The Calm Cockpit Podcast

Bonus Episode (Season 2)

Whether you’re living out of a suitcase or looking to future-proof your health, this episode delivers clear, actionable guidance to help you stay strong, focused, and mission-ready. 

In this bonus episode airline pilot, mentor, and author Jeffrey “JJ” Madison shares how he successfully returned to the cockpit at age 60 after a 14-year hiatus—and the specific approach that made it possible. Drawing from decades of experience, JJ outlines practical strategies for maintaining physical strength, mental clarity, and emotional resilience amid the unpredictable demands of airline operations.

This conversation reframes pilot well-being as a professional performance requirement, not a lifestyle preference. JJ encourages pilots to train for life, treating aviation like a sport where fitness, recovery, and sleep are essential to safety, longevity, and consistency on the line.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
Why functional fitness matters more than training for a single athletic goal.

How to maintain training consistency on the road with limited time and equipment.

Why strength training outperforms cardio for metabolism, immunity, and energy.

Practical airport and hotel nutrition hacks to avoid hidden sugars and excess calories.

How sleep hygiene and nervous system downregulation support recovery and decision-making.

Why rest, sweating, and recovery are critical to long-term performance.

How mindset and humor build mental resilience in high-stress aviation environments.

JJ also challenges the outdated stereotype of the “airline pilot body,” advocating for a new standard of strength, mobility, and professionalism that supports career longevity and safe operations.

Season 2 Episode 2

 

In this episode we welcome our first repeat guest, Jeffrey “JJ” Madison. A Harvard-educated flight instructor, mentor, airline pilot, aviation advocate, and author, JJ has accomplished something few pilots ever do—returning to the airlines at age 60 after a 14-year hiatus. His story, and the discipline behind it, underscores that personal accountability for our lifestyle choices is not optional in aviation—it’s a safety imperative. 

JJ reframes flying as an athletic performance, where physical conditioning, cognitive clarity, and deliberate recovery are not optional wellness habits but essential safety systems. In an operational environment shaped by altitude exposure, fatigue, disrupted circadian rhythms, and sustained decision-making demands, the pilot’s body and mind function as mission-critical components of the aircraft system.

The discussion connects fitness, sleep, nutrition, and mental health to real-world safety outcomes. Cardiovascular conditioning supports oxygen utilization and brain performance, while strength training and intentional recovery reduce fatigue-related errors over long duty days. Hydration and stable nutrition help prevent cognitive fog and energy crashes that degrade judgment, and unmanaged personal stress is identified as a leading human factors risk. By addressing physical and mental health proactively—before they manifest as distraction or impairment—pilots reduce operational risk, protect their medical longevity, and strengthen the safety margin for their crews and passengers.

 

Links:

YIKES! 100 Smart Pilots and the Dumb Things They Did Yet Lived to Tell About ‘Em   A Great Book for a Great Cause! Fueling the Next Generation of Aerospace Professionals.
Every copy sold provides scholarships and equipment to under-resourced flight schools, Civil Air Patrol squadrons and STEM programs through the Victor Kilo Fund, a non-profit, aerospace education foundation.

Season 2 Episode 1

Aviation demands precision, resilience, and flawless execution—but what happens when the pressure to perform leaves no room to be human?

In this episode we explore the deep mission that motivated us to create this podcast: addressing a long-standing gap in aviation culture around mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing. Our conversation examines why stress, anxiety, fatigue, and fear are so prevalent among pilots—and why traditional “push through it” thinking no longer serves safety or performance.

To help us, we invited podcaster and guest expert Avi Gordon to guide the discussion. Along with his podcast skills, Avi is a mind-body coach, meditation teacher, and Director of the Integral Yoga Teachers Association. 

Avi helps us dig into the core paradox of pilot life: that the profound love of flying is inseparable from the fear of losing one’s career and identity. This fear drives perfectionism, discourages vulnerability, and often prevents pilots from seeking help—medical or otherwise. From training events to line flying, the pressure to appear flawless creates a constant “performance self,” leaving little space for authentic wellbeing.

 

You’ll hear why most mistakes aren’t caused by lack of skill, but by lack of presence—being stuck in future worry or past self-judgment. The episode reframes self-care not as a personal indulgence, but as a practical, safety-oriented performance tool that directly supports focus, decision-making, and consistency in the cockpit.

 

To put the discussion into action, Avi shares a simple, actionable framework pilots can actually use—without needing hours of meditation or lifestyle overhauls. His 8 Practical Tools for Pilot Wellbeing can be put into action immediately and yet provide profound results. 

 

This episode is an invitation to rethink what strength, professionalism, and peak performance really look like. It’s time to embrace the core concepts of self-care as part of aviation culture, turning pilot wellbeing into a prerequisite for every training and flight.

 

Helpful Links:

Avi's Coaching: Mind Body Coaching for Peak Performance 

Avi's Book: A Light in the Tunnel Audiobook and Paperback

Integral Yoga Podcast: Hosted by Avi. Discussions on yoga, spirituality, and conscious evolution

Avi's Newsletter Sign-Up

In this bonus episode join Yoga Therapist Lisa Danahy for a short mental wellness reset.

Designed for pilots and flight instructors with demanding schedules, this brief practice uses simple physical movement and controlled breathing to help calm the nervous system and release built-up tension—without requiring long meditation sessions or special conditions.

This resiliency reset is ideal for use between flights, before duty, or during transitions; supporting improved focus, emotional regulation, and steady presence throughout the day. By integrating short nervous system breaks like this, pilots can move from task to task with greater clarity, balance, and resilience.
Perfect for when time is limited—but focus matters.

 

Create Calm: resources and more information about Yoga Therapist Lisa Danahy

Episode 25

In this episode Yoga Therapist Lisa Danahy explores the physiology of resilience and why true calm is not a personality trait, but rather a trainable skill. Drawing clear parallels between yoga, neuroscience, and aviation, Lisa explains how pilots can regulate stress responses in both acute emergencies and the cumulative pressure of long-term training.

Resilience is the body’s ability to move out of fear-based survival responses and return to clear, executive functioning—a capacity governed by the vagus nerve, the HPA axis, and the parasympathetic nervous system. The key is learning how to practice regulation during ordinary moments so calm becomes instinctive when it matters most.

We also discuss the limits of a perfectionist mindset and how to reframe our rigid thinking into a growth-mindset that prioritizes curiosity and learning.

Links:

The Schiff Show: Aviation Education Variety Show with legendary aviator Brian Schiff "Final Approach to Tragedy; Checklist and Discipline Gone Wrong" December 11 episode with John Niehaus. WINGS credit available!

Create Calm: Workshops, classes, and professional training that empowers children, educators, parents, and professionals with practical, evidence-based tools that support the well-being of the whole person—mentally, emotionally, and physically.

 

Creating Calm in Your Classroom: A Mindfulness-Based Movement Program for Social-emotional Learning in Early Childhood Education

 

What separates a calm cockpit from catastrophe? A recent study out of Griffith University in Australia is shedding new light on why some pilots handle in-flight emergencies better than others.