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Okay, welcome to the AdaptX podcast where we have discussions with individuals who are

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building accessible businesses or products advocating for inclusion or excelling in adaptive

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sports.

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Our intention is never to speak on behalf of those with disabilities, but rather our

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goal is to amplify your voice, ideas, and learn strategies to scale our impact and help

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other businesses become more inclusive.

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On today's episode, we are joined by Jesi Stracham, who among many things is a business

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owner, content creator, and athlete.

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Her work has motivated people of all abilities, but especially wheelchair users, to be more

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active and healthy.

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Jesi, thank you for joining us today.

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Thank you so much for having me and sharing your platform with me.

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You're the founder of the Wheel With Me Foundation and the owner of Wheel With Me Fitness.

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Can you tell our audience a bit about the mission of each?

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Absolutely.

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The Wheel With Me Fitness and Wheel With Me Foundation both serve the independence of

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wheelchair users.

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For Wheel With Me Foundation, we host quarterly empowerment weeks, where it's completely

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free for wheelchair users to attend.

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They are going to learn a skill or trade from another wheelchair user, so whatever they

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specialize in, we've had everything from interior design, how to build a resume, how to become

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an actor, how to be an advocate, sex and disability.

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We literally talked about everything under the sun.

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Those are every quarter completely free hosted on Zoom.

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We have Wheel With Me Fitness, which offers an app and a private Facebook group, where

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we have two group calls a week for mental mindset and development.

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I think that's the biggest thing that holds anyone back is their mindset, and so we really

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want to support that side of things as well.

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Building a community seems to be relevant in all industries, but obviously, especially

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in yours, how did you go about starting it?

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Did you already have a platform beforehand, and then you're able to leverage that to find

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people or any specific marketing endeavors?

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When I first got paralyzed, I was racing off-road, and I got a deal with Polaris to race a

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series called GNCC, for factory Polaris, which was really cool.

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I had a single seat side by side, hand controls in it, completely custom, and I was racing

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one and two months of being paralyzed.

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I was able to go back to what I did before and integrate back into a normal life, but

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I realized so many people weren't able to do that, and they weren't even living.

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They were staying at home, not able to transfer, not able to take care of themselves, and we've

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got to teach people how to be independent.

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You have to be able to take risks when it comes to transferring, when it comes to trying

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new things, to be able to grow and be independent, especially as a wheelchair user or a person

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with a disability.

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The more uncomfortable we get, the more we're able to grow, and I think that was the biggest

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thing that I wanted to get out there.

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I constantly fell on the floor, my first two years of being injured, so I posted a video

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of me having a meltdown on YouTube, and it got like 50,000 views in the first month,

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and I was like, oh, shit, people are listening to what I have to say.

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I should probably say things a little better and be more positive and put a light out in

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the world.

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That's what really reframed my mind to create this platform.

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In 2018, I decided to go content create and actually pursue it, and I went from 5,000

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followers to now my current day, 107,000 on Instagram, which is completely organic, sharing

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my mission, sharing my journey, and trying to inspire people to use their obstacles to

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live life to the fullest like I have.

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Which came first, the fitness platform or the foundation?

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The foundation.

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The fitness platform started as a private Facebook group in 2017.

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I have a friend who's also a wheelchair user that started the Yelp of Accessibility.

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It's called iAccessLife, and it's a downloadable app where you rate and review places based

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on their accessibility.

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I was like, oh, you created an app.

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How can I create a fitness app?

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He was like, you'll never be able to do it.

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It's impossible.

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It's so hard.

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I was like, well, shit, I guess I can create a Facebook group.

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I created a Facebook group, and that's really what we started as.

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I never did anything with it until the pandemic when I was led down this path of nutrition

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coaching, which led me to getting certified and now doing it full time.

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Yeah, I was going to say, obviously, many brick and mortar facilities were heavily impacted

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by the pandemic, but the remote stuff took off.

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Was the pandemic in some ways a blessing from a business standpoint?

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It was a blessing overall from a human standpoint.

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I hit my lowest as a human being during the pandemic, and it allowed me to pivot.

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I gave my life to God.

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I'm like, I don't know my purposes.

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I don't know why I'm here, but I just need your support.

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I need guidance.

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I need help.

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And he was like, bet, I've been waiting for this, and my life has just immensely taken

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off since that.

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And it took me getting so low that I had no other choice but to ask for the higher power

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for help.

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I think that's really important for people to understand.

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We think we're in this world alone, and we're really not.

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I was an atheist before I was paralyzed.

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So I've been that person that didn't believe in anything, and I understand why I struggled

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so much before my injury.

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Because I wasn't guided.

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I had no purpose.

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I had no bigger reason for being here.

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So my paralysis really was a blessing as a whole because it gave me so much more than

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it took away, even on days when I struggled like today.

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I don't put my leg braces on, got frustrated, started crying, but I still did it.

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And before, if I got concentrated in life, I would quit.

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And now I don't quit.

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And I think that's the most powerful thing this struggle has given me.

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Yeah.

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I mean, there's good days and bad days, but it's the same for able-bodied individuals

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as well.

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There's still bad days in that regard.

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So I wonder if how do you help people, I guess, see the positive of an accident?

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Or how do you guys approach that subject with people?

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We build relationships and friendships.

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And it's very interesting.

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Just recently I finished a 12-week course where it was just five of us together, and

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I was helping these five women that use wheelchairs lose weight.

