In Part 2 of Jami and Greg’s conversation with Taylor Crowell, we pick up her bodybuilding journey right where we left off: entering the national stage, chasing her pro card, stepping into the IFBB Pro League, and eventually earning her place on the Olympia stage.
But the most valuable part of Taylor’s story isn’t simply where she placed.
It’s how she responded when things didn’t go according to plan.
Taylor went from placing fourth at her first national show to 15th at another, then sixth, then fifth at a regional show—only to turn around weeks later and win her class at Universe and earn her pro card.
And becoming a pro didn’t suddenly make everything easier.
There were disappointing shows, coaching changes, extreme protocols, moments when Taylor questioned whether she wanted to continue competing, and seasons when she needed to step away from the stage and actually build.
Through it all, Taylor kept learning.
Her story reminds us that bodybuilding isn’t about creating a perfect upward trajectory. It’s about developing the resilience, patience, self-awareness, and support system necessary to keep moving forward.
5 Key Takeaways from the Episode
1. Surround Yourself With People Who Challenge You to Level Up
Taylor remembers being excited to reach the national stage because she wanted to compete against athletes who were just as serious as she was.
She didn't want an easy win.
She wanted to stand beside women who were consistently training, following their plans, improving their physiques, and showing up with the same competitive drive.
There’s something powerful about choosing environments where you may not be the best person in the room.
Instead of being intimidated by people who are further ahead, allow them to show you what's possible.
As Jami and Greg discuss, there’s value in running alongside people who are faster than you.
You might get beat.
You might discover weaknesses you didn't realize you had.
But you also get information about where you need to grow.
Don't always search for the room where you can win. Sometimes the room that stretches you is the one that changes you.
2. Great Coaching Meets the Athlete Where They Are
One of the strongest coaching lessons in this episode is that there is no single perfect bodybuilding formula.
Taylor had to learn a tremendous amount independently during her earlier competitive years. She studied her training, tracked what she was feeling, evaluated foot placement and exercise execution, practiced posing, and gathered data about her own body.
Today, those experiences influence the way she coaches.
Taylor recognizes that what works beautifully for her may overwhelm another athlete.
She may personally be comfortable meticulously tracking variables like sodium and potassium, but another athlete may find that level of detail mentally exhausting. A good coach recognizes the difference.
The goal isn't to create athletes who all behave exactly like their coach.
The goal is to understand the individual athlete well enough to determine what helps that person progress.
As Taylor puts it, bodybuilding should add to your life, not take away from it, and the goal should be progress over perfection.
That's applicable far beyond bodybuilding.
The most sophisticated plan in the world isn't very valuable if someone can't realistically execute it.
3. Hard Doesn't Have to Mean Destructive
Competition prep is hard.
There will be hunger. There will be fatigue. There will be days when cardio isn't exciting and another chicken-and-rice meal isn't exactly calling your name.
That discomfort isn't necessarily a problem.
In fact, Greg points out that learning how to move through difficult experiences can be one of bodybuilding's greatest gifts.
But there's an important difference between doing something difficult and following an unnecessarily extreme protocol.
Taylor experienced periods in her career when she was eating extremely low calories while performing enormous amounts of cardio. Eventually she reached a point where she felt she had two choices: retire from bodybuilding or find a different approach.
That distinction matters.
We don't need to remove every difficult moment from fitness or life. Growth frequently requires discomfort.
But suffering shouldn't become the goal.
Sometimes the most mature decision an athlete can make is recognizing that working harder isn't solving the problem—and that a different strategy is needed.
The hard days count. But hard days should still be moving you toward something healthier and better.
4. A Placing Is Feedback—Not Your Identity
Taylor's competitive history is a beautiful example of why one placing should never define an athlete.
At one regional show, she placed fifth.
Taylor believed she had brought the conditioning necessary for a national stage, but against the particular lineup that day, she stood out differently from the athletes around her.
Instead of allowing that fifth-place finish to convince her she wasn't good enough, Taylor used it as fuel.
Weeks later, she competed at Universe, won her class, and earned her IFBB Pro card.
That lesson followed her into the professional ranks.
Her early pro experiences weren't always what she wanted. But instead of viewing a disappointing result as proof that she didn't belong, she continued gathering information, making adjustments, and learning what her physique needed.
Eventually, those lessons came together.
At the Atlantic Coast Pro, Taylor stepped onstage alongside incredible competitors—including an athlete she deeply respected—and earned her Olympia qualification in only her fourth professional show.
Your placing tells you what happened that day, with that physique, against that lineup, under those judging circumstances.
It doesn't get to tell you who you are.
Take the feedback.
Make the adjustment.
Then keep going.
5. Focus on Building the Physique, Not Chasing the Calendar
One of the biggest mindset shifts in Taylor's journey came when the focus moved away from simply getting back onstage.
Jami explains it beautifully:
The stage isn't the outcome. The physique is the outcome.
That changes everything.
Instead of choosing a competition date and forcing the body to be ready, an athlete can focus on creating the physique first—and compete when the physique demonstrates that it's time.
Taylor also discusses another important distinction during improvement season: growth isn't always reflected by a rapidly increasing scale weight or larger measurements.
Sometimes the goal is muscle density and maturity.
That takes time.
You want enough developed tissue that when body fat comes down during prep, the muscle underneath still maintains the fullness, shape, and structure needed onstage.
That process can't always be rushed.
And sometimes the hardest thing for an ambitious athlete isn't doing more.
It's having enough patience to keep doing the right things while allowing them time to work.
