Behind The Shield

Megan Lautz is a Registered Dietitian, Personal Trainer and the woman behind RescueRD. We discuss her joruney into nutrition, her immersion into the first responder world, the impact of shift work on health, caffeine, alcohol, forging performance and much more."I have been working as a full-time, embedded civilian dietitian for departments of +1,400 firefighters since 2017. I have trained for and passed CPAT, and am always up for a ride-along or a fitness challenge. I can often be found at a station or academy teaching nutrition, fitness, mobility, or just hanging out to learn more about firefighters. I am here to help firefighters maximize their energy levels, body composition, and retirement WITHOUT fads or yo-yo diets. I take the research on first responder health and translate it into firefighter language. My coaching programs help firefighters reach their goals while enjoying their favorite foods.​Nutrition is often overlooked in the first responder space, which is why RescueRD LLC was born in October 2020. I have strived to fill that gap one presentation, conference, workshop, or course at a time!"

Johnny Torgeson is an Army Veteran, Assistant Fire Chief of Operations and the man behind FireDawg Consulting. We discuss his early life, his journey into the military, his powerful 9/11 story, protecting military assets from a civilian fire department, the recuitment crisis, forcing teams, leadership and much more. In 2000, Johnny Torgeson (Dr. JT) started his career with the US Army as an NCO. He's worked for several fire departments in the US and different countries. He became a successful business owner and CEO in his mid-twenties. He obtained a bachelor's degree in business, a master's in leadership, and a doctorate in strategic leadership. Currently, he works as a chief officer, college instructor, author, and speaker.Dr. JT has achieved multiple life-saving awards and service distinctions throughout his career. He writes for multiple publications and speaks on leadership and team development around the nation. In his spare time, he spends time with his family, volunteers at church, and mentors veterans. Dr. JT has a passion for serving people and developing teams. Throughout his career, he’s developed award-winning teams and transformed lives through his distinct strategies.

Zack Ferguson is a former Navy SEAL team 7 veteran with multiple deployments to Iraq, Yemen, Africa, and the United Arab Emirates. He served as his platoons Lead Sniper/Pointman, JTAC, Combatives Instructor, and Weapons Ordnance Specialist. In this powerful conversation, he discusses his powerful mental health story and how psychedelics helped heal both himself and his family.Additionally, Zack is a competitive 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu purple belt, as well as an amateur MMA fighter. His goal is to continue to reach and connect with people through his Jiu-Jitsu content to help show that there are other communities out there to join when veterans leave active duty. It is a great lifestyle to re-acquire a purpose and to be a part of a community. Ironically enough, Zack met DSG instructor Angel Cortes through his OG Pumpkin Jiu-Jitsu event.He is an instructor for the Graceful Warrior Project, a non-profit organization that aims to equip in-duress women in Africa and Congo with self-defense skills. Congo is considered the “rape capitol of the world.” Zack finds tremendous pride and satisfaction knowing that teaching his self-defense instruction will help save women's lives.He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Leadership from the University of Charleston. Lastly, he is the founder of Zackkferg.com where he designs and creates military-style Jiu-Jitsu rash guards.

