On [S2] Ep 17 of Steady State Podcast, hosts Rachel Freedman and Tara Morgan talk with CB Sands-Bohrer, Senior Manager of Coach Education at Community Rowing, Inc.; and Mitch McManus, 2019 Institute for Rowing Leadership Fellow and newly-named Rowing Director and Head Coach of Shrewsbury High School Crew.

In 2016, Aisyah Rafa'ee became the first rower to represent Singapore at the Olympics. She was an athletic and competitive kid, finding her way onto Singapore's national netball team before being handpicked in high school to train in a 2x for the national rowing team. She eventually fell out of love with sculling, retired, and found herself in Boston, rowing sweep with masters women.

Aisyah's honesty about how rough training could be both mentally and physically is humbling, and refreshing. Today she's interested in mental skills and growth mindset, and is pursuing an athletic counseling degree.

In this episode we talk with Corinne Kazmierczak, an exercise science and psychology double major who learned as a young rower that managing her anxiety and PTSD came in the form a 1x. We delve into the effects of anxiety on sport performance, the benefits of rowing for the anxious mind, and how well-informed coaches can help rowers with anxiety to approach training and competition with perspective and confidence.