The Squad Room: Police Health | Development | Leadership

Dr. Jay Nagdimon is a licensed Clinical Psychologist and is board certified in Police and Public Safety Psychology. For over the past decade, Dr. Nagdimon has been a member of the Los Angeles Police Department's Behavioral Science Services Unit. It's a unique idea and LAPD has invested into paying attention to the mental health of their officers. As Dr. Nagdimon says in this episode, psychological...

It's a simple question. Maybe one you haven't asked yourself in a while. For some of you, maybe you've never asked it. So?

Ryan Michler is the founder and creator of  Order of Man  and the  Order of Man Podcast . If you're a guy, you need to be listening to this podcast. If you love a guy, listen to this podcast. We cover a lot of ground in this episode about the idea of manliness: what it is, and how it's different than masculinity. We talk about how law enforcement, and how we gravitate to the Warrior archetype and...

Tony Horton doesn't need much of an introduction. As the creator of P90X he went from being a personal trainer to musicians like Tom Petty and Billy Idol to being a household name and face. A lot of cops, myself included, have done P90X and it's really one of the first introductions most of us ever had to High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). I think my love of CrossFit was an extension of the...

Scott Reitz is a retired member of LAPD's elite Metropolitan Division or "Metro" where he served 10 years on their SWAT team. Scott is also the author of  The Art of Modern Gunfighting: The Pistol Volume 1  and the owner and lead instructor for  International Tactical Training Seminars . Scott was the lead firearms instructor for Metro Division and has taught courses to Tier 1 special operations t...

Shaun O'Gorman is a retired police officer from Australia. He spent 13 years in service, most of it in the K9 unit. By all accounts, Shaun became a "cop's cop" after he followed his dad into public service. He spent years racing 100 mph (well, 160 kilometers per hour) to calls, watching and experiencing some of the worst things the job has to offer. It didn't take long on the job before Shaun's pr...

Sgt. Wilson is the founder and the man behind the hugely popular Instagram page @policefitnessnutrition. His page has exploded over the last two years and has a following of 78,ooo followers as of this episode. We've been in touch since The Squad Room started and I've always wanted to have him on the show. Sgt. Wilson has always gone out of his way to promote our mutual goal of helping officers ge...

Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman doesn't need much of an introduction to law enforcement in the free world. The originator of the "sheepdog" mentality, Lt. Col. Grossman literally wrote the book on that theory. It's part of his first book, "On Combat" which is a must read for LEOs. Click  here  for the excerpt from "On Combat" that explains the theory of  Sheep, Wolves, and Sheepdogs . Click  here  to bu...

In this short Briefing Topic episode of The Squad Room, Garrett advocates that as professionals, we must follow the example set by an ancient warrior. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @thesquadroom. Thanks for listening.

Steve Pitts has over 30 years in law enforcement, retiring as the chief of Reno PD in Nevada. In Nevada, every first responder has to take an extensive physical every year that includes blood work and biomarkers. It's mandatory. Chief Pitts saw the opportunity in this data to develop a wellness program based on science and actionable information to make his officers and his department more success...

Nick Frankus has been with the Portland Police Department for 18 years – many of them on the department's SWAT Team. Nick is a very observant and introspective guy and he's been documenting the lessons he's learned along the way and he's now sharing them in his own podcast  Work on the Edge , which I highly recommend. It's actually not about law enforcement, although his topics apply directly to t...

Jeff Halstead retired as the Chief of Police for the city of Fort Worth, Texas after a 30+ year career. Jeff rose quickly through the ranks of the Phoenix Police Department before making the jump to Texas. After retiring, Jeff didn't set up a beach chair in the sand and order a pitcher of margaritas (my current retirement plan). Nope, it seems when Jeff retired that's when the real work began. Jef...

Tony Blauer says he is engaged in "the study of human movement as it relates to violent aggression." Tony has been teaching self-defense tactics to cops, tier 1 special operators, and housewives for over thirty years. Blauer created the S.P.E.A.R. System, CrossFit Defense and many other self-defense courses and he's made a career out of training people to be prepared for the first 3 seconds of the...

This short Briefing Topic covers 5 questions I try to ask myself on a daily basis – sometimes several times a day. I've noticed that if I go too long without answering these questions, I stray from my goals and who I want to be. I hope that you find them helpful as well.

Mark Rippetoe probably doesn't need an introduction for many of you. The author of  "Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training"  and  "Practical Programming for Strength Training"  has been training athletes for 40+ years. Mark is as well-know for his strong opinions as he is for his expertise and he shares them on this episode. We cover: – Why you need to train, and not exercise. – What popular p...

Dr. David Klinger was a guest on this show. A former LAPD officer, now a college professor, and author of the phenomenal book, "Into the Kill Zone," says that law enforcement must be preoccupied with failure. I agree. Listen to this short briefing episode to learn more. And if you haven't, read his book. A rookie officer told me this week it should be mandatory reading in the academy. I agree.

Kevin is a former Green Beret with two combat deployments to Afghanistan. On September 25, 2011, Kevin was shot in the abdomen while on a patrol. Pinned down by enemy fire, an Afghan commando risked his life to save him. Kevin was left with some debilitating injuries that required six surgeries and thousands of hours of physical therapy. There were points where it was doubtful he'd ever walk again...

Not getting the life you want? Maybe you haven't turned pro.

Sgt. Rick Burkmier of the Scottsdale Police Department has been a FOS (friend of the show) since the beginning. He claims that we were the inspiration for him to start his own podcast on police fitness called Forty Caliber Fitness. You can get it here on iTunes. Listen to episode 12 where he has some jackass on as a guest. Follow him on Instagram at  @fortycaliberfitness Sgt. Burkmier was kind eno...

Ruben Palomares' life reads like the script of a Hollywood movie. Born and raised in some of the toughest barrios of Los Angeles, surrounded by abuse and no father figure, Ruben stayed strong and avoided the siren call of gang life that claimed so many of his friends and family members. Ruben learned he had a talent for boxing, and worked hard in the ring and staying off the streets where he knew...

Greg Amundson is an official "FOS" That's Friend of the Show. Greg's teachings, books, and leadership have been instrumental in my own development and I know that many of you feel the same way. I know this because more than anyone else, I get emails asking to get Greg back on the show. Lucky for us he has a new book out,  "Firebreather Fitness: Work Your Body, Mind, and Spirit into the Best Shape...

This is a short episode about 2016 and the ass-kicker that it turned out to be. Interview episodes will return in two weeks so sit tight. In the show, I mention our first t-shirt for 2017, a memorial for the 140 officers lost in the line of duty last year. The back of the shirt has the American flag with 140 blue stars instead of the regular 50, to honor each of their sacrifice. The front has a qu...

Green Beret and founder of Guerrilla Approach Training returns to the show to talk about what it takes to survive these days as a cop. Since Aaron's last appearance on the show – a very popular episode 36 – he's been traveling around the country engaging with law enforcement from all over the country. He's learned from, and taught to, a lot of front line leaders who are actively taking a part in t...