Sam Quinones (pronounced Kin-YOH-Ness) is a Los Angeles-based freelance journalist, a reporter for 37 years, and author of four acclaimed books of narrative nonfiction. He is a veteran reporter on immigration, gangs, drug trafficking, the border. He is formerly a reporter with the L.A. Times, where he worked for 10 years. Before that, he made a living as a freelance writer residing in Mexico for a decade (1994-2004). His latest book, released in November, 2021, is The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth.In The Least of Us, Quinones chronicles the emergence of a drug-trafficking world producing massive supplies of synthetic drugs (fentanyl and meth) cheaper and deadlier than ever, marketing to the population of addicts created by the nation's opioid epidemic, as the backdrop to tales of Americans’ quiet attempts to recover community through simple acts of helping the vulnerable.With The Least of Us, Quinones broke the story of how the methamphetamine now produced in Mexico has covered the U.S. and is creating widespread and rapid-onset symptoms of schizophrenia, becoming in the process a major driver in the country’s the homeless problem.In January 2022, The Least of Us was nominated for a National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) award for Best Nonfiction Book of 2021.The Least of Us follows his landmark Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic (Bloomsbury, 2015), which ignited awareness of the epidemic that has cost the United States hundreds of thousands of lives and become deadliest drug scourge in the nation’s history.Dreamland won a National Book Critics Circle award for the Best Nonfiction Book of 2015. It was also selected as one of the Best Books of 2015 by Amazon.com, the Daily Beast, Buzzfeed, Seattle Times, Boston Globe, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Entertainment Weekly, Audible, and in the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg Business by Nobel economics laureate, Prof. Angus Deaton, of Princeton University.In 2021, GQ Magazine selected Dreamland as one of the “50 Best Books of Literary Journalism of the 21st Century”Dreamland was selected as one the Best 10 True-Crime Books of all time based on lists, surveys, and ratings of more than 90 million Goodread.com readers. In 2019, Slate.com selected Dreamland as one of the 50 best nonfiction books of the last 25 years.For Dreamland, Quinones has testified before the U.S. Senate’s Health Committee, numerous professional conferences of judges, doctors, librarians, hospital administrators and at more than two-dozen town hall meetings in small towns across the country.A Young Adult version of Dreamland – for 7th through 12th graders -- was released in July of 2019.His first two books grew from his 10 years living and working as a freelance writer in Mexico (1994-2004). True Tales From Another Mexico: The Lynch Mob, the Popsicle Kings, Chalino and the Bronx was released in 2001. It is a cult classic of a book from Mexico’s vital margins – stories of drag queens and Oaxacan Indian basketball players, popsicle makers and telenovela stars, migrants, farm workers, a narcosaint, a slain drug balladeer, a slum boss, and a doomed tough guy.

This week's guest is America's most infamous farmer. Featured in the documentaries Food inc, Fresh and Polyfaces. Joel is a pioneer in a return to holistic sustainable farming. He prides himself in not using chemicals or medications in his livestock and poultry. Joel uses a transient grazing model to ensure that the food his animals is optimized.Joel Salatin, 59, calls himself a Christian libertarian environmentalist capitalist lunatic farmer. Others who like him call him the most famous farmer in the world, the high priest of the pasture, and the most eclectic thinker from Virginia since Thomas Jefferson. Those who don’t like him call him a bio-terrorist, Typhoid Mary, charlatan, and starvation advocate.With a room full of debate trophies from high school and college days, ten published books, and a thriving multi-generational family farm, he draws on a lifetime of food, farming and fantasy to entertain and inspire audiences around the world. He’s as comfortable moving cows in a pasture as addressing CEOs in a Wall Street business conference.His wide-ranging topics include nitty-gritty how-to for profitable regenerative farming as well as cultural philosophy like orthodoxy vs. heresy. A wordsmith and master communicator, he moves audiences from laughs one minute to tears the next, from frustration to hopefulness. Often receiving standing ovations, he prefers the word performance rather than presentation to describe his lectures. His favorite activity?–Q&A. “I love the interaction,” he says.He co-owns, with his family, Polyface Farm in Swoope, Virginia. Featured in the New York Times bestseller Omnivore’s Dilemma and award-winning documentary Food Inc., the farm services more than 5,000 families, 50 restaurants, 10 retail outlets, and a farmers’ market with salad bar beef, pigaerator pork, pastured poultry, and forestry products. When he’s not on the road speaking, he’s at home on the farm, keeping the callouses on his hands and dirt under his fingernails, mentoring young people, inspiring visitors, and promoting local, regenerative food and farming systems.Salatin writes The Pastoralist column for Stockman Grass Farmer, granddaddy catalyst for the grass farming movement, and the Pitchfork Pulpit column for Mother Earth News, as well as numerous guest articles for ACRES USA and other publications. A frequent guest on radio programs and podcasts targeting preppers, homesteaders, and foodies, Salatin’s practical, can-do solutions tied to passionate soliloquies for sustainability offer everyone food for thought and plans for action.Mixing mischievous humor with hard-hitting information, Salatin both entertains and moves people. Seldom using a power-point and often speaking from an outline scribbled in a yellow legal pad, he depends on theatrics, style, and compelling content to hold attention and defend innovative positions. The rare combination of prophet and practitioner makes him both a must-read and must-hear in a time desperate for integrity leadership and example.

