Ep. 549 | From Walk-On to NFL: How Setbacks Build Resilience | Facing Fears & More with Todd Anderson
What does it take to transform from a doubted walk-on player to an NFL athlete? Todd Anderson, co-founder of Dream Performance Recovery and former Michigan State football star, reveals how the harshest setbacks shaped his greatest comebacks.
In this powerful conversation, Todd shares his journey from making life decisions based on potential regrets to overcoming career-threatening injuries and eventually reaching the NFL. Drawing from his experiences as an athlete and entrepreneur, he offers unique insights into building genuine resilience and finding purpose beyond sports.
Learn:
Why your biggest setbacks might be preparing you for future success
How one decision-making framework can transform your biggest life choices
The counterintuitive truth about vulnerability and building resilience
What elite athletes often misunderstand about transitioning to normal life
ABOUT Todd Anderson
Todd is the co-founder and Chief Brand Officer of Dream Performance & Recovery, makers of performance sleep products. His obsession and passion for fitness, nutrition, sleep and overall human performance optimization began when he was a walk-on for the Michigan State University football team. His successful college career led to an NFL opportunity for the Rams in 2012, where he took his passion for the strength and conditioning side of the sport to performance coaching. Starting as a trainer, he moved quickly into leadership and education and ultimately decided to take his learnings and skill sets into speaking and entrepreneurship. Todd has worked with several leaders in the sleep and recovery space to dive into the psychology of sleep and recovery and went on to take numerous continuing education courses surrounding sleep and now holds 10 certifications in fitness, nutrition and performance (CSCS, NSCA, NCSF, and more). Todd has been speaking on sleep for over 5 years as a sleep expert and co-founded Dream Performance & Recovery in 2023, designing the highest quality science-backed sleep performance products. He is currently working towards a Sleep Psychology PhD.
ABOUT THE BLUEPRINT PODCAST
The BluePrint Podcast is for busy professionals and Household CEOs who care deeply about their families, career, and health. Host Dr. Erik Korem distills cutting edge-science, leadership, and life skills into simple tactics optimized for your busy lifestyle and goals. Dr. Korem interviews scientists, coaches, elite athletes, entrepreneurs, entertainers, and exceptional people to discuss science and practical skills you can implement to become the most healthy, resilient, and impactful version of yourself.
On a mission to equip people to pursue audacious goals, thrive in uncertainty, and live a healthy and fulfilled life, Dr. Erik Korem is a High-Performance pioneer. He introduced sports science and athlete-tracking technologies to collegiate and professional (NFL) football over a decade ago. He has worked with the National Football League, Power-5 NCAA programs, gold-medal Olympians, Nike, and the United States Department of Defense.
Erik is an expert in sleep and stress resilience. He is the Founder and CEO of AIM7, a health and fitness app that unlocks the power of wearables by providing you with daily personalized recommendations to enhance your mind, body, and recovery.
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