Feisty Women's Performance

On November 11th, 2021, on day three of a solo multi-day ride on Arizona’s Coconino Trail, seven-time world champion adventure athlete Rebecca Rusch clipped her handlebars on a protruding rock, launching her from her bike and into a ravine 10 feet below, where she hit the ground with enough force to bounce multiple times, breaking her helmet and badly bruising her ribs. After self-rescuing off the trail, Rebecca did what pretty much everyone told her to do: rest up and recover. Her ribs mended. Her brain, which had clearly been concussed, didn't. Now, going on three years later, we revisit the crash, what she did in the immediate aftermath, and how experts are thinking about the acute phases of concussion recovery today.

Rebecca Rusch is an adventure athlete, 7x World Champion, and 2x Hall of Fame inductee for mountain biking and gravel cycling. She is also a keynote speaker, the bestselling author of Rusch to Glory, and an Emmy Award winner for the documentary Blood Road about her journey to find the spot where her father, a US Air Force pilot, was shot down during the Vietnam War. She is also the founder of the Be Good™ Foundation, which is dedicated to transforming individuals and communities by using the bicycle as a catalyst for healing, empowerment, and evolution. You can learn more about her and her work at rebeccarusch.com.

This episode also features an interview with Christopher Vaughan, Psy.D., who presented on Rest and the Treatment of Concussion at the 12th Annual Sports Neuropsychology Society Symposium earlier this year. Dr. Vaughan is a pediatric neuropsychologist in the Division of Pediatric Neuropsychology at Children’s National Hospital. He is also Associate Professor, in the departments of Pediatrics & Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at George Washington University School of Medicine, and is Fellow and Treasurer, at the Sports Neuropsychology Society. You can learn more about him and his work at Christopher Vaughan, Psy.D. 

Get Our Active Women’s Guide to Concussion: https://www.womensperformance.com/brain-storm-resources

Episode 1 Show Notes and Resources: https://www.womensperformance.com/blog/brain-storm-episode-1-the-crash-podcast-resources

Momentous: Use code BRAINSTORM to get 20% off your first order at https://www.livemomentous.com/

What if everything you thought you knew about concussion was wrong?

Brain Storm, presented by Momentous, is a podcast series that follows 7-time World Champion adventure athlete Rebecca Rusch after a violent bike wreck leaves her with a “mild” concussion that turns her world upside down.

Each episode follows Rebecca on her journey to heal her brain and fully return to her demanding, athletic life–a goal that eludes her nearly three years after the crash. The series features interviews with leading experts on the science, understanding, and treatment of concussion and persistent post-concussive symptoms.

This limited series starts Monday, September 2, 2024.

Momentous: Use code BRAINSTORM to get 20% off your first order at https://www.livemomentous.com/

0:00 Olympic weightlifting

8:30 Chatting with Jenny Casson

17:36 The Feisty team's favourite moments

29:00 Olympians: They're just like us

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0:00 Where are the change rooms?

11:25 Champions Park

19:40 Sport updates

26:40 Our picks

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0:00 Paris is sick

6:30 The diving vibe

12:09 Sports

27:35 Proposals and urinals

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TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co, plus you’ll get an extra 5% OFF during sales on top of the already discounted price.

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0:00 Inside the Team Canada House

10:38 Women's Skateboard Finals

17:05 The vibes of Waterpolo

24:00 Another night of Track

34:30 Our picks

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0:00 Inside the Urban Park and 3X3 Basketball

12:20 Another day of Track & Field

21:15 We talk to the first ever Olympic Triathlete from Guam and the Pacific Islands

29:40 Our picks

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0:00 The Women's Cycling Road Race

14:09 The final day of swimming

20:45 Kelly gets trapped at the Mixed Team Relay

34:55 Our picks

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TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co, plus you’ll get an extra 5% OFF during sales on top of the already discounted price.

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0:00 We're back from our illness

5:00 Trampoline gymnastics

9:20 Track has started and it is 🤯

21:25 Kelly's husband tells us all about the Urban Park

26:26 Our picks

Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors. 

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TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co, plus you’ll get an extra 5% OFF during sales on top of the already discounted price.

Hettas: Get 20% off with the code FEISTY20 at hettas.com

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Stomach flu has taken down the Feisty Media House in France. We'll be back tomorrow, Sunday! Fingers crossed!

Join the Women’s Sports Fan Club at fanclub.feisty.co to get entered to win a free “It’s Not a Moment. It’s a Movement” shirt daily, plus you’ll get entered to win our grand prize worth $1,000 from Feisty and our sponsors.

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TRIHARD: Use the code FEISTYGAMES for 22% off sitwide at trihard.co, plus you’ll get an extra 5% OFF during sales on top of the already discounted price.

Hettas: Get 20% off with the code FEISTY20 at hettas.com

Joni: Get 10% off your order with the code FEISTY at getjoni.com