In the intensely demanding world of first responders, Michael emerges as an advocate of unwavering commitment and innovative approaches to mental health. His journey, spanning over two decades in healthcare innovation and dedicated service as a Firefighter/EMT, ofers a vivid testament to his firsthand understanding of the deep-seated mental health challenges facing our nation's first responders. After personally experiencing the healing potential of psychedelic medicines, he recognized its transformative benefits, especially for fellow first responders and veterans.This realization led Michael to help his peers find their own healing through an ongoing psychedelic medicine group comprised of first responders and veterans. Through this initiative, Michael stands at the vanguard of a mental health therapeutic revolution. Articulate and deeply informed, Michael, with his characteristic blend of passion and subtle humor, offers a novel perspective on the nexus between frontline Emergency Medical Service, profound and personal healing with psychedelic medicines, and the unique experiences as a medic at Burning Man—an annual gathering celebrated for its focus on community, art, and radical self-expression.Inviting Michael to speak beckons listeners on an evocative journey, exploring the heart of a first responder fiercely dedicated to shining light on the potential of psychedelic medicine to combat the pervasive mental health crisis among our nation’s first responders and veterans.

This unique episode is a recording of the live Q&A I hosted at the FFCA Safety and Health Conference. The panel featured three leaders from departments who had recently made the switch to the 24/72 firefighter schedule. Sleep researcher Joel Billings also joined us and discussed his 48/96 study.They told of why they made the change, where the financing came from, the impact on recruitment and retention, the importance of courageous leadership, the results they witnessed first hand and so much more. Hugh Bruder is a 43 year veteran of the fire service, IASIS provider and current Fire Chief of Boytnon Beach in Florida. His department made the move to 24/72 two years ago.Dixon Phillips is a former collegiate athlete, Pasco County firefighter and union president. His department is in the process of fully transitioning to a 24/72 in 2026.Joseph "Shawn" Hillhouse is the Deputy Chief of Gainesville Fire Rescue. His department went to the 24/72 in August of this year.Joel Billings is a former Volunteer Firefighter, EMT and fire service researcher.

In this unique episode, I sat down with both the Army and Navy's leading sleep researchers to bring the gamut of Military research to the woefully understudied first responders professions. We discussed the immense financial cost of sleep deprivation related accidents, the impact on operational readiness, sleep and performance, the impact on decision making, the importance of courageous leadership and much more.Dr. (MAJ) Allison Brager is an active duty Army neuroscientist. She is the recipient of two NIH National Research Service Awards and a National Academies of Sciences fellowship in order to examine the mechanisms of developing physiological resiliency to extreme stress in extreme environments. Her works spans from clinical trials on novel drug and technology development for military operations to studying physiology & behavior in some of the most austere places in the world to include Antarctica. She is the recipient of three Presidential medals to include a Joint Commendation Medal and two Meritorious Service Medals for her research & development efforts in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the COVID-19 pandemic (Operation Gotham). In 2020, Dr. Brager underwent astronaut assessment & selection at NASA and made it to the second final round in 2021. As a former professional athlete, herself, Dr. Brager has leveraged her experience to help develop the first mental health handbook for the NCAA. She sits on several fatigue-related working groups for NATO, US Special Operations, and the federal government. In addition to more than 40 peer-reviewed articles in flagship journals, she is author of Meathead: Unraveling the Athletic Brain. She has a Sc.B from Brown University and earned her Ph.D from the Department of Biological Sciences working under Dr. J. David Glass.Dr. Rachel Markwald is a Sleep Specialist providing education in sleep and circadian rhythms to enhance job performance and health. Her areas of specialization include the impact of inadequate sleep on alertness, cognition, athletic performance, metabolism, and pain. From a brain perspective, she has studied how poor sleep raises the risk for accidents and mishaps through impacts on attention, learning, memory, and decision-making abilities. From a body perspective, she has studied the impact of poor sleep on metabolism, eating behavior, and body weight. Dr. Markwald’s professional experience includes adapting effective sleep optimization strategies to meet the needs and requirements of individuals and teams performing in high tempo, dynamic environments. She has worked with military medical and line communities, competitive and recreational athletes, business executives, and the general public to accomplish the goal of better sleep. She received her Bachelor of Science in Health and Exercise Science at Colorado State University in 2004 and stayed to complete a Master of Science in Exercise Physiology in 2007. After several years of working with the CSU Clinical Health Science Laboratory, she decided to pursue a PhD in Sleep Science within the Integrative Physiology department at the University of Colorado at Boulder. During this time, she studied the role of sleep and circadian rhythms in human performance, health, and disease. After a postdoctoral appointment at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, she began a position with Navy Medicine as a civilian scientist. Currently, she is directing a team of medical researchers engaged in addressing sleep and fatigue issues during the training and deployment of active-duty personnel. Her research also spans sleep disorders facing military personnel, such as those experienced within the context of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. She has published multiple articles in peer reviewed journals, book chapters, and technical reports, and has delivered briefs to military operational leaders and Department of Defense policy makers.