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And the biggest pivotal switch they had was their mindset.

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And it was really cool because one individual in particular, she, at week six, she went

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to her parents' house.

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And she's only been injured for a year.

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And she went to her parents' house, couldn't get in the bathroom, got really frustrated

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with the lack of accessibility, and felt defeated.

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And she fell off for like three days.

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Well then by week eight, nine, she fell in the shower, called for her husband, got back

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up, finished her shower, went and took her kids to the pool, continued to show up.

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And it was really cool to see how fitness and nutrition changed her whole entire mind

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and confidence about her capabilities and how she had to handle lack of accessibility.

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And so that's really, that's what I want to give people is independence.

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It's not about losing weight.

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It's about getting strong enough to be as independent for as long as possible.

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Because this is a lifetime sentence.

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I was injured at 22.

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I'm planning to live to at least 80 as long as I'm able to, you know?

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And so like, I want to be able to transfer myself at 80.

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I want to be able to still cath myself.

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I want to still be able to manage my spasms.

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I want to still be able to stand to relieve pain.

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Like there's so many aspects that go into the day to day life for a wheelchair user

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or a person with a disability that you never thought about when you were non-disabled.

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And so it's like not letting that control the outcome of where you go, the trajectory

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of your life as a whole.

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Are there any unique aspects from like a nutritional standpoint that you found to be successful

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with wheelchair users that maybe those who don't use wheelchairs, it's not as relevant

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for them or other specific aspects of nutrition?

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I think the biggest fib that I was told when I was an inpatient was that I needed to eat

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between 800 and 1200 calories because my body wasn't functioning properly.

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And that was inaccurate.

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So by five years into being injured, my shoulders completely deteriorated.

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I wasn't able to transfer.

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I wasn't able to get dressed.

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I was getting cortisone shots every three weeks.

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I couldn't lift more than 10 pounds.

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And I had been doing CrossFit for three years by this point.

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And so I started tracking my nutrition, realized I was only eating 30 to 60 grams of protein

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a day.

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And holy crap, I'm deteriorating my entire body.

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And so how many wheelchair users are getting shoulder surgery or having shoulder issues

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and it could be fixed from a nutritional standpoint?

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And it's like, I was told just about calories and I needed to stay under 1200.

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I eat 1700 to 2000 calories a day.

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I eat the same as a non-disabled person.

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And I think that mindset and realizing that just because you're disabled doesn't mean

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your body doesn't need the same fuel and nutrition, that needs to be pivoted.

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And the importance of protein just for our shoulder health and omega-3s.

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There's so many small aspects that go into nutrition that aren't talked about enough

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with wheelchair users that could significantly reduce the amount of medication they're on

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and improve their overall quality of life.

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Yeah, the literature on wheelchair users and shoulder health and shoulder injury is a grim

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outlook, but I don't think it has to be.

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I think sometimes, like you said, the nutrition doesn't support it properly.

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The fitness doesn't support it properly.

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So where people kind of view it as some unique population that's different than the able-bodied,

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it's not.

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Maybe you're not quite as active over the course of a day, just in terms of how many

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active calories you burn, but you still have to support your muscle mass and your physical

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activity and the amount of energy you expend to propel your wheelchair, etc.

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So that's a great mission.

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Is there anyone else that's doing nutrition specifically with adaptive populations, or

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do you think it even needs to be differentiated?

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So I do and I don't.

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There's certain things that another wheelchair user could coach you on that a non-disabled

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person don't even think about.

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And you know that from having conversations with non-disabled people, and they're like,

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oh, I would never would have thought of that.

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It's like, yeah, it's part of my everyday life.

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And so from that aspect, I think it's important.

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There's two other people.

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So there's an action nutritionist.

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She goes by the paralysis nutritionist on Instagram.

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Latima, really incredible woman.

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She did a Wheel With me empowerment.

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She's doing great.

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She's more on the expensive end.

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And then you have myself and Nikki Walsh.

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Nikki Walsh, Adapt Fit.

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She's also a wheelchair user.

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And her and I are both doing the nutrition coaching.

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We use the same platform and we do a lot of things together as well.

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And so like, you have options, right?

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Like if you want a full nutritionist to give you a full meal plan, you have that option.

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You want somebody to hold you accountable and guide you and give you suggestions.

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You have that option.

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And it just depends on what personalities are going to go together.

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I don't sugarcoat anything.

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I'll hurt your feelings.

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I'll make you cry.

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And it's not intentional.

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It's just like the reason you're in this situation you're in is because everyone's been coddling

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you and I'm not going to do that.

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Yeah, yeah, the accountability piece ends up being as important, if not more important

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from a nutritional standpoint for really any population.

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Anything, right?

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Though, like the accountability for everything is so important.

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If you're not taking keeping track of the movement that you get, like one of my workouts

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at least one to two workouts a week are PT related.

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So I'm doing eyes, y's and t's, which are like the worst shoulder exercise ever.

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Boring is heck, but I have to do it if I want my shoulders to stay healthy and strengthen

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those small muscles.

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And it's like, we have to do the things that we don't want to do to get to where we want

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to go.

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And once you understand that it reframes your whole entire perspective of the hard things.

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They're no longer hard.

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It's like, no, this is the thing I need to do.

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Yeah, that's awesome.

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From a vernacular standpoint and like a terminology, I see a lot of, a lot of differing opinions

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in terms of whether people like to be considered disabled or neurotypical and all these various

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terms.

