“We’re All Survivors of Something– Choose the Harder Path, That’s Where Growth Lives.” A Conversation with Dr. Kaleb Dahlgren

This is Sharpening youg Edge with Chuck and Eric.

In this episode we'll be speaking with Dr. Caleb Dahlgren.

Dr. Dahlgren is a number one best selling author with his latest book called Crossroads and he's a widely recognized expert

on resilience, leadership and health.

Hello and welcome to another episode of Sharpening youg edge presented by CB3 Hockey Development Development.

I'm Chuck Verdolino along with my co host Eric Melanchon.

I can go on and on and on, but welcome to the show Dr. Caleb Dahlgren.

Thanks for having me on here guys.

Appreciate it.

For those that don't know me, I have three kids so life's pretty crazy.

They all play travel, hockey, travel soccer, rec sports, this and that.

And on top of my full time job, I run CV3 hockey development, do podcasts here with Eric.

Free time is hard to come by, but when I do have some time, I love to to read books for hobby and specifically autobiographies because I like to get an insight from the person themselves rather than just reading a biography from someone else.

And I been meaning to read it for a while and this past fall I picked up Crossroads by Caleb Dahlgren and I tell you what, I was completely moved by it, thinking it was just going to be about the Humboldt Broncos, but it got more into Caleb's life and life past there and everybody else's life.

So glad to have you on.

Thank you.

It really means a lot and it's nice to hear that you like enjoy reading those I as well.

I think biographies are amazing and memoirs and like dive into people's own viewpoints, Persona mindset.

I think it's super interesting.

Oh, it's awesome.

Caleb, I really appreciate you jumping on with us.

Amazing history, right?

First of all, I guess congratulations last summer on earning your your chiropractic degree.

So that's awesome.

Another milestone.

Thank you.

Yeah, I guess we'll dive right into it because we've obviously got a lot to cover.

So right out the gate, man, I know it's in the water up there, but how did you fall in love with hockey?

What was it that drew you to the game?

How old were you?

Take us through that.

There's a lot that went into it and it was actually in the birth announcement.

Didn't live up to expectations in hopes of my parents.

But I did fall in love with hockey.

And that was like the first thing was like they put me in skates.

They had a picture of me beside my hockey gear.

No, but not in my hockey, my dad's hockey gear.

The helmet was like three times the size of my head.

The glove was literally the size of my body.

The skate was literally as tall as me.

And there I was just sitting there, just all huddled up, ready to roll.

So, yeah, hockey was amazing.

I think that my first love was like going on the ice and I think back to what made me love it.

And it was like the wind going through my hair and the noise that my skates would make and like that little crisp stop and like the little sounds of it.

I loved that.

That was for me the highlight.

And that was when I fell in love.

And obviously I was able to do it in the winter.

So I go on outdoor rink and ski on the outdoor rink.

And like those were the memories that were like core of developing how I fell in love with the game.

So I'm glad you framed it the way you did.

You basically came out of the womb with these high expectations.

Right.

And I don't want to.

I'm not.

This isn't a dig at your parents because I.

Had I been able to put that in the birth announcements, I would have done the same thing.

Was there ever a point because.

And maybe they joked about it, but was there ever a point where you felt pressure to play, to perform well, to kind of achieve that milestone?

Or did you just play for the love of the game?

It was mostly for love of the game.

My parents were just doing it as a joke, to be honest.

They weren't like actually having that high standard.

But there really wasn't pressure.

My parents were really good with it, to be honest.

I had pressure from coaches, teammates, even myself.

Like, I was probably one of the ones that put the most pressure on myself succeed to keep on growing, to get better.

But it was from an intrinsic motivation mindset.

It wasn't really extrinsic.

I wasn't having people saying, you need to get down there and you need to shoot more pucks.

I was the one that woke up early in the morning, wanted to go ski at 6am I was the one who wanted to go shoot pucks until midnight.

Then my parents say, you need to go to bed now, get back up, let's go to bed.

Like, I was extremely intrinsically motivated.

I loved it.

It wasn't even for me.

It was a passion.

It was like a love, a calling.

And every time I did, my mind would just go free and I would fall in love even more with it.

So I didn't really have that push.

There were times where my parents would challenge me, and it was.

I think it was 12.

I went to UND, like North Dakota.

And then I also went to Europe and went on the hockey team for Team Canada.

And when I was there and I came back, my parents like, okay, you went to Europe.

You saw what professional life could look like if you wanted to go play pro.

They take me a couple NHL games.

There's a few routes and ways for you to do this.

If you want, you can go university route and then go play pro in Europe or go play in NHL.

That could be a true goal of yours if you wanted it.

And I was like, no, I do want it.

And that was like kind of the insight and like, okay, well, if you want it, then you got to do stuff to get there.

You got to earn it.

There's no way you're just going to walk up and do it.

So you have to make sure you're eating well, nutrition is well, you're doing well academically.

And that was kind of like the foundation was like building those tools to help me get to that level.

And after that, when I saw und, I was like, I'm going to go play Youth wars or like D1 and then go play pro in Europe.

That was like the goal.

The goal was that it wasn't really NHL, so my buddies was NHL for me.

It was like, I want to go play pro in Europe, get a scholarship, then go overseas.

That's awesome.

I mean, you hit pretty much everything that Chuck and I try to cover on this podcast.

But I think that's wonderful.

That's a wonderful mindset to have, especially being able to identify that turning point when you came back from Europe.

So you just mentioned you played hockey at a young age for the love of the game.

You did face some adversity when you were younger, about 4 years old, you talked about it in the book when you were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes for a 4 year old.

You said it was confusing and scary with the needles and everything like that.

So.

So at such a young age, how did you learn not to let that stop you from doing what you love, from playing the game of hockey?

I think there was a lot different pieces of the puzzle of course, when you're foreign, diagnosed with a new disease, it's a lot to learn and, like, you're trying to comprehend your own life, like, what you're enjoying, what you don't like to do, and you associate needles to hospital, and that's it.

So when I came home and it was needles brought home, and it was like, not just one needle.

At every meal, I'd have two needles.

And I was like, what's going on?

So first I check my glucose.

Then after that I eat and I give myself insulin based on what I ate.

So there's two needles in that time.

And so it.

For me, it just was so odd and trying to come to grips with it.

But as I was starting to get more into hockey, more into, like, growth, like, at 4, the biggest thing was just trying to accept it.

I think a lot of people, even in life now have issues with acceptance and then also issues with forgiveness.

And so I was struggling with even just accepting that I was type 1 diabetic and that this was my new reality.

And doctors saying, hey, like, you should probably should tone it back from playing hockey.

There's other sports that we recommend you doing instead of hockey, because this is such a strenuous sport.

And I found that, no, my parents were one of the big ones that were a big proponent of, let's focus on controlling things you can control.

And you manage your diabetes.

You don't let your diabetes manage you.

And that mindset kind of helped build the internal resilience and gave me the internal locus of control for me to succeed, not just in diabetes, but in life in general, because there's going to be other things that come up for anyone or anything, and you choose how you respond to it.

And so that was where they're like, no, don't let this manage you.

You manage it, and you go make the most out of it.

And yes, it might be a little bit more challenging, but.

But that's doable and it'll make you stronger.

And so that was what helped.

As I got older, there was coaches that would not want me on their teams because of my diabetes.

There was teammates that would ask me tons of questions about it or even make fun of me.

I had even like, elementary school, we can call it fat on the playground because of my diabetes.

