practitioners8 ways to improve well-being while doing your best work in schools In schools today, productivity is often measured by how much you can get done in a day—lesson plans, meetings, emails, student support, documentation. But this “produce more” mindset comes at a cost. For educators, administrators, and support staff, that …
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One Day Your Health Is All You Will Think About
Kim Morton shares a message that’s hard to ignore: one day, your health may be the only thing on your mind. In this reflection, she challenges us to rethink how we value health now, and reinforces why what we teach in HPE has lasting impact far beyond the classroom.
365 Days of Play
Life moves fast. Between work, school, responsibilities, and the endless to-do lists, it's easy to get caught up in the serious side of life. But what if I told you that play - yes, play - is one of the most powerful tools for building resilience, improving mental and physical wellbeing, and fostering deep connections …
Keeping the Fire Burning After #SHAPEKC
Having just got back from the awesome SHAPE America National Convention, it’s time to reflect on the hours spent in outstanding sessions, reconnecting with educators, experiencing a vibrant city, and soaking in a couple of impactful keynotes. There’s something about Kansas City - the energy, the conversations, the BBQ-fueled networking - that made this one …
One Word for 2026: A Different Way to Start the Year
The start of a new year has a funny reputation. It’s supposed to be a reset button. A fresh start. A new era. A moment where you suddenly become more motivated, more organized, more disciplined, and more confident—just because the calendar changed. But most of us know the truth, and the science backs this up, …
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Before the Year Ends: Twelve Months in Reflection
One constant during my 30 years of teaching is that the break from school at the end of the calendar year – winter for me and summer for my Southern Hemisphere friends – comes at just the right time. Leaving for school in the dark, arriving home in the dark, the end of a long …
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5 Ways That Cell Phone Use Negatively Impacts Athletes
A recent Instagram post summarizing the 'impact of smartphone use on athletes' sleep and performance' caught my eye and got me wondering about the research that supports my internal suspicion that cell phones are harming the performance of athletes. As a coach and father of athletes, I was motivated to delve deeper into existing research …
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Who’s in Your Brains Trust?
A few years ago, I came across an image that resonated with me. It showed how Gareth Southgate, then the manager of the England men’s soccer team, draws on a network of thinkers to help shape his decisions. Not just football minds, but voices from rugby, cricket, sailing, cycling, even the military. A deliberate mix …
Crafting the Perfect Music Playlist
If you're looking to create personalized music playlists that are perfect for your classroom, gym, or workout needs, then this blog post is for you. Regular readers of the site will know that I love music, have written about my love of music, and featured posts on how teachers are using music in their teaching …
Deepfaked: How Nonconsensual Creation and Distribution of AI-Generated Pornography Manifests As a Form of Violence Against Women
This powerful guest post comes from Beatrix Hopkins, a junior student who asked if she could share her Junior Theme writing with me. Beatrix contacted me, saying, "I wrote about the use of deepfake generating technology to create sexually explicit images and videos, and the way that those technologies can be used to perpetuate violence …
Making Time for Engagement and Joy
Almost all I think about these days is class culture, and I know I am not alone. For me, this means a culture that builds trust, embraces confusion, encourages attention and sparks curiosity and joy, After 30+ years as a high school English teacher, creating and sustaining this culture is simultaneously more difficult and more …
We CAN Do Hard Things
This year I was offered the opportunity to do something I had always wanted to do: teach a PETE class. My first reaction was “Wow! I am so honored and excited to do this!” Fast track to: “There is no way I can do this! I know nothing about teaching college kids! I will fail …
Looking Back, Moving Forward: Meaningful Year-End Reflections
One constant during my 29 years of teaching is that the break from school at the end of the calendar year – winter for me and summer for my Southern Hemisphere friends – comes at just the right time. Leaving for school in the dark, arriving home in the dark, the end of a long …
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Reflect & Recharge: A Friday Ritual for Teachers
Happy Friday, teachers! We've made it through another (long) week, and before you rush (or in my case, wearily stroll) into the weekend, let’s take a few minutes to pause, reflect, and recharge. Fridays can be more than just a countdown to the weekend; they’re a chance to reconnect with ourselves and the people who …
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#slowchathealth 