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And when we teach our course to other fitness professionals, I teach a class on how to like

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train people with disabilities, physical and intellectual.

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And that's one of the things that seems like people seem to get hung up on.

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Like they don't want to offend anyone and they're not sure how to have those conversations

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and kind of like, how do you approach that?

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Obviously, it's a case by case basis, but what are the terminologies you prefer versus

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don't like to see?

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I would just ask the person, I mean, like, hey, is this what, this is the word I would

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use, is it right?

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Is it wrong?

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Why?

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To gain that understanding.

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And if you approach it and you ask the question first, you have less chance of offending later.

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Personally, I don't get offended over words.

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We are the people that give words power and somebody's ignorance about what to call

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you because they don't know because they don't live that life every day because they're

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not you.

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Us getting upset over that is really, it's just a waste of everybody's time.

238
00:12:49,200 --> 00:12:51,800
So I don't get hung up on words.

239
00:12:51,800 --> 00:12:56,440
I think if one is cringy to me, it would be wheelchair bound because it makes me think

240
00:12:56,440 --> 00:12:57,440
of bondage.

241
00:12:57,440 --> 00:12:59,600
And I'm like, I'm not bonded to my wheelchair.

242
00:12:59,600 --> 00:13:00,840
Like I do get out of it.

243
00:13:00,840 --> 00:13:01,840
I do a lot of floorwork.

244
00:13:01,840 --> 00:13:03,080
I get leg braces.

245
00:13:03,080 --> 00:13:04,720
Like this isn't attached to me.

246
00:13:04,720 --> 00:13:06,640
And I think that's like the biggest one.

247
00:13:06,640 --> 00:13:08,280
Again, people don't know what they don't know.

248
00:13:08,280 --> 00:13:13,400
So for me to get upset over that, it's a waste of my energy and my positive vibes.

249
00:13:13,400 --> 00:13:14,400
Yeah.

250
00:13:14,400 --> 00:13:19,280
We see like person first language was kind of always perpetuated as like the proper

251
00:13:19,280 --> 00:13:20,280
thing to do.

252
00:13:20,280 --> 00:13:25,240
But then in circles of people with disabilities, I started to hear like, oh no, I like being

253
00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:28,600
called autistic and I like being called this.

254
00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:33,040
And so when you kind of take that away, it takes away a portion of their identity.

255
00:13:33,040 --> 00:13:37,640
Like you said, we usually say the more transparent you can be upfront with someone and just the

256
00:13:37,640 --> 00:13:39,280
relationship you can build with them.

257
00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:42,880
That's the best way to figure out how much assistance they want.

258
00:13:42,880 --> 00:13:48,400
Like with transfers, with getting equipment at the gym, with like helping them with exercises.

259
00:13:48,400 --> 00:13:51,200
You don't necessarily need to assume that they want that help.

260
00:13:51,200 --> 00:13:54,720
You can ask them what they want help with in the same way that you can ask them what

261
00:13:54,720 --> 00:13:57,560
language they want to use.

262
00:13:57,560 --> 00:14:00,520
I think that's all pretty relevant.

263
00:14:00,520 --> 00:14:06,440
Not that content creation and business are kind of mutually exclusive, but what has been

264
00:14:06,440 --> 00:14:12,000
the role from like a content creation standpoint versus a growing the app?

265
00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:14,440
What have you found to be successful?

266
00:14:14,440 --> 00:14:15,520
Is it consistency?

267
00:14:15,520 --> 00:14:18,040
Is it specific pieces of content?

268
00:14:18,040 --> 00:14:19,040
Different platforms?

269
00:14:19,040 --> 00:14:23,400
Honestly, it's who I connect with and who I get the information in.

270
00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:25,440
Word of mouth has been our best friend.

271
00:14:25,440 --> 00:14:29,600
Recently, we have people that just love the app and they rave and rave, they'll tag it

272
00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:31,760
and that's very helpful.

273
00:14:31,760 --> 00:14:33,840
I reached out to news sources.

274
00:14:33,840 --> 00:14:40,320
We were on the Today Show in DMA3 and that really helped getting that national attention.

275
00:14:40,320 --> 00:14:42,160
But we're offered globally.

276
00:14:42,160 --> 00:14:47,560
We have users in Germany, Australia, and the Netherlands, which is really cool too because

277
00:14:47,560 --> 00:14:51,200
it's translated in all those languages.

278
00:14:51,200 --> 00:14:53,160
Really I think it's just a matter of it being around.

279
00:14:53,160 --> 00:14:57,240
We're only a year old and you know in the first like five years of business that you

280
00:14:57,240 --> 00:15:01,080
make no progress and then all of a sudden it takes off.

281
00:15:01,080 --> 00:15:04,640
So I think it's going to take a little bit more time for us to get known and just keep

282
00:15:04,640 --> 00:15:07,400
sharing the platform and getting more people in.

283
00:15:07,400 --> 00:15:12,000
I think the thing that makes Wheel With Me unique is it's a wheel with me.

284
00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:14,040
We want a wheel together as a community.

285
00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:15,880
So it's not the Jessi Stracham app.

286
00:15:15,880 --> 00:15:18,080
You're not going to just see my face in there.

287
00:15:18,080 --> 00:15:19,520
We have different wheel tour users.

288
00:15:19,520 --> 00:15:23,400
We get the local community in, program workouts and we're cool with them doing it.

