Dan John (Strength Training in Tactical Athletes, Generational Trauma and Nutrition) - Episode 598
Behind The Shield
James Geering
4.9 • 695 Ratings
🗓️ 11 April 2026
⏱️ 77 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Dan John is an elite athlete, author and revered strength and conditioning coach. We discuss the impact of war on his family, training the youth athlete, physical education, gut biome, rehabilitating the tactical professions and so much more.
Dan has spent his life with one foot in the world of lifting and throwing, and the other foot in academia. An All-American discus thrower, Dan has also competed at the highest levels of Olympic lifting, Highland Games and the Weight Pentathlon, an event in which he holds the American record.
Dan spends his work life blending weekly workshops and lectures with full-time writing, and is also an online religious studies instructor for Columbia College of Missouri. As a Fulbright Scholar, he toured the Middle East exploring the foundations of religious education systems. Dan is also a Senior Lecturer for St Mary’s University, Twickenham, London.
His books, on weightlifting, include Intervention, Never Let Go, Mass Made Simple and Easy Strength, written with Pavel Tsatsouline as well as From Dad, To Grad. He and Josh Hillis co-authored “Fat Loss Happens on Monday.”
In 2015, Dan wrote Can You Go? on his approach to assessments and basic training. In addition, Before We Go, another compilation akin to Never Let Go became an Amazon Bestseller.
In early 2017, Dan’s book, Now What?, his approach to Performance and dealing with “life,” became a Bestseller on Amazon. Hardstyle Kettlebell Challenge, published also in 2017, focused on the keys to the kettlebell.
His most recent book, Attempts, is a collection of short essays for both the professional coach and trainer and the “rest of us.” He is currently working on a new edition of “Easy Strength” with Pavel.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This episode is sponsored by 511, a company that I've used for well over a decade and continue to use to this day. |
| 0:07.3 | And 511 is offering you guys the audience of the Behind the Shield podcast a discount on every purchase you make with them. |
| 0:14.4 | Before we get to that code, I want to highlight a couple of products that, again, I personally use today. |
| 0:19.7 | One of the most impressive products they just |
| 0:22.6 | released is their Rush Backpack 2.0. Now, for many of you, whether you're going to the fire |
| 0:28.0 | station, the police station, whether you're traveling, with your family, whether you're taking |
| 0:31.6 | training courses, we have to fly, we have to drive, we have to take trains. And I have to say, |
| 0:37.3 | I own multiple backpacks, |
| 0:38.9 | many of 5-11s, different ones, but as far as a day pack, this one was the most impressive. |
| 0:44.3 | There are so many different compartments. The way it sits on your back is incredibly comfortable. |
| 0:49.1 | If you are a concealed carry person, there's also a spot for a weapon. So they've thought of multiple, multiple |
| 0:55.5 | things that a man or woman would have to do on a daily basis. That is in addition to all of the |
| 1:01.0 | products that I talk about a lot. Their uniforms fit for men or fit for women in the first responder |
| 1:07.4 | professions. The footwear that they offer, whether it's the Norris sneaker or the |
| 1:11.5 | Atlas system that is designed for foot health and therefore knees and back and hips and shoulders |
| 1:16.9 | and neck. As a civilian, I live in a lot of their clothes as well. Their jeans stretch. You can actually |
| 1:22.3 | squat down in them. We live in Florida here, so I wear a lot of their shorts, which again, very, |
| 1:27.4 | very lightweight material. |
| 1:28.3 | You can get it wet and it will dry almost immediately. |
| 1:31.3 | And then moving to the fitness and tactical space, I used to have just a regular weight vest. |
| 1:36.3 | Recently I switched to a 511 vest and actually bought ballistic plates as well. |
| 1:40.3 | My thinking was simply, if I'm going to have a, why not I have one that protects me as well. |
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