Pack your bags, because The Amazing Race is back! Every week, Parade’s Mike Bloom will bring you interviews with the team most recently eliminated from the race.

Stop. Take a minute. Breathe. That was the motto of life partners Colin Guinn and Christie Woods on their second season of The Amazing Race. The two blazed an intense, anger-fueled path around the world their first time out, losing out on the win. But 15 years brought reflection, two kids, and a brand-new attitude, as they attempted to take on the pressure cooker of the race mindfully. And it was that exact tactic that got them the victory, as their calm and focus got them past a complicated final task to give them first place. They crossed the line for a finish more than a decade in the making, with their spirits remaining firmly unbroken.

With over a decade between seasons, Colin and Christie dusted off their racing strength, finishing in a respectable second place in the very first leg. That moment served as a microcosm of the majority of their race. Electing not to be as frantic and intense as their first time out, they instead opted to race solidly, but not cutthroat. They focused on bringing their practiced yoga and meditation around the world, allowing them to stay calm as the pressure mounted. Even when the race brought the skeletons out of their closet, challenging them constantly with bovines of all temperaments, they were not moved. Their new mentality guiding them, Colin and Christie hoped to come across as the non-threatening parents of the race to avoid the dreaded U-Turn.

Despite the circles of positivity and spy maneuvers, their competitors still saw them as the great racers they were. So when the teams cast their votes in a surprise U-Turn vote, it was no surprise they received the most votes. Facing their greatest temptation to revert to frustration, they instead put their head down and plowed through, beating all the teams who voted for them to the mat. Despite mistakes like leaving a gnome behind or Christie getting jumbled up during an intricate decryption Roadblock, they remained in their zone of zen, which kept them ahead of their competitors. The stakes of the final leg proved their greatest struggle for composure, between temporarily losing their taxi and the mounting frustration of the detailed drum set. But through it all, they made sure to keep each other in check, an attitude that paid off when they checked in first at the finish line as the race’s official winners.

After the race, Colin and Christie talk with Parade about the stress of running the final leg for a second time, what has changed about the race the most over 26 seasons, and how their race experience inspired a new project for the couple.

Last night, you got the opportunity to relive an experience that was 15 years in the making. What was it like at the moment, and rewatching it from an edited perspective?

Christie Woods: When it was happening in real life, it felt very surreal. One of the techniques we practiced the entire race was quantum visualization. We would visualize winning as often as possible. Because we had run to the finish line in second before, we could buy into it. We knew what it was like to run up to the mat and have the teams on either side clapping. On legs where we came in first or did particularly well, and we were in that high vibrational elated feeling, we would start to visualize using our five senses how it would feel to run up to the mat. By the time we were actually doing it, it was like we were in a dream that we had run a million times over. Now we were just in physical reality living it, not our imaginations.

It was a whole other experience a year later watching it. I would have dreams where Tyler and Korey won and wonder aloud, “Did that really happen?” Until you watch it play back and see your tribe and family watch it with you, it’s like it was a dream that didn’t really happen.

The final leg showed moments where tempers began to rise, like when you couldn’t find your cab driver and during the final task. How were you able to maintain your composure and attitude during such a stressful part of the race?

Colin Guinn: It’s one thing when you’re on any leg but the last leg. For the first eight legs or so, we weren’t super attached to coming in first place. We just wanted to do well and not burn ourselves out so we had energy for the last few legs. But when you go into this last leg, you think, “Okay, this is what we’re here for.” It becomes a really interesting challenge not to let your ego get attached to winning. We had an attachment to it.

For the drum challenge, I don’t remember getting worked up or even close to losing my temper. I was just very, very in it and focused. I think my mind was racing, and I was in such a beta state. My brain was getting overclocked and overcooked. I was missing details because I was so frantically trying to figure out what little minute angle I have off. We must have gotten our drums checked at least 30 or 40 times. I couldn’t figure out what it was until Christie got me to take a breath and calm my central nervous system down. I then let myself take in more information and broaden my perspective. It was almost instantaneously like, “Oh, there it is. [Click] We’re out of here.”

You spoke at length with Entertainment Weekly about what changed in your lives between seasons. What ultimately encouraged you to want to return to the race?

Christie: What prompted it was first watching the show. We hadn’t seen it in 15 years. Amazing Race is a family show, and we decided it was an opportunity to teach our boys life lessons and show them growth. They’re watching two people who are not the parents they live with. Maybe there’s an essence, but certainly not the elements of season 5 Colin and Christie. We wanted to show there’s evolution, humans being human, and that’s okay. Then they could fill into their own self-forgiveness. But in the process, we started remembering how much fun it was. You see a two-dimensional version of the show, but we lived the three-dimensional version of season five, and it was one of the most amazing experiences we had ever had. We’re watching the season five finale in Jackson Hole, and I look at Colin like, “We should do that again. That was so much fun.” And he was into it. So we texted a casting director, and three weeks later they emailed us saying they were already putting together this season.

It looked like cooperative components unfolded, the universe saying, “You want to do it? Go for it!” Our children were already set to hang with grandmas and go to sleepaway camp for the entire month of June. So the logistical stuff wasn’t even a factor, even though it would have been a huge one otherwise. It really felt like this was meant to be. Watching the season, the things that triggered us the first time and were difficult to watch were really funny. We were watching different people. It had us saying, “I know there’s been growth and a noticeable shift. But wow!”