289
00:15:23,400 --> 00:15:24,400
Let them lead a workout.

290
00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:28,080
So you get to see different faces, you're not just with the same style.

291
00:15:28,080 --> 00:15:30,040
So if you like this person more, cool.

292
00:15:30,040 --> 00:15:32,200
You have more classes to join with that.

293
00:15:32,200 --> 00:15:35,880
Yeah, where do you see it kind of progressing to?

294
00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:39,640
Or I guess maybe you can start initially with like kind of what the structure is.

295
00:15:39,640 --> 00:15:40,640
Is it live?

296
00:15:40,640 --> 00:15:41,640
Is it on demand?

297
00:15:41,640 --> 00:15:42,640
Is it pre-recorded?

298
00:15:42,640 --> 00:15:43,640
It's all pre-recorded.

299
00:15:43,640 --> 00:15:47,000
So you go into the app and there's different categories.

300
00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:49,840
There's strength, resistance bands, workouts in bed.

301
00:15:49,840 --> 00:15:54,800
That was something that we really wanted to focus on for the people that wait for caregivers.

302
00:15:54,800 --> 00:15:59,280
So there's resistance band, body weight and strength training workouts from bed.

303
00:15:59,280 --> 00:16:02,560
So that way if you're waiting for a caregiver, get moving in bed.

304
00:16:02,560 --> 00:16:03,560
Utilize that time.

305
00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:05,200
Don't spoil social media.

306
00:16:05,200 --> 00:16:07,440
Do something to better yourself.

307
00:16:07,440 --> 00:16:10,320
And that's really what will make life rewarding for you.

308
00:16:10,320 --> 00:16:14,240
That's what's going to build your confidence as a human being is just focusing on becoming

309
00:16:14,240 --> 00:16:17,000
1% better every single day.

310
00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:20,640
You don't have to be in this current state where you are for the rest of your life if

311
00:16:20,640 --> 00:16:23,560
you were willing to take the action to get yourself out of there.

312
00:16:23,560 --> 00:16:28,960
And the biggest issue with society as a whole is this victim mentality of like, poor me.

313
00:16:28,960 --> 00:16:29,960
I can't do it.

314
00:16:29,960 --> 00:16:30,960
I can never.

315
00:16:30,960 --> 00:16:35,640
If no, it's your lack of commitment to yourself and to the change that you're trying to make.

316
00:16:35,640 --> 00:16:36,640
That's all it is.

317
00:16:36,640 --> 00:16:37,640
It's not that you can't.

318
00:16:37,640 --> 00:16:39,320
It's that you're choosing not to.

319
00:16:39,320 --> 00:16:43,960
And the sooner that we accept responsibility for our actions or lack of, the sooner that

320
00:16:43,960 --> 00:16:49,800
we're able to attack it, change it, and correct the course to get to where we want to be.

321
00:16:49,800 --> 00:16:55,800
You think anyone's not receptive to that message or is there kind of like, is there kind of,

322
00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:58,240
it wouldn't be exclusive to wheelchair users only.

323
00:16:58,240 --> 00:17:00,360
There's a lot of people that aren't receptive to that message.

324
00:17:00,360 --> 00:17:06,240
But like when you're first starting with someone like post accident, do you notice a trend towards

325
00:17:06,240 --> 00:17:10,840
that initially frustrates them and then they get to a certain point or?

326
00:17:10,840 --> 00:17:13,520
Honestly, it just depends on the person.

327
00:17:13,520 --> 00:17:18,800
I get caught up in the list a lot by like older disabled people and that's fine.

328
00:17:18,800 --> 00:17:20,840
I just, I live that victim mentality.

329
00:17:20,840 --> 00:17:21,840
I was that person.

330
00:17:21,840 --> 00:17:24,760
I'm like, you should do this for me because I'm a wheelchair user.

331
00:17:24,760 --> 00:17:28,840
Well, because I'm a wheelchair user, my life is harder because I'm a wheelchair user this.

332
00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:34,160
And it was like, when I led with that, and I use that victimness of what happened to me

333
00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:36,600
to kind of get my way, I didn't get my way.

334
00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:39,640
Where I'm like, you know what, I just want to help other people get to live life the

335
00:17:39,640 --> 00:17:40,640
way I have.

336
00:17:40,640 --> 00:17:44,800
And I want you to be able to drive across the country by yourself in eight weeks and

337
00:17:44,800 --> 00:17:48,280
go travel and visit other wheelchair users and have a community and meet people.

338
00:17:48,280 --> 00:17:53,440
Like I want people to get to experience this life the way I did because it was so rewarding

339
00:17:53,440 --> 00:17:55,440
and just continues to be rewarding.

340
00:17:55,440 --> 00:17:58,800
And I want people to get to experience that and realize that, hey, your life's not over

341
00:17:58,800 --> 00:18:00,960
because this happened to you.

342
00:18:00,960 --> 00:18:05,800
And the sooner that we give people that kind of hope, I think the sooner that they're able

343
00:18:05,800 --> 00:18:06,800
to attack.

344
00:18:06,800 --> 00:18:09,960
But there are some people like I've, I'm meant to like a hospital and there are some people

345
00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:14,160
that I knock on the door and I'm like, peer mentor and they're like, no, and just shut

346
00:18:14,160 --> 00:18:15,160
you down.

347
00:18:15,160 --> 00:18:17,840
But there are some people that are willing to listen to what you say because I have the

348
00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:18,840
proof.

