In this episode, Adam sits down with athletic trainer and performance specialist Tyler Lesher to explore what it truly takes to build a meaningful career beyond the constraints of the training room. Tyler shares lessons from his journey through Division II athletics, UCLA, the NBA, and now the private sector—revealing how consistency, identity shifts, and entrepreneurial thinking reshape what’s possible for sports medicine professionals. This conversation is a blueprint for anyone ready to expand their impact and design a career with more autonomy, longevity, and purpose.
Today I am joined by Tyler Lesher—an athletic trainer and performance specialist whose career spans the NBA, the G League, and one of the most intense environments in college sports: UCLA men’s basketball.
He’s now a private-sector performance therapist, creator of the Advanced Rehab Certification, and a mentor helping sports medicine professionals build both clinical mastery and entrepreneurial skill.
Tyler has seen every version of this field—from low-resource grind to high-pressure elite sport—and he brings a rare, unfiltered view of what actually shapes great practitioners. Inside today’s episode, you’ll learn three powerful lessons.
First, why the biggest career unlock isn’t more skills—it’s reframing your identity beyond your job title.
Second, how consistency, not complexity, drives both athletic performance and professional growth.
And third, why the future of sports medicine belongs to practitioners who combine technical mastery with business acumen—because the value you create shouldn’t be limited by the structure you work in.
This is a conversation for anyone who wants to grow past the traditional model and build a career with longevity, autonomy, and impact.