And they.

Everybody associated with you being overweight.

And I wasn't.

I was just like a young, skinny guy, a little bit more muscular because I was fortunate to have some good genes.

But that was really it.

Like, it wasn't anything wherever Weight.

And so for me, it was just helping out people, educate them and like being a walking example.

But yeah, it was a little bit of challenge, for sure.

Yeah.

I love the part where you talked about feeling sorry for yourself.

And you can kind of use that as.

Either you can use it as motivation to try to get better and get stronger and outpace those things, or you can have your pity party and like, grief, it's not linear, right?

It's kind of that sine wave of I feel great.

And a couple years ago, I suffered a pretty traumatic injury in my left leg.

And I went through the same thing where I had that radical, I like to call it.

And I think I'm stealing this from Angela Ducksworth, actually, like, radical acceptance where it's okay, I've got a chill, like, this is it, there's no changing it.

I can't go back in time.

I'm not gonna.

You're not gonna undo diabetes, I'm not gonna undo the lower leg paralysis.

So what am I gonna do now?

And I think that is something that even if we can instill it at kids as a young age and you were able to have that mindset at a 4 or 5 year old, if we can help contribute that piece of education to the kids now, especially in youth sports that like, hey, you're not going to change those things.

It was a bad shift, right?

You're not going to change that shift.

Just do better, Right?

Just figure out what went wrong and try to do better.

Right.

You can have a pity party for a second.

That's right.

Okay, have your pity party.

But no, that's.

I love the way you mentioned that and I think that is pretty critical.

So for me, like, I want to get.

Get talking about book and the crash.

You named the book Crossroads.

So, like, why did you choose, like, what.

Why was that the perfect word for you?

Was there some sort of, like, meaning behind it?

Great question.

I just wanted to respond to your previous comment that I love that you showed your resilience as well through your own injury as well.

And I think that's amazing and I think more people need to continue doing that thing and sharing as well.

And like, how you shared, you might help one person listening to this who just injured their leg as well.

And that's the idea.

That's why you guys are doing this.

But, oh, 100%, believe me, I talk all the time about injury and sobriety and all these things.

And we could have another separate podcast.

So I'll probably connect with you offline about those Things that I'd love to just chat without Chuck glaring at me.

It's all good.

All right.

So to answer the question, I say there's a few things that made me name the book Crossroads.

And it was a very easy decision.

Like I, when I was propose even write a book, that was like the first one that came to my mind.

And it's because I view it in different ways.

So obviously the crash should happen at a crossroads.

The semi truck driver went through the stop sign.

We collided into the semi truck with our bus.

That happened at Crossroads.

But I think that our lives are intertwined with all different crossroads.

So you look at it from different perspectives.

One of the crossroads, for example, is in situations we're faced with a decision to either go to the positive route or the negative route.

So it's either focus on the positive or focus on the negative.

And that was one of the things was for me, at this crossroads, I want to try to focus on the positive.

And then the other thing about crossroads that's interesting too, is that there's all different directions in life.

And in this instance, there is four different directions.

So you choose your direction, you choose your path that you want to go down.

And maybe the path might be a harder path, it might be more challenging, but you're choosing that path and it's like sticking to it and is having that grit, that determination, that resilience to keep on going down that path, even though that path may be harder, may be easier to take a different way, but it's like you chose it, let's go down it kind of thing.

And so Crossroads had multiple meetings.

And then the last one is that if you look back on life as think of naming it Crossroads, connecting the dots.

Because Crossroads, for example, we're all going through.

If you look at it from like a highway standpoint, you're going down a highway, there's intersection, down another highway, intersection.

If you turn right, it may take you on completely direction in life.

And if you.

Then you kept going, if you keep going straight and turn left at some point may take you in a completely different direction that you weren't expecting.

So for me, the piece of the crossroads I thought was interesting was like, at each crossroads I tried to choose a different path.

And maybe the paths weren't perfect, but they took me down this path and led me to where I was.

And I was grateful for all the crossroads that I had in my life.

So that was kind of like the pull deep element of it.

And also that crosswords are like considered a Challenge point or like an adversity moment.

And in that, try to find the light and the positive.

I love it.

I love the highway metaphor, too, because there's all sorts of distractions as you're going along those highways, too.

And you might want to change your path because, oh, look, there's Tim Hortons there.

Like, I can get off, get some Timmies.

But no, I got to stay focused on where I'm going or that's going to be a distraction.

So, yeah, I love that metaphor.

I think I'm going to start using that from now on.

Yeah, and that's what I meant earlier, too, when I said, when I picked up the book thinking it was just going to be an autobiography, it went into these type of things and it really got me hooked.

So again, I'm going to say it again.

I highly, highly, highly recommend this book, not only if you're a hockey player or a hockey fan, but it's more about life as well.

So I'd love to get more into the team itself.

Eric and I have guests on all the time that talk about successful teams being the ones that don't have rosters full of scorers.

Right.

We've had D1 athletes on talking about winning national championships because of the role players and the culture of the team.

And you talk about it in your book, specifically with Coach Darcy heading up this family first type of atmosphere and culture in the locker room.

So talk a little bit about the group of people that you were surrounded with that year, whether it be players, coaches, and ultimately staff leading up to that playoff run.

And you nailed it on the head.

When you're talking about championship teams, like, we had the culture in the dressing room to be a championship team, and we believed it in ourselves.

But we were surrounded by people with good hearts and good human beings.

And when you make up a team of people with good human beings, they're going to succeed because they're going to mesh together.

May not be the most talented, may not be the most strongest, tallest.

But when you have everybody kind of rooting for each other and also working for each other and battling for each other, that's the hardest team to beat.

Because if one man goes down, the other guy steps up and protects him and keeps on going and battling.

And that's what we had there.

And we want you to come in and be a leader and carry yourself as a leader and also want you to mesh in with the team.

And he's.

I want you to kind of understand what the core covenant is.

He already mentioned it, first phone call, and I was like, oh, what's this core covenant kind of thing?

And so it was like a set of values and standards that we had to uphold each other to.

And it was like family first.

To strive for greatness in all areas, to give more than you take, to give back to your community and staff, to wear the logo and crest with pride to.

I'd say, like, those were some of the main ones on it, to be honest.

Kind of listed like five there.

But the big thing was nothing about wins and losses.

It was all about being a good human being.

So Darcy was like the head of that and brought it in.

And then our captain, Logan Schatz, one of my good buddies growing up and like childhood best friends, ended up messaging me, was super pumped, called me and he's, I can't wait.

It's gonna be such a fun year.

We're gonna go for it.

We're gonna win it all.

Like.

Like, here he was planting the seed that we're going for the championship, we're

going to win it all.

And this was like July.

So, like, they.

They had the mentality that this was our year, we're going for it.

And that's what we brought in.

We brought in guys that championship before previous experiences being on winning teams, winning culture.

So it was super easy to have all that in one room because everybody understood what it took to win, and everybody also was willing and want going to sacrifice for each other to win.

Wow.

I mean, love that message.

I think setting the tone right from the beginning of the season is a great way to do it.

Right.

And especially if it's.

The coach comes in and say, is the goal as a team, like, where do you want to be?

Okay.

You want that champ?

Here's what it's going to take to get there.

Right.

You got to buy in from the beginning.

Yeah.

So crash happens, right?

Life is now flipped upside down, like, literally in physical.

Figuratively.

Can you elaborate a little bit for the listeners on some of the injuries that you personally sustained?

Right.

There's obviously the emotional trauma and that everything that carries with it, but the physical injuries.

And then for me personally, this is extremely relatable.

Where the doctors were almost perplexed and confused by how you were able to recover to the level you did, things you were able to accomplish, even though the injuries were quite catastrophic.

And it was the injuries I suffered.

So I was sitting like, I'll row driver's side, row 12.

And so like fourth from the back.

And I flew up, but I think that's what I flew up.

I don't remember fully.

I remember just the contact and that was it.

After that, I was completely.

Don't remember anything else, but flew up and then hit my head on the side of the.

The top of the seats where they have the bags over top that you'd put bags up in that hit that compartment.

And I think I fell down and I landed on seat 5C, because I had 5C imprinted on the side of my eye and then landed and maybe put a something through my head.

So the injuries I had were a fracture skull, a punch went to my skull, scalp degloving, four broken vertebrae in my neck, four broken vertebrae in my back, blood clots, my left arm and right eardrum.

I had muscle, nerve and ligament damage to my neck, my back as well.

And I also had a severe traumatic brain injury where I shouldn't be able to walk, talk, or remember my name.

And that was when doctors were calling me, like the medical miracle.

And didn't really realize the gravity of my injuries until lots people were shocked about, like, how I was responding to things, and also even had five days of complete blank, as you can see in the book.

But I don't remember them at all.

So I was in a state called post traumatic amnesia, meaning that when the collision had happened, I don't remember anything after the collision all the way for five days.

And then I came out of it at five days, which also is a major sign of a moderate to severe brain injury.

And so that was one of the things that I had as well.

But at the end of the day, the injuries weren't the worst.

It was the fact of losing 16 people you consider to be family.

I ended up doing quite well, though.

Got through it all pretty fast.

Like, in three weeks, I was out of the hospital.

I was back in Humboldt, giving back, volunteering, skating in June.

June 1, I was back on ice.

June 5, I was driving again.

And all the doctors were super shocked because of how fast I was progressing, healing based on the head injury.

And then I went to York University.

I committed to them before the crash.

And I was talking to D1 School.

So I committed to youth sports, and I was like, okay, let me still talk to D1 schools.

Then after the crash, all the D1 schools are like, can you play?

I'm like, nope.

And they're like, okay, no.

So that was a little bit unfortunate, but it's all good.

And that also was against all the doctors.

Every doctor I talked to did not want me to go.

And I went against all of that, too.

I mean, that's incredibly remarkable.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't at least tie it back to what you mentioned earlier, where you're playing in Europe and you have this mindset shift where you're like, all right, I got to dial my nutrition and my physical conditioning.

I got to dial all these things and along with my mindset.

But do you think you were at a point where your nutrition and your performance and your conditioning was kind of at a peak or at a high for you, and you were happy with it?

So do you think that contributed to your ability to recover so quickly because you took care of yourself 100%?

And the doctors even said, I should have had a severed spine from my cervical spine, like C2,3, all the way down, just based on the injuries itself.

And if that was, then I wouldn't even be able to breathe because, like, C3, 4, 5 keeps your diaphragm alive.

It's the same I remembered in school, but, like, truly.

So I would have had issues with breathing.

And so, thankfully, they said since I was so strong, based on my physical strength, that they think I braced.

And the brace actually helps keep me alive in that sense.

So I don't know that's what their hypoth hypothesis was.

I don't know if it's true or not, but it's things like that makes you sit back and reflect.

And even just the research shows, like, you being active helps you as well.

You having strength helps you even with the mental health.

And that was the other thing was my recovery mentally was a lot, I'd say, enhanced because I also had been through so many things prior to that, developed skills of resilience and tools to use in my toolkit ways for me to overcome this mental part of it, too.

And so it was able to push through the pain.

I was able to move my body when I didn't feel like it.

I was able to be determined and have that grit.

And lots of the guys were, too, because we were all like, that.

So you see lots of the guys with miraculous, amazing recoveries and coming back to hockey and playing out their careers and those kind of things, and it's amazing to see.

But unfortunately, yeah, I didn't get that opportunity to do it.

But it's all good.

No, I mean, I think you're extremely successful now and I think it's really that commitment to just continuing to improve yourself no matter the situation.

And I think in your case, it started when you were four years old.

Right.

And you just weren't going to be contained by anything or anyone.

It's truly remarkable.

Thanks.

So it often takes a village, they say right after a tragedy or an event happens.

And again, you talk about it in the book.

But for those that haven't read the book yet, how did community.

I know there was a big response from the NHL, but the community itself, family, teammates, strangers, how did they carry you when you were stuck in the hospital recovering from your injuries, when you couldn't carry yourself?

Yeah, the community was amazing.

I think back to like how special of a bond that was that year with us in the community and let alone in Humboldt.

We'd have Bachelor Mondays, we would go and play floor hockey, the Special Olympics crew, we would go and go to Johnny's Bistro, the local restaurant, like hang out, chat to locals there.

Like we were really heavily involved in the community.

You'd have even like recreational hockey every Sunday.

So there was things that we would do to really help give back.

So for me, when I was in the hospital, I just wanted to make sure the community was healing and they would come and visit me, people from Humboldt, lots of like Bill, as family, friends.

I had teammates and some of my best friends that were playing pro and NCAA Division 1 that came and visited me mid season and want to check in and that was kind of things.

It was so special.

But then also like the NHL, the hockey world, the world itself came together.

Some of my idol, like Joe Sakic, was one of the ones who I was able to talk to in private.

And he was such an influence because he actually had gone through something similar with the Swift Current Broncos.

And then on top of that as well, he knew how to handle it and he gave me lots of tools and tips about being a leader and remaining a leader after the crash too, because I was assistant captain on the team at Humboldt and that I needed to continue to be a leader and take on the role since none of their letters made it through the crash.

So it was like I put the onus on myself as well.

To lead and Joe was a huge influence.

Same with Haley Wickenheiser as well.

Another big influence in my life and super helpful in that.

And honestly, there is, there's like the amount of support I still want to just say, if anyone listening to this, you had a stick out word Jersey sent a donation, sent a message, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

The world truly came together.

You got to see how beautiful the hockey community was.

There's tributes around the whole NHL in Europe as well.

There was tributes in our league, like people like I know Nip.

When Hawks were playing in seven playoffs, they ended up wearing green helmets for the rest of their playoffs and won the whole championship.

So that was cool too.

Yeah, like we, we had so much support.

And it just goes to show that support can change people's lives and that we need to support not just us, but like those who go through their own tragedies.

People in our life, our family, our friends, we have our tragedies.

Everyone has their own tragedies.

So support and helping them can help them reach their heights that they may not think are possible, but with the support of others, they can reach.

And so that was something I took away as well.

There's an elder lady beside me in the room of us three Broncos and an elderly lady.

She had one visitor in the four days we were together.

One visitor, and we had at least 20 each per day because that was our cap.

And so my heart felt so bad when I saw that she had one visitor in her four days and she was going through her own tragedy.

So I tried to include her in on our stuff and make her feel welcome and supported.

If I got some food, I'd hand it over to her and be like, hey, have some of this.

So it was just like community matters and your people matter.

So surrounding yourself with good people can really uplift and change your life in general.

And now let's take a quick break to hear from our partners.

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15.

Yeah, that's.

That's a lot of pressure for anybody, let alone a young kid.

Right.

You've.

And now you're the only surviving captain.

You put all this pressure of not only do you have to make it through a successful recovery, Right, so you can live your life again, but you're already trying to live for others.

