Frodeno Going Mental

Vali Höll, a fearless downhill world champion who races at blistering speeds, talks candidly about fear, pressure, and the mental rituals that flip her into race mode. She recounts surviving team bankruptcy, becoming a privateer, and why nausea at the start gate turns into focused survival. Short, gritty, and surprisingly human insights into life racing on the edge.

What’s more dangerous: a 100-foot wave or a 30-year desk job? World record surfer Sebastian Steudtner joins Jan Frodeno to explain why he trained himself to pass out underwater just to "learn how to drown" without panic. From landlocked Germany to the massive swells of Nazaré, Steudtner reveals how he uses military-grade science to conquer the ocean’s most violent frontiers. It’s a masterclass in calculated risk, the "One Up" mentality, and why the greatest danger in life is simply staying still. Ryzon offers high-performance, fairly produced endurance apparel for triathletes, cyclists, and runners. The brand is globally recognized for combining technical innovation with a clean, timeless design. Use the code “ATHLET10” to save 10% at Ryzon (valid until May 31, 2026). More: ⁠https://ryzon.net/en-int/discount/ATHLET10?utm_medium=podcast&utm_source=podcast&utm_term=goingmental.folge5 PILLAR Performance provides science-backed, clinically dosed micronutrition designed specifically for endurance athletes. Their supplements focus on optimizing recovery, sleep, and immunity without unnecessary fillers. If you want to give it a try, use the code GOINGMENTAL at pillarperformance.shop — or, for North American listeners, at TheFeed.com. That’s GOINGMENTAL for 15% off your first purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brad Stulberg, performance writer, coach, and lecturer on excellence, explores what it means to pursue excellence as an ongoing process. He discusses Norwegian youth sports, the risks of early specialization, the identity house metaphor for diversified selfhood, cycles of explore-then-exploit, and the tension between intense focus and self-awareness to avoid burnout.

Malaika Mihambo, Olympic gold medalist and two-time world champion who blends elite sport with mindfulness. She recounts growing up shaped by racism, describes competing as an inner championship, and explains her meditation and visualization practices. She tells the Tokyo moment of fouling two jumps and using calm to win. She also discusses travel, flexibility, and reframing perfection.

Lance Armstrong, former champion cyclist and cancer survivor, reflects on survival, obsession, recovery, and rebuilding a life after loss. He talks about how early hardship shaped his fighting mindset. He explores team dynamics, rivalry turning to friendship, intensive therapy, sobriety, and finding stillness and new priorities.

Andrea Petkovic, former top-10 tennis pro and bestselling author, reflects on pressure, identity and the emotional arc of a sporting life. She maps career phases, talks burnout and rediscovering joy, and explores injuries, retirement and life beyond tennis. Short, candid stories and sharp observations about masks, public scrutiny and finding other passions.

Dan Lorang, performance coach and head of endurance at Red Bull with two decades shaping elite athletes. He discusses trust and data in remote coaching. He talks about carrying others' careers, emotional boundaries, staying curious about methods, and balancing pressure with family and recovery. Short, candid reflections on what high-level coaching really requires.

Most athletes spend their whole career chasing one defining moment. Moritz Fürste had dozens: double Olympic gold, world player of the year, nearly 300 caps, and a decade inside one of the most dominant teams hockey has ever seen. But the real story isn’t just what he won. It’s what it cost him, what it taught him and how he rebuilt himself once the noise stopped. In this episode, Jan talks to a friend he’s shared Olympic flats in Beijing 2008, life transitions and plenty of brutally honest conversations with. Mo opens up about growing up on the edge of a hockey pitch, becoming a leader almost by accident and the personal and physical crash that forced him to rethink who he was- on the field and off it. They dive into:
– How Germany built a team where 12 guys thought they were the best in the world
– The ACL tear that changed his career and his personality
– Why he risked everything after sport and bet it all on HYROX
– Figuring out ambition as a dad and founder
– Why being a late bloomer might be a secret advantage Follow Frodeno Going Mental on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.frodenogoingmental.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From martial arts world champion to Hollywood stuntwoman, Marie Mouroum has built a career in the shadows of the spotlight - doubling A-list actors, crashing through walls, flying on wires and performing high-risk action where mistakes are not an option. In this episode live from Berlin, Marie sits down with Jan to talk about the mental side of extreme performance: trusting strangers with your life, staying calm when one take costs millions and accepting that your best work might never show your face or even in the final movie. They dive into what it’s really like working on massive productions like Black Panther, James Bond, and Star Wars - the pressure, the invisibility, the injuries and the discipline required to deliver when everyone else is panicking. Marie opens up about fear, control, journaling, meditation and why calmness is her real superpower. This is a conversation about risk, confidence, and performing under pressure, when going mental doesn’t mean losing control, but finding absolute focus. https://www.frodenogoingmental.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Billy Monger has been through a lot of things already: racing prodigy, double amputee, Formula 1 pundit, world-record-breaking Ironman and now a Paralympic hope for LA 2028. In this episode, Jan and Billy talk about what it really means to reinvent yourself when life doesn’t give you a choice. Billy opens up about going from shy kid to “inspiration” overnight after his accident, why he hated that word at first, and how he learned to live with other people’s expectations without letting them define him. They dive into: swapping milliseconds in a race car for 14 hours alone with your thoughts in Kona, breaking world records with zero Ironman experience and why Billy would rather fail going for gold than play it safe. Plus: how he protects his small circle, what his eight-year-old self would think of him now and why every six-week test session still makes him “go mental” in the best way. Follow Frodeno Going Mental on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.frodenogoingmental.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices