MS Took Her Vision. She Took Her Power Back.

What happens when your dream crashes in front of you—literally—and the world writes your headline for you?

Thirty years ago, Maureen “Mo” Manley was one of the world’s top female cyclists, known for her grit, fire, and relentless climb through the toughest races in the world, including the Tour de France Femmes. But during one of those brutal ascents, her vision suddenly blurred, forcing her out of the race and into a terrifying new reality: a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis. Within a year, the elite cyclist who once devoured hills with fury needed a cane just to walk.

But that wasn’t the end of her story.

In this episode, Mo takes us through that pivotal moment and what came next—how she refused to let a diagnosis define her, and instead became her own greatest research project. From steroids to turning orange from eating too many carrots, biofeedback to nutrition, Mo threw everything at MS with the same passion she brought to the bike. She even designed her own graduate degree in Integrated Wellness, blending science with soul to reclaim her health—and help others do the same.

Mo opens up about the highs, the heartbreaks, and even the hilarious missteps on her way back to the saddle. Along the way, she became a fierce advocate, a single mom, a speaker with heart, and a beacon of hope for anyone facing what feels like an impossible climb.

If you've ever felt limited by a diagnosis, defined by a moment, or unsure how to move forward—this episode is your reminder that the end is often just the beginning.

 Learn more about Maureen and her work at: www.maureenmanley.com

We are two sports chiropractors, seeking knowledge from some of the best resources in the world of health. From our perspective, health is more than just “Crackin Backs” but a deep dive into physical, mental, and nutritional well-being philosophies.

Join us as we talk to some of the greatest minds and discover some of the most incredible gems you can use to maintain a higher level of health. Crackin Backs Podcast

Transcript

Dr. Spencer Baron: 0:00

What if your Olympic dream was shattered by a single moment, but that moment also unlocked an even greater purpose. Meet Maureen Moe Manley, once one of the world's top cyclists, her vision faded mid race during the Tour de France femmes, leading to a crash, an MS diagnosis and a life forever changed. But mo didn't give up. She rewrote the script, from steroids to biofeedback, from orange skin to a master's in integrated wellness, Mo's story is part grit, part grace and all heart. Today, she's not just surviving, MS, she's thriving and helping others do the same. This was a conversation you didn't know you needed. It's raw, it's inspiring, and it's real. Let's get into it.

Dr. Terry Weyman: 0:54

Well, I'm excited I have. Not only do I have one of my best buddies sitting quote next to me virtually, but I have one of my longest, dearest friends on the show, and I am so excited to reintroduce the world to one of America's best cyclists that's ever come out from North America. And yeah, she's now on a show I've known her forever. But welcome Moe manly, how are you? I'm

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 1:20

doing great. It's great to be here with you guys. Great to be with you again here. Dr, Terry,

Dr. Terry Weyman: 1:26

mine it's weird to hear you say. Dr, Terry, but this is this I want the world to first know you were going way back into the 90s. You were one of not only usas, but the world's best cyclist, and multiple, multiple, multiple national championships and, and you, I don't know what year it was, as far as how many times they did, but you were at the Tour de France, the feminine and, and so let's go back to that race, because I want to move forward from the past. We have to establish how great you you are. And then during that race, you had an experience. I remember you calling me and telling me that, I guess, if I remember correctly, that the peloton turned right and you kind of turned left and blurred vision, which led you off a cliff and you had a crash. Did

Unknown: 2:24

you let her tell the story? But I'm gonna let her, and that's

Dr. Terry Weyman: 2:29

how I discovered what you have now. So I want you to kind of tell a story before I get yelled at, or I want you to tell the story, elaborating

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 2:39

on the story. So maybe we should turn it over to me. Yeah, it wasn't a cliff, Cliff. When other people tell a story

Unknown: 2:50

right, the stage is yours. Okay? Thank you.

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 2:54

And I the women's Tour de France was at the time run later than the men's race, and the women's tour is back. Thank Good. Thank goodness with the men's race. But back in 1991 I was racing in the women's Tour de France, and things were, I was feeling some funky things. I thought I was, I was feeling really fatigued. This was the women's Tour de France. Was after the World Championships. So I was the only female cyclist to be the American cyclist to be asked to race in two of the World Championships events, which is kind of what rare, the team time trial and the Rotary. So everything was going great. I had done really good at the National Championships. And so here I am at the Women's Tour de France, and I'm feeling like, this is like I'm in a slump. It's the end of the year. Maybe I'm just, you know, overtired. So the race takes off, and the first stage is a mountain stage, and we've, most of us have seen it on TV. You're racing up with the peloton. Peloton is a group of cyclists that are racing together, and the more we climb, the harder I push my body up the climb up the mountain. My vision was began to blur, and I'm thinking, I just need to stay with the lead riders. And so I'm focused on the wheel of one of the best cyclists in the world, trying to stay with the lead pack. And the more I pushed myself, the more my vision blurred, which was really strange. But as a world class athlete, you feel things in your body, and you know you just have to keep pushing. So I kept pushing, and by the time we reached the top of the mountain, my vision had blurred so severely I lost my sight completely. And what I shared with you, Terry, when I called you, is in a panic. What the heck's going on? Is, what happened was the peloton like turned left and I couldn't see the road, and so I took I just thought, just keep pedaling and pushing. And what happened is the road left. Me, and I hit the gravel on the side of the road and felt my wheels slip out from underneath me, and I found myself crashing to the ground. And I had no idea what was happening at that time. I knew I just needed to get up and get back in the race. And so it took me a while to get back up, and some of the some of the fans on the side of the road helped me, and I get back up, and what happened is, as I was getting up and slowing down, my body temperature was lowering. I didn't know this was what was happening, um, and I got my vision back, and so I got back on my bike and finished the race, and at the finish line, my coaches and teammates were waiting for me because I wasn't with them, and they asked me what what happened? Because I was one of the better climbers and riders on the US team at the time, and I just said, I can't excuse me. There was a little flavorful word that came in there and starts with an F. I said, I can't see when I go hard, and that's all I could understand what was going on. And so, you know, with the crash, what I didn't know at the time is that I rode my bike off Run Road to begin a journey on a new road, and that road would be a life with multiple sclerosis. And this was 24 or excuse me, the math 34 years ago and and at that time, this, this journey with MS, is there weren't any, uh, medications, very much, no known cause or cure or treatment. So it was quite a really trauma for me to to be diagnosed with this at the height of my cycling career, where everything was going so well for me. So that's the turn of France story.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 6:57

