The Sam Acho Podcast

Sam Acho: Welcome back to the Sam
Macho Podcast featuring Cliff Marshall.

And today we have a very,
very, very special guest.

And I know I wanna do this
introduction, but Cliff, you

usually introduce our guest.

So I'd love for you to introduce
our special guest for today.

Clif Marshall: Yes, Sam.

Today on the podcast we're
talking with Bailey Wheat.

Bailey is driven by passion
to help athletes thrive.

She currently serves as the
regeneration coordinator at Sports

Academy in Dallas, Texas, where she
helps athletes through their recovery

and restorative exercise journey.

In addition, she is an athlete herself.

For the last 14 years, she has
participated in roller derby and we are

definitely excited to talk about that.

But Bailey, more than anything else,
welcome to the Sam Macho Podcast and

it's special because you are the first
female guest that we've had on the show.

So welcome Bailey.

Yes.

Sam Acho: We're so hyped.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, so thank
you so much for having me.

I'm so excited and I
feel a great honor to.

Um, share my story a little
bit and, you know, I love Sam.

We've had some really wonderful
conversations and so I know that this

is gonna be, it's gonna be a great day.

It's gonna be a good conversation.

Sam Acho: Yes, and I, I know I don't love
doing intros, but Bailey, I had, I had to

make a call before we started the podcast.

I had

Bayleigh Wheat: Uh.

Sam Acho: I had to call Vmac, you
know, VMAC helps run Sports Academy.

And I said, Hey, gimme some juice.

Not just on, on Bailey.

Also on Sports Academy.

I'll give a little bit of background.

So I live in Dallas, Texas.

Bailey, you work at this
facility called Sports Academy.

And, and I want to get a a little specific
for the people who are are listening.

So Sports Academy, they train
NFL athletes, NHL Athletes,

Dallas Cowboys, cheerleaders.

They train, uh, MLB athletes, you name
it, they can train, uh, everyday athletes.

You name it, they do it.

But I'm gonna get specific, 'cause the
NFL draft just happened, this last draft.

You all trained five first round picks.

Uh.

NFL there's 44 total NFL
combine guys that y'all train.

Even the off season, uh, and I, I'm,
correct me if my numbers are wrong, but I

heard 131 players from January to July in
the off season, that's like seven to 8%.

Seven or 8% of the NFL was training.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yep.

Sam Acho: We talked about that,
also talked about the, you know,

the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders.

You talk about some of the, uh, the,
the work that you do, even with,

uh, everyday athletes, not just pro
athletes, but everyday athletes and

you are the regeneration coordinator.

So when it comes to the modalities, when
it comes to getting players bodies, right,

their minds, right, that is what you do.

And so my question is, how did you get
into this field of working with some

of the best athletes in the world?

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, so.

It's been quite a journey.

Honestly, I never would have guessed
that this was where I would be at

at this point in time, but I'm,
I'm happy to be here and I'm, I'm

happy for the journey that I'm on.

Um, I originally, I just liked sports.

I liked coaching, I liked movement.

And so when I went into college,
I originally started out

actually in a junior college.

Um, so pretty simple.

Just wanted to get the
basics out of the way.

I didn't have much, uh, guidance
on kind of approaching the college.

Experience as a whole, right?

And so it was something that I was
really kind of learning on my own.

And by the time I got to choosing
something a little bit more in

depth, I was like, kinesiology,
the study of human movement.

Like, I love to move.

Why wouldn't I wanna study that?

And so I, I dove, um, deep into that.

Um.

Track in that field and was, uh,
studying kinesiology, pre-PT originally.

So I was gonna go to PT school.

Um, but then I actually did my internship
with Sports Academy my final semester

of college, and that's where I really
got exposed to just how vast that

the performance industry really is.

And I wanted to go to massage school.

Hold on.

I'm gonna adjust my headphone.

Sam Acho: Yes,

yes, we got you.

Bayleigh Wheat: Okay, perfect.

I'm gonna just set that, uh, that last bit
back a bit from when I, uh, from school.

Sam Acho: Yes.

Bayleigh Wheat: so my final semester at
college, I did, uh, my internship with

Sports Academy as a performance coach
intern, and that's where I really got

exposed to just how vast the performance
industry is in terms of physical therapy,

performance coaches, skills coaches, body
work specialists, recovery specialists,

and all those kinds of things.

And so.

Truly that exposure there is what led
me into the journey and Sports Academy

gave me that platform to be able to do
that and the, the parameters to be able

to meet all of these wonderful athletes
across all these different fields.

And so it's really just like history.

I feel like I somehow just ended up here.

Sam Acho: But, but you say
that, but you work with the,

some of the best in the world.

What is, what is the data?

And I, I, I know that, 'cause I, I showed
up, you know, I showed up to Sports

Academy, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm retired,
I'm not playing anymore, but I'm over here

trying to train with these guys and run
with these guys and lift with these guys.

These are like, you know, some
of the highest paid best players.

I try to keep up, but also
then I would meet you.

I remember it was a Thursday
and it's just like unbelievable

regeneration like you think athlete,
you think, okay, they lift, they run.

But with you with something
different, you have these like, I

dunno what these long poles are.

You're trying to like do
wanna do all these stretching?

We're on our toes, we're spread.

Like what does the day to day look
like for you specifically working

with some of these athletes.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, so as that
regeneration coordinator, I really

oversee kind of three big areas,
and that's gonna be our recovery.

So making sure that on the passive
side, things like Asana or compression

booth, hyperbaric oxygen chambers, that
we're really optimizing those modalities

within the performance programs.

That second part is, like you were
saying, those resource sessions.

So those corrective exercise and
mobility sessions that really focus

on optimizing movement efficiency, um,
in those joints and in those tissues

that these guys are kind of constantly
training really difficultly, right?

So when they train, you know, a max
speed day, instead of coming in and

training more hips and more glutes,
where they're gonna just kind of

continue to beat themselves down, we.

Take one day off and we say, Hey, we're
gonna actually stretch these areas

and we're gonna do some soft tissue
on the areas that need to be released.

And then we're gonna try to optimize
that range of motion in those joints.

So that's a lot of times where
we use the stick mobility.

Those are those kind of long orange sticks
that we can use for, for leverage and

stability to kind of put these athletes
in positions that they wouldn't really

otherwise be in, in a training program
or in their, their football program.

Sam Acho: Hmm.

Bayleigh Wheat: So I would say that plus
just overseeing and coordinating what

does their performance program look like
and how are they feeling right after they

come in for a long, you know, training
week, how are they feeling at the end of

the week or towards the end of the week?

And then how are we adjusting their
program for the following week?

Clif Marshall: Wow.

I love that.

Bailey.

You know, my philosophy
is you gotta train hard.

you have to recover hard.

And it sounds like that's exactly
what you're doing at Sports Academy.

Uh, one of the things that I thought
was really cool um, I was on the

Sports Academy Instagram page, I
think, and I saw that you got to

actually travel to Indianapolis and
you were a part of the NFL combine.

can you talk about that experience and how
you kind of prepped the players before?

You know, they run the 40
yard dash and everything.

Bayleigh Wheat: Of course.

Yeah, so it's a, it's been an
awesome experience getting to be

a part of the Combine program.

This year was my fourth combine
program my third year getting to

go to Indy, so leading up to them,
the athletes going to the combine.

Really our goal is to have a bit of
a education piece to these athletes.

A lot of these guys coming out
of college programs have never.

Had training like this or been put
through sessions where they're stretching

and then activating and creating
range, and doing all of those things.

So for those eight to 12 weeks that
we have those guys, it's a really

awesome time to really just instill
in them how important it is for

them to take care of their body.

Because ultimately we don't wanna
just prepare 'em for the combine.

We wanna prepare them for the next
five, 10, however many years that

they're gonna be playing in the league.

So I would say during the, the eight
weeks of the program, it's a little

bit of that and educating them as
well as taking them through, um,

these programs and these movements.

But then when it comes to actually
being at the combine, um, it's a

little bit more hands-on approach.

So once the guys drop in, we have a full
protocol from the day that they drop in.

We have a speed prep day,
we have a power prep day.

We have all of these different preps
based on what they're going to do.

Kind of in the following day
to get their bodies ready.

Very similar to what we do
in that eight week program.

Um, but then as well, these
guys are going to combine and

they're sitting around, right?

They're doing their interviews, they're
doing medical, they're waiting around.

And a lot of times, like that's not
what their body is used to doing, right?

They just got off an airplane.

And so the body work side of things
is where that comes into play.

So once these guys get done, whether
it's at five or I've had guys

come in, um, as late as, you know.

10, 11, 12 o'clock at night.

Um, after their sessions, they've
done their interviews and just an

opportunity to kind of calm their
nervous system down a little bit.

Any of those areas that are tight
or kind of sore, achy, we're able to

then address those things so that when
they do go to do their performance,

their 40 yard, they're able to
perform and do what they need to do.

Sam Acho: Hmm.

Clif Marshall: Wow.

Go ahead, Sam.

No, I, I just gotta share.

It's pretty cool.

I just, I'm just remembering
from 2011, know, uh, I was

with Sam at the NFL combine.

I was blessed to train
him for, for that event.

the night before, uh, as you said,
I remember Sam coming to my room

and there's a lot of nervous.

Feelings, there's a lot of anxiety.

But to have him in the room and
just, uh, talking with him and

praying with him, and then we kind of
walked through every drill together.

Um, then the following day, watching
him go out and dominate the combine

and breaking all time record there.

I remember watching it on tv just
remember the thrill that I had.

It was almost as if I was
out there running with him.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yep.

Clif Marshall: I'm anxious to know.

Do you experience similar feelings, like
when your athletes have success like that?

I.

Bayleigh Wheat: Oh, 100%.

I'll tell you right now, from this
year, probably our most notable, um,

reaction, and I wish I would've got it
on camera, was Armand bu So when he,

uh, ran his 40, he is noted as the guy
who was essentially screaming down the

40 yard dash the whole way through.

And when he did that.

Everyone in the room
was absolutely stunned.

And I think also being an athlete myself,
just feeling those nerves and that tension

kind of build up leading up to them
actually hitting that, that performance,

it, it is absolutely exhilarating.

And so it's really exciting to see these
guys overcome those feelings and, and do

what they ultimately just know how to do.

Sam Acho: No, that's so good.

And even Cliff was talking
about it, Bailey, it didn't

hit me till he talked about it.

Now I'm thinking about
you talking about it.

When I was training for the NFL
combine, I mean, there are these

nerves, like it's, it's, eight weeks
or eight to 10 weeks, like so focused,

so dialed in for one day for to

Bayleigh Wheat: One moment.

Sam Acho: you're gonna
peak at the right time.

And like, it's hard.

I remember, I remember with when
I was training with Cliff, so he

did my off season combine training.

It's at Ignition and the facility
that he started, the founder of it.

And, and I remember idea of, he
told me, he said, Hey Sam, when

you go and when you run your 40,
uh, I want you to like, to pray.

Like, you know, you gotta wait in
your stance for like two seconds.

He says, in those two seconds,
pray that he, I said, pray.

He said, yeah.

I said, pray that God will give
you the strength and the courage

to run your fastest times ever.

That like goes to this idea of, man, it
takes courage to perform at the highest

level on the biggest stage potentially
of your life, at least for at, at

that moment, for that opportunity.

You talked about seeing Armand
Armand get his, his pretty much

record setting performance.

What were your emotions like
leading up to watching him perform?

Bayleigh Wheat: Man, I would just,
I would just stay up with rack.

Let's just say that like
totally just like, um.

Wrecked excited, right?

Obviously there's a bit of those,
you know, is it gonna go well?

You know, on my side of things, I'm
always just hoping don't pull a hammy.

Right?

Especially when as long as you don't
do that, I'm happy, you know, um,

performances, you know, prs are great,
but at the same time, I just want you

to be healthy at the end of the day.

And so I think that there's a
little bit more of those feelings

tuned in and hoping, like, did we
do everything right in our program?

Right?

Did we prep them in the right way?

Did we.

Did we loosen the right tissues?

Right?

Did we, uh, take them through that, um,
that regression period or that taper

phase in the program at the right time?

Right?

And so that's something
that's constantly evolving.

I think year after year, even what
we did last year has changed and

evolved what we did this year, right?

And so I think each year we're
almost a step closer and a step

closer to giving these athletes.

The exact formula of what they need to
be able to go out there and perform.

And like you said, peak at the, at
the right time when they need to.

Clif Marshall: Yeah, Bailey, you
know, it's also, uh, pretty cool

that you get to be a part of
the NFL draft experience, right?

You're at the combine, you're with these
players, you're watching them perform,

and then you have to wait about a month,
um, until the NFL draft rolls around.

And, and, um, can you just
talk a little bit about.

draft experience, and I know that was
just this past week and kinda, the, the

feeling that you get when you see one of
your clients being drafted on national tv.

Bayleigh Wheat: Man, it's
just so absolutely wonderful.

You know, like these guys train sometimes
their whole life for this moment.

Right.

And there's always, I think,
moments of of doubt, right?

In.

Everyone's kind of journey, maybe
some more than others, right?

It could look a little bit
different for each athlete.

And so I think as somebody who has a very
close and intimate touchpoint with these

athletes, it's critical that we can.

Kind of remain steadfast for them, right?

And be somewhere that when they do
have these doubts, we can kind of

help to settle them and, and give
them the confidence that they need

without over boosting an ego, right?

So it's all about kind of
maintaining that balance.

But then of course.

Being able to celebrate the wins
of, you know, of being drafted and

maybe being drafted, you know, higher
or being signed, you know, lower

than what you think your pick was.

Like, no matter what it is, it's a,
it's a win ultimately because it's

that next step in their journey.

And so, you know, it's, it's a lot
of feelings and a lot of of joy

really getting to see these guys
earn what they've worked so hard for.

Right.

And it's a, it's an honor to be a
part of that journey, I think all.

Sam Acho: And Bailey, you talk about
the experience of those athletes,

of the ups and the downs, the
joy, the doubt, you are an athlete

yourself, an elite athlete at that.

What was your experience like?

Into roller derby.

I wanna get into that journey, uh, a bit.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, we can
switch it up a little bit.

So my journey into roller derby is quiet.

Peculiar.

Right.

It's definitely not your everyday sport.

You know, when I tell people that I'm
a roller derby athlete, I usually get

the initial response of, oh, you roller
skating and you like punch people.

Not quite right.

You know, so, or I've seen
that on, you know, tv.

It's probably not like
you've seen it on tv.

Right.

Um, but I actually got into it, um, just
growing up at the roller skating rink.

So my family, uh, my mom and dad had gone
to a little skate party with some of their

friends and my dad went and saw that he
could bring the family to a skate night.

They had a bargain night on during
the week where you could come in

and skate for a couple of bucks,
a person plus your skate rental.

And my dad's like, why would we not bring
a family of four and to have a couple

hours of entertainment for just 10 bucks?

Right?

We can go spin in circles
and, and have a good time.

And it was all good.

So I actually started
out as a figure skater.

We started taking skating lessons
there at inter skate roller rink,

and once you get to the end of their
lessons, it kind of transitions into

a figure skating group or class.

And so I actually did that for
about a year and a half, two years.

And once it got to the point where
we started doing performances

and whatnot, I was a little
bit more of a tomboy back then.

And so they would pop out these, um.

Dresses, these figure skating dresses.

And I was like, oh, there's
no way I, I wanna wear that.

It's just not really my style.

And so it wasn't long after that that
I just started going to the rink.

It was a bit of a rink rat.

I just enjoyed going and
spending the weekends there.

You know, like most young kids, I
feel like back in the day used to.

Right.

I, I hear people, you know, uh, the
next generation, they're like, we

spent all the time at the skating rink.

Right?

And so it was.

A little bit less popular, I feel like in
the early two thousands for people to be

spending that time at the rink like that.

Um.

But I loved it.

And when roller derby kind of spread
throughout VFW, so there was the

original league, Dallas Derby Devils
was one of the original 13 leagues, um,

in the W-F-T-D-A, which is the Women's
Flat Track Roller Derby Association.

Um, we also had two other leagues pop up.

One is in and one in Plano.

And as those leagues started
popping up, a lot of these girls.

That were getting into the sport, just
needed more time on skates, ultimately.

Right.

And so they would come to the skating
rink where I had been spending years

already, you know, just going and playing
around and skating, having a good time.

They would come and see me and
I was quite tall, kind of lanky.

Lanky then.

Um, but they approached me and they were
like, wow, you're such a good skater.

You should definitely
get into roller derby.

And I was like, okay, yeah, this,
this sounds like a good idea.

Sounds like something I would like.

I'm liking the vibes.

What do I gotta do?

Well, you gotta be 18.

And I was like, well you
guys have like five years.

'cause I was only about 12 or 13 years old
at that time, so I was still pretty young.

But I was like, if you guys come
up with a junior league, call me.

I'll come through.

Right.

And it wasn't probably about six months
later, I had somebody that approached me

was like, Hey, we started a junior league.

We're getting started next week.

You know, you should come
out to our first practice.

And so that's ultimately how I became
one of the founding members of one of

the first junior leagues in the DFW area.

Uh, the Rolling Rebellion, which I
continued to play for, uh, throughout

the rest of my junior career.

So I was about 13 years old, so I was 18.

So I spent about five, five
years playing for the league.

Um, and we.

Traveled and played
internationally or nationally.

Um, so it was a very, very cool and
fun experience kind of getting into it.

Sam Acho: I gotta follow.

Up real quick.

Hold on.

So like, what, what, so you say roller
derby people say, I've seen now that what,

what, what does roller derby look like?

Describe to us what a, what a,
what a game is or tournament.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, sure.

So we call our games bouts.

The roller derby bout is
typically what they call them.

Um, played against two teams.

Uh, you have about 15 people,
or you can have up to 15

people on a roster, both sides.

On the track or on a particular play,
you can have five people from each team.

On the track of those five people,
you've got four people who are

offensive and defensive blockers.

They make up what is the pack?

Um, their goal is to kind of stay together
and play offensively and defensively based

on the person who is scoring the points.

So that fifth person on the
track is called the Jamer.

They are the person who scores the points.

So for every person on the other
team that the Jamer passes, uh,

you score a point for your team.

So when you're playing, essentially
your goal is to get your

jamer through the pack, right?

While keeping the other jamer within
the pack or not letting them pass you.

And so there's a lot of moving parts when
it comes to how many players are playing

offense, how many are playing defense,
when are you kind of doing those things?

And the game is broken down
into two 30 minute halves.

Um, and those halves are broken down into
plays that can last up to two minutes.

And so then at the end of
the game, whoever scores the

most amount of points wins.

Um, these can be, you know,

upwards of 300 points sometimes, depending
on, you know, how, um, well, a team

is skating or maybe even the mashup.

You can see two really, really high
level teams that are both really good.

But maybe they're both doing
poor defensively, so they both

score a lot of points and it's
a high scoring game, right?

You can have the opposite happen as well,
where they're both doing well defensively,

the jammers aren't able to get through and
it can be a very low scoring game as well.

Clif Marshall: Bailey, I have
to ask you, as the regeneration

coordinator at Sports Academy,

Bayleigh Wheat: Say that
one more time for me.

Clif Marshall: I said I have
to ask you, as the regeneration

coordinator at Sports Academy.

We're talking about
your roller derby here.

What muscles are most often
injured or what's the overuse

injury with roller derby?

Bayleigh Wheat: Hmm.

Overuse injury is probably gonna be
a bit like, probably hip flexors,

maybe glute, maybe low back a
lot of times in terms of overuse.

But I would say, and uh, I would say
for the, um, an injury that's very

common is, is gonna be an ACL injury
and as well as, um, like ankle.

Breaks or sprains as well.

So, but I think acls specifically
because of the position that our

body's in when we're playing,
we're in a lot of flexed positions.

And so I think that there are some
compensations that happen there, uh, that

end up causing a bit of maybe knee valgus
as well as women, um, in general have a

higher risk of non-contact ACL injuries.

And so I think that that's why we see that
injury in particular a little bit more.

Than we do any other injury, truthfully.

Sam Acho: Hmm.

So you're, we're talking Bailey
about your time in roller derby,

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah.

Sam Acho: also some of the connections
when it comes to your time training.

Other athletes.

We were talking a couple weeks ago
and you had mentioned how, or it came

to me, I dunno if you mentioned it
or I just was asking and probing,

but people in the roller derby
world are coming to you for advice.

I was talking to someone else
who trained at Sports Academy.

They were like, no, she's
the goat of roller derby.

Like, she's like, people
say, she said she's her

Bayleigh Wheat: Yes.

Sam Acho: derby.

What does, what does it feel like?

To be, obviously NFL is established,
but what does it feel like to be in this

derby world and have people look to you
for whether it's advice or wisdom, or to

somewhat be, uh, this, this, this light.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, I'd say it's a
combination of feelings, like in some

ways it can wear on you a bit, right?

It can be a little bit
overwhelming at times.

Right?

But at the same time, it also brings
a lot of joy to know that the.

Wisdom and experiences that I've had in
my professional field have been able to

benefit not only myself, but athletes
all over in the roller derby field.

Right?

And.

Really be able to push the needles towards
legitimizing roller derby as a sport so

that it is a little bit more well known.

Right?

Right.

Now when a lot of people
hear roller derby, they think

Saturday morning wrestling.

Right?

They don't think a legitimate, a
legitimate sport that should be

broadcast somewhere like ESPN, right?

And so doing and taking
certain steps towards.

Legitimizing the sport, whether
it be using your real legal name

rather than a derby name or Right.

Bringing approaches to training and
programming that allow the roller derby

athlete to truly perform like an athlete.

Right?

So.

Sam Acho: I, I know Cliff got a
question, but you brought up, okay.

What, do you have a,
what's your derby name?

They, or, or do you want my real name?

What's the, you know what I mean?

the, what's the derby name?

What's the

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, so my roller
derby name, I picked this when I was

like 13 years old, so it's baby girl.

So I kind of picked it off of
a couple of different things.

One, I was the first girl
born into my family, and so I

thought it was kind of cool.

I was always called everyone's
baby, baby girl, right?

I was mom, dad, aunts,
grandma, that kind of stuff.

So I'd kind of gotten used
to hearing that right?

As a nickname.

And so then in Derby we wanted to have
something that was kind of spunky,

you know, a little bit more like that.

And for whatever reason, that's kind
of what ended up sticking with me.

But when I turned 18 and I started
playing with the women, um, and it was

the first time that the roller derby, uh,
sport as a whole had been on the docket.

I wanna say it was the 2016 Olympics.

It was on the docket to
potentially, or uh, to bid for.

Becoming an Olympic sport.

And one of the things that kept it from
being chosen as that, you know, the next

sport up in the Olympics was some of
those things like derby names, right?

Mine is a little bit more innocent,
but some are not quite so, and it

wasn't something that was really
family friendly and ultimately.

You know, conducive probably
to some of the values that

the, you know, Olympics hold.

Right?

And so that's when I started
saying, okay, I'm just gonna skate

under, you know, Bailey Wheat.

And, you know, now most of my teammates
call me Bay for short, um, on the track.

But, um, yeah, so that's
the story of the Derby Day.

Clif Marshall: Bailey

Sam Acho: you baby girl, I
shouldn't be freaked out.

I should say, okay, that's her.

That's, they know her from somewhere else.

Clif Marshall: Bailey, who has had
the greatest influence on your life?

Bayleigh Wheat: Hmm, that's a good one.

That's a great question.

I'm probably gonna say my grandmother,

Clif Marshall: Hmm.

Bayleigh Wheat: truthfully.

Uh, her steadfastness I think in
life and her faithfulness to the

Lord and just how she has always
been who she is since the day.

Um, I was born truthfully.

Um, I can't think of
anybody else who has always.

Maintain that stability, right?

Not only in their life but
for their family members.

And so, such a high respect
for, for her as a woman and

you know, as my grandmother.

So I would have to say her.

Clif Marshall: What, um, as you
reflect on your career, uh, as an

athlete and also where you're at
now, you know, at Sports Academy as

a regeneration coordinator, um, what
would you tell yourself at 18 years old?

Bayleigh Wheat: This is a good one too.

Clif Marshall: I.

Bayleigh Wheat: These
are reflective questions.

If I could tell myself anything at 18
years old, it would be to put away any

self doubt and to just dive all in.

And don't be afraid of making
mistakes, because I think, at least

for myself, as kind of a very type a
perfectionist driven person, sometimes

the thought of failure can keep.

From that opportunity to
really succeed, right?

So it's like when I, when I think
of those moments where, okay, I,

I might fail at this and I didn't
do it, I failed anyways, right?

So I didn't even open that door
for opportunity to succeed.