John Travolta starred in one of the few movies about our profession that is truly respected. We talk about his early career, Ladder 49, training with Baltimore FD and the charitable projects he now champions.Nominated for two Academy Awards, eight Golden Globes and two Emmy awards, two-time Golden Globe and Emmy winner John Travolta recently starred in the film THE FANATIC and won the lead acting award at the Rome Film Festival for his role.John most recently filmed Quibi comedic action series DIE HART starring Kevin Hart. DIE HART was Travolta’s first TV role since his Golden Globe and Emmy-nominated turn as Robert Shapiro in The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.John has been honored twice with Academy Award nominations, the second for his riveting portrayal of a philosophical hit-man in Quentin Tarantino’s PULP FICTION. He also received BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations for this highly acclaimed role and was named Best Actor by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, among other distinguished awards.John has starred in a number of monumental films, earning his first Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for his role in the blockbuster SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER, which launched the disco phenomenon in the 1970s. He went on to star in the big- screen version of the long-running musical GREASE and the wildly successful URBAN COWBOY, which also influenced trends in popular culture. Additional film credits include the Brian DePalma thrillers CARRIE and BLOWOUT, as well as Amy Heckerling’s hit comedy LOOK WHO’S TALKING and Nora Ephron’s comic hit MICHAEL. Travolta starred in PHENOMENON and took an equally distinctive turn as an action star in John Woo’s top-grossing BROKEN ARROW. He also starred in the classic FACE/OFF opposite Nicolas Cage, and THE GENERAL’S DAUGHTER, co-starring Madeline Stowe. In 2005, Travolta reprised the role of ultra- cool Chili Palmer in the GET SHORTY sequel BE COOL. In addition, he starred opposite Scarlett Johansson in the critically acclaimed independent feature film A LOVE SONG FOR BOBBY LONG, which was screened at the Venice Film Festival, where both Travolta and the films won rave reviews.Travolta starred in Walt Disney Pictures’ 2009 film OLD DOGS, along with Robin Williams, Kelly Preston and daughter Ella Bleu Travolta, followed by the action thriller FROM PARIS WITH LOVE, starring opposite Jonathan Rhys Meyers. John starred alongside Taylor Kitsch, Blake Lively, Aaron Johnson, Benicio Del Toro, Salma Hayek, Emile Hirsch and Demian Bichir in the Oliver Stone directed movie, SAVAGES.John is very involved in his charity, The Jett Travolta Foundation which was established in 2009 by John and his wife Kelly to raise money for a wide variety of charitable and educational causes.John's Website: https://travolta.com/

As a retired Sergeant in the US Army, Eric earned several honors, including the Purple Heart, two Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Operation Iraqi Freedom Campaign Medal with Star, the Global War on Terror Service Medal, the Valorous Unit Award, and the Combat Infantry Badge. His military career was marked by bravery and an unbreakable spirit, even in the face of severe injuries.After his military service, Eric founded Hand Up LLC and Hand Up Realty, where he combines his business success with a strong commitment to helping communities. His approach to business has always been to be honest and upfront and to provide real value to those needing his services, which is what made him so successful.Eric is the author of "Canyon of Hope", a raw, unflinching story of survival, resilience, and redemption that’s more than just a recounting of a veteran’s experiences at war; it’s a roadmap for overcoming adversity, discovering inner strength, embracing transformation, and reclaiming control over your destiny.