When Dr Terry shared that story with me, it was quite a jolt. And I we have so many more things to ask you about your your attitude, mood, and things like that. Just for the listening audience, multiple sclerosis, for those who can't relate to what that really is. It's a it's a think of the any, any wire in your home, and that wire, if it starts to lose it's encasing. It's plastic casing, you would immediately replace it, because it could cause a fire or short circuit or something like that. Your nervous system starts the your immune system starts to attack that sheath around every single nerve in the body, and it starts to wear it down, and that involves spinal cord, brain or the olfactory bulbs that that that feed vision. So that's why that was happening to you, right? Which is shocking to me, that that would happen at such a peak moment in your life. You know from that the you had obviously had to pull out of the Tour de France stage, and one of the headlines that read manly's Olympic dream is dash now, looking back now at that, Could you, would you rewrite that headline and capture what actually happened after that moment? You know I,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 8:21

you don't know that I could rewrite it, because there's a lot of things I can't control. But my Olympic dream see that what was interesting is, when I was first diagnosed in, you know, with the neurologists in Colorado and with my my teammates and really good friends with me, I asked the doctor, the first things out of my mouth was, can I still race? And the doctor said, probably not. And I saw, probably not. Was not no. And so

Unknown: 8:52

I say, there's a chance.

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 8:55

You say there's a chance. And that's, that's what I heard, right? So in 1992 an Olympic year, I wanted to, I wasn't going to not continue to try to to race, because there was so much unknown about ms at the time, it was just a really, really scary diagnosis because of what the potential of what could happen to people. And for me, I'm like, well, there's that potential, and there's this potential, like, maybe it will be mild. And I'm not I'm at that time, I was not going to give up without trying. So so it did turn out that my Olympic dreams were dashed, but not without trying to race in 1992 but I told my teammates and my coaches that if I have problem with my vision or problems with If I can't, you know, generate the power, I'm out. And I did do a couple of races in 1992 that. An Olympic year, and my vision had gotten better than it was at the Tour de France, but not good enough, and I knew what that line was going to be. So as gracefully as I could, I walked off the US team during an Olympic year.

Unknown: 10:17

What sucked, I'm sure,

Dr. Spencer Baron: 10:20

and I'm sure, you know, Dr Terry has been exposed to to, you know, season ending injuries or career ending injuries. And, you know, watching some pro athletes, you know, they either just completely fail and fall apart, but you actually started a new journey. And what was that, you

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 10:41

know, the the journey was, you know, there was a period of genuine devastation, you know, of of losing everything that I'd worked so hard for. I mean, really all my life, when you're athletic, all your life, and then you find this, this, this lane that's totally fit for you. And I was loving what I was doing. But there came a time where, you know, the MS, really, in a very short amount of time, was pretty aggressive. And it was at that time where I just, I felt like more of a victim of it, and being a victim and not taking control and fighting for something was very strange for me, and it didn't feel good. So there was a point in my life where, and I know Dr Terry, I'm remembering that you were, you were you saw me during this, this time that was pretty rough, and I made this really, really powerful decision, and that was to live my life. You know, at that time, it was wobbly legs and blurred vision, and at one point, my vision blurred at rest, so I couldn't function as a sighted person. I was walking with a cane, and this was a year and a half into my diagnosis, and I said, you know, cycling, I loved it. I had to let it go. And if you you know, when you have an open palm, you can receive but if I was holding on to I have to get cycling back. Because, believe me, I was trying to get cycling back. And then I had to do some, well, I had been doing a lot of soul searching, and I said, and I thought to myself, What? What is it about cycling that I love so much, and that was the freedom, the self expression, pushing myself, knowing myself at deeper levels, the camaraderie, a team event. You know, all these things are what I loved. These are aspects of my soul, my psyche. And I had to ask myself, could I still have these things. Could they express in other ways? Because that's who I am, not the cyclists? And the answer was yes, thank goodness. And so I thought, Okay, what do you want to do? And I just needed to start investigating what it is that I wanted to do for myself. I was, always had been radically curious about nutrition and anything that creates peak performance. So I needed to use all those things and apply them to myself and learn more about them. And so, so really, peak performance, performing, performance under pressure. You know, what are those things that are going to help me live my best life? And my focus began to be not on getting my site, my cycling back, but doing whatever I could without an outcome, to be as happy and healthy as I possibly could be. And the journey began, and as I started to investigate, take classes and learn more things, I I eventually went to graduate school to get a master's degree in what, what's, what I called Integrated Wellness. And that was really how, how best to use all of yourself, mind, body and spirit, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. How do you work with everything to create the outcome that you want, and not just compartmentalize thinking, you know, things like, I just need to have a good attitude, or I just need to be smart or strong. It takes all of us to create the best from ourselves, and that was my inquiry in graduate school, and that's what I've been doing for over 20 years with my career helping individuals and audiences as a speaker and as a consultant, just looking at how to bring out the best. And you know, first you need to know what it is you're shooting for. And sometimes we start start like with clients, it's just starting with the basics, you know, like I did, just saying, I want to be as healthy and happy as I can be. So what's what's in the way? Or what do you need to learn to to create that outcome for yourself?