And so to set any of that aside, and
don't be afraid of making mistakes,

don't be afraid of, you know,
potentially making a fooler yourself or

stepping outside of your comfort zone
because otherwise you're not, you're

just gonna stay in the same space.

That's not what anybody wants to
do ultimately, or I would hope not.

Sam Acho: Yeah.

baby.

Uh, I Girl Bailey.

Oh, uh, Bailey.

You're talking about not being afraid
to make mistakes, but you actually

took a pretty big risk not too long
ago in getting back into roller derby.

What happened?

Why, what?

Like, I want to hear like what,
what happened for you to get out

and then what made you get back in?

Bayleigh Wheat: Sure.

Um, so I was a junior in college.

Um, had been skating, working, going
to school essentially, um, and had been

doing that right since I was a teenager.

So I was pretty used to
that flow and it was great.

Um, I had some different gate
sponsorships and was traveling, doing,

um, offsite boot camps for roller
derby teams and stuff like that, so it

was a really good opportunity there.

But as I was in school and nearing
my graduation point, I realized

that I really had not figured out
what I wanted to do with my life.

In terms of, uh, a financial standpoint,
what was I gonna do, um, to take

care of myself And roller derby at
that point in time, was not shaping

out to be something that was gonna
be the end all, be all for that.

And so I had ended up taking
a step away from my sport.

I think that was late 2019.

After our season ended, I just said, Hey,
I'm gonna take a couple of months off.

We have tryouts in January.

If I think I need to come
back, I'll come back.

January rolled around and there
was just something in my heart that

said, it's just, it's not time yet.

You don't need to, um, get back into it.

And so I didn't, I, and it
was difficult at that time to

forego going to those tryouts.

Like at that point in time, you wouldn't
have missed me being at a Derby event.

Right.

So stepping away from that
really gave that separation

of my, myself from my sport.

And, uh, not long after
that, a couple weeks.

Covid ended up happening, and so
everything shut down anyways, so 2020

through early 2021, not much happening
in the derby scene, but once things kind

of started popping back up early 2021,
I started going to these scrimmages

and some pickup games and just kind of
dropping into some practices and whatnot.

But I really hadn't committed to a league
or to a team or anything like that.

And it wasn't a couple of months after
that, and only really a couple of handful

of times being back on skates in that
setting that I was at a pickup game.

It was a going away game for
one of my good friends who was

moving from Texas to California,
just a scrimmage co-ed scrimmage.

And I went in for a hit on
somebody, um, that ultimately

ended up leading to me tear my ACL.

And so it was May, 2021
that I, I did that.

Really kind of took me, I would say,
out of that ecosystem and away from

my sport for that period of time.

Um, 'cause after that, after spending
25 years of my life fully healthy

and able to do all of the things,
it was really difficult to then have

this, you know, short term disability
that, that kept me from being able

to do the things that I've been so
used to doing for the last 25 years.

And it was really a mental challenge to.

Know that that was gonna be only a short
term, you know, situation and experience.

Right.

But in the moment it can seem very
daunting and overwhelming in the terms

of, am I ever gonna see a, a light of day
that's different than the days that I was

experiencing during that season of life?

Um, yeah.

So I get into it, huh?

Sorry.

Sam Acho: No good.

It's all good.

Clif Marshall: no.

I just wanted to ask you, you know,
dealing with the ACL injury, how has that

made you a better coach or a regeneration
coordinator at Sports Academy?

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, I think experiencing
that injury, um, really gives me the own

personal experience of what it's like to
deal with setbacks, to deal with injuries,

to deal with not being able to, you know,
um, experience and approach life the way

that we sometimes want to be able to,
whether that's physically or otherwise.

And so being able to relate to my athletes
and to relate to people who everybody

experiences setbacks in some ways, and
being able to approach those and let

people know that it, sometimes it is,
it is a short term, uh, setback, right?

Some people obviously experience
certain things in life that they

carry with them for the rest of their
days, but ultimately it's their.

Mental wellbeing, um, their attitude,
if you will, that they have control

over, and it can really shape their
outlook on whatever that situation

might be that they're experiencing.

Right?

And that it's okay.

This is, this is part of real life.

And I think that that experience in
my own self allows that connection

to happen and be kind of a, uh,
oh, I totally lost the word, but it

allows that connection to happen.

Sam Acho: Mm.

Just kind of continue on that
path, like makes Bay Bay.

Bayleigh Wheat: Hmm.

I think just being real, being, um,
in the moment, looking for those real

and genuine connections as well, I
think makes me, me ultimately right

Sam Acho: Hmm.

Bayleigh Wheat: I'm connected
with myself, when I'm connected

with other people in those.

Moments, whether they're really
good or they're, you know,

more of a poor situation.

Being able to have that true
connection with those people, that's,

that's what makes me, me, because
if I were anybody else, right, it

would not, it wouldn't be the same.

Right.

Sam Acho: Yeah.

That's so good.

Um, I wanna go back real quick.

Cliff asked a really good question about
who's had the biggest influence and, and

you, you paused and you said your grandma,

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah.

Sam Acho: what was she like?

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, she is still
around and she's an absolute spitfire.

