Today we’d like to introduce you to Becky Acra.
Becky, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I grew up surrounded by sports. My dad played professional basketball, and some of my earliest memories are of learning the lessons sports can teach you far beyond wins and losses. I fell in love with the idea that sports can shape confidence, character, resilience, and who we become as people.
I started coaching in 2000 and quickly realized my passion wasn’t just teaching skills, it was helping athletes believe in themselves. That passion eventually led me to open and run my own competitive cheer gym in Montana for 15 years. During that time, I coached incredible athletes, won national championships, and built teams I was extremely proud of, but more importantly, I learned the impact coaches have on young people.
Like most journeys, mine wasn’t perfectly linear. In 2019, our gym experienced a devastating fire, and shortly after that, the world shut down due to COVID. Those seasons challenged me in ways I never expected, but they also forced me to reflect on what mattered most. I realized the parts of coaching I loved the most weren’t the trophies or the titles; it was the relationships, the confidence athletes gained, and the lessons they carried with them after their competitive years were over.
Eventually, my family relocated to Utah, where I continued coaching and became the Program Director at Revolution Athletics. I also decided to return to school after 17 years and pursue a master’s degree in Sport and Performance Psychology. That decision really brought everything full circle for me. I had spent over two decades watching athletes navigate pressure, confidence, fear, success, failure, and identity, and now I had the science to support what I had seen firsthand.
Today, I get to combine all of those experiences. I coach athletes, mentor coaches, work in mental performance, and recently wrote my book Raise the Athlete, Not the Pressure to help parents navigate youth sports. I also created CBX Co. as a place to continue conversations around building better experiences for athletes, parents, and coaches.
After 26 years in sports, my mission is pretty simple: help bring back the parts of sports that made us fall in love with them in the first place while giving today’s athletes the tools to thrive both in and beyond competition.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road, but I also think those difficult seasons have shaped me the most.
One of the biggest challenges came in 2019 when the cheer gym I owned in Montana experienced a devastating fire. Overnight, the place that had become a second home for so many athletes and families was gone. We had to rebuild physically and emotionally. When you pour your heart into something, it becomes so much more than a building.
Not long after that, COVID hit, and, like so many small business owners and coaches, we faced uncertainty and challenges we had never prepared for. I had spent years teaching athletes about resilience, adapting, and getting back up after setbacks, and suddenly I had to practice those same lessons myself.
Eventually, my family decided to move to Utah and start a new chapter. Starting over after building something for so many years was incredibly difficult. It challenged my identity in many ways because, for so long, I had been known as a gym owner. I had to ask myself who I was outside of that title.
Looking back, those challenges were also the catalyst for a lot of growth. They pushed me to go back to school, pursue my master’s degree in Sport and Performance Psychology, write my book, and expand my purpose beyond just coaching athletes on the mat.
I think sometimes the hardest seasons are the ones that redirect us. I wouldn’t choose to go through all of those moments again, but I’m grateful for what they taught me. They gave me a deeper understanding of the athletes, coaches, and parents I work with today because I know firsthand that confidence and resilience aren’t built when everything goes perfectly.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
At the center of everything I do is one mission: helping athletes, parents, and coaches create a healthier and more impactful sports experience.
I have spent the last 26 years coaching competitive cheerleading, and today I am the Program Director at Revolution Athletics in Utah. I have been fortunate to coach athletes at the highest levels, win national championships, and help athletes achieve some incredible competitive goals, but what I am most proud of are the athletes who leave our program believing in themselves and knowing their value extends far beyond their sport.
My work has evolved into a much bigger passion around the mental side of performance. I am currently completing my master’s degree in Sport and Performance Psychology, and I work with athletes and teams on topics such as confidence, resilience, mindset, leadership, and performing under pressure. I believe talent and training matter, but an athlete’s ability to handle mistakes, navigate adversity, communicate, and trust themselves is what truly allows them to reach their potential.
I also recently wrote my book, Raise the Athlete, Not the Pressure, to help parents navigate the youth sports journey. As a coach and a mom of three competitive athletes, I have seen both sides: the desire to help your child succeed while also wanting to protect their love for the game. My goal is to help parents understand that their greatest impact often comes not from pushing harder, but from creating the support system their athlete needs to thrive.
I think what sets me apart is that I am not just studying these ideas; I have lived them. I have been the coach, the gym owner, the parent in the stands, and the person rebuilding after setbacks. I have experienced the joy, pressure, heartbreak, and growth that come from sports.
I am most proud of helping shift the conversation back to what sports were always meant to do: build confident, resilient people. The trophies and titles are incredible memories, but watching athletes become strong leaders, great teammates, and people who believe in themselves long after their competitive career ends will always be the biggest win.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I think my relationship with risk has evolved a lot over the years. When I was younger, I probably didn’t even realize I was taking risks; I was just following the things I was passionate about.
Opening my own gym was definitely one of my first major risks. Building a business around something you love sounds exciting, but it also comes with a lot of uncertainty, responsibility, and moments where you have to figure things out as you go. Looking back, I am so grateful I was willing to take that chance because it shaped so much of who I am today.
Another big risk was stepping away from the identity I had built for so many years. After owning a gym for 15 years, moving to Utah meant starting over in many ways. It would have been easy to stay comfortable, but sometimes growth requires you to be willing to enter a new season.
Going back to school after 17 years was another one. I was a mom of three, working full time, and honestly wondered if it was too late to chase something new. But I always tell athletes confidence doesn’t come from waiting until you feel ready, it comes from proving to yourself that you can do hard things. I had to apply that same lesson to myself.
Writing my book was also a risk because putting your thoughts, experiences, and beliefs into the world is vulnerable. But I knew if even one parent, athlete, or coach changed the way they viewed sports because of something I shared, then it was worth it.
The older I get, the more I realize the biggest risk is often not taking one. Failure is something we talk about a lot in sports, but in life, we sometimes forget to give ourselves permission to try. Some of the best parts of my life have come from moments where I didn’t have a guarantee it would work out; I just knew it mattered enough to try.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @coachbeckyacra, @wearecbxco