Dr. Spencer Baron: 14:54

Maureen, MO You, you made a important point, and you. The idea. First of all, it's always nice when people give this blanketed statement, come on. You could, you could do this and but you dissect it down. And I think that's so important to reveal some of those, those incremental moments, like the fact that you use the metaphor of holding on to the past. And then you know, what was it that turned you on about cycling, which is something that that people should ask them to what turned them on about, you know, surfing, what turned them on about football, what turned them on about and they go through those stages of grief that everybody goes through, or loss. So it's natural and normal, but to be able to find your direction, your true passion is, was really everything your coach had once called you a demon in the hills, because you obviously fiercely attacked those mountains which we don't have mountains here in South Florida. But anyway, speaking of which, the fact that you had that fearless competitor show up every day in your life? How do you use that competitor in what you're doing now? Or basically how it started, how you moved forward and moved on?

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 16:10

Wow, that's a great question, because she so shows up every day. And this is, this is a big thing that I help a lot of clients with, too, is turn trying to think a way to say it succinctly, that competitor of for me now, 34 years ago, I can't use her in the same way that I do now. I need to understand her because she's fierce, and that fierceness as a person living with MS and thriving with Ms. One of the reasons I can do this is because I know this girl, this fierce gal, and if she because what I learned along the way is the fierce competitor, if I use her the way I did before. So for example, as a professional athlete, I would say not good enough and beat myself harder, you know. And it worked. You can do better, you know. Things need to be tamed now to work to get fitter and stronger, because I'm back cycling and have been cycling now for 22 years, I have to be smarter about how I work with this fierceness to be really wanting to be better from how I was, you know, last last year, either as a professional, as a speaker, as a coach, as an athlete, and I have to go about it in a different way, one of which is a lot more compassion, and the other one is a lot more understanding of science physiology and how my body works and adapts to stress, stress, as you know, mental stress and then also physical stress. Because I don't I train similar to other people, but I have to really listen to my body and in and and and be smart about how it is I go about things. So that's kind of, Am I making sense? That was a big ramble.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 18:14

No, no, not at all. But I want to ask, when you that intensity, that you have, that attack attitude. Were you referring to how you modulate yourself and progress, or how you coach others?

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 18:28

Right? Both, okay, both because I coach others with what I've learned, and also it's not just from what I know. It's also science you know, you just can't jump into any endeavor and be there overnight and and there's a there's a smart way to get there, and first you have to to know yourself and where you are. And you know, like some clients, you know, early on and maybe a diagnosis, they are grieving, and they're saying they're really sad, and they're saying, Well, I don't want to be sad. It's like, Hmm, have you allowed yourself to grieve? Because sometimes you just don't want to be said, you want to get away, away from that, because it's uncomfortable, but that's where you are right now. So how are you doing that, you know? So, so it's just, you know, taking a lot of science and understanding of, you know, how, how we are mentally and emotionally and and not I think my, what I'm trying to say is not just using the it would be the mental aspect of forcing things into being, because that's not using the totality of who we are. We have to understand ourselves emotionally as well. And so when you, you know, look at the emotion and you mentally, you're wanting to do something, you know, attack the hill. You know, attack. For me, it's like, this is a, this is something that I want to go after. I have to understand myself on a that's a mental level, right, of something I want. Uh, emotionally, how am I feeling about it? And then physically, how am I doing? How's my body? Is this really something I can that I can tackle? And then even spiritually, is it aligned with my values and what I really feel called to do? Because if it's, if it's not, it's, um, it's not going to work out so good.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 20:19

I think the core of understanding is of knowing what drives you is knowing what drives you from you know whatever might have happened in the past, and everybody's got kind of a different story. I remember seeing guys that have season ending or career ending injuries, and one guy left such an impact on me, and just looked over at him while he was getting therapy in one of the training rooms. And the book he was reading was, Why me, you know, yeah, why me, but what? How did you use that passion to drive you to get to where you are today? And that's something that I think you have a gift in in figuring out.

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 20:55

Thank you. Well, I want to, I want to throw in there, because it was interesting. Even early in my diagnosis, people would say, Do you ever ask why me? And I didn't. And so the why me, I think what's important is that people ask the question, how me? Because the how is where I really come in. I come in like I like to say I come in as the verb, because there's lots of people that are going to tell you what you should be doing. And you know, all the lists of how you should these are the things you know to be resilient. You know these lists of things you should, should do. And you know those are mental lists. These are the these are the the what's and I come in with a house and and that's the way you get things done. That's

Dr. Spencer Baron: 21:44

beautiful. I like that. Thank you. So, so the intensity that brought you to cycling, obviously, was the same intensity used to fix things that once you found out about the diagnosis. And I actually have a couple friends that I graduated with, and you know, at this age, we have our, you know, reunions, and I see one of them struggling with MS, and I would love for her to listen to this. But from what I understand, one month after your doctor prescribed these steroids to you, then you heard about eating carrots were good for you and you now we know that too many carrots will turn your skin orange. Is that I was orange? Yes,

Unknown: 22:27

orange. And then

Dr. Spencer Baron: 22:28

there's the biofeedback, and then the nutrition to boost your immune system. What have you learned from blending conventional medicine with alternative approaches over the years?

Dr. Terry Weyman: 22:37

Oh, boy,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 22:38

I wish. I'm gonna try to be succinct, um, for me, a lot of time, the whole carrot, it was a juicing therapy that I was doing at the time, because I was going to fix this, right? If anybody could fix this disease, I could, I thought. And so it was very much a fixing attitude and, and because, because of fear, right? So I wanted, I wanted to fix it so I could go back and what I learned after doing some crazy things and actually having them harm me, I said I will never live out of desperation ever again. I made this decision to live forward with, with this disease, with blurred vision, with walking with a cane like I'm not living in fear this is not going to work for me. And so what I learned with all the stuff that I was learning about nutrition is that, how am I simply putting this information in this knowledge and this application to work for what it is that I'm wanting for myself and not looking at the fear of having ms, but looking at it to fuel me forward without I think this was a big thing. What really helped me is not looking for an end result and like, I'm going to do this to fix it. I'm going to do this so I can get my cycling back. I'm going to do it for a kind of a bigger thing, to be healthy and happy and and so I began more investigation and all these alternative stuff. And I had been working since, you know, since Dr Terry graduated, I been working with him as a chiropractor. I knew that worked well for me, and I've never not sought chiropractic care and and some things I've tried haven't worked as well. So it's, it's, you know, a lot of time when people are diagnosed with something or facing something, you hear a lot of stuff. And, you know, early on, I was just doing everything. I hardly ate anything because I was following so many different diets, you know, like, you don't do this, you know, have this and, you know, but I had to find out what would work for me and and to ask myself, it's, it's a continue. Need question, why are you doing this and and if it's comes from, it's it's kind of this intuitive feel too. If it feels right, is this the direction I need to, need to go. I want to go because I want to. I do my darndest to not work out of fixing our our shoulds, yeah, you know when, when I hear a fix in my mind, I know like, this is, this is for me. It's not the energy I want to have moving forward, because it's usually based out of fear. Could

Dr. Spencer Baron: 25:36

you share what's worked for you? And please, listening audience, this is not medical advice, you know, just the thought process that it's gone on. So what? What has helped?

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 25:48

You know, nutrition for sure, chiropractic care for sure, in a variety of different sorts of chiropractic care and in acupuncture, I've done a lot of different kind of body works. I've done I, you know, one of the even, you know, working with, I'm trying to think of the name, but it's spiritual healing, Reiki type stuff. You know, one of my mentors is a PhD biophysicist. Is a spiritual healer. She I work with her a lot, and studied a lot with her and and, like, I'm just trying to think, like, what haven't what? What have I not done? But the main thing that I focus on is the the the body work and and the nutrition when I and there's things that I've done that have gotten me to a certain level, like certain supplements that I've taken that really, kind of really address something for my for me, something that was maybe missing or really helped, and then they stopped working as well. And so it was like I was doing that, and then, you know, I advance on to the next thing. I'm currently not doing acupuncture, but for a time that was awesome for you know, I always think acupuncture is great. I just really don't have the time in my my in my life right now to do that, to add it. But if something came up for me that I know that acupuncture helped me with in my past. I have that in my arsenal to say, Yeah, this, this works with that, or this person I worked with. I worked with an A program that addresses allergies with acupuncture. It was called the Bucha pod Allergy Elimination Technique. I did that for years. It helped. I don't do it anymore, you know. So there's certain things that I felt that I've done that have taken me to the next level, and then, you know, they don't work as well as they did. And I, you know, I'm just grateful I found them. And you know, you know, cons, you know, asking, asking the heavens of like, what's next? What else do I need to do? Certain nutritionists that I've worked with do different things, like muscle testing to find imbalances and stuff like that, or, you know, variety of different things that really address me, just not you need to take this because you have Ms. There's some things for MS that really help. I mean, fish oil and vitamin D, you know, there's, there's, there's certain things that are kind of global. But then there's, you know, looking at what's a natural I work with naturopaths always have, you know, do lots of blood work and to see if there's something missing. Because of a lot of times when we have things, you know, these diagnosis, we think it's all that. Sometimes it's not. There's something else going on in our bodies. And what is, MS, nobody knows. There's some reason my immune system thought my the myelin in my brain and spinal cord, an optic nerve thought it was foreign. So, so what do I do to address a funky immune system, and at 34 years into my diagnosis, I don't have the same condition that I did when I was younger. What I need to look at now, and work with naturopaths, about with and I do my own research as well, is is looking at the zombie the zombie cells, right? So senolytics, a lot of things that you guys do with longevity, and working with people with longevity, it's like, what's going on there where damage in my spine, brain and spinal cord, I need to look at it's not as inflammatory anymore. I need to protect those lesions. And so there's things called microglial that think damage needs to be cleaned up, and it actually makes it worse. So what can I take to address micro it's called microglial activation. So that's more of my ink. For you now. So my my point in sharing this is just is to show that over time how I work with my body and what it needs and what needs addressing. Because a lot it changes. Finish my sentence, it changes. So any you know, I work a lot with newly diagnosed people, and their condition is hotter than mine, it their immune system is, is, is more activated than than mine is as a older woman than they are with MS, so does that? Did that make sense? Oh, yeah, making sense, yes.