Sam Acho: hmm.

Bayleigh Wheat: She is, um, in her
eighties and she runs a private school

actually out in Big Spring, Texas.

Um, Mar off of Baptist Academy has for.

As long as I've known her.

Um, and she is, she is probably
the best example of like the

ultimate lord servant, truly right.

And just living her life in
such a way that truly spreads

his life and his love, right?

And he, she's able to do that.

Right through, um, her school,
that is her ministry, right?

But then even in just every interaction
that I watch with her, she's always

got that, that in mind, right?

Which is how can she share the light of
Jesus and share his word and share that

redemption to everyone that she meets?

And I think that that is probably one
of the most admirable attributes of her.

It's always been that way.

It's never not been that way.

Like that's a crazy thing to think about.

Like we think about people who
are, are Christians and people

who are, you know, um, you know,
pastors, this, that, whatever.

You know, and not always do you meet
people who are reflective of what they

say that they are right within that truth.

And this is somebody who I can't
ever even think of a moment

where she was anything less than.

And that to me is absolutely outstanding,

Sam Acho: mm.

Clif Marshall: Bailey, really cool
to hear you say that she's a servant

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah.

Clif Marshall: that is a
generational blessing because I

see you as being a servant as well.

working at Sports Academy as a coach or.

Regeneration coordinator, you are
serving athletes every single day.

So can you talk a little bit about
that mindset of how you go into working

with these athletes and, and how,
just like your grandma was a servant,

you're being a servant as well.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yeah, 100%.

I think every day, and in each interaction
that we have, it's, it's kind of our due

duty to live the truth that we wanna see.

Right.

And so I think being that servant and
having that servant mindset, whether

it is your highest paid NFL athlete
or it is your, you know, John Doe that

you know is working in construction
and simply wants to get better, right?

How do we approach every person
that we make contact with the

exact same way and ultimately help.

Not make them better, but to help
give them the tools and the guidance

that they can then take that journey
on their self and to be kind of a

support system for them so that they
can get to where they wanna be and

ultimately they earn it on their own.

Right?

I don't do anything.

I have so many times that clients
are like, oh yeah, I'm just this way.

Like this is, this is body by day.

And I'm like, no, I didn't do this.

I didn't do the work.

I wasn't running the sprints or, or doing
the stretches, or whatever the case is.

I just showed you how to do it.

And so, you know, I think having,
having that mindset is, uh, it crucial

to being able to approach any of these
athletes in any of these moments,

no matter what situation or state of
physical capacity that they might be in.

If they are looking to enhance
their human performance, then.

In front of me is right exactly where
you wanna be, because that's what I'm

gonna help you achieve is whatever
your most optimal capacity is within

your, within that physical capacity.

Sam Acho: And you do that, you do that.

I, I, I'm not, you know, I don't want
to go too deep, but, uh, I mean, not too

long ago, last week, I was watching you
train a 69-year-old woman named Nancy

Bayleigh Wheat: Yes.

Sam Acho: and tell, tell me about Nancy.

Bayleigh Wheat: I absolutely love Nancy.

She is an absolute sunshine.

Anyone who meets her would
say the exact same thing.

There's never a day where the
sun is not shining with her.

Um, but she is an absolute.

Beast of a woman, beast of an athlete.

You know, I could not imagine
running sprints the way she

does at almost 70 years old.

I think it's absolutely crazy.

Um, I always tell people I don't train
her, I just keep her reed in, right?

So she is somebody who has really earned.

Her phase in life right now, which
is she has built two multimillion

dollar companies, right.

That she has sold off and she's,
you know, now able to experience

life off of her investments.

Right.

And she does have some
physical limitations.

Um, I'll say she has a pacemaker, right.

Which can.

Change the way that we have to
approach training just a little

bit because it makes it so that
her heart rate can only go so fast.

I wanna say it's like
140 beats per minute.

So we're not able to go over that,
and we're also not able to maintain

that heart rate level for long periods
of time without her needing rest.

And so there's certain training, uh,
things that we have to kind of consider

when it comes to doing her workouts
as well as she also deals with a bit

or has been diagnosed with vertigo.

So when it comes to kind of double
vision and feeling dizzy, like those

are things that are all, um, we, we
have to keep a close eye on because it

can go south really fast if we, if we
don't stay cognizant of those things.

Um, but otherwise, every day that she
walks into the facility, when she walks

in for training, she's always happy.

It doesn't matter if it's a
good day, a bad day, she's

feeling good, she's feeling bad.

She's always excited to be there.

She's always smiling and
excited to see everyone.

And so.

That you can't help but be
happy when you're around.

Miss Nancy.

Sam Acho: Hmm.

so good.

Well, well, I know we're coming to a
close, uh, but before we close, I have

a question and then Cliff's got some
cliff notes, uh, that he wants to add.

Uh, my question and ask
this to every guest,

now I'm asking you this
specifically because seen.

People get the highest
contracts in the world.

You've seen people go
down the opposite path.

How do you win without losing it all?

Bayleigh Wheat: Hmm.

I think the way that you continue to win
no matter what, even if you're losing, is

to ultimately have a winner's attitude.

