Carrie Barrett welcomes the remarkable Shannon Hogan, an inspiring figure in the world of ultra-endurance sports and the author of the newly released book, The Unforgiving Hours: The Grit, Resilience, and Perseverance at the Heart of Endurance Sports. Hogan, a former pro mountain biker, ultra-runner, open water swimmer, and avid adventurer, shares her insights on the mindset required to tackle numerous extreme athletic challenges, featuring stories and lessons from a diverse cast of lesser-known...
Apr 08, 2025•1 hr 13 min
Understanding the transformative power of adopting new habits is paramount in our journey toward healing and personal growth, but we're often misguided in developing new habits thinking we need to do something big, drastic or "all at once." We're caught up in the desire to "break" habits before they break us. What if there was a different way to think about habit change? What if you asked yourself, "How Can I Heal Myself Today?" Dr. Laurie Marbas, MD, MBA is a double board-certified family medic...
Mar 31, 2025•1 hr 48 min•Ep. 104
If you’ve listened to music, let’s say in the last 30 years, then you’re likely familiar with my guest today, but not in the way you may think. Gary Burr is a legendary songwriter and vocalist who is behind hit songs for artists like Kelly Clarkson, Kenny Chesney, Lady A, The Oak Ridge Boys, Tim McGraw, Reba McEntire, Juice Newton, Christine Aguilera, Garth Brooks, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Carole King, and Ringo Starr…and seriously…that’s the tip of the iceberg here. He's had 14 #1 hits in total (so far)...
Jul 01, 2024•43 min•Ep. 103
Women’s sports are certainly having a moment and with more eyes on women’s sports, comes more scrutiny and pressure. The new book, "The Price She Pays: Confronting the Hidden Mental Health Crisis in Women's Sports—from the Schoolyard to the Stadium" explores this crisis in women’s athletics from early childhood exploration to elite-level competition, up to retirement. Authors Katie Steele and Dr. Tiffany Brown of @Athletesmentalhealthfoundation are both Licensed Family and Marriage Therapists wh...
Jun 12, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 102
Robert Cheeke has been a pillar in the plant-based community for over 30 years as an award-winning bodybuilder, outspoken vegan advocate, and New York Times Best-Selling author of The Plant-Based Athlete. It’s his new book, however, that inspired me to reach out and have him on the “I Could Never Do That” podcast. So many want to become more impactful in everything we do (especially for causes that are important to us), but often don’t know where to begin. We get stuck in the, “I could nevers” b...
May 29, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 101
TV journalist, Emmy Award Winner, and multiple @ironmantri triathlete, Michelle Bandur ( @michellebandurtv ), shares her story of how she took an anonymous bully’s mean-spirited letter and turned it into a positive movement that has inspired and empowered thousands of young girls to achieve more than they ever imagined. Her mission? Inspire you to stand up for yourself, love yourself, and turn around a negative experience. Support the Podcast through Venmo https://www.venmo.com/u/CarrieSappBarre...
Apr 23, 2024•56 min•Ep. 100
Let me give a couple of headlines from the past two years of today's I Could Never Do That guest, Emily Ballenger. @emilybatx Shock pains in her face, the Berlin Marathon, pregnancy, miscarriage, another pregnancy, the selling of a business, a brain tumor, a birth, massive brain surgery, the London marathon, and the completion of the Six World Marathon Majors. These events would throw anyone off balance (literally and figuratively), but Emily has used them to create a foundation of stability of ...
Apr 03, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 99
It’s no secret that girls – and women – haven’t traditionally had role models for adventure- seeking and exploration as we age. Even as young girls, we’re taught to "be careful" while boys are taught to "be strong and brave." It's maddening. Author Caroline Paul , a longtime adventurer, started to notice the massive decline in the number of women she would see when she would go out paddle boarding, skateboarding, or surfing. In her late 50’s she was asking the questions like, “Why is this happen...
Mar 20, 2024•57 min•Ep. 98
My guest today encountered a personal (and all-too-common) dilemma after she had her son eight years ago. As someone who worked full-time in corporate or tech jobs for most of her career, Jill Jacobs was anxious to get back to work after giving birth. Not only did she love working, but as she says today, she needed to get back to work to support her home, lifestyle, and new baby’s needs. Quickly, she realized how daunting and unsustainable this was. Here she was working full time, paying somebod...
Mar 11, 2024•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 97
Kim Murphy was born and raised on a farm in Texarkana, Texas- about as ordinary an upbringing as you can have. After losing her father to Alzheimer's in 2018, she underwent a massive health and lifestyle change, which led to a complete career change, a booming online coaching business, and a brand new book called, Plant Powered: How to Prevent or Reverse Chronic Diseases, Lose Weight, and Feel Great with the Power of Whole Plants. Kim shares her family's journey to a whole food plant-based diet,...