Dr. Terry Weyman: 30:40

And what for the for the listened audience. You know, a year, a year and a half ago, into her diagnosis, she was walking very unsteady with a cane, and she was you were even told you'd probably be in the wheelchair within a couple years, and now you're walking very steady, you don't have a cane, you're not in a wheelchair. You're you're you're on your bike. You've even done races again, and you've defied everything that everybody shot at, yeah? So when you see a new patient who looks at you as like, this enigma, almost like, Well, yeah, do I have this? How do you address that new patient? Because you went back and you did. You got your degree in Integrative Science. You even got really into iridology of people's eyes, and figuring out how that works, and how did you How do you take what you navigate both as a patient and as an educator? What's your first conversation with somebody that newly diagnosis and and to give them hope and get at least going in the right direction that you did not have. You didn't have a roadmap. You figured out the roadmap. Now. So what is a what kind of roadmap you bring out to this new person who's scared to death?

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 31:52

Yeah, you know, great question. Terry, the first thing I do is validate them where they are, because it's a human need, not a want to be validated for what's going on. Because so often people just they have this diagnosis, they're scared to death, or have this crazy symptoms going on, and everyone's telling them what they need to do, because they care, and there's a lot of shoulds coming at them. And so with me this weekend, right? Don't shoot on people, because I know that I was told to have a good attitude and, you know, be positive. And it's like, you know what's going on with me here. So, so validate them for where they are, and in work with them where they are. You know, if they're if they're really in a place of grieving, we're going to talk about that, and we're also going to say that that's not all you do. And if you find yourself only doing that, we'll talk because that's not okay. And, you know, I would point them to someone else, because I'm, I'm really good with that, but if there's, you know, depression or something like that, so anyways, I don't want to go down that, so we'll talk about that. Because the validation is, it's amazing how much they feel like, wow, you're, you're telling me that what I'm feeling, is okay to feel yes and, and that's the thing Yes. And we're also going to work on creating the life that you want. Do you, you know, let's, let's look at and, depending where they are, it could be this, you know, an exercise around, what are the things that you loved about, you know, the life that they feel like they lost. And how can we work at creating something exciting? And that's the thing exciting to move into. But it's hard to move into something exciting if they're if they're newly diagnosed, because there's too much going on in their head. There's too much to solve. You know, like there's, there were no treatments for MS when I was diagnosed, and now there's, I lost count. There's like, 16 or something, and there's a lot to have to figure out. And you know, the there's so much uncertainty that they're dealing with. And uncertainty is, is it's hard when you're dealing with a lot of unsolved things, to look to build a life forward, and sometimes it's just that acknowledging that you will and letting them know you will get past this right now, you need to focus on this part and and after that, like if people have had the disease for for a while, what we need to untangle is what's in the way, what thoughts, beliefs, expectations are in the way of you living forward and creating more of what it is they want for themselves, and sometimes it's identifying it. But. Because if you don't know and you're afraid of moving forward, because even moving forward with is is uncertainty, and uncertainty is scary. And so sometimes, by default, people get more into a victim mentality, because the uncertainty and the fear is is too big. And so when we know what those things are, we can break them down, but we got to shed some light on it. And when you know what those thoughts, beliefs and fears are that might be getting in the way, you don't just jump in, you break them down, because we'll only psychology will tell us you can only move at the level that you believe you can achieve at. So what are those so? So what are the beliefs? And can you do this? And I, usually, I do my darndest to make success. Loves success, right? And you can build momentum on that. So simple, doable exercises for people to really feel like, well, okay, I'm moving. And then what happens over time is amazing. I just it's amazing for me to witness what some of my clients are up to now, from where we started.

Dr. Terry Weyman: 36:07

Well, you're one of my lifelong favorite human beings on the planet, and you were one of my the big, biggest gifts, working with you as an athlete and for the Listen audience we all knew on race day not to talk to Mo. She was the most intense human being on the planet, and she would just eat you up, and you just didn't talk to her on race day. However, after the race, she was one of the funniest people, and had the best sense of humor. She was, like, this bipolar human being. It was like, intense and funny looking back on your journey all this, is there anything that stands out that was just downright funny in hindsight about this diagnosis? Oh,

Unknown: 36:49

funny. Oh, my gosh,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 36:53

I don't, yeah, it's, you know, it takes so long to be able to laugh at something, you know, the the, yeah, you know, it's what's interesting, Terry, is how you because I'm still the same way. I can be really intense, and then on the other side, just, you know, laughing about it. So, you know, I can only look back and in say, how, how? I don't know if it's laughing, but just see where I've come and from where I was, and so uncertain and so really fearful and and just like it would be more of a smile to say, look, look where you come and you, you, you were so frightened that you wouldn't be able to make it. And I can, I can smile at that.