349
00:18:18,840 --> 00:18:20,800
I have the social proof on my social media.

350
00:18:20,800 --> 00:18:25,320
I have the proof in the community that I've helped like, I've lived life to the fullest.

351
00:18:25,320 --> 00:18:28,320
This injury has done a lot of things for me and it's been that mentality of like, you

352
00:18:28,320 --> 00:18:32,240
know what, I'm not a victim because of this like time is going to keep passing.

353
00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:34,440
Life is going to keep passing and I have two options.

354
00:18:34,440 --> 00:18:36,160
I can be miserable in my current existence.

355
00:18:36,160 --> 00:18:39,560
I can make the best of it and figure it out and try and find what's going to make me

356
00:18:39,560 --> 00:18:43,520
happy and continue to make me happy.

357
00:18:43,520 --> 00:18:49,840
How do you, how do you feel if when people say that you're inspirational or like what's,

358
00:18:49,840 --> 00:18:52,000
what's your opinion on like the inspiration narrative?

359
00:18:52,000 --> 00:18:56,880
Cause a lot of times we'll see someone with a disability performing like a rudimentary

360
00:18:56,880 --> 00:18:59,200
task and you get all these people on social media.

361
00:18:59,200 --> 00:19:00,840
They're like, oh, that's so inspiring.

362
00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:02,480
Like that's so motivating.

363
00:19:02,480 --> 00:19:07,600
And it kind of like mitigates and like belittles the population and it kind of perpetuates

364
00:19:07,600 --> 00:19:11,760
this narrative of like, you should praise people with disabilities every time they do

365
00:19:11,760 --> 00:19:12,760
something.

366
00:19:12,760 --> 00:19:16,000
So like, where do you kind of fall on like the inspiration?

367
00:19:16,000 --> 00:19:19,480
Like are you comfortable when people say you're inspirational or there's certain environments

368
00:19:19,480 --> 00:19:21,360
where you're not comfortable with that?

369
00:19:21,360 --> 00:19:23,920
I'm my biggest inspiration for sure.

370
00:19:23,920 --> 00:19:28,240
I make the choice every day to swing my legs out of bed regardless of how much pain I'm

371
00:19:28,240 --> 00:19:29,240
in.

372
00:19:29,240 --> 00:19:32,600
If I piss myself, I figure it out, I move on and I move on with my day.

373
00:19:32,600 --> 00:19:35,880
If I'm struggling to get my leg braces on and I'm cussing and I'm crying and I'm just

374
00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:38,080
over it, I still finish, right?

375
00:19:38,080 --> 00:19:40,080
But that shit's inspiring.

376
00:19:40,080 --> 00:19:45,640
When I want to quit, I'm inspired by me and I'm inspired by what I could be, where I

377
00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:48,440
could be if I just keep showing up.

378
00:19:48,440 --> 00:19:52,240
And because it's hard, getting in the car is hard, pumping gas is hard, doing laundry

379
00:19:52,240 --> 00:19:53,240
is hard.

380
00:19:53,240 --> 00:19:56,360
Like the smallest tasks take so much extra effort.

381
00:19:56,360 --> 00:20:01,160
So yeah, I'm pretty inspiring because I didn't quit because even though I'm faced with so

382
00:20:01,160 --> 00:20:05,720
much challenge in life, I still show up and that's inspiring.

383
00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:07,840
So yeah, yeah, I'm pumping my gas shit.

384
00:20:07,840 --> 00:20:08,840
I'm glad to inspire you.

385
00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:10,720
Now you go out and do something with that.

386
00:20:10,720 --> 00:20:11,720
That's the thing.

387
00:20:11,720 --> 00:20:14,320
Don't call me an inspiration if you're not going to do something with it.

388
00:20:14,320 --> 00:20:19,240
You need to keep that inspiration in your own life and say, hey, I was inspired

389
00:20:19,240 --> 00:20:23,600
by this girl doing this and still showing up, I'm going to go show up.

390
00:20:23,600 --> 00:20:26,720
Yeah, that's the right narrative.

391
00:20:26,720 --> 00:20:32,520
And that's what I, with all of our marketing materials and stuff that we put out, we always

392
00:20:32,520 --> 00:20:35,760
try to demonstrate what people with disabilities are capable of doing when they're in the right

393
00:20:35,760 --> 00:20:37,560
environments and they have the right support.

394
00:20:37,560 --> 00:20:41,200
And yeah, I think that's an awesome narrative to put forth.

395
00:20:41,200 --> 00:20:47,240
So I'm always interested in kind of how different businesses like grow and different revenue

396
00:20:47,240 --> 00:20:49,520
streams and monetization strategies.

397
00:20:49,520 --> 00:20:52,120
How do you, where do you envision the app going?

398
00:20:52,120 --> 00:20:55,720
And you've done a good job of seeing on your websites and different affiliate links and

399
00:20:55,720 --> 00:20:58,000
various collaborations that you guys do.

400
00:20:58,000 --> 00:21:01,520
But kind of like what trajectory do you see the mobile app in your businesses as a whole

401
00:21:01,520 --> 00:21:02,680
going in?

402
00:21:02,680 --> 00:21:04,840
So my big focus is rehab facilities.

403
00:21:04,840 --> 00:21:08,440
I want to help newly injured the more, because people that have been injured five plus years,

404
00:21:08,440 --> 00:21:11,600
they're in their ways, they're living their life, they're happy as a clam.

405
00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:14,440
Rarely do they come, come to you, right?

406
00:21:14,440 --> 00:21:18,520
Whereas newly injured, if we give them that support from the beginning, they'll realize

407
00:21:18,520 --> 00:21:20,720
what they're capable from the beginning.

408
00:21:20,720 --> 00:21:25,000
Over 50% of the spinal cord injury population relies on government assistance for their

409
00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:26,200
independence.

410
00:21:26,200 --> 00:21:32,400
Within 40 years of injury, only 30% of the population is working.

411
00:21:32,400 --> 00:21:36,680
So that means that 70% of the population is relying solely on government, in the government

412
00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:37,800
assistance for independence.

413
00:21:37,800 --> 00:21:42,200
That means you're relying on that government check, which is living in poverty.

414
00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:44,320
I last year, I went back to work full time.

415
00:21:44,320 --> 00:21:47,920
So I've been working 40 hours a week for the past year until I broke my spinal fusion back

416
00:21:47,920 --> 00:21:52,600
in May and running the app and running the nonprofit.

417
00:21:52,600 --> 00:21:54,600
And I'm full time paraplegic.

418
00:21:54,600 --> 00:21:56,600
I don't have function in my legs.

419
00:21:56,600 --> 00:22:00,640
And I still did the damn thing because I managed my time properly because I was committed to

420
00:22:00,640 --> 00:22:01,920
the process.

421
00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:05,720
And getting off government assistance and no longer receiving that social security check

422
00:22:05,720 --> 00:22:10,840
has been the most freeing thing I could have done.

423
00:22:10,840 --> 00:22:13,000
There's a gentleman, his name is Josh.

424
00:22:13,000 --> 00:22:16,720
He also has a spinal cord injury cervical level.

425
00:22:16,720 --> 00:22:21,080
He is an attorney and he helps people with disabilities completely free to get off government

426
00:22:21,080 --> 00:22:25,600
assistance, helps you navigate social security because it gets really sticky in the process

427
00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:27,240
with seamless.

428
00:22:27,240 --> 00:22:30,960
And now I have no limits on what I can earn.

429
00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:34,080
Now I'm no longer worried of like, am I going to go over the threshold?

430
00:22:34,080 --> 00:22:35,800
Am I going to lose my benefits?

431
00:22:35,800 --> 00:22:39,880
For the first time in seven years, I have Medicaid, state insurance, because I went back

432
00:22:39,880 --> 00:22:41,640
to work and I can pay for it now.

433
00:22:41,640 --> 00:22:45,000
And like I just pay for Medicaid every month and I have state insurance.

434
00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:48,880
I have better insurance working full time than I ever did running on assistance.

435
00:22:48,880 --> 00:22:53,680
And I think we get so comfortable in this place because we think we need it that we

436
00:22:53,680 --> 00:22:56,600
limit what we're actually capable of doing.

437
00:22:56,600 --> 00:23:01,040
And so just empowering this community to be like, hey, I can actually push myself a little

438
00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:02,040
harder and do things.

439
00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:04,040
Did I enjoy going to work every day?

440
00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:05,040
Absolutely not.

441
00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:08,280
But I did it and I was able to become independent.

442
00:23:08,280 --> 00:23:11,280
I've saved enough money to where I'm looking at houses.

443
00:23:11,280 --> 00:23:12,600
I almost have my car paid off.

444
00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:18,400
I paid over 10 grand off my car last year just because I made the choice to manage my time

445
00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:23,160
better, make myself better, and do something to help catapult my business and me as a human

446
00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:25,160
and my confidence in myself.

447
00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:29,720
And the more that we show up for ourselves and put ourselves in those uncomfortable positions,

448
00:23:29,720 --> 00:23:35,960
the more confident we become in our capabilities as humans, the less we identify by our disability

449
00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:40,000
and the more we identify by how damn powerful we are.

450
00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:42,040
That's a great message.

451
00:23:42,040 --> 00:23:47,360
You think it's more of an individual mindset thing or are there also barriers from an employment

452
00:23:47,360 --> 00:23:50,160
standpoint and accessibility standpoint?

453
00:23:50,160 --> 00:23:52,640
How did you find the career that you're in now?

454
00:23:52,640 --> 00:23:59,760
Do you think it's more of an individual or an employer standpoint, accessibility barriers?

455
00:23:59,760 --> 00:24:07,160
So I applied to 10 places and I only got two interviews and I got hired at the second place

456
00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:08,160
I interviewed.

457
00:24:08,160 --> 00:24:10,160
And I'm an orthodontic assistant.

458
00:24:10,160 --> 00:24:14,320
So I'm the person that changes the colors and wires on braces.

459
00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:16,080
And the second place was willing.

460
00:24:16,080 --> 00:24:18,280
I'm like, look, I haven't done this in seven years.

461
00:24:18,280 --> 00:24:20,360
I haven't done this from a wheelchair.

462
00:24:20,360 --> 00:24:23,560
But if you're willing to take a risk on me, I'm willing to try.

463
00:24:23,560 --> 00:24:25,280
And so they were willing to try.

464
00:24:25,280 --> 00:24:26,440
They did the working interview.

465
00:24:26,440 --> 00:24:27,440
I executed it.

466
00:24:27,440 --> 00:24:30,560
And I did something that I didn't think I was capable of doing.

