 Kelly YounkinsMental Performance Coach Your No-Brainer Secret Weapon for the Track and Beyond Welcome
If you're reading this, it means you're already curious. You want more—more clarity, more consistency, more control. You may be recognizing you want and need more support, understanding, knowledge and guidance. Whether you’re a rider chasing a podium, a parent trying to support your athlete, or a family looking for more balance in the chaos of race weekends—you’re in the right place. My name is Kelly, and I've spent the past 20 years working in clinical mental health, supporting individuals, families, teams, and organizations. I also live inside the motocross world as a wife, mom, casual rider, and performance coach. I know firsthand how this sport can demand everything—mentally, physically, emotionally, financially. This guide introduces you to my Mental Performance Coaching framework, adapted specifically for motocross. It’s designed to help riders and families level up focus, emotional control, communication, and confidence—on and off the track. It’s motivational. It’s practical. And it’s built for people who want to stay grounded and grow under pressure. This isn’t therapy, and it’s not fluff. This is training for your mindset, your mission, and your moto. What This Approach Is (and Isn’t)
This is a proven, practical, and personalized system designed to help riders and families:
Through each phase, you’ll gain tools to:
This guide is meant to be a flexible, living resource. Use it digitally or print it out. Scribble in it. Share it. Make it yours. Let’s get started. My Coaching Philosophy (Motocross Edition) Motocross is more than a sport—it’s a lifestyle. It teaches discipline, courage, and commitment. But it also tests mental strength like few other environments. Over the years, I’ve worked across clinical mental health, family systems, athletic training, and high-pressure performance settings. What I’ve learned is this: Talent matters, but mindset wins races and determines outcomes. Whether you’re a beginner on 50's or a seasoned pro, your mental game sets the tone for how you train, how you race, how you recover—and how your family functions through it all. I use a holistic, family-centered approach to help:
This is not about grinding harder. It’s about becoming more mentally efficient, emotionally aware, and behaviorally intentional. I believe in:
When your head’s in the right place, everything else flows better. The 3-Phase Framework in Motocross Phase 1: Awareness Building Before change, there must be clarity. Together we uncover:
You’ll begin to recognize patterns in mindset, emotion, and behavior. We put words to the things you’ve felt but couldn’t always explain. Phase 2: Tracking & Reflection Once awareness builds, we shift to intentional tracking:
We use simple tools like thought logs, race-day reflections, and family check-ins. This phase helps separate guesswork from facts. You begin to understand your patterns and what actually moves the needle. Phase 3: Focused Change This is where we train the brain:
Small, consistent strategies build confidence and control over time. You learn to:
Core Tools & Worksheet (Motocross Edition) 1. Moto Pre-Race and Reset Ritual Pre Race Rituals involve: what time you get up, what and when you eat and hydrate, how you loosen up physically (such as using the JYT dynamic warm up), when you gear up, what you do and don't do leading up to taking your bike to the line, when you get on the bike, and what you do and don't do once you are sitting at the starting line gate. This can go even deeper as to what you are thinking, how you are attuning to your body sensations, what or who you are looking at, what you are rehearsing mentally in your mind, and what your key areas of focus are for the gate drop and heading into the first turn. Before you even begin your Pre-Race Ritual, I encourage all of my athletes to learn how to use visualization at night before bed and when they first wake up.
This is powerful because your mind does not know what is real or imagined. The benefit is that your body will respond regardless. So when you hear the saying “whether you think you can or you think you can, you're right- this is really important when it comes to training your body to respond positively to promote effective functioning. For example: If you picture only worst case scenarios and catastrophic fears and events while you are traveling to a race or once you are on the track, you are now activating adrenaline fight, flight, or freeze responses in your body which are 100% counterproductive to your mental, emotional, and functional performance. This is why I teach the power of visualization. Creating the movie of your racing life that supports the outcomes you desire to achieve. And you will learn to rehearse this movie, and adapt it over and over as your training, skills, and career progresses, to match your dreams and goals and desired results.
2. Rider Reflection Sheet (Pre- & Post-Race) What went well? What felt off? How was my mindset? What will I try next time? 3. Family Debrief Rider Family Team We focus on the wins and strengths first. This calms and regulates every person on the team into a clear head space, so that constructive and critical feedback can be delivered and received. This is not toxic positive psychology. It is priming your mental state and body response into seeing and feeling the strengths, forward energy, building a confident foundation, which ultimately promotes unshakeable resiliency. This is important because we have a saying, “the body keeps the score”. And when you verbalize and visualize success, positive sayings, and focus on strengths and wins, your body remembers that. If you feed it stress, negativity, and criticism, your mind and body literally and physically braces for threats, activating a range of counterproductive thought processes and emotional responses. This is problematic because it is a distraction, and eats up valuable mental, emotional, and physiological energy. In short, it sucks up precious energy and resources that you need for out on the track. 4. Weekly Pattern Tracker Track patterns across training, school, sleep, and emotional health.
5. Value-Aligned Goals for the Season
Final Thoughts for Racers & Families Mental Performance Coaching is about becoming the kind of racer—and the kind of support system—that doesn’t just react to pressure, but grows through it. Whether you’re chasing championships, rebuilding after injury, or simply trying to enjoy race weekends again—there is space here for growth. Motocross is intense. But with the right mindset tools, it becomes a launchpad, not a stress trap. Let’s build the mindset that matches the mission. Let’s race with clarity, calm, and control. Are you ready? Let’s ride.
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