Dr. Terry Weyman: 37:44

So when, when Ms would throw you a curve ball, because you'd be like, Oh, I'm on it, on the right track, and then, boom, we would throw you a curve ball. How would you laugh at yourself to get yourself out of that chaos, to get you back on track?

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 37:57

Did you know I would when I get too serious, you know, is to like, there she is. And you can do this and stress yourself out, or you can do what you know you can do. You always get out of it. And you know, to laugh at that aspect of myself, that that that might be scared or think that I have to have things certain ways, because it's not how it works. And I just know that life is is not like that, you know what? Maybe when I was younger, more naive, I thought it was and and there's just needs to be a, you know, calm down, assess and look at, you know, the quivers that you have in your in, you know, my bag to shoot from, and there's so many, I have so many tools, but if I'm not acknowledging them, it's laughable, but also sad, if I spend any Time, any amount of time thinking that I don't have any kind of control over my life.

Dr. Terry Weyman: 39:07

I remember we always Spencer that I have always, you know, if you tell Napi to do 10 push ups, I do 100 I remember, I remember one time when you were doing the carrot thing, and I showed up and you were like, bright orange. I'm like, What the hell were you thinking? Drink a couple, you know, blood carrot. I go, yeah, not the entire crop,

Unknown: 39:32

bags of carrots weekly. It was, you look like

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 39:41

and so, yes, we're laughing at it now, but at that time, it was, is desperation to fix it. Like somebody said, I could if I follow this therapy, you know, it'd be better. And I would do anything. If someone said, stand on your head for a week. I'd do it if I could get my life back. And it's like, and that's where even, you know. Even today, in the language, the way people language things like, you know, the fear part of it is, I want my life back. And it's like, well, what aspects of back? Because going backwards in time isn't really a thing. So we're living forward always. You know, the clock is is ticking. So, so what is it about back? Because I'm clear about when people say I want my life back, and let's get clear about what those are. And, yeah, and it is, it is, in hindsight, funny about being a orange Oompa Loompa. I wasn't eating them and sprouting everything. And, you know, yeah, the first when I went to a training camp, the US national team training camp, and I remember, it's just this story just popped in my head. So I was juicing, I brought my carrots and my juicer, and I was also sprouting everything. And I remember Lance Armstrong laughing at me so and then, so, you know, his life moves forward, and he gets cancer, and he's doing all these, you know, alternative, I don't know how much juicing he was, but he was focusing on that kind of stuff. I'm like, see, do what you can for yourself.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 41:32

So, yeah, we've had podcasts where we've had people that come back from, you know, lost limbs and being shot at, and I mean near death experiences, almost, you know, suicides and not actually following, so hearing your story and but yet, you know, it's just another challenge, but be able to decipher how you overcome and and create humor. But I also want you to comment on one of your life's and most people's lives, toughest challenges, one of the, one of the things that that that you are probably most proud of. And you think I'm going to be talking about cycling, but I want to ask you about your son and how you, you know, facilitated his, his, his growth, and that grit and discipline that you use from elite cycling, did it? Did it help? Did was it? Was it, you know, sometimes it can backfire when you try to put that on your son. Share those moments with us. Oh, thank

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 42:38

you. When you start saying before you even said, Son is like my greatest accomplishment, my greatest joy is, is Him, and He's 28 now and and what's beautiful, and I'm blessed with such a kind See, I wasn't going to cry about MS, but I'll cry about my Son. I'm so proud of him. I am blessed because he tells me what I mean to him and and he'll say, without you, Mom and I, you know, like you taught me, you showed me. And he'd say, like he the company he was working for got bought out, and so he was unemployed for just a little bit because he got a job yesterday, and during that time, he reflected a lot about what I've shown him, what I've taught him, and I'm like, really, like, I didn't know that. And and you don't, we don't, as parents, we don't always get to know everything. And I'm blessed that he, he shares these things with me, and for me in my journey with with him too. Because, you know, nobody is a perfect parent. When he was younger, I'd be a little bit more. This is what you need to do, you know. And I was a single mom too, so it was like I got to do all this, you know, teaching, but then, you know, just the the compassion and the care and the love and the understanding that I learned to give myself, I could then give someone else, because if we can't Give it to ourselves, it's kind of impossible to genuinely give it away. So, um, So has he, yeah, I think, you know, in grade school, especially with speaking, because he's a really good speaker, and he's an actor that I would be really on top of him about stuff like that. And it's like, you know, some of this stuff just needs to be organic. And when I got out of the way with certain things, he could shine, because I didn't tell him how to be an actor, and he did a great job. I mean, he does sales because he's such a people person. So any

Unknown: 44:57

so do. Being there for him and supporting him is, is,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 45:04

is been a huge thing, and and teaching him to fight for what he wants, I think that's the biggest thing. That's things don't you patience things don't happen overnight, and be patient with yourself and when, whenever, whenever. It's always hardest, when it's new, you know, and that you will do it. You'll get there and and now, you know, we had that talk yesterday with his his new position, and he had to learn those things himself in his first position, about, you know, execution and what it takes to build. You know, he's, he's in sales, so, um, just, yeah, boy, uh, patience is a big thing, and continuing to work hard on the goals that you that you want to attain. So there's a, there's a synopsis for you. It's like, how to talk about love. I don't know. No,

Dr. Spencer Baron: 46:02

that's great. You led by example rather than preaching, right? And I think that's sometimes the most. I think

Unknown: 46:09

so, I hope so

Dr. Spencer Baron: 46:10

as a parent, yeah, because you know what, they watch you. They watch you closely. And just the fact that you almost got choked up, I can get choked up just as well, because I love my kids and yeah, thank you for sharing that.

