Behind The Shield

Kristen Ziman is a 30 year law enforcement veteran, retiring as the police chief of Aurora, IL. We discuss her journey into policing, drug prohibition, tactical medicine, fitness standards, mental health, workplace shootings, school safety and so much more.

Thomas "Drago" Dzieran fled Socialist Poland, finding home in the USA. He then enlisted in the US Military, ultimately serving multiple deployments as a Navy SEAL in his 20 year career. We discuss his early life in Poland, spending two years in a Communist Gulag, his refugee story, his military journey, government overreach, cancel culture and so much more.

Wim Hof is an extreme endurance athlete, teacher, author and speaker. Using breath work and cold exposure, Wim was able to demonstrate his ability to control his autonomic nervous system. Through the Wim Hof Method, he was then able to teach others to develop control within themselves. We discuss his early life, his first cold water experience, losing his wife to suicide, dealing with grief, the innate immune response, breath and mental health, thermoregulation, inflammation and so much more.

Brandon Griffith was at his physical and mental peak as a police officer when he had a sudden cardiac arrest. Due to the quick response of his wife and the responding paramedics, Brandon ultimately returned to full duty with an implanted defibrillator. We discuss his journey into the martial arts, entering law enforcement, physical fitness, SWAT tryouts, his mental and physical recovery, the importance of early CPR and defibrillation, his non-profit Griffith Blue Heart and so much more.

Keith Dow is a Military Police veteran and co-founder of Dead Reckoning Collective. We discuss his journey into the military, the mental scars of war, transitioning out, military authors, creating a publishing company and much more.

Robert Burke is an actor and a nineteen year veteran firefighter. We discuss his early life, his journey into acting, the tragedy that inspired his fire service career, portraying General Mattis in Generation Kill, working on Rescue Me, martial arts, altruism and so much more.

Battalion Chief Steve Davis was recently terminated after refusing to impose discipline on an erroneous list of unvaccinated firefighters. Firefighter Jason Wheat was the trainer in charge of his department's fitness program before it was dismantled by his administration. We discuss the vaccine mandates that have been imposed on his department and many more around the globe, the mental health impact, losing experience, the complete disregard for overall fitness and so much more.

Ed Kressy overcame 20 years of drug addiction: incarceration, destitution, mental health challenges. He went from being arrested by the FBI, to being recognized with a community service award...by the FBI Director. We discuss his early life, martial arts, the business world, his powerful road out of addiction and so much more.

Cody Gately is a Louisiana firefighter who has teamed up with LSU researchers Amanda Weathers- Meyer and Adam Lowe. We discuss their latest research on the effect of yoga practice on the physical and mental health of firefighters, amongst many other topics.

Allen Clark is a Vietnam veteran, author, public speaker and Minister. We discuss giving both his legs for his country, the physical and mental rehabilitation journey, working with the VA, the spiritual arm of healing, the industrial military complex and so much more.

Chad Eldridge, DC is a Chiropractic Physician with a primary focus on performance enhancement, movement, and corrective exercise. We discuss the ailments that led him on the medical path, choosing chiropractic, functional medicine, foundation training, the obesity epidemic and so much more.

Keith Knotek is a law enforcement veteran and the author of "From Sorrow to Amazing Grace". We discuss his early life, the power of mentorship, defensive tactics, organizational betrayal, losing brother police officers, his mental health struggles, finding Christianity and so much more.

Alastair Macartney is a British Army veteran, world champion BASE jumper, author, speaker and the founder of Jump4Heroes. We discuss boading schools, living in Hong Kong, military logistics, his introduction to skydiving, overcoming fear through training diligence, his altruistic projects and so much more.

Dr Tasha Browning is a mental health counsellor specializing in Critical Incident Stress. We discuss her early life, traumatic brain injuries, mental health in first responders, counselling medical personnel through the pandemic, dance therapy and so much more.

Kevin Malahy is a martial artist and strength and conditioning coach working with the Canadian military. We discuss coaching young athletes, performance vs health, weight cutting, injury rehabilitation, mobility and much more.

Sara Wilkinson is a Crossfit coach and the widow of Chad Wilkinson. Chad was a member of the revered SEAL Team Six but tragically took his own life in 2018. We discuss their early lives, falling in love in high school, Chad's military journey, Crossfit, TBIs, suicide, he healing power of psychedelics and so much more.