Was there ever a point where, like, that pressure got to you?

And if so, like, when you started to see those cracks, what were some of the things that you went back to that helped you get through that pressure to come out on the other side so successful?

Thank you.

Yeah, there's.

I'd say after June, in July, I was able to finally take some time to myself.

And I think that was after the whirlwind of hit.

There was so many different events.

Like, think about.

Even in the hostel, I wasn't able to attend any of the funerals of my teammates that passed and the staff that passed.

And so that was challenging in itself.

So you don't normally heal the way you normally would heal, so you had to do it through, like, social media and that kind of stuff.

But then the interviews, everybody wanted to know about everything and nobody wanted to talk.

And I had experience speaking before, so that was something.

And then going to the NHL Awards, and that was a lot, too, because for me, no, you're pros.

But then, you know, you're like idols in a sense.

But then they're just human beings.

To me, they're just human beings, but they walk to walk, talk, to talk, some of them, which is awesome.

And then after that, it's like having that weight of everybody asking questions.

And I'd say, July finally got away from it all and was like, okay, I'm at peace.

And I just.

For me, one of the best things I would do was be out in nature.

So I'd go and sit down in Saskatoon, and there was this bridge called the Broadway Bridge, and that was my escape.

Because everywhere you went in Saskatoon, especially with half your hair completely gone and bleached blonde, you're a walking target.

Like a walking target.

So everybody would come up to me, oh, how are you doing?

Are you doing okay?

Give me a hug.

It was just reminders.

And they came out of the good heart, like goodwill, kindness, them trying to be sweet and sincere.

But I would always get looked at double takes, triple takes.

People want to come just hold my hand or come and hug me.

Just didn't know how they respond.

Then they respond crying or tell me their story.

Sad, sad story or sob story as well.

So you're taking like all that toll.

So for me, the best was going Broadway bridge.

I'd sit out in the sun, watch the sunset, and I just relax on the bridge by myself, listen to the water crash on the rocks.

And that was like kind of my serenity where I was just like at peace.

I loved also giving back.

So for me, when I was going through this as well, I wanted to help put a smile on other people's faces.

And when I put a smile on someone else's face, it literally would put a smile on my heart and make me feel whole.

And that was one of the ways I helped myself heal from it all too, was because if I can go, it makes someone's day a little bit better by saying, hey, how are you doing?

I'm here to help out.

And they're so appreciative of that.

Or if I go and check in with somebody, being like, hey, Bethana of you wanted to see how we're doing today.

And they're like, super kind.

Or even just saying, hey, I love the way you look.

That shirt looks great on you.

And then just getting a big smile like that internally makes me feel great to be able to make know that I'm making them feel better and appreciated and supported.

So for me, that was a big piece of my healing, was helping other people.

And then lastly, there's lots of different pieces.

I had a mental performance coach that helped a lot.

I had vulnerable conversations with my parents at the dinner table every day about how we felt.

They were on the crash site too, so they saw everything.

So they were going through their own grief and struggling with that too.

And then I also had workout every single day.

I had a healthy diet.

I slept for 12 hours a day.

I stayed off social media.

I didn't drink, didn't do alcohol, didn't do drugs.

I didn't do much of that before.

I didn't do any drugs or anything like that before, But I only drank a little bit before.

It was like maybe two or three times a year.

I completely cut it off.

I was like, I'm not doing that ever again.

Like, I really wanted to separate myself from that all and just do healthy things.

So I actually worked that summer.

And when I worked that summer, it was probably one of the best things for me because I was seeing hockey players develop to become better human Beings and better hockey players through our skills camp that we had in Saskatoon and worked out every day.

Like, I really.

I try to live the best life I could.

And then I used as motivation.

And no, I wouldn't say it got to a point where I was like, completely like in a depressive or anxious or ptsd.

I did have survivor's guilt in the hospital, but the mindset was, what if roles were reversed and I passed away?

What if they're in my bed right now?

How do I want them to live their life?

Well, I want them to pursue their passions, their dreams, their goals.

To make the most of it, to always say yes, to try new things.

Go move to the other side of the world.

Love deeply, Try something completely out of your comfort zone.

Pursue your passion with your whole heart.

So I thought, well, if I want them to do that, why don't I do that for myself?

And so that was when I was like, I'll live big for them and myself.

And so that was my motivation.

And that was like, what put me through the tough days as you want to call those, as that's my motivation.

Yeah.

I mean, the more you speak, the more I am in awe of you and the way you conduct and carry yourself.

And I hope the folks that listen to this really take that to heart.

And like you said before, like, even if one person starts changing their perspective a little bit, you've made that impact.

Right?

So, yeah, the more you talk, I'm loving it.

This great conversation, I mean, do they just maybe to add some humor into it, are people from Saskatoon still?

Is it like Toontown?

Is that what they call it or Toonies or something like that?

Yeah, no, it is Toontown.

It's called Paris of the Prairies if you really want to be fancy.

Yeah.

And I was also born in Moosha, so fun fact about Mooshaw.

Have you heard of Moosha?

I have, yeah.

I think there's a social media channel where some guy goes around to all these ridiculous places in Canada.

And I'm pretty sure one I watched was Moose Jaw.

And I feel like there's some random fact that he mentions, but I can't recall it.

There is, yeah.

So much has the largest moose in the world and the name is Moose.

Name is Mac the moose.

And so it's kind of like Moose Eiffel Tower as well.

And yeah, Mac is a staple in

Saskatchewan, so I've heard of Moose Jaw too.

And those have listened to the podcast know and it seems to get in the podcast every episode.

And he wasn't the highest scorer either.

He was that role player, that gritty player that we talked about.

So I'd love to get back into the core philosophy of the book.

And we spoke earlier about the literal and figurative crossroads.

Right.

You could take a different path.

You quoted in the book as saying, we're all survivors of something.

We all face crossroads.

It's how we choose to navigate them that defines us.

Right.

So when you first sat down to write the book, was the thought process that this was just going to be an autobiography about myself and the crash, or was it about those crossroads and the.

More philosophy on that?

That's a great question.

And that's one of my favorite quotes in a book.

If people ask me what my favorite quote is, it's one of that one.

I'd say it's one of the top ones.

The book was intended to help people.

So when I was sitting in my class on a Monday night in university, I was sitting front row and center and I had turned down the book two times and I already sent a message, an email to my agency saying, hey, I'm not doing the book.

And I sit in class that night and my teacher came in the room, he either said something super controversial, a quote or statistic, and he came in, he looked around the room, looked me straight in the eye and said, when you want to change the world, it starts with you.

And at that time, I was already trying to change the world.

I had my diabetes for mentorship program for type 1 diabetes children.

I was national ambassador for two non profits.

I was on York University men's hockey team, student council representative.

I was Lions leadership within the organization.

I had stuff outside as well that I was doing here was hockey was another thing that was given back to youth of underprivileged youth that aren't able to afford hockey, help them love the game.

Like I was doing so much and I thought, I do want to change the world and I do have this opportunity, so I'm going to write a book.

And so that was like the intent.

So I looked at my best friend, I'm going to write a book.

He's like, what?

You're going to write a book?

I was like, okay.

Looked at my other best friend.

Hey, I'm going to write a book.

He's Dolly, you have an E reader.

How the heck are you going to write a book?

Can't even read?

And so that was a little bit tough.

Tough crowd to please with that one.

I was like, no, no.

We write a book about hope, family resilience.