You're the only thing in life that
you can control is your attitude.

We can't control the weather.

We can't control how people
respond to us, right?

But we can control our attitude.

I would say too, we can't always
control our response because sometimes

I think our responses to certain things
may, um, come from a little bit of

a neurological programming, right?

If we always respond to a certain
stimulus in a certain way, whether

it be good or bad, our bodies kind of
become used to responding in that way.

But then after that
response, time happens.

What is your attitude about that response?

Is it a winner's mentality
or is it a loser's mentality?

And a lot of times with people with that
choose that loser's mentality either

perpetuate the cycles that they're in or
they, they kind of stay stagnant, right?

Whereas the winner's mentality,
even when they find themselves in

that place of loss, in that place
of maybe stagnant, no movement,

they're always gonna find a light.

They're gonna find that next step.

They're going to initiate that
journey, right, to continue

staying on the winner's path.

And I think truthfully, it is a
constant battle and choice that you

have to make as an individual, whether
or not you're gonna be the winner's

mentality or that loser's mentality.

Sam Acho: Mm.

And I

Clif Marshall: That's,

Sam Acho: I I

Clif Marshall: uh, go ahead.

Sam Acho: Sorry, cliff.

Clif Marshall: Go ahead.

Sam Acho: one more.

Okay.

Actually, no, I'm a cliff.

You ask and I got, I got one
more little follow up at the end.

My

Clif Marshall: Alright.

Sam and Bailey, let me get
my cliff note in today.

My cliff note today is from Pastor
Billy Grant and he says a coach

will impact more people in one year.

Then most people will in a lifetime.

And Bailey, what I respect about you
is you're impacting so many people

in your job at the Sports Academy.

You talked about first round picks.

I know you're even impacting NBA players
who are coming out there to train for

the NBA combine then the 69-year-old
Nancy that we're talking about.

just wanna know, um.

As you're talking about the impact, uh,
what brings you the ultimate fulfillment

when you're working with either a
client or a professional athlete?

Bayleigh Wheat: Hmm.

That fulfillment, I think
comes from seeing their wins.

So whether it's a combine athlete who
wants to run a particular time at the

40 and then they beat that time, or
it's a Miss Nancy who is just excited

to come to the session and run, right?

Whatever that win is.

I've even had clients who, um.

Have come to me and said, you know,
this is the first time I've ever gone

to the park and been able to chase
my grandson around, or this was the

first time that I was able to put on
a pair of pants without sitting down.

Like I think any of those life
achievements, whatever, big or small,

that, that's the ultimate fulfillment
is knowing that I was able to help push

them to achieve what they ultimately.

Probably already had in the tank,
but they just needed someone to

nudge them in that right direction.

Sam Acho: All right.

I know I lied.

My last one, Bailey, uh, why do you skate?

Bayleigh Wheat: Oh, I skate
because it brings me joy.

'cause I absolutely love it when I
am on my roller skates That is, I

think, the ultimate version of Bay.

Like there is no denying.

Me, whether I'm at a skate session
and I'm dancing around the skate

floor or I'm on the roller derby track
and, um, you know, taking people out.

I think no matter what, it's, it's the
most fluid and adaptable version of me

that I get to do both and have, you know.

the dance side, which is a little
bit more, you know, artistic, right?

And then I have this roller derby
side, which is more of that athletic

piece and kind of that athletic, um,
finesse, right, to being an athlete.

And so, um, I do it
because it brings me joy.

Sam Acho: Mm.

That's so good.

Yes.

Every time we talk, every time we
talk, we start talking about skating.

You just light up.

You light up.

And for me this time has been a joy just
hearing some of your, your story, but

also just hearing Cliff who's been in this
training world for almost three decades,

see you and just speak that life into you.

Like I get so excited 'cause
it's like, man, this is real.

Like y'all just met virtually.

But it's like, man, there's
something about you.

You're a servant.

something about you.

You are impacting people's lives.

You're not worried about if
they're the number one overall

pick or if they're a 69-year-old
who, who wants to as a pacemaker.

you're just making people better.

And that's one thing I saw in you Bailey
that just made me want to get to know you

more, is, okay, who is this person that
is literally laying down their pride?

Like you, you just competed against
a team in, in, uh, from Mexico City

and apparently y'all dominated, right?

I apparent y'all one.

You know what I mean?

So like, and you're the captain your
team, co-captain of your team, yet you

spend so much of your time serving people.

And so that servant's attitude,
I think you got a lot of

that from your grandmother.

And Bailey, keep on serving.

Keep on serving.

'cause you're making a huge impact.

Bayleigh Wheat: Yes.

Thank you Sam so much.

I appreciate it.

It's been an absolute honor and
blessing to, uh, to have this time

here with both of you, so thank you.

Sam Acho: Uh, thank you.

And thank y'all for joining the Sam Macho
podcast featuring Cliff Marshall, AKA

Cliff notes, and joining Bailey Wheat
hearing about her story and her journey.

We can't wait to hear from you soon.

Go to sam macho.com

to listen to this
podcast and so many more.

We'll see you soon.