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 46:23

Thanks for asking that's like my favorite.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 46:27

Yeah, so you're I would like to ask you for some insight and some maybe some encouragement that you would like to share you know from your journey with people that may be listening or that know somebody who's at the beginning of their journey or still having a difficult time. You know well into their journey. You know you've been involved in all these other programs like MS fitness challenge and where you encourage people you know, holistically, self empowering. Tell us some things that you would share with someone in those predicaments?

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 47:03

Yeah, well, that's a great question. I'll try to be succinct here, I think, in the beginning of a diagnosis, give yourself the understanding that this is new and that you're you're only capable of dealing with so much at once. And so if you're sad, you're confused. Name it. I'm sad and I'm confused and, um, and right now I need to deal with this. And, you know, sometimes people are newly diagnosed and they still need to work and all that kind of stuff. So just give it to yourself how much stuff you're you're juggling, because I hear a lot of, I should, I need to, or whatever. But you you are where you are, feel what you feel, and then also get clear about what's important in your life. Because a lot of times with life challenges like this, it is important to get really clear about what's important, because you may not have the energy and the bandwidth to do everything. And what we can find out is a lot of the everything's are the shoulds that we really don't want to be doing anyways, but we don't want to say no, are, you know, so, so just getting clear about things that are kind of a time suck and energy suck, and always come back throughout the journey come back to kindness, because what can happen so often is our little brains are telling us what we should be doing, and we think we're if we clobber ourselves more, we're going to get ourselves there. But when you're motivating yourself with with more negative things, you won't want to move into uncertainty, because the more uncertainty you're moving into, the more you're clobbering yourself. And you don't even know what's going on. You better you have to, you should, you know, all that kind of stuff. Instead of motivating yourself with I wants, I wants a carrot, I I, I should or I need to is more of a clobber you know, and you don't want to be clobbered. And so what that can be one of the roadblocks for moving forward, either when you're newly diagnosed or newly dealing with something, or along the journey, because if you're not clear about what it is you want, and this is what my term is, and when I work with people like I want them to have the analogy they want for me, fighting for is a good analogy, instead of fighting against. So fighting for is a want, and it's a carrot. So being clear about what those things are, because people can get lost in the a default, a victim mentality, anywhere in life when you feel like things are just happening to you, that you don't have any control. As long as we have choice, we have control, not over everything. I mean, the thing is, so we're victimized. Things happen, but we don't have to take the stance of being a victim. Uh, but we don't need to deny being victimized. So making the choices and always know you have a choice, and sometimes we have to flex a lot of courage at things and just to know what wherever you are and you're not happy, you know, where's the anxiety coming from a lot of the anxiety can come from wanting to feel safe, wanting to feel certain and wanting to have answers to things. And you have to realize you might not feel safe and certain and have the answers to move forward. You don't have to jump. You just have to do something that will pull you in the direction that you want, and then you take the next step, and then you can continue to create this activation, which gives you the confidence that you are capable to move and to create and to have success and to build success while Having some significant challenges in your life.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 51:02

That's a nutshell. I believe that a good metaphor for someone at home, listening or watching is that you want to determine, you know, are you? Are you the overweight person that puts a picture of a fat person on the on your refrigerator, or a skinny, you know, svelte looking person, because you're that will allow you to realize whether you're motivated by an incentive or motivated by by by away from pain. And I think that, you know, a lot of people need to determine what, what drives them. You know, are you that person that wait? You know, you're given a report to do over the summer. Do you wait till that last, you know couple days beforehand? Or do you do you know very in the very beginning, and now we are entering what I think is going to be a very fun stage of our podcast, and that is our rapid fire questions. And it will require you to think kind of quick on your feet and briefly, but it's also fun and inspiring. Are you ready for question of number one of five? Yes,

Unknown: 52:12

I think all right. Do I have a choice? No, we're gonna, we're gonna test that Mileage sheet. Yeah. See,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 52:25

I'm looking excuses already.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 52:28

Bring it no mercy for mode. Question number one, I was surprised to learn what you once wanted to be a forest ranger. Oh yes, tell us the truth. Was it Yogi Bear that cartoon or another reason,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 52:42

it's my love of the outdoors and the National Parks I absolutely loved. I still do. I still do. And wanted to be a forester. I actually wanted to be a rescue Ranger. I wanted to be one of those people that went in there and, you know, search and rescue, that kind of stuff, and being out there and immersed in the mountains? Yes, there's still a part of me that wants to do that. There's

Dr. Spencer Baron: 53:08

your alternative to cycling. There you go. Question number two, what is the biggest myth that comes with the diagnosis of MS that still drives you a little crazy?