Feb 23, 2024•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 96
You’re not strong enough, fast enough, skinny enough…You’ll be last…Don’t bother…Ugh. This is the we would NEVER say to our closest friends and, yet, for most of us, it’s the hideous soundtrack of our lives. Today's guest is licensed clinical social worker, Pat Spencer who runs both a clinical therapy practice as well as a mental skills coaching business for athletes called, Getting Your Mind in Gear . Today, we discuss her work around a recent piece she wrote called, “Three Steps to Build Confi...
Jun 05, 2023•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 95
Being a female in a male dominant space may be rare, but Shannon O'Grady handles it like a boss because, as COO and Chief Product Officer at Gnarly Nutrition , she IS one of the bosses. As CPO, it is her science and research that are the brains behind every new product development at this company. When Shannon was just a teenager, she had to give up her early passion for running because of a genital heart defect. At the time, medicine didn't have the technology and procedures it does today, so s...
May 08, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 94
If you have ever dreamed of being a rock-n-roll star, this episode is gonna light you up. Annie Davis decided, in her mid-40s, that she wanted to become a musician. So, in the middle of the pandemic, she began taking lessons and taught herself how to play drums and guitar from scratch. Music has always been in her DNA. As a kid, she immersed herself in it both personally and educationally. Her instrument at the time was the trumpet. But here comes that all too familiar story that we've been told...
Apr 24, 2023•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 93
If you think you could never come up with a different concept for running shoes, well then let me introduce you to the minds behind the latest shoe on the walls of local retailers, Vimazi Shoes . Vimazi is the first-ever pace-tuned shoe, designed for energy, or as they say on their website, “Goldilocks cushioning and an ultra-efficient push-off.” Founders, Scott Tucker and John Zilly, join me today to share their inspiration and research behind this innovative new shoe design. I mean, what does ...
Apr 17, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 92
Adina O'Neill is a fitness coach and motivator. This former accountant and teacher found her passion in endurance sports and coaching when she realized that so many were coming to her for advice and inspiration. Team B-REAL, is a roster of endurance athletes where every BODY is accepted. She is motivational and inspiring, but her own side passion is what made me go, "Oh, I could NEVER do that!" Adina LOVES cold water swimming. And by cold water swimming, I mean, breaking open a frozen lake in th...
Apr 03, 2023•1 hr 30 min•Ep. 91
Ginna Hoben was born to be a performer. Ginna and I went to high school together and bonded over the very cool subculture of musical theater. Of course, she gracefully danced her way through Oklahoma while I stood in the background as an awkward chorus girl in a prairie dress singing “Surrey the Fringe On Top.” We went on to do several plays together and the one thing (of many) we had in common?!? We both loved attention and adoration and as she says, as the middle child, she would do pretty muc...
Mar 20, 2023•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 90
Hugh Gaither, founder and former CEO of the sock brand, Feetures shares his origin story of growing up in the hosiery business to making the transition to one of the most recognizable sock companies in the athletic space. What prompted this decision to enter an entirely new market? What strengths did he have to launch a new company in a brand new category? Where did they get the name of the company? Where did he start with the product design? Was it based on style? Material? Color? How should en...
Feb 27, 2023•55 min•Ep. 89
This episode is so much fun! How can it not be when you’re interviewing the partners of “Team Adorkable” — the zany Swimrun duo of Amy Bush and Trista Mennen?! I’ve known Amy for a long time and she’s always doing something epic from 100 milers, Ironmans, Ultramans, etc…she’s always an inspiration, but recently, I’ve seen her kicking it up and, together with Trista, going off the deep end (pun intended) on this relatively new phenomenon of a sport — Swimrun…and specifically, the Ötillö World Cha...
Dec 05, 2022•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 88
On June 15th, one of my longest and dearest friends, Lisa Diamond, suffered a stroke at age 48. No warning signs, no acute trauma, not even a hint that this would happen when it did. Today, for the first time, Lisa gives us a play-by-play of what happened in those moments — an hour and 43 minutes to be exact from the time she had the stroke to the time they wheeled her out of the OR into recovery from emergency surgery. She also talks about the physical and emotional repercussions of this event,...
Nov 21, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 87
Well, if there was ever an “I Could Never,” this one might be it. My guest today, Raymond (@the Noodnick) is a master of what is known as artistic calisthenics - which is basically some crazy combination of pure strength, gymnastics, core work, and cirque du Soleil all done with the grace of a ballet dancer. He literally defies gravity and anyone that specializes in something called “The Human Flagpole” is superman in my book. . What I dig about Raymond is that he is an open book — both on his t...