Ricardo Roman is a veteran FDNY firefighter, Crossfit coach and the founder of the FDNY Barbell Club. We discuss his journey into the fire service, the good, the bad and the ugly of diversity, strength and conditioning in the tactical athlete, Crossfit competition, water rescue and much more.

Chad Lyman has combined his years of operational law enforcement and Mixed Martial Arts experience to emerge as one of the nation’s leading defensive tactics trainers. We discuss his journey into law enforcement, the importance of high training standards, combatives, excessive force vs improper technique and so much more.

Tom Satterly spent 25 years in the US Army, 20 of which serving with the elite Delta Force. Jen Satterly spend years embedded with the special forces as a Director of Video and Photography. We discuss Tom's journey through the military, Mogadishu, videography, mental health, suicide, their All Secure Foundation, writing and so much more.

Brian Mackenzie is an innovator in human performance on stress adaptation and a pioneer in the development and application of custom protocols to optimize human health and performance. In this second conversation, we discuss breathing and the tactical population, deregulating the nervous system, breathing health and COVID and much more.

Eric Siena was a veteran firefighter and special operations Lieutenant. Eric was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. His wife, Christy is also a fire Lieutenant. I sat down with them and Tom "Bull" Hill earlier this year when Eric was still undergoing treatment. We discussed his journey into the fire service, hazardous materials exposures, the cancer presumption bill, PTSD and much more. Eric Siena passed away on May 11, 2021. This episode is dedicated to him and every other first responder battling or taken by cancer.

Major Allison Brager is an Army neuroscientist, Crossfit competitor and astronaut candidate. We discuss advances in sleep research, transgender athletes, the mission to Mars, fitness testing and much more.

Roger Schei is an Idaho Police Chief, SWAT officer and jiu jitsu practitioner. We discuss his journey into law enforcement, strength and conditioning standards, combatives, using Echelon Front's principles in his department and much more

Melvyn Downes is a British Army veteran with 12 years spent in the SAS. We discuss his early life in England, the importance of mentorship, his journey into the military, mindset, reality television, Dubai living and much more.

Fahim Fazli is an Afghani native, American immigrant, actor and former interpreter for the US Marine Corps. We discuss the impact of the withdrawal on our veterans and the Afghani people, the ripple effect of previous conflicts, the industrial military complex, his latest film and much more.

Jeff Schwerdtfeger is a retired firefighter and the Vice President of Worldwide Peer Support. We discuss his journey into the fire service, gang violence, the addiction epidemic, special operations, his near death experiences, mental health in first responders and much more.

Jay Smith is a strength and conditioning coach and the president of the first responder testing and wellness company FitForce. We discuss his journey into coaching, entering the law enforcement community, the ADA and entry testing, wellness and injury prevention, forging longevity and much more.

Beth Bowersox is a former firefighter and resident of Paradise CA who was on duty as a dispatcher when the Camp Fire destroyed her community. We discuss her journey into the fire service, physical fitness, sleep deprivation, guilt from the inability to save, mental heath in dispatchers and so much more.

Dr Ellen Kirschman is an author and clinical psychologist who has spent her career working with the first responder professions. In this second interview, we discuss psychological testing, mental health in the wildland community, the importance of rituals, first responder families and so much more.

Richard Rice is one of the founding members of Delta Force with a career spanning Vietnam to Mogadishu. Jason McCarthy is a Green Beret veteran who served in Iraq. Emily McCarthy is a retired CIA case manager, serving in West Africa. In this unique episode, I sat down with all three to get their unique perspectives on recent events. We discuss the withdrawal from Afghanistan, the importance of trust in diplomacy, the courage of our indigenous allies, the mental health toll of combat, the power of community and so much more.

Zar Horton is a retired Battalion Chief and a StrongFirst Master Kettlebell trainer. We discuss his transition out of the fire service, BMX racing, glycolytic training, exercise and the nervous system, fostering longevity, the importance of sleep and so much more.

Byron Branch is a law enforcement officer, elite fencer and amputee. We discuss his multifaceted childhood, the importance of mentorship, his journey into fencing, the traffic accident that took his leg, the incredible physical and mental road back to full duty, wheelchair fencing and so much more.