I'm going to talk about grief and perception.

I want it to help people.

They save lives every single day.

There's nothing more valuable than second chance at life.

And they're like, oh, but you still don't read.

What are you doing?

And I was like, I'll write a book that people that don't like to read, will want to read, that has cool stuff in it.

And they're like, ah, I gotcha.

I gotcha.

So that was like, the intent was truly to help people.

And I didn't want.

I knew putting myself out there was probably going to bring on different aspects of spotlight or a lot of vulnerability.

Because when I walk around, people ask, oh, is your dad still alive?

And I'm like, oh, you must have read the book.

So he is still alive.

For those that are listening, listening.

But good for him.

Not to cut you off, but I.

As I was reading the book, I was waiting, not knowing your personal life before I read the book, I was waiting for that shoe to drop.

And he got stronger and stronger.

So good for him.

Yeah, yeah.

So that's the thing though, is I knew there was more to my life than just the Broncos.

And I think everybody knew me as a humble Bronco.

Nobody really knew me as the previous person I was before the crash or the person I'm becoming after the crash.

And I wanted to show that like post traumatic growth is a thing and that like tons of research on it now, but even then that really wasn't coined term when it was released.

And it's like those are the pieces of the puzzle that I think ultimately led me to who I am today.

And I wouldn't be the person I am had I not gone through those crossroads.

And we wouldn't be the people we are today had we not gone through our own crossroads.

And that's why my story is like one of many.

And you have your own story.

You have your story as well.

Like both you, Chuck and Eric, you guys have your own stories.

And I think it's so powerful and special to share those stories to help enlighten those around you.

Chuck, I think I'm gonna write a book.

Tough crowd.

I like Caleb's response better.

So you chose the doctor of chiropractic, your chiropractor.

Now, you chose that path in life, or maybe it shows you.

Maybe the injury had something to do with it.

But how do you use kind of what you've gone through in your own, like, physical recovery as you approach, like, sports nutrition, neurology, concussion protocol, which is huge.

Now, we had a fantastic guest on Dr. Chris, huge into concussion.

I learned a ton.

So shout out to him.

But do you look at it through a lens of what you've been through and try to, like, apply that to your treatment protocol, or do you try to approach it with more of an open mind and then inject some of those things?

If the reason.

If it arises?

Yeah, there's.

I look at it as, like, puzzle pieces.

So for me, like, being.

I'm a sports chiropractor right now, and I love it.

I love it.

For me, that's the road I wanted to be.

Even like, when I was 16, I wanted to work with athletes as a chiropractor.

So I went shout everywhere When I was 20, all different professions I went to Dentistry, Maryland.

Physio, Cairo, firefighting, policing principle.

I really.

I went all the routes I thought I'd be interested in.

Cairo remained number one.

I was like, all right, that's where we're going.

And so for me today, in practice, it looks like patient walks in.

It depends on their complaint.

It depends on what they're coming in with.

But at the same time, I instill my values and beliefs into the patient through conversation.

So you can really have a great relationship with patients through just communicating.

So for example, when they're doing exercise, instead of saying, oh, I suck at this, I'm like, no, you're just learning.

You're getting better at it.

And that is such a small little cube.

But in their brain, it's, oh, he's right.

I am learning.

I am going to get better at it, and I am getting better at it.

And it's like, failure is okay.

If you don't fail, you're never going to succeed.

Failure should be the best thing.

You should be excited to fail because then it shows you're going to be improving.

And so it's like using those frameworks in it and with athletes in particular.

So, like, athletes, for example, I will, like, really start to infuse more of the mental part of it, because everybody's gonna have their own injuries.

Everybody.

And, like, I can relate on the physical level with all different injuries I had throughout my career.

Plus, from the crash.

So it makes it way easier for me to understand the pain that they're in or understand what they're going through.

I also can push limits too and be like, no, like you got this, keep going.

Or I can be like, yeah, I know what, let's tone it off today.

Like, I think we're good.

And it makes me a lot more empathetic as well for other factors of life as well, not just the injury.

How the injury affects your sleep, how injury affects how you carry yourself, how injury affects who you talk to, how you talk to, how the injury can even impede on like you going and hanging out with your friends because it might hurt.

So these are all important things that I understand firsthand that I think makes me really well rounded.

But I also come with an open mind because I don't know who's in the room.

And one of my main things I like to say is I'll never put a ceiling on somebody's healing.

And I've had people put ceilings on my healing, put ceilings on my hockey career, put ceilings on my diabetes.

But it's like, why would you do that?

Because there's always a 1 to 5% that break the odds.

And do they just get lucky?

No, because it's the mindset.

And I think that's the key.

If you look at everyone that got through certain things, like people that bypass cancer, it's most of the time mindset, or people like to call it chance or luck.

But if you're not waking up every day with a positive mindset, and if it's woo is me, poor me, then the odds are you're not going to be as successful.

And so if you get the mindset straight, then you should have more of a chance of having a better outcome.

And they're starting to study this now.

There's studies coming out on this about how you think, how you change your reality, and if you change your reality, then you change the way you live.

And if you change the way you live, you change your actions, your habits, which then becomes normal reality.

So it's really interesting how this all comes together.

So I try to instill that through patience.

So yeah, it's, it's a full fledged answer there.

But yeah, there's different pieces of the puzzle.

I understand the physical, understand the mental, understand emotional, and really try to like insert it, but not overbear it.

I'm not like, here's a resilience package, understand and read it.

I'm like, I do it one on one in conversation.

To help just have little tinkers and little changes.

So over time they may not see it, but they're going like this and they're continuing to go like this.

But they may not realize it until they come in.

They're like, wow, like I did exercise and I didn't suck.

Like I was okay, like I actually was getting better.

I'm like, wait, yeah, you're right.

And they just change language and it's like that's going to help them.

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But, you know, the other part is that a. I needed those years of struggle to.

To kind of figure out my own path and recovery that still goes on to this day.

So it's.

Oh, man.

I'm reliving a little bit of my.

My own process through this conversation, and it's really good for me.

So still gonna write that book?

Do it.

Yeah, do it.

Why not?

And the biggest thing is, like, why put limits on yourself?

You could die tomorrow.

That's the reality of life.

We could die tomorrow, unfortunately.

But use as motivation rather than being scared is, yeah, if you want to go write a book, go write the book.

If you want to go and move to this place and spend time with your family, go move to the place, spend time with your family.

And so for me, when it comes to injury is choose a mindset you want and let that be your path.

And so, yeah, I'm super excited to help people out, and it's so fulfilling.

Like, I had the best day today.

I had five patients.

It was only working for four hours a day, so had five patients.

I was super pumped about it.

It was great.

Like, it was a blast.

You are a remarkable dude.

I mean, I love it.

This is like, I am.

I don't know.

I don't sleep tonight.

Yeah, you briefly brought it up earlier, too, and I'd be remiss if I didn't want to get into this, because it was another way that you helped a group of people.

We mentioned that when you were 4 years old, you got diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and in the book, you go pretty heavily into Dahlgren's diabetes.

Perfect hockey name, by the way.

Like, perfect.

Couldn't have picked a better name.

It fits.

It's wonderful.

I love it.

So.

So it's helped so many young athletes with type 1 diabetes.

So explain to the audience a little bit about your thought process in starting the diabetes and why it was important for you to build something for others and speak for others as well.

Great question.

For me, when I was 16, I held one of my buddies.

He got newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes.

