Student Athlete Performance

Nick Lemke
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Sports
  • Updated Weekly

🎙️ Train Smarter. Fuel Better. Get Recruited. The Student Athlete Performance Podcast helps you maximize performance, improve nutrition, and stand out in recruiting. Hosted by Nick Lemke, RD, each episode features elite athletes, coaches, and experts sharing proven strategies on training, recovery, mindset, and college recruiting. Whether you’re an athlete, parent, or coach, get the tools you need to level up in sports and beyond. 📌 New episodes weekly—subscribe now!

  1. 5d ago

    What an MLB Strength Coach Sees When He Watches High School Baseball Players

    A strength coach who spent 20 years in the Major Leagues can read a high school player in seconds. And what he's looking at first has nothing to do with how they swing or pitch. Jose Vasquez spent nearly two decades as head strength and conditioning coach for the Texas Rangers and is now a physical therapist working with baseball players across the Dallas area. In this episode, he shares what he watched separate the players who lasted in the big leagues from the ones who had the talent but burned out early — and what that means for high school athletes right now. We get into why the eye test at a showcase matters more than most parents realize, why spending money on showcases before your son's body is ready is money thrown away, how high school players are losing entire years of development by never putting the ball down long enough to build real strength, and why one bad night of sleep can wreck your body for two to three days — the same way a hangover does. Jose also answers the question every sports parent eventually asks: when should a high school athlete start lifting weights? His answer isn't what most expect — and it has nothing to do with age. Plus he breaks down the exact weekly schedule he builds for his top high school athlete, currently one of the best players in Texas, and the three things every high school baseball player needs to be doing right now to give themselves a real shot at the next level. If you play high school baseball and want to know what an MLB coach actually sees when he looks at you, this one is worth your time. Connect with Jose: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jvazquezptcscs/ Connect with Nick: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X: https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    What an MLB Strength Coach Sees When He Watches High School Baseball Players

  2. Aug 6

    He Wasn't the Biggest. Wasn't the Fastest. Here's How He Made It to D1

    Everyone talks about getting to the Division 1 level. Nobody talks about what happens when you actually get there. Dante Campagna graduated high school in 2025 and just finished his first year playing D1 football at Stonehill College. In this episode he gets completely honest about what that jump actually looks like — the physical grind, the mental battles, and the things he wishes someone had told him before he got there. We get into what the first weeks of camp really feel like when you're going from 7 in the morning to 9pm at night, why the mental side of going from being THE GUY in high school to waiting your turn in college hits harder than anyone warns you, what recovery actually looks like at the D1 level and why most high school athletes treat it as an afterthought, and the one mindset shift that separates the athletes who thrive from the ones who fade out. Dante also breaks down what he's doing differently heading into year two, the nutrition habits he had to completely rethink once he got to college, and what he'd tell every high school athlete who thinks they're ready but probably isn't doing the three things that matter most. If you play high school football and want to know what D1 is really like before you get there, this one is worth your time. Connect with Dante: X: https://x.com/dante_campagna3 Connect with Nick: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X: https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    He Wasn't the Biggest. Wasn't the Fastest. Here's How He Made It to D1

  3. Jul 16

    Why Talented Soccer Players Don't Get Recruited | D1 Coach Explains What College Coaches Look For

    College coaches are evaluating you long before they ever talk to you and a lot of what they're watching has nothing to do with what you do with the ball. Colton Bryant is an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for Lamar University Women's Soccer. He's spent years on the recruiting trail evaluating players at events, camps, and showcases. In this episode, he pulls back the curtain on what actually separates the players who get offers from the ones who don't (and it goes a lot deeper than skill). We get into what coaches notice when you don't know they're watching, why how you treat your parents after a loss tells a coach more than your highlight reel, how the bags behind the bench before kickoff predict whether a team wins or loses, and why asking about scholarships in your first conversation with a coach is one of the fastest ways to fall off their list. Colton also breaks down what it actually means to build a winning team culture as an athlete, why accountability and snitching are not the same thing, how to give teammates feedback that builds them up instead of tearing them down, and the one daily action every athlete should start now if they want to be the player coaches fight to recruit and teammates fight to play with. If you play college or high school soccer and want to know what coaches are really watching, this one is worth your time. Connect with Colton: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coachcolton/X: https://x.com/coachcolton Connect with Nick: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X: https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    Why Talented Soccer Players Don't Get Recruited | D1 Coach Explains What College Coaches Look For

  4. Jul 9

    Why College Coaches Are Passing Over Your Athlete (And It Has Nothing to Do With Training)

    Your athlete is training harder than ever. They have the skills. They have the work ethic. And college coaches are still not calling. The reason might not be what you think. In this solo episode, I'm breaking down what I keep seeing with the athletes I work with — from football and baseball to soccer and basketball — who are doing all the right training but completely missing the one piece that actually makes training stick. College coaches are looking for velocity, speed, power, and size. The training alone won't get you there. What actually drives those results is how you're fueling and most athletes are neglecting this part. I walk through three real examples from athletes I'm currently working with: a male soccer player trying to earn a varsity spot, a female soccer player chasing a college offer who keeps hearing she has the skills but not the speed, and a college baseball pitcher who had to redshirt his first year because his velocity wasn't where it needed to be. Then I break down the three things every athlete needs to fix, whether you're trying to gain size, build speed, or lean out to get faster. You have to eat enough to support the build. If your athlete is putting in the work and not seeing the results show up on the field, this episode is worth sharing with them. Get my free 5-day sample meal plan: https://clutchperformancenutrition.fit/eliteathletemealplan Connect with Nick: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X: https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    Why College Coaches Are Passing Over Your Athlete (And It Has Nothing to Do With Training)