We knew The Amazing Race is a pressure cooker. So we knew sleep deprivation and everything would be there. We actually expected to get triggered way more. We made a pact that if one of us went unconscious for a moment, the other would hold space and allow them to process whatever they needed at that moment to get back into alignment and the right state of mind to be focused on the task at hand. Thank goodness Colin was able to do that with the taxi driver and me in the final leg. I went unconscious for a couple of minutes, and Colin was able to hold it together and allow me to say what I needed to say while reminding me to get my head back into the game. We did that for each other the entire time.

You vocalized at one point that your strategy coming into this season was to focus on staying solidly in the pack and peaking at the end. What caused your change in race philosophy from the last time you were on?

Colin: In watching our first season, we saw Chip say, “The only person who’s going to beat Colin and Christie is Colin and Christie.” And I realized he was right; we did beat ourselves. We can point to this or point to that, but we weren’t at our best in that final leg. This time around, we decided, “Let’s do whatever we need to do to be at our peak in the final couple of legs.” Do I need to overwork my processor the entire race to try to do everything possible to win every leg? Or should we have fun, enjoy and appreciate everything, and go hard without breaking ourselves in the process? That means we were doing it at a 94% effort instead of 100%. We weren’t taking it easy. The first time around, I raced like we were in the final leg from the moment Phil said, “Go!” There’s only so much my brain can handle.

Christie: Your body too.

Not only have you changed over 15 years. But so has the race. What’s the biggest difference you noticed between your two seasons in terms of structure?

Christie: Well, it’s in high definition now! (Laughs.) The obvious one is the lack of airport strategy required to do well. That was what I brought to the table in season 5. Colin gets a lot of credit–and he’s an awesome racer–but the airport strategy was me. But we didn’t have that advantage. The difference between the first and last planes in Dubai was 12 minutes, to give you an idea. There was nothing like that in season 5. Also, there are now multiple mile to mile-and-a-half runs with a backpack on to the next route marker.

You were friendly with all of the teams this season. Can you elaborate on how you approached the game socially?

Colin: First and foremost, we were really good friends with everyone on season 5 too. We helped other teams as much then as we did the first time around. It just wasn’t our storyline then. They didn’t show me standing in front of a bus and making sure it didn’t leave without Brandon and Nicole. One of the particular things Christie has coached us through is focusing on positive aspects of the other teams. Every time we’d land in a new country or get ready to start a new leg, we’d go team by team and talk about all the things we loved about them. With some teams, that was more difficult than others. But there are things we can appreciate and enjoy about every team. That allowed us to be open and warm-hearted to all the teams. It also didn’t hurt that every team was super awesome and very cool. It was an amazing cast this time around, so we felt very blessed by that.

Christie: Just a bit of background on positive aspects. When we’re on the plane getting ready to land in the next country, a lot of teams are focused on who they’re going to U-Turn and their strategy. Our strategy was to focus on everything we like and love about the other teams. We’re not playing the game on a three-dimensional level. There’s the physicality of playing in a challenge, but there’s also the energetic level of cooperative components coming together and unfolding. It’s the cab that knows exactly where he’s going to a cab that’s driving on a donut with no spare tire; those things happen, and we think they’re coincidental. But there’s a frequency you’re emitting that resonates.

In getting into a state of loving the other teams, it allowed us to get into this high vibrational, much deeper than positive thinking. You’re helping to mold the clay of your reality that’s unfolding. For example, getting an hour and a half behind when I did the Roadblock in London. Looking back, we look at our intention and say, “That’s actually what we intended. How can we say all those things if we didn’t get that far behind, get our [expletive] together in the helicopter, and detach from the idea that we won’t get into the top three.” We were playing the game on another level that isn’t typically brought into the container of reality television.

Colin, you said at the very end of the finale that you were happy to bring the mindfulness you practiced in your everyday life into the pressurized environment of the race. Was there anything that you brought out of the race into your daily life?

Colin: I don’t think I will take any additional practices into our day-to-day. But what’s so cool about our opportunity to put all those things into practice in such a defined in a capsule of time is that it really builds your faith. You have these constants in your life, but they’re in so many threads and time synchronicities. When you’re on the race, there’s nothing else you’re doing. You have no contact with the outside world; you’re there to be in the race. So we figured we would put these things to the test and see how it works. Could we still be as competitive as we were before, and potentially be even more successful than the last time around? Let’s go try it out. Seeing it work allowed me to build my faith and realize it’s worth doing the work, having those 30-45 minutes of daily practice to set yourself up for increased resiliency and success.

Is there any advice you would give those out there who are looking to become more mindful in their day-to-day, much like you two were able to do?

Christie: It actually happens that we knew coming out of the race if our story arc were successful, people would wonder, “What are they doing?” It’s one thing to hear someone talk about it; it’s another to see people actually make that transition. It makes you think, “Though I haven’t considered yoga or meditation or quantum visualization previously, now I’m considering it. These people shifted, and if they can do it, I can do it too.” We actually put together a free video series at ColinandChristie.com. After we won the million dollars, we thought, “What can we do to give back to the universe?” It’s an easy, simple commitment for anybody in relationships who wants to know more about individual practices and pair practices to cultivate more intimacy and sensuality. Everyone’s resonant to a lot of this at different levels. You want to meet people where they’re at. So I would advise you to check out what resonates with you and let the synchronicity unfold.

Colin: And ten minutes of meditation a day for 30 days!

Christie: (Laughs.) Yes. I will say meditation is a low-hanging game changer. It will make you more effective and efficient at everything you do. It’s worth the ten minutes.