Behind The Shield

Spencer Thomas is a former football athlete turned stunt performer and John Cena's stunt double. We discuss growing up around athletics, moving to LA, humility on set, his journey into stunts, the mental impact of injury, his connection with the fire service, John's altruism, and so much more.

John Saporsky is a military college graduate, retired law enforcement officer and the man behind Law Enforcement Connect. We discuss his journey into ROTC, military education, fitness standards in policing, transitioning into the civilian space, the corporate application of a tactical skillset and so much more.

Flora Kasy is a firefighter for Kalifi County Fire and Rescue Department in Kenya. We discuss her journey into the fire service, the impact of the pandemic on Kenya, distance running, the need for PPE, the mental health cost of being ill-equipped, women in the African fire service and so much more.

Jason McCarthy is a former Green Beret, author and the co-founder of GORUCK. In this second conversation, we discuss the humanist lens of the Ukraine invasion, the mental health impact of the pandemic, the power of community, his three day fitness festival Sandlot Jax and so much more.

Susan Lopez is an Army veteran, military spouse and the woman behind "Tactical Dietitian". We discuss her journey into nutrition, school food, leadership in the kitchen, fueling the tactical athlete, sleep, meal prepping and so much more.

Panayioti Yannitsos is a filmmaker and the man behind the documentaries Freedom Besieged and Florian's Knights. We discuss his childhood visits to Greece, the financial crisis that bankrupted a nation, the opiate epidemic, firefighter mental health, finding healing through riding motorcycles and so much more.

Norman Penny spent three decades in the Canadian military, initially in the Army and then as a Search and Rescue Technician for the Air Force. We discuss his journey into the armed forces, serving in Yugoslavia, the Pararescue training pipeline, some of his team's notable rescues, the importance of realism in training, mental health and so much more.

Brock Bevell is a retired law enforcement officer and the man behind the "Chase the Vase" Podcast. We discuss the impact of childhood trauma, his journey into policing, his own powerful addiction story, the Fentanyl crisis and so much more.

Lance Davis, Sean Lazio and John Perez are military veterans and members of The Rising Warrior team. We discuss their own journeys into the military, the true price of war, the transition struggle, physical and mental healing and so much more.

Tyler Carroll is an Army Medic veteran, Texan firefighter and co-founder of Dead Reckoning Collective, Tyler Carroll. We discuss growing up in Austin, his journey into the military, the military industrial complex, firefighter fitness, the power of written word and so much more.

Ben Patrick is a basketball athlete and the creator of the "Knees over toes program" ATG. We discuss how we are injuring our youth athletes, his own knee injury journey, cultural contributors to muscle imbalances, physical education, creating joint mobility and strength and so much more.

Will Ayres is a firearms instructor, Regional Director for 5.11 and the host of their podcast "Call to Service". We discuss training youth gun safety, his journey into 5.11, designing clothing for the tactical communities, his lens on international policing and so much more.

Julien Pineau is a movement specialist, philosopher and the founder of Strongfit. In this fifth conversation, we discuss lactate as a stress marker, the physical and mental health crisis, sleep, government overreach, nutrition, alcohol and so much more.

BC Sanders is a veteran Gang Unit officer and author for Skillset Magazine. We discuss the straight edge culture, his journey into law enforcement, the genesis of gangs, the ripple effect of drug prohibition, America's unsung heroes and so much more.

Dr EJ Caterson began his career as a firefighter/EMT and is now a renowned plastic surgeon. We discuss his journey into medicine, the powerful story that took him into plastic surgery, face and arm transplants, treating burn injured patients, mental health, Sons of the Flag, The Human Performance Project and so much more.

Doug Orchard is a professional cinematographer, director, editor and an expert researcher. Doug's documentary "The Motivation Factor" shows the incredible positive ripple effect of La Sierra High School's PE program in the 1960s. We discuss his journey into film making, the personal tragedy that drove his quest for health information, the obesity epidemic, nutrition and immunity, the social impact...

Nicole Kopolovits is a Florida firefighter, SWAT medic and Smoke Diver. We discuss her journey into the fire service, strength and conditioning, the power of mentorship, her preparation for the fire service's most grueling week, diversity through skillsets and so much more.

Brandon Webb is a former Navy SEAL, author and the man behind SOFREP. We discuss his journey into the military, Navy Search and Rescue, losing friends in Benghazi, veteran mental health, journalism and so much more.

Bedros Keuilian is a best-selling author, speaker and business consultant. He’s the founder and CEO of Fit Body Boot Camp. We discuss his childhood in Armenia, immigrating to the US, the obesity epidemic, warning signs of tyranny, capitalism, his powerful mental health story and so much more.

Kevin Cyr is a RCMP SWAT Commander who has worked in multiple specialist teams in his 21 year career. We discuss his journey into policing, jiujitsu in law enforcement, physical fitness, the war on drugs, his powerful mental health story, Echelon Front and so much more

Dr Sean Rockett is the Head Orthopedic Surgeon for the Crossfit Games and a lifelong athlete. We discuss his journey into medicine, injuries in the youth athlete, finding Crossfit, healing injury through movement, when to get surgery, opiates and so much more.

Ryan Parrott is a former Navy SEAL and the man behind the burn charity "Sons of the Flag". In this first of the HPP Series, Ryan unveils the Human Performance Project and the incredible 7X event that he will endure in January 2023. He has assembled some of the greatest minds on the planet to develop a guide book for physical, mental and spiritual excellence. You can be part of this incredible comm...

Katherine Grimm is a massage therapist, strength and conditioning coach and meditation teacher. We discuss her journey into wellness, the power of massage therapy, coaching tactical athletes, Project Lyceum, healing relationships and so much more.

Jim McDonald is a strength and conditioning coach and firefighter. We discuss his journey into coaching, the importance of movement diversity in youth athletics, coaching high level sports athletes, his journey into the fire service, training the tactical athlete and much more.

Doug Mitchell and Dan Shaw are veteran firefighters, authors and members of Traditions training. We discuss the importance of mentorship, combat readiness, physical fitness, learning from line of duty deaths, mental health and so much more.