WHY SALT?
The element that enhances, preserves, and endures — in sweat, tears, and the tides.
The human body is intelligent, resilient, and 100% for you at all times. Your system up-regulates itself when challenged appropriately.
Too often in sport, coaching focuses on telling athletes exactly what to do, how to move, and what to feel, with little room for individual athlete exploration. It strips the athlete of self-discovery, expression, and regulation. I believe a truly transformative environment is learner-centric — one that encourages curiosity, reflection, and ownership. When athletes are trusted to explore, to make mistakes, to problem solve, they become more autonomous, adaptable, resilient, and self-aware both on and off the field. Coaching then shifts from dictating to facilitating, from leading to equipping, from giving answers to cultivating better questions. Developing athletes who can think and act for themselves gives them the power to uninhibitedly accomplish anything they set out to do.
Core Values
Foster a collaborative & adaptable environment
Be compassionate & supportive
Be authentic
Be specific & intentional
Be constantly learning
Lainey Mullane
My Story:
I grew up playing multiple sports and I was somehow always one of the smallest on my team. But I didn’t let that stop me from competing with the big dogs—I thank my brother and our rough and tumble neighborhood boys for that. If there was a sport to be playing I was playing it (organized or not). But soccer was always my favorite, and the one I stuck with from about 6 years old through high school.
I’ve broken 7 or so bones (again, I was a rough and tumble kid) and have had my fair share of sprains and such along the way. Through it all I kept coming back to fight for more. Not “more” things, more trophies, more awards, more plaques—but more me. Deeper levels of understanding, wisdom, strength, grit, resiliency, as well as love, joy, laughter, and play. My life experiences have taught me more than I could have ever learned in a textbook about how to keep showing up for yourself, even when it feels like it’s all working against you. I’ve learned to embrace challenges, because without them we stay stagnant while life continues to move around us. I’ve come to find that learning to move with it, just might set you free.
I fell in love with sports performance training, not just because I love wearing sweatpants to work and being athletic all day—but because I love the environment and culture it creates for young athletes. I love what I do, but more than that I love the relationships and connections I get to form by doing what I do. I strive to always be cultivating an environment that is rooted in mutual trust, understanding, and ALWAYS fun—because honestly life becomes dull without it. I want athletes to be able to find joy in even the hardest of training sessions, and I want them to feel like they always have someone in their corner cheering them on along the way.
I coach not because I have all the answers, in fact I think my athletes teach me more than I could ever teach them. Coaching for me has always been about being willing to walk someone’s journey alongside them. Letting them lead, while I follow—supporting, encouraging, and holding a light to their path when they need it most. Stronger together.
Education:
Bachelor of Health Science, Minor in Psychology, University of Missouri (MU)
Master of Kinesiology, University of Central Missouri (UCM)
Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA)
Experience:
Lainey has 10 years of sports performance coaching since 2015, specializing in team sport athletics with an emphasis in soccer specific performance. She’s designed & implemented both individualized and team training programs for middle schoolers, high schoolers at the ECNL/RL levels, collegiate athletes from D1 to NAIA, and professional athletes playing in the NWSL, MLS, USL, WPSL & MASL.
She served as the Kansas City Comets’ Sports Performance Trainer (MASL) for the 2023-24 season.
Lainey has held close working relationships with Sports Physical Therapists in the area since 2015. She utilizes her knowledge, expertise, and resources to develop progressive return to play programs, helping athlete’s bridge the gap between rehab and full return to sport. She believes programs should benefit more than just the athlete’s physical performance, especially in a return to play scenario. Her programs are centered around the athlete as a whole: blending physical strength, performance, and capacity with new-found levels of grit, mental resilience, emotional health, and vitality to foster an overall feeling of well-being and unwavering confidence—both on and off the field.