Courtney Karch: My Body Didn't Feel Mine | Conditioned To Bowl

Courtney Karch: My Body Didn't Feel Mine | Conditioned To Bowl

My body still didn't feel like mine - and no one warns you how long that lasts. Courtney Karch, a BSCA ambassador, pain-free performance specialist, and mom of two, joins Paul and Heather for a raw conversation about postpartum identity and the road back to bowling. She opens up about the hollow feeling that hits after a C-section, the pressure to bounce back that comes with being a fitness coach, and the comparison trap that makes recovery even harder. Courtney and Heather also compare their first and second pregnancies and the pre and postnatal coaches who guided their training. The conversation turns candid and clinical as Courtney breaks down what childbirth trauma actually feels like, from contraction intensity to C-section pain and recovery timelines, scar mobilization, and why things just don't snap back. Then it's back to the lanes for the real story of relearning how to throw a bowling ball postpartum, Heather's PWBA regional comeback in Rochester, and the mom brain science behind competing while your hormones are still finding their footing. Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/74CvzgYI3qGxpsSMknHsxf Use code PWBAHEATHER for 10% off Coolwick gear. #PostpartumRecovery #BowlersAreAthletes #mom #mother #ConditionedToBowl #CSectionRecovery #MomAthlete #BowlingStrength #Postpartum #pregnancy #breastfeeding Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 03:00 - Postpartum identity and the hollow feeling 08:00 - The pressure to bounce back 11:00 - The comparison trap 12:00 - Devastated: when a fit birth plan doesn't go as planned 13:00 - First C-section vs. second C-section 16:00 - Working with pre- and postnatal coaches 20:00 - What childbirth trauma actually feels like 21:00 - Contractions and the epidural 22:00 - C-section pain, on a scale of one to ten 26:00 - Why things don't snap back 29:00 - Relearning how to throw a bowling ball 30:00 - Heather's PWBA regional comeback 34:00 - Mom brain is backed by research 35:00 - Breastfeeding and pumping at tournaments 38:00 - Toddler phase reflections

Off the Lanes: The Vitamin DTang Way with Darren Tang | Conditioned To Bowl Ep#27

You have seen what Vitamin DTang does on the lanes. This is what he does off them. Part 3 of the Vitamin DTang Mini-Series closes the story where it lives — in the gym, at the table, and in the mindset that keeps a PBA champion competing at the top year after year. Paul and Heather dig into Darren Tang's full off-lanes routine: the Normatec boots he swears by on long drives between tour stops, the PT who trained him at Jordan Farmar's private gym, and the leg strength test that left his trainer speechless. Darren talks through his favorite exercise (the back squat, and yes, partly for the ego), the push jerk that injured his back and that he has never touched since, and his honest take on what he still wants to get better at: recovery discipline. Heather draws the line between ego lifting and heavy lifting that every bowler in the gym needs to hear. Paul calls for the clip mid-conversation. Then it gets personal. Darren's pre-tournament caffeine ritual, the Reign 300mg regional story, the four-eggs-and-turkey-bacon meal plan, and three pieces of life advice he has carried since 2018 Team USA: control the controllables, never be the smartest person in the room, and surround yourself with people who are better than you. The episode closes on EDM, Dance Dance Revolution, anime motivation playlists, and a Ryan Barnes shoutout to end the series. Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro 01:00 – Social handles: YouTube, Twitch, Vitamin_DTang 04:00 – Recovery tools: Normatec boots and prolonged sitting 05:00 – Fernando Garcia, Jordan Farmar's gym, and the back squat 08:00 – The push jerk that hurt his back 09:00 – Body stats: 136 lbs, 285 squat max, 305 deadlift, 210 bench 10:00 – Heather on ego lifting vs. heavy lifting 12:00 – What Darren wants to learn more about: recovery 13:00 – Nutrition: caffeine, routines, pre-tournament meals 14:00 – The 300mg Reign regional story 16:00 – Four eggs, turkey bacon, and eating before you bowl 14:00 – Life advice: control the controllables 15:00 – Never be the smartest person in the room 15:00 – Surround yourself with people better than you 16:00 – Rooming with Chris Vine and Chris Prather 17:00 – Music: EDM, Dance Dance Revolution, and anime playlists 20:00 – Ryan Barnes shoutout and closing Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/74CvzgYI3qGxpsSMknHsxf Grab your bowling gear with code PWBAHEATHER for 10% off at Coolwick. #BowlersAreAthletes #ConditionedToBowl #DarrenTang #VitaminDTang #BowlingTraining #BowlingRecovery #PBATour #BSCA #BowlingNutrition #BowlingMindset #gym