  5. Jun 25

    Why You Lose Confidence When You Play Bad | Mental Performance Coach

    The second a game goes bad, your confidence disappears. That's the moment most of this episode is about. Zach Willis is the offensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator at Pacific Lutheran University and a certified mental performance consultant. In this episode, he breaks down confidence as a skill that can be trained, not a switch that's either on or off. We get into the four real ways confidence is built, why your self-talk after a mistake matters more than the mistake itself, how to actually use stats and data to counter negative thoughts instead of spiraling, and why tying your identity completely to your sport sets you up for a much harder fall when things don't go your way. Zach also explains how to handle outside noise during competition, what it really means to control the controllables, and the first step to take when an athlete feels like they have zero confidence left. If you play any sport and you've ever felt like your confidence disappears the moment things go wrong, this episode gives you a real way to think about it differently. Connect with Zach: X: https://x.com/Zach_Willis45 Connect with Nick: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X: https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    Why You Lose Confidence When You Play Bad | Mental Performance Coach

  6. Jun 18

    Your Batting Average Is Ruining Your Confidence | Former Pro Player & Mental Performance Coach

    If you feel like you've stopped getting better or like you're doing everything right and still going 0 for 4, the problem probably isn't your swing. Steve Springer spent 14 years in professional baseball, including 11 years in Triple A. He went on to become a mental performance coach for the Blue Jays, a pro scout, and a player agent. He's worked with MLB All-Stars, minor leaguers, and high school hitters and his message is the same at every level. In this episode, Steve breaks down what separates the players who keep developing from the ones who plateau and disappear (broken down by age group, from 12-year-olds all the way through college athletes chasing pro ball). He gets into why stats are making you worse and why "Quality at Bats" matter more. He also hits on why 95% of players are competing with tension and anxiety they don't have to have and why the players who stay in the game longest are the ones who change what they think success is. Steve also shares parts of his story of going from getting cut in college to playing in the big leagues and why players who think they're too small, too slow, or too late to be recruited still have more opportunities than they realize. If you play baseball at any level and want to stop getting in your own way, this one is worth your time. Connect with Steve: Website: https://qualityatbats.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/qualityatbats/X: https://x.com/qualityatbats Connect with Nick: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X: https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    Your Batting Average Is Ruining Your Confidence | Former Pro Player & Mental Performance Coach

  7. Jun 11

    How High School Pitchers Are Destroying Their Arms Before They Ever Get Recruited

    Youth baseball players have now surpassed Major League pitchers as the largest group needing Tommy John surgery. The UCL ligament a pitcher throws with doesn't even fully mature until age 26 and kids are blowing it out at 14 and 15. Dr. Kevin McGovern is a physical therapist who has spent over 30 years working with baseball pitchers from high school to the pros. He knows exactly what's causing the arm injury epidemic and what's working to build velocity without breaking down young arms. In this episode, Kevin explains why weighted balls are doing more damage than coaches will admit, why your arm is the last thing you should be training if you want to throw harder, and what two movements almost every pitcher fails that are directly connected to both injury and lost velocity. He also breaks down the difference between drop and drive versus drift mechanics, why endurance is so important to pitching, what to do after you pitch that can either protect your arm or wreck it, and why the advice to "bend your knees" might be the worst cue in baseball. If you pitch at any level and want to throw harder and stay healthy long enough to use it, this episode has answers most coaches never give you. Connect with Dr. Kevin McGovern:IG: https://www.instagram.com/drkmcgovernpt/X:https://x.com/DrKMcGovernPTYT:  ⁨https://www.youtube.com/@DRKMCGOVERNPT Connect with Nick:IG: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X:https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    How High School Pitchers Are Destroying Their Arms Before They Ever Get Recruited

  8. Jun 4

    The Transfer Portal Almost Ended My Football Career. Here's What I Wish I Knew

    This offseason was littered with stats and stories of transfer portal athletes who never made it out. Athletes who didn't realize just how touch it would be to find a new home. Andy Gerasenko could have been one of these athletes. He found out his program was dropping from D1 to D3 AFTER he had already committed to them his senior year. Decided to stick it out his freshman year, but entered the portal in January. What followed was five months in the portal, over a thousand schools narrowed down to a handful of real conversations, and a reality check that most athletes only find out about after it's too late. In this episode, Andy gets completely honest about what led him to the portal, what it actually feels like to watch commit announcements roll in on social media while you're still waiting, why he kept looking for another D1 program to compete at, and what finally led him to Lock Haven and why he has zero regrets about where he landed. He also breaks down the three things every athlete needs to understand before they ever enter the portal: the credits that might not transfer, the scholarships that disappear the moment you leave, and why patience is the hardest and most important skill in the whole process. If you play college or high school football and the portal is something you're thinking about (or if you just want to understand what it really looks like from inside the portal) this one is worth your time. Follow Andy: X: https://x.com/Andy_Gerasenko Connect with Nick: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicklemkerd/X: https://x.com/nicklemkerd

    The Transfer Portal Almost Ended My Football Career. Here's What I Wish I Knew
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About

🎙️ Train Smarter. Fuel Better. Get Recruited. The Student Athlete Performance Podcast helps you maximize performance, improve nutrition, and stand out in recruiting. Hosted by Nick Lemke, RD, each episode features elite athletes, coaches, and experts sharing proven strategies on training, recovery, mindset, and college recruiting. Whether you’re an athlete, parent, or coach, get the tools you need to level up in sports and beyond. 📌 New episodes weekly—subscribe now!

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