I moved north, Alford, and he was the one that I helped out, and he's like, hey, what are you doing with it?

Can you give me some tips and tricks?

I was like, yeah, I always carry A snack on you just in case you go low, like in sports, adjust your insulin to lower it a little bit so you don't go low during sport.

But some sports rise it.

So if you had a one that's really high activity and adrenaline starts creeping in, then like you might want to give yourself a little bit of insulin after you taper it.

And they talked about like sleepovers and like those kind of things, even like first dates and that aspect.

And he was like, oh my goodness, you gotta do this for other people.

I was like, yeah, actually I do.

And so that was kind of like the turning point.

So then I talked to my parents, like, wait until you're done high school, give yourself some time.

Marks were a big thing for me and I wanted to do really well academically because I want to earn the scholarship.

So for me, just focus on that.

You're already doing lots of volunteering already in community, like just focus on that.

So I focus on my academics.

When I was 18, I joined on to become a provincial ambassador for juvenile diabetes research foundation.

That's to help get funds and raise awareness for people with type 1 diabetes.

And I was in the town of Wilcox, which has around 400 to 500 people and we get around 50 fans per game, which is honestly pretty good, like 20, 25% of town coming out to watch.

But at the same time, it just was a very small community.

So for me, I wanted to have this dream program where children felt beautiful for their difference and cheered on.

So I thought, well, if I did in a bigger center, then they can come to the game and get cheered on.

So I asked for a trade, got traded at Humboldt.

And that was when I started this dream program, Dahlgren's diabetes.

And that was for the idea of main diabete and personal diabetes.

Feel special and beautiful.

So they get complimented meal at Johnny's Bistro, which was like the staple in Humboldt.

And for those that ever end up in Humboldt, Johnny's Bistro is the best spot.

Then they come to the game, get complimentary taste for them and their family.

And then after that, the diet beauty would participate in ceremonial face off with me and the captain from another team drop the puck, the crowd would go nuts, the horn would honk, they'd feel beautiful for their difference.

Then after that, watch a game.

I meet them after the game upstairs and ask their questions like, what do you do when you go camping?

What do you do at school?

How do you handle it when you're talking to coaches, like, those kind of questions that I had, but I didn't have answers to.

And then after that, I go to school and give a school presentation, and then I put them in a group chat with other people with diabetes and people that also were, like, ambassadors or helped out in the diabetes community to help them feel special and beautiful.

And that was the whole idea.

I wanted them to have a community surrounding them.

And Now I have 16 diabetes.

I continued it on at York University.

I have them in Quebec, Ontario, Saskatchewan.

I wanted to make it bigger, but I also don't want to lose a personal component.

And I found, like, my cap was kind of 16, and like, I treat them like little siblings, cousins, and so I see them.

At least we connect.

Oh, like, over three times per person a year, minimum.

It's usually more.

A lot more for some of them in different demands because some have D1 scholarships, some are on rugby scholarships, baseball, football, hockey.

Like, they're doing incredible.

Some wrote books, some advocate with the government.

Like, one of them is going to Government Canada to advocate for money towards insulin supplies for people across Canada.

So it's just.

There's a lot of amazing things.

And to be a part of their life.

I thought I was helping them, but they've helped me double.

And it's so rewarding, so fulfilling.

I love it.

Yeah, I can.

I've been on both the giving and receiving end of being able to kind of pay it forward, seek the wisdom of somebody that struggled through the same thing.

And it.

I will say that it is hard at first to be that one, that.

To accept help.

Right.

And that was something I struggled with.

And to go back.

Like, when I got hurt, I had reached out to a professional football player named Zach Miller.

Bears tight end legend.

Right.

That and budding country music star.

Hopefully he's listening.

But I will say that I slid into his DMs, as the kids say nowadays, and not expecting a response.

And he rode back in minutes because we had basically the same injury.

And I was like, man, what do I expect?

And just like you did with your friend who had diabetes, just having him walk me through, hey, here's some things you should expect.

It was incredibly helpful.

And I think had I not had that experience so early on in my recovery that I don't know that asking for help would have been as easy.

So I just wanted to give him a shout out while also kind of relating to you as well.

So that's.

So you mentioned the interactions you have with the government as well.

And so you Received the King Charles III Coronation Medal.

What did that mean to you on a personal level to receive such a prestigious award?

It honestly meant that I had great people in my life who supported me and the great community that developed me.

It didn't, it wasn't a personal award, it was a community award.

And I think that's the thing that people forget about this, is that takes a village to make a person and it was the village that got the award, not me.

So it's, yes, it's a cool achievement.

And yes, like, I think, I think both of them, yeah, the Queen and the King are behind me.

But at the end of the day, like this, that's community for me.

These are community awards, they're not personal awards.

And even this chiropractic degree is community award too.

I had so many supports, mentors helped me get it.

So it's when you realize that those awards, our first community service and like giving back, it's amazing, but like, it's the people that you meet along the journey, it's people that keep you engaged, it's the people that are helping you on the journey that are the ones that deserve the credit.

And so it's my family, it's my friends, it's the person I meet in the random street, the person I meet at an event where it's their first time going out to the diabetes event.

They're super scared, but they want to just come out, just come out.

Those are the people that honestly deserve the award too.

So, yeah, I wouldn't say it means more of the community and it shows that I have lost people in my support system and community who have helped me become the person I am today and I'm grateful for that.

Yeah, it goes back to a lot of the points you hit on earlier too, like the sense of community and giving back and helping others too.

I mean, it's truly remarkable.

I've used that word over and over again, but I don't have a wide ranging vocabulary, so I don't know know what else to say.

But it is remarkable and I think it goes back to the real.

The big thing that you said is just surround yourself with good people and those people that are going to lift you up and support you.

And I think that's something I pride myself on, is being able to keep my circle small.

Right.

Especially at this point in life, I've got no problem cutting those people out that aren't that are going to be a detriment to myself or my families.

Why?

Right.

That's awesome.

So your book, Crossroads, right, It wasn't just about you or for you.

Right, you mentioned that it was for everyone.

So for someone at this very moment standing at their own crossroads right now, grief, injury, loss of identity, what's the first small choice that you'd encourage them to make?

The first, I would say win the day.

Now, the win the day can be taken in different contexts.

Winning the day can get out of bed and make the bed.

That could be the win.

Some people have issues even getting out of bed to start the day.

So that could be the first win, is that you get out of the bed and you make it.

You open up the blinds, you feel the sun on your skin, or you see the sunlight.

That could be another win.

Could begin to work out in.

It doesn't need to be a 30 hour.

Cause that'd be an hour and a half workout.

It could be a 5 minute workout, even a 2 minute workout or a 1 minute workout.

Instead of sitting on the chair, you hold it for another 30 seconds, then you sit on the chair.

Like that's winning the day to me.

So I think for those that are struggling, win the day.

And it's different because everybody handles things differently too.

So what I would say if, like, you could do a couple other things, it would be to find three things you're grateful for.

Could be the fact that you're breathing, could be the sun, it could be that you have a roof over your head.

It could be that you're able to even listen to this podcast.

So that could be things that you're grateful for.

Because when you start to focus on gratitude, that puts you into the present moment rather than way far in the future.

Way back in the past.

Sometimes people go, oh, I'm grateful that I had this experience 10 years ago.

Say, okay, that's good.

But try to find stuff you're grateful for right now.

And I think that helps with presence and that helps with living the day.

And I think if you made a conscious choice to realize that this may be the last day on earth, how do I want to make the most of this life?

