From Losing Limbs to Inspiring Millions: Travis Mills’ Remarkable Journey
The Hard Way w/ Joe De Sena
Spartan Races
4.7 • 870 Ratings
🗓️ 7 January 2025
⏱️ 26 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Prepare to be amazed by the incredible journey of Travis Mills, a former U.S. Army staff sergeant who lost all four limbs in an IED explosion during his third deployment to Afghanistan. Despite facing unimaginable adversity, Travis refused to let his injuries define him, embarking on a remarkable path of recovery, resilience, and reinvention.
In this captivating episode, you'll witness Travis' transformation from a young, athletic soldier to a motivational speaker, author, and founder of a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting injured veterans and their families. Hear firsthand how he navigated the physical and emotional challenges of his recovery, rediscovered his purpose, and inspired countless others with his unwavering spirit.
Prepare to be moved, empowered, and reminded that no obstacle is too great to overcome when you possess the determination and courage of a true warrior. This is a story that will leave you in awe and remind you that the human spirit is truly unbreakable.
Timestamps:
00:49 Introduction to Travis Mills
01:25 Early Life and Military Career
05:10 Marriage, Kids & Deployments in Afghanistan
11:44 The Wild West of the Third Deployment
16:27 Bomb Explosion & Devastating Injuries
24:45 Arriving to the Hospital & The Reality of His Injuries
27:30 Becoming a Quadriplegic & a Way to Recovery
31:01 Overcoming Obstacles & the Importance of Perspective.
33:55 Adaptive Sports and Family Bonding
36:45 Founding the Travis Mills Foundation
39:45 Pushing limits, starting new businesses, and finding purpose
42:05 Finding the Right Perspective
43:35 Final Thoughts
Connect to Travis:
🌐 Website: Travis Mills
🌐 Website: Travis Mills Foundation
📸 Instagram: @ssgtravismills
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ssgtravismills/
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssgtravismills/
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I don't tear up at like where somebody's hurt. I tear up when somebody's badass. Most people |
| 0:06.8 | would have quit. You get to a point where you're saying, why didn't I die? Like I have no hands. |
| 0:10.7 | I have no, you know, feet. Like, how was this at all better? I live life every day realizing that it could |
| 0:17.0 | be worse. And then people say like, Travis, why do you do all this stuff? Why? I'm like, because I can. |
| 0:20.8 | Because I get the ability to. |
| 0:22.9 | Welcome to the Hardway podcast with Joe DeCena, founder and CEO of Spartan races. |
| 0:29.0 | We're teaching you how to overcome your obstacles in your life the same way we teach our 10 million plus Spartans to overcome obstacles on the course. |
| 0:36.5 | With insight from the smartest, |
| 0:37.9 | must accomplish experts from every corner of the world. Get ready to elevate your life today. |
| 0:45.4 | Joe Descent, CEO and founder of Spartan and host the Hardway podcast. I got a special one for you |
| 0:50.7 | today. I got my buddy Travis Mills. He's an author. He's a motivational speaker. |
| 0:55.7 | He's a founder of a 501.3C that's doing great things. He's a family man. This guy is the |
| 1:03.0 | ultimate when it comes to resilience, perseverance. I don't know if you coined the term |
| 1:09.0 | bounce back, but you certainly would be in the dictionary. |
| 1:12.1 | I could see them having a photo of you around the term, Bounce Back. That was the name of your second book. |
| 1:19.0 | Good morning. Thanks for having me. I'm excited to be here. And, you know, I've done some pretty cool things, but so have you. |
| 1:23.6 | So if I fire questions back to you, I apologize. I know you're supposed to be interviewing me, but sometimes I just got to know things. |
| 1:29.3 | Tell us, let's go back in time. |
| 1:31.3 | Where'd you grow up? |
| 1:32.3 | So I'm from Michigan. |
| 1:33.3 | I grew up in a small town called Vassar, |
| 1:35.3 | Friday Night Lights kind of town, played football, basketball, baseball, |
... |
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