467
00:24:30,560 --> 00:24:33,200
The whole reason I didn't go back to work is because I didn't think I would be able

468
00:24:33,200 --> 00:24:35,720
to assist from the chair.

469
00:24:35,720 --> 00:24:40,760
And I ended up being the clinic lead and managing the whole entire clinic and my staff from my

470
00:24:40,760 --> 00:24:41,760
wheelchair.

471
00:24:41,760 --> 00:24:47,040
And I think that we truly just, if we have open conversations, like, well, what do you

472
00:24:47,040 --> 00:24:49,160
need accessibility wise?

473
00:24:49,160 --> 00:24:53,600
And if like the bathroom situation, I left all my bathroom supplies, a change of clothes,

474
00:24:53,600 --> 00:24:54,600
everything in the bathroom.

475
00:24:54,600 --> 00:24:58,360
So that way, if anything did happen at work and I won't lie in the last year, I probably

476
00:24:58,360 --> 00:25:01,560
I did shit myself like three or four times at work.

477
00:25:01,560 --> 00:25:04,800
Like I'd be working on a patient and I'm like halfway through the adjustment, my stomach

478
00:25:04,800 --> 00:25:09,120
would make the rumblies and I'm like, oh no, no, no, no, no, no.

479
00:25:09,120 --> 00:25:10,360
And then like it would happen.

480
00:25:10,360 --> 00:25:12,760
I finished my patient, no one would know.

481
00:25:12,760 --> 00:25:14,600
I'd go to the bathroom, handle my stuff.

482
00:25:14,600 --> 00:25:17,320
It'd take me about 20 minutes is what I got it down to.

483
00:25:17,320 --> 00:25:21,000
And then I'd come back out and I'd go back and go back to work.

484
00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:25,560
And being able to set yourself up for success for when disability happens and when that

485
00:25:25,560 --> 00:25:30,680
struggle happens and having your employer understand that these things could happen and

486
00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:34,800
having the honest, clear conversation with them and being like, look, this isn't going

487
00:25:34,800 --> 00:25:36,680
to stop my work ethic.

488
00:25:36,680 --> 00:25:40,960
This isn't going to deter my work at all, but these are things that could come up.

489
00:25:40,960 --> 00:25:44,040
It's not normal, but it could happen with my disability.

490
00:25:44,040 --> 00:25:47,040
I just want to give you a heads up, make sure you're aware just in case like I'm in the

491
00:25:47,040 --> 00:25:49,480
bathroom along client, then you understand why.

492
00:25:49,480 --> 00:25:52,840
And having that clear, honest, again, honest conversation, right?

493
00:25:52,840 --> 00:25:57,360
Like just putting your needs out there, what you want, and then being willing to fix it

494
00:25:57,360 --> 00:25:59,280
on the fly and figure it out on the fly.

495
00:25:59,280 --> 00:26:02,640
Like there's a lot of things in the office that I can't reach.

496
00:26:02,640 --> 00:26:07,680
And so I'd have, I'd assign specific people to do those jobs where I couldn't do it.

497
00:26:07,680 --> 00:26:09,240
So I had somebody in sterilization.

498
00:26:09,240 --> 00:26:14,880
I had somebody who would design and doing that, being able to delegate and realize that

499
00:26:14,880 --> 00:26:19,400
like, hey, you might not be able to do it all, but you're still valuable to this place.

500
00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:20,400
Yeah.

501
00:26:20,400 --> 00:26:21,400
Yeah, absolutely.

502
00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:24,000
And it's the same way in the, in the gym setting.

503
00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:27,320
So how will we make our more environments more accessible?

504
00:26:27,320 --> 00:26:31,200
Just being transparent, having our clients communicate what they need help with, what

505
00:26:31,200 --> 00:26:32,840
they don't need help with.

506
00:26:32,840 --> 00:26:38,840
And when we were, we moved to a new facility last year and when we're designing where to

507
00:26:38,840 --> 00:26:42,600
hang things and making sure that they're at a height where someone in a wheelchair could

508
00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:43,600
grab it.

509
00:26:43,600 --> 00:26:46,520
And I think there's so many like small things that gyms overlook.

510
00:26:46,520 --> 00:26:51,400
Have you found anything specific in terms of accessibility barriers within gyms that

511
00:26:51,400 --> 00:26:53,000
you've tried to use?

512
00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:58,840
I will say, I've been a member of the YMCA since gosh, for like seven years now.

513
00:26:58,840 --> 00:27:02,800
And anytime I'm like, Hey, this is a piece of adaptive equipment would be great here.

514
00:27:02,800 --> 00:27:08,320
Like the extenders for the steward or a lap mat or something like that.

515
00:27:08,320 --> 00:27:11,480
And I'd let the Y know, I'm like, this would be great for us to have as wheelchair users

516
00:27:11,480 --> 00:27:12,480
at your facility.

517
00:27:12,480 --> 00:27:14,880
And within a week, they would purchase whatever I needed.

518
00:27:14,880 --> 00:27:18,640
And they had it for me or if I'm like, could you move this equipment so I could use it?

519
00:27:18,640 --> 00:27:20,360
And they'd move it and it would stay that way.

520
00:27:20,360 --> 00:27:25,640
And I think that's really cool that you find this place that's overly accommodating that

521
00:27:25,640 --> 00:27:26,960
they're just like, what do you need?

522
00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:27,960
I've got you.

523
00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:30,320
And again, it's us willing to open our mouth.