I think that could give some motivation to some people too.

Help some people in a rut, Help people with their relationships.

Like, think about if this was the last day, would you be happy with how you talk to your partner?

Would you be happy with how you are with your family?

Would you be happy with how you are with your friends?

Obviously it's deep, but at the same time, if those things don't matter to you, then are you happy with how you've been contributing to the world.

Are you happy with, like, how you've been living your life?

And so obviously I'd say the first thing is just win the day.

And I think that means get out of bed.

You've worn a lot of different, I guess, hats or had a lot of different identities through your, your short life so far.

Right.

You started, came out of the womb as potential number one draft pick.

Right.

And then you were, you had, you were diabetic, type 1 diabetic at an early age.

You were Humboldt Bronco, you were son, you were all these things.

You're survivor patient.

Who is Caleb now?

Like, how do you identify yourself now?

If you had to pick and then what do you want to be remembered?

Like, what is your eulogy?

What do you want someone to kind of remember you as?

Yeah.

So Caleb is a loving individual who spreads positivity and love around the world.

Perfect.

Through optimizing people's lives.

So that's who I am.

And that means with family, friends, communities, through speaking through Cairo like I do, you know, speeches around North America and Europe.

And that's another avenue as well where I go in serving the community and trying to become a part of the community to help elevate the community.

So I say that's one.

I think another perk of myself is that I'm still a son and I'm so grateful to have amazing parents, amazing family.

I also describe myself as an athletic, fun, outgoing, adventurous individual that likes to try new things and honestly try something new every week.

I try to do something completely new every week to challenge myself to grow.

And that would be the third thing is I'm a very growing individual that continually develops and works on self development, on mindset, on being able to become the best version of myself.

Not the best, the best version of myself.

And I think that's something that if I continue to keep on striving for that daily, that I'm only going to become better to help more people and serve more of community.

I don't think Chuck would use any of those words to describe me.

So I'm going to, I'm going to work on it.

I'm going to grow and we're going to change.

Yeah.

But when I'm gone and all done, what I Want remembered for, I think just remembered for the kindness and, like, the compassion and care that I brought to the world.

It doesn't need to be the things I did.

It's more the impact left, the ripple effect, as I like to call it.

Because names only get remembered for big things.

And like, I don't really care to be remembered.

I cared for the ripple to be affected in generations.

And for me, as if I help a young child today develop a resilient mindset that will help another child develop resilient mindset as they grow older, they have their own children.

Same thing.

So, like, for me, when I have a family one day, I want to have a family.

Right now I'm single, so I have a lot, way, long way to go.

But when I have a family one day, I'm so excited for that.

That's amazing life goal.

And I would love to raise a little human being, hopefully more than one.

But if I get blessed with one, great.

And yeah, have them have the best life possible.

But also build tools to help them succeed.

That can be passed down in generations too.

Yeah, I mean, that's something that Chuck and I, we mention all the time.

And I know I do if I speak to anybody and it's still in the teams.

And this wasn't them, that pipe stole it or claimed fame to it.

But Kerr wrote about it in his book Legacy about the All Blacks, where their principle is.

One of them is leave a place, plant seeds for trees you'll never see grow.

Right?

So leave a place better than you're gonna find it.

And I think trying to instill that at an early age.

And the other thing I go back to is, and to sum this whole conversation up with you, it's like life is pretty much just be a good person.

Just be a good person and everything will be all right.

You just.

Sure, you'll struggle and that's okay.

But if you're a good person, then you'll make do.

You'll grow where you're planted.

Yeah, for sure.

And there's gonna be struggles no matter what.

It's part of life.

Expect to struggle because that's life.

Life is expected.

Like, you're gonna have struggles, and that's the whole piece of it.

It's just how you respond to those struggles.

And anything worth having is gonna cost something, right?

You're gonna have to put the work in.

You're gonna have to struggle.

Nothing good comes easy.

I'm a firm believer in that.

I think you gotta work for what you want.

And I try to my two kids are my why.

Right.

That's what I'm focused on now and trying to make them into, like, the best people they can be.

And I try to tell them, like, just be a good person.

I know you're 11.

You don't know what that means.

And it's on me to show you.

Right.

And show you what you're not.

A good person.

Exactly.

Let's walk the walk.

Yeah.

Yeah, yeah.

So I truly believe the meaning of life isn't becoming famous and making millions of dollars and having your name in bright lights hundreds of years after you die.

It's just like you said, Eric, being a good person and making a positive impact on others.

And Caleb, I think you're a perfect example of that.

So I'm glad we got to have you on and talk about this so other people can hear your story as well.

Thank you.

We talked about a lot.

Is there anything that we didn't mention or maybe missed in this podcast that you wanted to discuss?

Not really.

We were, like, hit a lot of different pieces of the puzzle.

No, like, we.

We've talked about a lot, obviously.

Maybe future plans, future goals.

Maybe.

Yeah.

What's on the horizon for you?

What's next?

I know.

Are you gonna see.

I know you talked about keeping it small, but are we gonna see your charity grow at all?

Do new things in that aspect, or what's new for you?

Personally, I know you're single, so maybe a slide.

Slide into Caleb's DMs, and maybe we'll help change that.

Right.

And we do have some PWHL ladies that listen.

Right.

So I don't know.

We got a wide audience.

Like, what is next on the horizon?

What can we help you with?

That's so funny.

Yeah.

So dame profile.

I'm five foot eight.

Me too.

Right.

185.

No, I'd say for me, it's like a couple of goals and big things that I love to do is, like, you alluded to leaving a positive impact.

So that's through speaking?

That's through.

Cairo is through volunteering.

And no, I don't think diabetes is expanding yet.

I kind of want to get sorted with life.

I'm actually looking for a new opportunity within professional hockey, and it would be awesome to work, like, as a sports chiropractor with certain teams or organizations.

So that's kind of.

I'm looking down that path and I got some interviews coming up.

So hopefully everything goes well.

We'll see what happens.

But, like, I'm cool with it all.

And Then in the speaking world, I want to continue speaking my message around different places, places, communities.

And then in.

Yeah, volunteering with, staying kind of put right now.

And then in the life path, I've been doing insanity workouts.

Have you heard of those workouts before?

Yeah, I lit them as like a 15 year old, 16 year old and like kind of all the way up.

And I thought I came across the CDs or DVDs and I was like, let's rock it.

So I've been doing those which have been fun.

I just continue on the sanity track for a bit here and then I'm also planning on moving wherever I end up with the job opportunities.

That's exciting.

And then lastly, I really do want to have a family and I think that's like some of the main big things for me is like actually devoting time to it.

I've spent so much time with school, I'm still pursuing my master's right now.

I'm still doing my sports residency.

But on top of that too, it's like I'm devoting more time to that aspect.

So, like putting myself out there, going on dates and all that, it's been super fun.

Honestly, it's been a good experience.

But I think the big goal is finding a partner that I can grow with and have a healthy relationship and elevate their lives as they elevate my life with very similar mindset and then be able to have a child in this world.

And I think that's like probably one of the most special gifts.

And we can't wait to be a great husband, great partner, great father and dad and wear the dad title with pride and wear the husband title with pride and have the best life.

So I'm super excited for that chapter, but in the meantime, excited to explore the world, try new things and yeah, make the most of this life because like I said, it could be gone tomorrow.

So try to make the most of what you got.

Oh, man.

I saw you're over in Italy for the Olympics.

