Building a Stronger Mind: How the Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy Uses Neurofuel to Transform Athletes’ Performance | Youth volleyball club

On a tense field during qualifying season, a Michigan Elite 14s team huddles together: shoulders square, eyes closed and breathing in sync. There is no panic, no hectic last-minute coaching. Instead, the athletes lead each other through a short series of grounding breaths. Moments later, they break with quiet confidence and enter the field, ready for the pressure of the points at stake.

Scenes like this have become increasingly common at the Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy since the club adopted Neurofuel, a mental performance training app, in the 2024 season. What started as an experiment for a handful of teams has now grown into one of the most comprehensive mental training initiatives in the region.

A purposeful shift towards mental performance

The spark came from within: one of Michigan Elite’s assistant coaches, who himself had relied on Neurofuel during an injury at Michigan State University. Visualization sessions kept her game-ready during recovery, and the experience made her a passionate advocate for integrating mental training into club culture. Her personal results helped club directors recognize the untapped potential in equipping athletes with practical mindset tools.

Michigan Elite rolled out Neurofuel to the 13U–18U National teams and the 15U–17U National Select teams in its first year. The onboarding was simple: monthly emails with focus areas, usage reports, and encouragement provided consistency without overwhelming the coaches. The adoption quickly exceeded expectations.

From pilot program to club-wide culture

After seeing early success, Michigan Elite expanded Neurofuel to all state, national selection and state teams. Athletes ages 12 and up are now using the app to build routines that support confidence, emotional regulation and self-awareness.

The cultural change is palpable. Coaches hear younger athletes use Neurofuel language (breathing cues, self-talk strategies, and refocusing techniques) during timeouts and pre-race conversations. Older players turn to visualization and breathing sessions between matches at tournaments. Usage peaks during the qualifying season, when the pressure is highest.

For directors, watching athletes independently apply mental strategies is one of the clearest indicators that the program is working. “Our players use breathing techniques with their teammates during team huddles and pre-match communications,” Kristin Eddy, business director of Michigan Elite, shared this. “It has become part of who we are as a club.”

Benefits at every level

Although Michigan Elite competes at the national level, the staff sees the benefits of Neurofuel at all levels of play. Athletes at the regional and state levels often use the app to manage performance anxiety and build fundamental emotional control skills. Highly competitive athletes rely on Neurofuel to slow down intense moments, manage stress and improve decision-making in high-stakes matches.

Regardless of level, the most common feedback from players is simple: they love it. They appreciate the clear messages, breathing strategies and visualization representatives that help them regain control on and off the field.

Overcoming obstacles – and what other clubs need to know

The biggest initial challenge wasn’t athlete buy-in; it was helping coaches feel confident when discussing mental performance. Michigan Elite is addressing this by offering more onboarding, more coach training, and reframing Neurofuel as a support tool rather than an added responsibility.

For clubs considering Neurofuel, Michigan Elite’s advice is direct: invest in your athletes. “This is more than volleyball; it’s something they will carry with them beyond the sport,” Eddy explained. Parents also benefit from the platform, deepening the support system around each athlete.

More than skill, more than talent

Michigan Elite believes the best athletes in the world share something deeper than just physical skills. “It’s mentality,” say the directors. “We talk about skills all the time, but to handle overwhelming moments you need the confidence and ability to breathe, reset and move forward.”

At Michigan Elite, that mentality is no longer left to chance. It is trained, practiced and woven into the fabric of their program: one breath, one visualization, one athlete at a time.

Neurofuel is the JVA’s Preferred High Performance Mental Training Platform. JVA partners with NeuroFuel to help you build mentally strong athletes and teams. Find out how to get your team up and running here.

Neurofuel is a mental training platform designed to help athletes learn and train the mental techniques proven to help individuals perform to their potential more often when they matter most. The app was created by Dr. Larry Widman (Max Out Mindset) and some of volleyball’s most respected coaches, including Kirsten Bernthal Booth (LOVB, fmr Creighton), Angie Oxley Behrens (Creighton), Craig Dyer (Notre Dame) and Jamie Morrison (Texas A&M, USA Volleyball). Used by more than 1,200 teams and more than 23,000 athletes, Neurofuel supports athletes, coaches and teams in achieving a peak performance mindset and long-term personal growth. More information at www.neurofuelapp.com/