Nov 07, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 86
FKT - It’s an acronym that stands for “Fastest Known Time” and if you’re completely unfamiliar with this concept, there is an official website, fastestknowntime.com , where you’ll find hundreds, if not thousands, of routes around the world where people have submitted their times to get that coveted spot of having the FKT - the Fastest Known Time. About a year ago, my guests were searching for new adventures and noticed something when they went to the fastest known time website. The majority of t...
Oct 24, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 85
As Robine Bots says, "she may have lost her mind, but she found her soul." Robine is the founder of Harmony Farm Sanctuary , a little slice of heaven for humans and animals nestled on about 10 acres of land between Bend and Sisters, Oregon. What started out as one pet pig for her daughter (Pig Floyd!) has morphed into a forever home for over 145 beautiful souls including pigs, horses, donkeys, ducks, bunnies, an alpaca, a llama, goats, sheep, turkeys, chickens, and one awesome barn cat named Ron...
Oct 10, 2022•50 min•Ep. 84
Matt Whitcomb is the head coach for the US Cross Country Ski Team, where he’s coached at the past three Winter Olympic games. Even if you don’t know much about competitive cross-country skiing, you understand the value of a good coach and mentor when it comes to achieving anything in life, whether it’s athletically motivated or not. Today, we focus a lot on the ingredients in developing a world-class athlete. Is it the number of hours you train, or is mindset the superpower of success? Does a di...
Sep 26, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 83
Here are just a few athletic accomplishments from today's guest Deanna McCurdy: Six national championships, Four Pan-Am championships, 5th overall at ITU Cross Worlds, she’s finished as the top American female and 4th overall twice at the XTERRA World Championships. USA Triathlon awarded her Off-road Triathlete of the Year honors in 2017, 2018, and 2021. In 2019, she competed as a Pro (at age 45), placing 2nd at XTERRA Quebec and winning XTERRA Fruita. WHEW...Even if you don’t know what any of t...
Sep 12, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 82
Ashley Brush was born and raised in a strict, religious upbringing and, by her early 20s, she was married, with a young son, and was also a stepmother to two other children. At this time, because she was playing by a strict set of rules, she says she had no idea who she really was because she was so young and never gave herself an opportunity to find out. Resentment and depression were the norms, which led to drugs and binge eating to numb the pain. Just a couple of years ago, Ashley went back t...
Aug 29, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 81
In this episode of “I Could Never Do That,” I “shake” things up a bit to take a self-indulgent and celebratory walk down “memory lane.” Think back to when you were 13, 14, or 15. What or who just lit your world on fire and made you believe that "Anything is Possible?" Was it a book? A Teacher? A Relative? A First Love? Was it a song, athlete, or artist that took hold and sent you on a journey of imagination and unlimited potential? For me, as a 14-year-old songwriter wannabe in the late 80s (i.e...
Aug 15, 2022•2 hr 24 min•Ep. 80
Dan Leite is a long-time runner, multiple marathon and IRONMAN triathlon finisher, and recipient of a heart transplant recipient in 2015. His symptoms began in 2011 at the peak of his running and his condition, although treated with medication, continued to deteriorate until he was granted the ultimate gift in December 2015. His life ultimately was saved by the heart of a stranger, but the impact remains far-reaching. Today, we discuss: The onset of his symptoms Why it’s so important to be an ad...
Aug 01, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 79
Spencer Newell is a music writer, producer, health coach, trainer, author, and longtime endurance athlete. He has certainly run the gamut in his 43 years - growing up as a high-level endurance athlete, battling a crippling addiction to drugs and alcohol, seeking treatment and finding sobriety, diving headfirst back into endurance sports, and unfortunately succumbing to overtraining syndrome not once, but twice. Today, we explore that fine line of being “all in” on something or being “all-out” — ...
Jul 11, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 78
Dawn Mussallem was in medical school when she was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. Treatment was successful but eventually, Dr. Mussallem, who works at Mayo Clinic in Florida, began experiencing heart failure. She had a defibrillator implanted and went through myriad procedures as she navigated her medical career. As her heart worsened, she was listed for a heart transplant and on Feb. 5, 2021, “the ultimate exchange” occurred – when Dr. Mussallem received a new heart. Just one year later, Dawn al...
Apr 04, 2022•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 77
A musician and teacher by day and potato pusher by night! This is the story of Alison James, CEO of Sports Spuds. Tired of constantly feeling sick and nauseous during her marathons and races, Alison heeded the advice of a nutritionist and tried boiled potatoes - BAM!! Success! The only problem? They were messy and not portable, especially when you're reaching into your baggie with dirty hands. For 12 years, Alison and her husband researched, tested, explored and hit dead ends when trying to figu...
Mar 21, 2022•52 min•Ep. 76
