Beyond the Big Red Truck Brad Robinson

Welcome to Episode 16 from Beyond the Big Red Truck Podcast!  I'm very honoured to have spent some time, and shared an intimate conversation with Pro Hockey player, Wade Macleod and his wife Karly.  Wade has been a star on the ice and on his journey, has been tested both mentally and physically for many years, but what no-one could have predicted with a career that was looking so promising, is that Wade's biggest test would was still to come.  In 2011/12 season, his second year playing pro for the Springfield Falcons of the AHL, Wade was hit into the glass. He managed to get up, but after his captain told him they were on the power play, he blacked out.  Wade then had a seizure in the ambulance and after some tests in the hospital, it was revealed that Wade had a golf ball sized tumour in his head.  This started a massive roller coaster ride for Wade and Karly.  Ups and downs, playing hockey, not playing hockey, almost making the NHL, moving to Germany, having the most fun he's ever had playing hockey, getting married, having a baby and then....another tumour, then another.  Four brain surgeries in five years, two in two months in 2018, and even in between six weeks of radiation and while taking a break before chemo, Wade wanted to share his story, so this his story.  Thanks for listening and please share this story as it is a human story, a story about resilience, overcoming obstacles and living life with purpose despite these massive obstacles.  To help with medical bills,  Wade and Karly's friends have set up a go fund me page and if you would like to donate and help them here's the link:  https://ca.gofundme.com/wade039s-treatment-fund
Thank you and I hope you Enjoy,
 
Brad

Welcome to Episode 15! Today I had a gamechanging conversation with "body engineer" and amazing human, Chris Duquemin.  Chris was a successful mechanical engineer for over 20 years and then, while struggling to find some relief from a shoulder injury, had an a-ha moment.  Using traditional therapy and a "band-aid" approach, Chris found that nothing was actually "fixing" his shoulder.  He was still in pain, so Chris sought out a non traditional therapist to help him truly heal.  The method was to find the "root cause" of his shoulder pain, which they discovered to be an old rib injury.  With the focus on the root cause, and not the symptoms, Chris' shoulder was pain free and he was back doing the things he loved doing!  Chris was hooked and saw an opportunity to use his mechanical engineering theories, to help people truly heal by finding the root causes of their pain and struggles bith physically and mentally.  Thus the "body engineer" was born!  In 2011 Chris open his own practice to help people find and treat the "root cause" so the body can truly begin to heal itself and then the traditional therapies can continue. He has helped numerous people in his practice and is now taking it globally. He is currently focusing on first responders and the Canadian Military, using his practice and hands on therapy to help with  Post Traumatic Stress and trauma.  You can find Chris at his clinic, in Jersey, which is a channel island off the coast of France., and to learn more or to contact Chris, click the link here: http://www.newvisiontherapy.co.uk
I hope you enjoy this conversation and please like, comment and share the podcast so that we can all help people together.  You may never know who's day or life you might help change. We are stronger together!   Thanks, Brad
 

Welcome to Episode 14 from Beyond the Big Red Truck Podcast!  today I had an amzing conversation with Eric Kussin, founder of, We're all a little "Crazy" - Movement To Break Mental Health Stigma.  
We’re All A Little “Crazy” is a 501c3 founded by 15-year professional sports executive, Eric Kussin, bringing together Athletes, Celebrities, and Expert Practitioners.  After a successful career that started at the NBA League Office, and led to senior management positions with a number of professional sports teams, Eric’s mental health took a sudden and rapid decline.
Due to unresolved personal life traumas he failed to appropriately address at a younger age – life experiences he was unaware were affecting his mental health – Eric developed a severe bout of PTSD, along with symptoms of anxiety and depression. This fall came essentially “out of nowhere” and left him almost permanently in bed, and with severe cognitive impairment, for just over two and a half years. Once he found a way to climb out of his abyss, he vowed to spend the rest of his life focused on changing the global conversation through mental health advocacy.
It wasn’t until he met practitioners who taught him methods to actually heal his body and central nervous system, that he began to improve and get his life back. He is determined to spread his message: that EVERYONE in the world is affected by life’s inevitable traumas and losses.
Join me and please share this conversation with Eric and learn more about how he, along with numerous celebrity, professional athletes, and influencers alliance members, including myself, are banding together to change the global discussion by sharing the #samehere message of inclusion.  And so much more.  Check out their website https://weareallalittlecrazy.org and follow on all social media outlets.  Thanks for listening and, by sharing this podcast, you might even help someone you don't know is struggling.  Enjoy! Brad