Ep#26: The Gamble: Darren Tang Bets on His Whole Season

He finished in the 90s at the US Open. That is basically last place. And that is the exact moment Darren Tang decided to bet everything on a single decision, mid-season, with no guarantee it would pay off. This is Part 2 of the Vitamin DTang Mini-Series on Conditioned To Bowl. The gamble, the doubt, and the moment Darren Tang chose to bet on himself. Darren walks Paul and Heather through the full arc: the summer league two-handed experiment he gave himself two years to develop, the regional event in Vegas where he finished sixth and beat every two-hander in the field, and the US Open performance that finally pushed him over the edge. He shares what it felt like to start learning everything from scratch while surrounded by the best bowlers in the world, and how the tour's two-handed veterans helped accelerate what should have taken years. Paul draws the sports analogy that says it all — a switch-hitting MLB player stepping into the opposite batter's box 59 games into the season and hitting .310. And the conversation closes on the moment that made it all mean more: Darren winning on Mother's Day with Mama Tang in the building. Timestamps: 00:00 – Introduction 01:00 – Paul sets up the mid-season question 01:00 – The summer league two-handed experiment 01:30 – The Vegas regional test 02:00 – Team trials with an arsenal of two-handed balls 03:00 – The US Open breaking point 03:30 – Prepared to get bageled for the year 04:00 – Learning all over again 04:30 – Confidence after the Chicago match play 05:00 – Mesmerizing: watching the switch happen live 05:30 – Grabbing five balls off the truck 06:00 – The two-handed brotherhood helps 06:30 – Did anyone say do not do it? 06:30 – The baseball switch-hitter analogy 07:30 – Fitness routine and training regimen 09:30 – Why mobility is the most important thing 10:30 – Pain as the wrong trigger for action 13:00 – The in-home gym and the SAID principle 14:30 – Mama Tang and the Mother's Day title 15:30 – Get your vitamin D: closing thoughts #BowlersAreAthletes #ConditionedToBowl #DarrenTang #VitaminDTang #TwoHandedBowling #PBATour #Bowling #podcast #athlete #gamble #risk #gambling #USOpen

Ep#25: The Vitamin DTang Origin: Two is better than One with Darren Tang

Before the nickname. Before the championship. Before the switch that stunned the tour – Darren Tang was a one-handed bowler with golfer's elbow, a capped rev rate, and a body telling him something had to change.   This is the Vitamin DTang origin story.   In Part 1 of the Vitamin DTang Mini-Series, Paul and Heather sit down with Darren Tang to trace the full arc – from a legendary college bowling class that reads like a hall of fame ballot, to the multi-sport athletic background that made the two-handed switch even possible, to the biomechanics nobody talks about: lateral spine tilt, non-dominant pec engagement, quad tension, and why two-handed bowling demands more from your body than it looks.   Darren breaks down the pain that forced the question – golfer's elbow, shoulder strain, years of chasing the right ball fit – and the Specto numbers that answered it: capped at 450 RPM one-handed, now touching 515 two-handed. Paul and Heather weigh in on the spine health debate and what the current data does and does not yet tell us. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro and Darren Tang credentials 03:00 The 2013-14 college bowling class 05:00 Athletic background and how bowling won 07:00 Two-handed athleticism requirements and spine tilt 08:00 Quad tension and the pec nobody talks about 11:00 One-handed vs. two-handed spine health debate 12:00 The pain that forced the switch 13:00 Specto rev rate numbers 14:00 The entry fee: 17 mph and 450 RPM 15:00 Darren Tang has a chance every single week #BowlersAreAthletes #ConditionedToBowl #DarrenTang#VitaminDTang #TwoHandedBowling #PBATour #BowlingTraining #BowlingStrength#BSCA #BowlingPodcast #NCBCA #WSOB

Ep#23.5 : The Withdrawal: Kyle Sherman Finally Walked Away | Conditioned To Bowl

13 consecutive weeks on tour. A back injury that started as a twinge in Columbus and ended as nerve pain down his leg. And then — for the first time in over 10 years as a professional — Kyle Sherman withdrew from a tournament. But the hardest part wasn't the pain. It was sitting alone in that car, fighting every instinct he'd been built on, trying to give himself permission to stop. This is the 15-minute cut from our full episode with Kyle: the moment that hit hardest, pulled out and put front and centre. If this resonates, the full 1hr 7min conversation is linked below. Everything from the 12 thumb fits that saved his season, to the lane-sharing experiment at the World Series that sent all four bowlers to the show. It's all in there. 👉 Full Episode (Ep. 23): https://youtu.be/pU5NjTNEX_g What nobody prepares you for in professional sports is the weight of just keeping going. Not the injury. Not the bad scores. The Groundhog Day grind of waking up and doing it again when your body is telling you it's done — and your identity is telling you that stopping means you're weak. Kyle isn't weak. This episode is proof of that. 🎳 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/74CvzgYI3qGxpsSMknHsxf🛍 Coolwick: Use code PWBAHEATHER for 10% off Timestamps: 00:00:00 – When Withdrawing Feels Like Quitting 00:01:00 – 2025: Not One Cash 00:01:45 – 2026: Starts the Same, Until Columbus 00:02:30 – 12 Thumb Fits and the One That Changed Everything 00:04:00 – De Quervain's, Grip, and Tour Volume 00:05:30 – The Twinge That Became 13 Weeks of Pain 00:08:00 – TOC: Nerve Pain, Mental Breakdown, and the Decision 00:10:00 – The Weight That Lifted the Second He Said "I Quit" 00:12:30 – Listening to Your Body Is Maturity, Not Weakness 00:14:00 – World Series Redemption: Two Shows After the Reset #conditionedtobowl #KyleSherman #PBATour #BowlingPodcast #TournamentWithdrawal #AthleteRecovery #MentalToughness #BowlingInjury #WorldSeriesOfBowling #BowlersAreAthletes #EliteBowling