I know, I'm sorry it didn't turn out how you wanted it to for both the men and the women, but

we won't get into that.

And the Paralympics too.

Let's not forget the para Laura.

No deal.

Men's hockey?

No deal.

What was hockey good for?

USA Hockey, though.

Congratulations.

That is incredible.

And like, honestly, I give it to you guys, you deserved it.

Like, all the hard work that was gone in like development.

The program, sorry, developmental program.

The way that people are raising hockey players now and like it's growing.

Even in the states.

The game is continuing to grow.

I know Carolina, for example, north and south are, like, growing the game.

And it's like you're starting to see athletes coming from all over now, not just North, Minnesota, Michigan.

It's like all over and like Massachusetts, another huge hockey state.

And it's just.

I love it.

I love the development.

I think it's amazing.

And keep it up.

But, yeah, a little bit hurt.

A little bit hurt, but that's okay.

I mean, the game is growing globally and I love it.

And I couldn't be more excited, especially the women's game.

It's really taken off.

It's so fun to watch.

And I truly believe that this is the best sport there is.

Right.

Obviously, I'm biased, but just it teaches so much.

Yeah.

It's just the growth that we see in the game globally is awesome.

And I think it's really due in part to people like you to just have those amazing ambassadors that wear that hockey badge.

Right.

Because above all, we're all hockey players and we're all kind of equal.

Right.

We play for the love of the game.

But to have folks like you give back to that game, and I attribute that to why the game is in such an amazing place right now.

And I'm excited.

Well, thank you.

Same with you guys.

Yeah, same with you guys.

I'm excited for the future, too.

And it's.

Yeah, it's nice.

I want to keep the whole hockey culture healthy, too, and grow that.

And it's.

I love seeing women's hockey as well.

I have Billet sister that's in the game right now playing AAA and Saskia, and she's loving it, too.

And, like, now she has aspirations playing the pwhl, she never had those.

So that's the best goal.

Like, amazing.

And I'm so happy.

So if you have a daughter now, you've got to put it out there that she's going to be the whatever it would be, future number one PWHL draft.

Gotta keep that tradition alive, man.

You gotta throw it in there.

See, you are.

You're a smart man.

You already know you're smart, man.

So I know for me, like, I'm gonna connect with you after this just because I think it'd be awesome to chat about a whole lot more things that we won't pour Chuck with.

But for anybody that's listening now, like, what's the best way to connect to you if they want to get in touch with you, whatever that is.

Right.

If they want to talk chiropractic stuff or if they want to talk Humboldt stuff or whatever it is.

Yeah.

The best way to connect with me would be through my socials or email.

So most of the socials, pretty much all of them, is just at Caleb Dahlgren.

So at K A L E B D A H L G R E n website is www.calebdalgren.com.

like, pretty basic.

Hey, like, give me some more basics.

Right.

But lady, any ladies listening, gotta slide on in there.

So emails there.

Like, you can just send me an email to the doctor email or my Katie email.

I think it's my Katie email that's on my profile for socials.

So email, Instagram, dm.

I'm not fast on Facebook.

Yeah, unfortunately, Facebook is like the last on the ones that I respond to.

I'm trying to be good with it.

I intentionally respond.

I don't just sit there and say thanks.

I actually will respond, like with a message, a voice note sometimes.

So I want people to understand that it's like it's actually me and I want the best for them.

And so they took time to message me.

I want to take the time to respond properly to them.

Is that where they can find you to for speaking engagements and also the book as well?

Yep.

So, yeah, you can find a book anywhere you can buy a book.

Amazon is pretty easy.

But yeah, anywhere you buy a book, it'll be there.

Just ask for the crossroads and then for speaking.

Yeah, same thing.

Website, Instagram, messages, email.

Email is probably the best for that one.

Yeah, the website has like a form you fill out and just sends you an email automatically to me.

And it makes it so much easier to ask you kind of the questions.

So, yeah, my website, www.caleb.com is great for speaking too.

I hope you have an influx of people that buy the book after this episode.

Well, there might be, but if not, it's okay.

The goal wasn't to sell copies, is to help other people.

I mean, I've been pumping it too, because.

Not just because you're on the.

On the show, but I truly did enjoy the book.

And it wasn't like I said, it wasn't just an autobiography.

It was a lesson on life.

So.

So I highly recommend it.

If you haven't read it yet, anyone listening, pick up Crossroads.

Even if you're not a hockey fan,

I highly recommend Chuck's a teacher.

So when teachers say I highly recommend it, that's go buy the book.

Right.

There's gonna be a test, and the test is life.

Right.

The life is the test.

So buy the book.

A few teachers that reached out about it too and not furious.

Quite a few now.

But that said, like they read in their class and like it's part of their mandatory readings in class, which is so unbelievable and never even expected that.

But it just goes to show that it is more than just hockey too.

So yeah, thanks guys.

It really means a lot.

And thanks for all you guys do too.

I just want to give a show to you guys what you're doing in your communities and the development and like wanting to give back through this podcast and making it really beneficial for other people to listen and learn and grow and become the best version of themselves too.

So I just want to say thank you for you guys are doing because it's making an impact.

Thank you.

I mean, that's what it's all about.

We're able to do it because of folks like you.

Right?

Get you, you make it easy.

One last question, if you want to hang around.

Yeah, I think you might have just brought it up actually.

You might have given the answer without us asking the question, but something we ask all our guests as the last question.

Since it is a developmental podcast, what is your definition of development?

It could be mental, physical, or any other aspect of the word.

Okay.

Development for me is to get 1% better each day.

Now, the reasoning why I say 1% better each day is because a lot of people view it as I need to get to here.

To here.

It's no, you just get 1% better each day.

Over time, it's going to accumulate.

It's just to get better.

I know.

I see Eric just fist pumping.

Aggregation of marginal gains by David Brailsford.

Yes, that's what it is.

This is what it is.

Another thing about it too, is 1% better doesn't mean you doing something every day.

Sometimes a day off of complete rest and you just laying out on the beach is what you need to get that 1% better.

Now, it does not equate putting energy expenditure as getting 1% better.

Heck, you can spend a day just working on your mindset.

You go to a course and work on that mindset.

I recommend all the young kids with a mental performance 100%.

I had 12 12.

I had a mental performance coach all the way till I was 23.

Highly.

Couldn't agree more.

My kids have had one coach, Libby.

She's amazing.

I couldn't agree more with you.

Yeah, so it's like that's the difference between NHL, AHL and East coast ahl, even CHL to Pro that's or even like NCAA to pro.

Like that's the difference is a mindset and how you carry yourself.

And everybody can shoot past gate.

Yeah.

You may have the amazing ones like the Karma David or Austin Matthew shot, but like at the end of the day, everybody can do it.

It's who can consecutively consistently do it at the highest degree and also be mentally emotionally stable enough to keep on doing it and not get too high or too low.

And so Yeah, I say 1% better each day.

I love that, man.

It couldn't have ended this on a better note than pumping the 1% better every day.

Yeah.

Love it.

Caleb, it was a pleasure.

This was an amazing conversation.

I truly appreciate your time.

I know it's valuable and the time you spent with us, it was really going to be worth it for helping some other folks.

So thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Thanks for changing the game.

Thanks for just changing people.

Right.

I know.

I appreciate it.

This was fantastic.

Fantastic.

Thank you so much, you guys.

Appreciate it.

Thanks for having me on here and wish you guys all the best and we'll see who wins Stanley cup this year.

Too excited for it?

We're getting close.

We're getting close.

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