Jeremiah Wilber is a Green Beret combat veteran, cowboy and self described mountain man. We discuss his early life on the reservation, the dark side of the Indigenous Residential School program, profiteering from war, the mental health toll of the Afghanistan withdrawal, the vulnerability of those left behind and so much more.

Dr Chris Colvin is a Veteran, ER Physician, EMS Medical Director and author. In this important third conversation, Chris takes two hours to fully explain the truths and myths surrounding this pandemic. We discuss the demographic being hit in this second wave, the pros and cons of vaccination, the second pandemic of misinformation and so much more.

Dr Edith Eger is a psychologist, author and survived Auschwitz. We discuss her early life in Hungary, living through ballet, seeing kindness amongst immense cruelty, her own journey of healing, counselling veterans, finding the bigot within yourself, the first responder community and so much more.

Brooke Ames is a Wisconsin firefighter, bodybuilder, powerlifter and coach. We discuss growing up in rural America, her childhood obesity, becoming a volunteer firefighter, her incredible weight loss and fitness journey, learning from the corporate world, mentorship, personality diversity and so much more.

Johnny Walker is an Iraqi interpreter that became the SEAL team's trusted member. Jason Tuschen is a retired Navy SEAL Command Master Chief who worked alongside Johnny. We discuss their parallel early lives, the Taliban's terror campaign in Mosul, the power of communication, his powerful immigration story and so much more.

Colin Broderick is an author, playwright and filmmaker. We discuss growing up in Northern Ireland during the troubles, laboring in London, his powerful addiction story, the catharsis of writing, self belief, the importance of seeing commonalities and so much more.

Bill Anthes is a Green Beret veteran, strength and conditioning coach and psychology student. We discuss his journey into the special forces, training the tactical athlete, the emotional and mental components of coaching, nutrition and so much more.

Jarred Alden is a veteran firefighter, SWAT Medic and an authority on clandestine explosives. We discuss his journey into the fire service, how the tactical medicine program unified FD and PD, juvenile offenders, terrorism and so much more.

Denise Olsen is a nurse, yoga teacher and the widow of Jeff Olsen, one of the 343 firefighters killed on 9/11. We discuss her entry into healthcare, the genesis of their romance, protecting the WTC, the ripple effect of the attacks, grief, healthy coping mechanisms, growing from trauma, the importance of movement and so much more.

Judge Craig Mitchell is a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge and the founder of the Skid Row Running Club. We discuss his challenging childhood, teaching in South Central, the importance of parents, the power of mentorship, homelessness, addiction and so much more.

Akshay Nanavati is a Marine Veteran, endurance athlete and the author of "Fearvana". We discuss his childhood in India, moving to the US, entering the military, mental resilience, the importance of fear, his explorations and much more.

Felix Manjarrez is a veteran FDNY firefighter, strength and conditioning coach and jiu-jitsu practitioner. We discuss his early life, EMS in New York City, entering the fire service, the importance of mentoring, diversity through education, FDNY Grappling and much more.

Terrance Kosikar is a retired firefighter and the founder of Camp My Way. We discuss life in the Canadian Mountains, the pandemic, the healing power of nature, mental health and much more.

Jamie Cochran is the Chief Operating Officer of Echelon Front and a military spouse. We discuss her early life, becoming a Navy SEAL wife, her journey into Echelon Front, the genesis of the Musters, dealing with grief, the cost of service, her powerful presentation and so much more.

Jim Burneka is a veteran firefighter, podcaster and the founder of Firefighter Cancer Consultants. In a tragic twist of irony, Jim is also battling cancer himself. We discuss his journey into the fire service, becoming involved in firefighter wellness, mental health, dealing with a cancer diagnosis, the harmful chemicals in our gear and much more.

Jon Hancock is a Marine Veteran and the subject of the documentary "Bastards' Road". We discuss his journey into the military, Cartel violence, his work in human intelligence, transitioning out, PTSD, his cross country ruck, making the film and so much more.

Tom Morgan is a British firefighter, strength and conditioning coach and former bouncer. We discuss working the door, his journey into the fire service, embracing innovation, training the tactical athlete, the pandemic, his powerful mental health journey and so much more.

Dan Skidmore is a veteran Air Force special operations combat controller, GORUCK cadre and a member of team Force Blue. We discuss his journey into the military, conflict in Africa, living in Morocco, tribalism and much more.