On Episode 42 of Mindful Warrior Radio, we welcome Gary Hall Jr.—a three-time Olympian, ten-time Olympic medalist, and one of the most iconic figures in the history of U.S. swimming. Known for his electric speed, bold personality, and trailblazing spirit, Gary brought showmanship and passion to the world stage, forever changing the culture of the sport.Beyond his achievements in the pool, Gary is also a powerful advocate for health and resilience. After being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes just one year before the 2000 Olympics, he defied expectations and returned to win multiple gold medals—becoming a beacon of hope for athletes and individuals living with chronic illness.Today, Gary continues to inspire as a speaker, mentor, and champion for wellness and performance, encouraging others to push past limits and lead with authenticity.In this powerful conversation, Gary gives us a window into navigating competitive environments, challenging traditional systems, and embracing his own unique way of being and doing.On his unconventional approach to training, Gary is proud of his novel contributions to what has now become the new standard. “You seemed completely off your rocker if you weren’t going to try to do 20,000 meters a day. Like, you could never be good if you didn’t do that volume of training. If you had suggested what some top-level swimmers are doing now—training three times a week, 1,500 meters—it would have sounded crazy. It’s interesting to see how the sport has grown, and I’m happy to have been a brick in the wall of the evolution in the sport.”On artistry versus science in swimming, Gary says he’s “always felt like an artist in a math class. You could oversimplify it to right brain vs. left brain—I was a creative type. I didn’t care about the formula. I tried the formula, the scientific method approach, and I was miserable. I hated it. I hated the sport. I wanted to quit. And it wasn’t until I started just tuning into wavelengths underwater—the way the water moves, feeling that, and learning how to channel and move through the element of water—that it was so much more interesting. That’s more art than science. And I always felt like the artist could win.”About the advantages of being a right-brain thinker, Gary notes, “The people that need that structure also may be apprehensive of art, but they also don’t handle chaos well. And we know in this life; there’s chaos and there are agents of chaos. If you are rigid, if you are inflexible in your mind and how you accept and process chaos when it arises (you struggle). And so, I think that being able to pivot quickly, that was an advantage in the art department, not the science department.”To learn more about Mindful Warrior and Mindful Warrior Radio, follow us on Instagram @therealmindfulwarrior and visit www.mindfulwarrior.com.

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