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 53:18

Yes, the biggest myth is it's this, well, typically it's this because I don't chronic progressive disease, and it is chronic, but we can work our we can work at having it not be progressive, and so to see it as a death sentence, which everybody was when I was first diagnosed. And I was like, like, I was so angry about, you know, the newspapers and magazines just seeing me as this, this awful case, and I knew in my soul that that's not the case for me and and so it's not. It is it is a awful condition, but there are things that you can do. Fired up about it's

Unknown: 54:05

good. There

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 54:07

are things that you can do to benefit and promote your health while living within us.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 54:13

Very good. Question number three, now we've been clear that you raised your son as a solo parent, but now you're, you're married to an amazing man, Paul, yes, I hope he listens to this podcast. What was the what was the hardest, yet most rewarding thing about getting married later in life?

Dr. Terry Weyman: 54:34

Oh,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 54:36

hardest. You know. The thing is, I had been single for so long, I thought I'm so independent. How am I going to do this? How am I going to live with another person? Right? And the rewarding part was to say I love this man, and I want to do this, and I'm going to have to live into the uncertainty of it, and I have found that I like what. Being with him more than I like being alone. We're great together, and we mesh together. He can be in the house. I mean, we've both worked from home. We're together a lot. And I thought, I didn't know that there was anybody on the planet I could spend so much time with so so later in life, I think that's what's different, is that we met, well, we've known each other for a long time, but because we were friends for like, I don't know, 17 years and but later in life, you have more things kind of sorted out. You're not, you know, sorting it out as as you grow older. So we mesh now. We mesh now. So I was concerned about that, and I knew that I just needed to to jump in and, you know, we'd work it out. But there hasn't been a lot to work out. I mean, certainly lots of conversations about things. But it surprised the heck out of me how radically un independent I am.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 56:07

Great. Dr, Terry, you know, I'm going to take a clip of question number three and send it to my current girlfriend Karen, because that is the same attitude that and feelings that she had. Oh, you know, she's been independent for a long time. Yeah. Question number four, what is your favorite go to movie that will always make you laugh,

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 56:36

always make me laugh. My favorite one that always makes me laugh? Oh, you got me on that one because he had me at favorite. Um, so I'm gonna stick with favorite, because it makes me smile, whether it makes me laugh. I'm sorry, I know you want a funny one, but my favorite, which might surprise you, is the sound of music. We're alive. I just I know the heels are alive. And there is something, when you look into it, about that woman, that independent nun, and you know, being out, just being an oddball, you know she wasn't, you know she wasn't. She didn't, she didn't beat to the sound of everybody's anybody's drawn but her own. And I always have admired her deeply. And the whole story that says, See, I'm gonna get all it makes me smile, and sometimes it makes me laugh, and especially if you heard me sing along, that would be funny.

Dr. Terry Weyman: 57:32

Oh, I'm so excited, but

Dr. Spencer Baron: 57:36

I'm sure you sound exactly like Julie Andrews, I'll let it, unless you're in your car and the volume, have you heard her saying? Dr, Terry, no, okay,

Unknown: 57:53

you watch Sound of Music. No, he did not hear me sing. Actually,

Dr. Terry Weyman: 58:02

I may have back in the cycling days, all the girls would get together and they would start singing. That was always the oddball out. So yeah, probably

Unknown: 58:11

I will sing in a group.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 58:14

Last and final question, Bo, it's about the word greatness, and what your definition of that word means to you.

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 58:24

Hmm, you know, the first thing I'm talking about is being the best that you can possibly be and and, you know, in order to do that, you do need to face fears, and you do need to move into uncertainty, and you do need to go after things so, so greatness. You know, sometimes we see people that, you know, we see a greater achieve things, and we don't always see what goes into that. And just the courage that's there is is huge. Everyone has to fight obstacles and beliefs and fears and all that kind of stuff. So, so greatness is, for me, you know about tackling the things that keep you from your your potential and just being as good as you can be by following the biggest thing is following your North Star. What it is that success and greatness means to you, and then how? How do you live that? The how is you got to answer those questions, yeah.

Dr. Spencer Baron: 59:28

Maureen Manley, I have to say that your your whole story, is so unique and inspiring, and it appears that your mission today is to assist in helping others solve their confusion and paradox and bringing them up. And I really love to hear that stuff. So if you have any final words to say, this is your stage, yeah.

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 59:56

Well, thank you. I mean that. That sums it up. And, um. You know, I'm happy to come into the verb for you know, the people that and the organizations that you know want the understanding of just exactly. How do you do this? So I appreciate your reflections, and I'm, I'm happy to be following my North Star. It's

Dr. Terry Weyman: 1:00:17

great. Love you girl. So thank you so much for for hanging out with us for this hour and and you're one of my favorite humans on plants. So love. Have seen you as always. And give my love to Paul. And thank you for everything you do for everybody out there.

Maureen "Mo" Manley: 1:00:33

Well, you're very welcome. And thank you guys too for doing this, this stuff. It's so great to be giving this information out to people. Thank

Dr. Spencer Baron: 1:00:42

you. Thank you for listening to today's episode of The cracking backs podcast. We hope you enjoyed it. Make sure you follow us on Instagram at cracking backs podcast. Catch new episodes every Monday. See you next time you.