Tag Archive for: author

87: Tough as They Come with Travis Mills

Travis Mills served in the Army 82nd Airborne and was sent on three tours to the Middle East. On his third deployment, a bomb exploded near him and he lost all four limbs. Recovery was difficult across multiple facets of his life but he decided to never give up and never quit. Today, he is a businessman, motivational speaker, author and philanthropist. In this episode:

  • Trying out college but learning that the military was a better path forward
  • Joining the Army 82nd Airborne and going on three deployments
  • Marrying his best friend’s sister and how they navigated long distance dating and marriage
  • Best advice for young married couples before deployment … don’t call each other everyday! This will prevent mundane repetitiveness and dry conversation.
  • Losing all four limbs by a bomb explosion during his third tour in Afghanistan
  • Over 400 units of blood given to Travis on the operating table to save his life which is the most blood that has ever been given to someone in Afghanistan
  • Overcoming the internal question, “Why didn’t I just die? How is this life better than death?”
  • Why his wife decided to stick by his side through thick and thin
  • Switching from questions of reasoning of his new reality to a mindset of “In it to Win it” for his wife and daughter
  • Depending on nurses and family to help dress him, feed him, and assist him in the bathroom for the first five weeks
  • No thoughts of suicide because he knew he could honor his fallen comrades by living his life to the fullest in memory of them
  • Building the Travis Mills Foundation which helps injured veterans learn indoors and outdoors adaptive activities in Maine
  • Living life with the motto, “Never give up. Never quit.”
  • You can’t always control your situation, but you can control your attitude
  • Writing the book Tough as They Come

You can learn more at travismills.org or find him on Instagram @ssgtravismills

85: The Happy Body and Olympic Weightlifting with Jerzy Gregorek

Jerzy Gregorek is a World Record Weightlifting Champion. He grew up an alcoholic adolescent in communist Poland before weightlifting saved his life. Later, his wife and him fled to the USA and settled in Southern California where he began his personal training career. A few world championship titles later, he wrote “The Happy Body” which inspires millions worldwide on how to live a healthy and fulfilling physical and mental lifestyle. In this episode:

  • Learning obedience at an early age in war-torn and communist oppressed 1970s/1980s Poland
  • Falling into alcoholism as an adolescent
  • Entering the fire department at 19 years old
  • How weightlifting saved his life from drinking
  • Suffering temporary paralysis from a squatting accident
  • Finishing high school at age 24
  • Snatching 115kg at 132lbs
  • Finding a best friend through strike and then losing him to torture and murder by the government
  • “Truth, Love, and Forgiveness”
  • Traveling through Europe as a refugee making his way to the US with his wife
  • Bringing Olympic Weightlifting to Southern California
  • Winning 4 World weightlifting championships
  • Why the snatch lift is the purest form of power and his favorite exercise
  • Starting the UCLA weightlifting team
  • Forming The Happy Body and sharing his methods throughout the world
  • “Hard choices, easy life. Easy choices, hard life.” Aligning with stoicism – our responsibility to become the best version of ourselves and serve the planet.

You can learn more about Jerzy and The Happy Body: https://thehappybody.com/

81: Get Back on the Horse with Amberley Snyder

We kickoff Season 3 with Amberley’s Snyder return to rodeo after breaking her back and becoming paralyzed from the waist down in a car accident. In this episode:

  • Why Amberley fell in love with horses during childhood
  • All of the events in rodeo she competed in over the years and the championship belts she won
  • How an accident left her paralyzed from the waist down
  • Pushing through rehab and leaning on her family support system
  • Getting back on the horse and what it was like the first day
  • Returning to rodeo and competition
  • Handling stardom and inspiring others through her competitive spirit
  • Writing a book and helping Netflix produce a movie based on her story

You can learn more about her at amberleysnyder.org and on Instagram @Amberleysnyder