524
00:27:30,320 --> 00:27:35,560
I think too often we assume people know our needs, but how can anyone know our needs when

525
00:27:35,560 --> 00:27:36,880
they're not living our life?

526
00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:40,800
Because life from down here is way different from life from up there.

527
00:27:40,800 --> 00:27:45,880
And so we have to be able to articulate what we need and have honest, open communication

528
00:27:45,880 --> 00:27:46,880
with people.

529
00:27:46,880 --> 00:27:48,600
And sometimes people won't be receptive.

530
00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:51,240
Sometimes people don't give a shit and karma will handle them.

531
00:27:51,240 --> 00:27:56,640
You can't let somebody else's opinion of you or opinion of your situation control the way

532
00:27:56,640 --> 00:27:59,960
that you move in the world and how often you open your mouth.

533
00:27:59,960 --> 00:28:04,800
Just because one person isn't receptive to what you say, have that ability to be like,

534
00:28:04,800 --> 00:28:06,280
did I say it in a good way?

535
00:28:06,280 --> 00:28:07,280
Was I rude?

536
00:28:07,280 --> 00:28:10,160
Because I know there's been plenty of times where someone's asked me if I needed something

537
00:28:10,160 --> 00:28:13,680
and I've been rude back and then that person's avoided me ever since.

538
00:28:13,680 --> 00:28:17,760
And so you have to check in with yourself and make sure that you're approaching the situation

539
00:28:17,760 --> 00:28:21,080
properly as well so people are receptive to what you need.

540
00:28:21,080 --> 00:28:28,360
Yeah, the lessons on accountability that you've shared here, they extend beyond all populations

541
00:28:28,360 --> 00:28:30,640
in different industries and different environments.

542
00:28:30,640 --> 00:28:35,640
So it's a great lesson kind of in terms of how to approach it for people of all abilities.

543
00:28:35,640 --> 00:28:40,680
But loved the conversation, looking forward to following the progression of Wheel with

544
00:28:40,680 --> 00:28:41,680
Me Fit.

545
00:28:41,680 --> 00:28:47,080
If you have any specific links you want us to share, we can put them in the show notes.

546
00:28:47,080 --> 00:28:52,440
Is there anything that you want to share with the audience before we wrap up?

547
00:28:52,440 --> 00:28:53,440
Any key takeaways?

548
00:28:53,440 --> 00:28:58,600
I mean, the goal of our company and our nonprofit as a whole is to help make the fitness industry

549
00:28:58,600 --> 00:28:59,600
more accessible.

550
00:28:59,600 --> 00:29:04,520
But like we shared and we talked about today, these things go beyond fitness as well.

551
00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:10,800
But what do you think could be a step towards making fitness and gyms as a whole more accessible?

552
00:29:10,800 --> 00:29:14,480
I think it's people's willingness to have conversations.

553
00:29:14,480 --> 00:29:16,160
Don't just assume you know what we need.

554
00:29:16,160 --> 00:29:17,160
You don't.

555
00:29:17,160 --> 00:29:18,160
Ask.

556
00:29:18,160 --> 00:29:20,760
Ask different members of the community too.

557
00:29:20,760 --> 00:29:25,680
Don't just ask one person because one individual's needs might be different from someone else's.

558
00:29:25,680 --> 00:29:28,880
And just be willing to approach it with an open mind.

559
00:29:28,880 --> 00:29:34,440
Realize that fitness is one of the most important things for all humans, regardless of your

560
00:29:34,440 --> 00:29:37,480
ability or your size or whatever.

561
00:29:37,480 --> 00:29:41,600
Like you need to get your body moving just for longevity.

562
00:29:41,600 --> 00:29:44,360
And don't be so worried about what other people think about you.

563
00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:45,720
Their opinion of you doesn't matter.

564
00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:47,040
They're not living in your life.

565
00:29:47,040 --> 00:29:48,560
They're not living your day.

566
00:29:48,560 --> 00:29:50,080
Don't be embarrassed by your diapers.

567
00:29:50,080 --> 00:29:51,560
Don't be embarrassed by your catheters.

568
00:29:51,560 --> 00:29:55,200
Don't be embarrassed by your medical supplies or your wheelchair.

569
00:29:55,200 --> 00:29:59,400
There's no point because you can't do anything to get rid of those things, right?

570
00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:00,400
They're part of your life.

571
00:30:00,400 --> 00:30:05,360
And the more that you embrace every aspect of your life, even the parts that aren't pretty

572
00:30:05,360 --> 00:30:10,280
and that you don't like, the more confidence you have to go out and maneuver an inaccessible

573
00:30:10,280 --> 00:30:15,000
world and articulate what you need to change that because change starts with you.

574
00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:18,440
If you want to see change, you have to be the change.

575
00:30:18,440 --> 00:30:19,760
Excellent way to wrap it up.

576
00:30:19,760 --> 00:30:24,160
Jessi, thanks for sharing your wisdom and your knowledge with us and your experience

577
00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:25,160
with us.

578
00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:28,880
I'm sure it will go a long way and hopefully we're able to direct some people your way

579
00:30:28,880 --> 00:30:31,960
that could greatly benefit from the services you provide.

580
00:30:31,960 --> 00:30:33,800
So really appreciate your time today.

581
00:30:33,800 --> 00:30:34,800
Thanks for joining us.

582
00:30:34,800 --> 00:30:37,000
I really appreciate you guys having me.

583
00:30:37,000 --> 00:30:47,560
Thank you.