Welcome to Episode 13 from Beyond the Big Red Truck!  Today I shared an amazing conversation with two amazing guys, Dion Gonzales and Jeff Dorchester co-founders from iRel8.  Dion is successful entrepreneur and executive with a proven history of creating and delivering successful products domestically and internationally and Jeff is an experienced and successful designer, entrepreneur, and executive with decades of passion andinnovation in the technology space.  Jeff and Dion used their experiences and skills to create a much needed resource and to fill a gap that they discovered in mental health community.  iRel8 is a mobile application that gives users an open and anonymous platform to receive mental health help, provide relevant advice to others, and relate to a larger community – all in a safe and non-identifiable way so a user’s reputation is not compromised in any way with friends, family members, or work colleagues.  Jeff and Dion beileve people have a visceral need to relate, belong, and feel connected to others in fulfilling ways.  iRel8 was created to help people overcome their problems, get relevant help, and provide help to others.  So how are they doing this? They are doing this by offering a mobile app that makes it easy for users to relate to others with specific categories and access to real-world advice from people who have “walked a mile in your shoes”.  Check out their website https://irel8.org and download the app, it is like nothing you've ever seen before and is truly helping people heal! You can access from the website and is available for both apple and andriod.  Enjoy the conversation and please share this podcast so we can all be part of the change to help stop the stigma and open the conversation so that the conversation about mental health is a just feels normal. Thanks for listening and Much gratitude, Brad
 

Welcome to Episode 12 from Beyond the Big Red Truck Podcast!  I'm super excited to share this conversation I had with Dan Kerrigan and Jim Moss. Two amazing humans, fitness experts and the authors of the best selling book, Firefighter Functional Fitness.  
Dan is a career chief officer, published fitness author and presenter on the local and national levels. A passionate firefighter health and wellness advocate, he works with the IAFC, NFFF, and NVFC in efforts to reduce health-related LODD’s. He is a Russian kettlebell instructor and uses Firefighter Functional Fitness to achieve optimal performance.
Jim Moss is a career fire officer, certified personal trainer, and published fitness author. He is a passionate advocate of firefighter fitness and wellness on the local and national levels. He trains, writes, and teaches firefighters how to optimize their physical performance, careers, and lives through Firefighter Functional Fitness. 
check out their website http://firefighterfunctionalfitness.com where you can grab their book, Firefighter Functional Fitness, and anything else you could imagine regarding fitness, health and wellness in the fire service to help you be the best firefighter you can be!  Thank you, enjoy, be awesome and please share this podcast.  Every little bit helps!  Brad

Welcome to Episode 11 of Beyond the Big Red Truck Podcast.  Today's episode is an epic conversation with Allison Tai or on social media as Yo Mama So Fit.  Allison is another amazing, inspiring human who is not only an entreprenuer and owner of VANCITY OCR ninja gym in Vancouver, BC, she also has the most Toughest Mudder Podiums on the planet, more than any other man or woman, with 7.  7 podiums including 3 wins!  In the past six weeks or so, she has been in Australia where she competed and won the 2018 OCR World Championship Enduro 24 hr race and Australia's Toughest Mudder, came back to Vancouver and finished second in Toughest Mudder Whistler and then hopped a plane to Boston where she won Toughest Mudder East (40 miles)! I'm  exhausted just writing that! We talk about her accomlplishments in racing, being a mom, motivation, training, her battle with PTSD after a horrific bike accident and how she overcame all of those obstacles to race and continue to compete as an elite athlete!  Allison's website is http://vancityocr.com and you will hear how passionate she is about the gym and the kids and people that that train there, it's amazing! You can find her on social media as yo mama so fit and I know that you will be inspired after listening to my conversation with the amazing Allison Tai!    Thanks, Brad