Countdown to ÖTILLÖ: Two Months Out with Dr. Yael Schonbrun

Two months out from the 20th edition of ÖTILLÖ, the Swimrun World Championship, and this month's Countdown to ÖTILLÖ check-in turns to communication, because leaving no stone unturned means training the mind and the body, and the way we talk to each other on course.

We welcome back Dr. Yael Schonbrun, a clinical psychologist and assistant professor at Brown University, cohost of Psychologists Off the Clock, and author of the forthcoming book Why Don't You Understand Me? Yael was last on the show in 2023 for episode 179, and she's back to talk about the science of misunderstanding, plus the surprising cameo we make in her new book.

We get into why our brains default to assuming we understand each other, the difference between perspective taking and perspective getting, and how confirmation bias led to our own disqualification at Bellingham Swimrun this year. Yael walks us through setting communication ground rules for race day, how to handle it when a swimrun partner has a different goal than you, and why validating each other before problem solving changes everything. We also talk about values goals versus outcome goals, positive regard, and how the tools that work in the water apply just as well at the Thanksgiving table.

On the training side, we run through our tune up races heading into Worlds, Folsom Swimrun and the tenth anniversary of Ötillö Casco Bay, plus a first look at a stop we're making at Precision Fuel and Hydration headquarters in the UK on the way to Sweden to do some sweat testing in swimrun wetsuits.

This episode is brought to you by Precision Fuel and Hydration. If you have any questions about fueling or hydration for your own training, head to their website for free education content or book one of their fueling consultation calls with a coach.

00:00 Intro
00:01 Episode 340 and two months out from ÖTILLÖ
00:02 Precision Fuel and Hydration and the UK sweat testing trip
00:06 How's the Body How's the Mind training check-in
00:11 Folsom Swimrun and Ötillö Casco Bay tune-up races
00:16 Introducing Dr. Yael Schonbrun and her new book
00:20 Welcome back Dr. Yael Schonbrun
00:22 Why we think we understand each other better than we do
00:27 The Bellingham Swimrun disqualification story
00:36 Perspective taking versus perspective getting
00:41 Setting communication ground rules for race day
00:47 Validation before negotiation
00:50 Values goals versus outcome goals
00:59 Racing with a new partner at Austin
01:03 Understanding people who think and believe differently
01:05 Engaging with difficult people at the Thanksgiving table
01:11 Positive regard and Carl Rogers
01:16 Why community keeps swimrunners coming back
01:19 Book preorder and wrap-up

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