177. Just Take the Next Step with Guest Hunter Rasmussen

At 20 years old, former Spanish Fork High School three-sport athlete and football captain Hunter Rasmussen was accidentally shot in the leg during a hunting trip. Doctors later told him he had been approximately ten minutes from bleeding to death. What followed were weeks in the hospital, multiple surgeries, a life-threatening infection, and ultimately the amputation of his lower leg. But Hunter's story didn't end there. In this episode of the Especially for Athletes Podcast, Hunter shares the remarkable journey from the moment of the accident through years of recovery and learning to walk again. He talks about the lessons sports had unknowingly taught him for this moment, what resilience means when progress literally happens one step at a time, the importance of taking care of yourself without becoming consumed with yourself, and how keeping your "eyes up" can help you see both the road ahead and the people around you. Hunter also shares the role his faith played throughout the experience, including moments in the hospital when he struggled to understand how everything could possibly "work out." This is a powerful conversation about resilience, perspective, faith, service, and continuing to move forward when life looks nothing like you expected. Socials: Instagram- @1_legged_hunter TikTok-1leggedhunter Key Moments: 00:32:17 - Meet Hunter Rasmussen 00:35:27 - Hunter's Story: Sports, Hunting & Growing Up 00:37:30 - Choosing to Serve a Mission 00:39:29 - Returning Home & Starting Life Again 00:40:34 - The Hunting Trip That Changed Everything 00:41:52 - Realizing He Had Been Shot 00:42:27 - The Makeshift Tourniquet That Saved His Life 00:44:12 - "Your Life Flashes Before Your Eyes" 00:45:22 - Fighting to Stay Awake 00:46:37 - "Everything's Going to Work Out" 00:47:29 - Emergency Surgery & Compartment Syndrome 00:48:39 - Unable to Move His Foot 00:49:25 - Hearing the Word "Amputation" 00:50:27 - A Life-Threatening Infection 00:51:35 - Losing His Leg 00:52:29 - Only a 10–15% Chance of Keeping His Knee 00:53:23 - The Turnaround Doctors Couldn't Explain 00:54:35 - Learning to Walk Again 00:57:58 - What Resilience Means to Hunter 00:59:15 - How Sports Prepared Him for Adversity 01:00:25 - "Just Keep Going" 01:02:43 - What "Eyes Up, Do the Work" Means to Hunter 01:05:20 - Looking Up Helps You See Others 01:06:27 - Take Care of Yourself—Then Help Others 01:09:17 - Reframing Difficult Experiences 01:13:03 - Faith, Adversity & the Story of Joseph 01:15:47 - Pits, Potiphar, Prison—and Your Pharaoh Moment ⸻ Especially for Athletes: Website: https://e4a.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EspeciallyForAthletes/ X: https://x.com/E4Afamily Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/especiallyforathletes/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmbWc7diAvstLMfjBL-bMMQ Join the conversation using #E4APodcast ⸻ Credits: Hosted by Dustin Smith & Shad Martin Produced by E4A and IMAGINATE STUDIO