Podcast
MOPs & MOEs
Hosted by MOPs & MOEs · EN
Changing the fitness culture of the force. Your one stop shop for all things fitness for tactical professionals.
43episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
From Restaurant Impossible to Army Impossible with Chef Robert Irvine
Jan 1101:26:22Tap to summarizeMOPs & MOEs is powered by TrainHeroic, the best coaching app on the planet. Click here to get 14 days FREE and a consult with the coaches at TrainHeroic to help you get your coaching business rolling on TrainHeroic. MOPs & MOEs delivers our training through TrainHeroic and you can get your first 7 days of training with us FREE by clicking here.To continue the conversation, join our Discord! We have experts standing by to answer your questions.If you've been following any of the recent news around modernization of military dining facilities, there's a good chance Chef Irvine was behind the scenes making it happen. As you'll hear in this conversation he's deeply involved in these efforts, and he's doing it all for free. He started his career as a cook in the British Royal Navy, and after rising to culinary fame, he's giving back to service members in a variety of ways.Chef Robert Irvine is an English-American celebrity chef and talk show host who has appeared on and hosted a variety of Food Network programs including Dinner: Impossible, Worst Cooks in America, Restaurant: Impossible, A Hero's Welcome, Operation Restaurant, All-Star Academy, Guy's Grocery Games, Chopped: Impossible, and Restaurant Express. Irvine currently operates one restaurant, Fresh Kitchen by Robert Irvine, located within The Pentagon.
Transcribe →Faith, Family, Fitness, and Freedom with Retired Rescue Swimmer Drew Sinclair
Jan 401:49:40Tap to summarizeMOPs & MOEs is powered by TrainHeroic, the best coaching app on the planet. Click here to get 14 days FREE and a consult with the coaches at TrainHeroic to help you get your coaching business rolling on TrainHeroic. MOPs & MOEs delivers our training through TrainHeroic and you can get your first 7 days of training with us FREE by clicking here.To continue the conversation, join our Discord! We have experts standing by to answer your questions.Among other things, this episode discusses the alcohol culture in the military, as well as the role of spirituality in holistic health. Lieutenant Commander (Retired) Drew Sinclair knows a thing or two about both of those, based on his unique and challenging personal journey. From enlisted Rescue Swimmer to OCS to a successful officer career, on the surface it seemed like Drew had it all figured out. But as a high functioning alcoholic, things below the surface weren't so great. After retiring Drew reinvented himself with a focus on a holistic approach to healthier living.Drew Sinclair is a retired U.S. Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer (#700) and Officer who spent more than two decades on the front lines of search and rescue. After overcoming childhood trauma, breaking generational cycles, and walking away from alcohol, Drew completely reinvented his life by rebuilding his identity, deepening his faith, and reshaping his priorities. He now leads a life centered on faith, family, fitness, and freedom.Drew travels full-time across America in an RV with his wife, three kids, two dogs, and a cat, documenting their journey while coaching busy men to reclaim their health through simple, disciplined hybrid training. His grounded, transparent storytelling, from mountain runs to mindset shifts, has inspired countless men to step back into a leadership role in their life and embrace strength and purpose.Drew’s message is clear: life does not end at 40. It begins the moment you take ownership, make a decision, and commit to becoming the man you were meant to be. His story is not just about transformation. It is a blueprint for anyone ready to rebuild their life from the inside out.Follow Drew on his Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedrewsinclair/Our Drew (Hammond) mentioned discovering our guest Drew (Sinclair) through a facebook post, you can find that here: https://www.facebook.com/andrew.sinclair.1982/videos/when-i-retired-from-the-coast-guard-i-thought-everything-would-be-easyi-thought-/1296994402252868/We also make a couple references to a podcast episode more focused on his rescues, you can find that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpwY-tCyqu0
Transcribe →Crossover Episode: Captains and Coaches
Dec 2800:51:44Tap to summarizeMOPs & MOEs is powered by TrainHeroic, the best coaching app on the planet. Click here to get 14 days FREE and a consult with the coaches at TrainHeroic to help you get your coaching business rolling on TrainHeroic. MOPs & MOEs delivers our training through TrainHeroic and you can get your first 7 days of training with us FREE by clicking here.To continue the conversation, join our Discord! We have experts standing by to answer your questions.This week we're bringing you an episode of the Captains and Coaches podcast hosted by Tex McQuilkin. Alex met Tex at the 1st Armored Division H2F summit at Ft Bliss, and Tex really appreciated the discussion of Nazareth Syndrome from Alex's presentation. He also gave a hell of a hands on coaching development session.At Captains & Coaches, they believe leadership isn’t just taught—it’s built through action, resilience, and teamwork. Their mission is to empower athletes, captains, and coaches to excel not just in sports, but in life. They don’t just focus on physical training. They deliver a comprehensive approach to developing confidence, leadership, and mental toughness. Whether you’re guiding a team, leading on the field, or supporting from the sidelines, their tailored programs are designed to meet your unique needs and drive long-lasting results.Tex McQuilkin brings over 15 years of transformative experience as the Founder and Leadership Strategist of Captains & Coaches. His unique methodology bridges the gap between physical excellence and leadership mastery, empowering athletes to become exceptional performers and influential leaders.From youth athletes to elite collegiate competitors and special operations forces, Tex has guided individuals and teams to breakthrough achievements through his signature blend of disciplined training and empathetic mentorship. As a former four-year starter and three-year team captain for Marymount University Men's Lacrosse, he intimately understands the challenges and opportunities that shape athletic leadership.
Transcribe →SMART Goals are Dumb with Dr. Christian Swann
Aug 3101:29:36Tap to summarizeOn this week's episode we're tackling a topic we've been meaning to discuss for a long time: Despite being pervasive in both performance and medical spaces, SMART goals are no actually an evidence based way to change health and fitness behaviors. They may even, in some cases, be harmful.Our guest, Dr. Christian Swann, is a Professor of Psychology at Southern Cross University in Australia where he leads the Physical Activity, Sport and Exercise Research (PASER) group.Christian's background is in sport and exercise psychology, and his expertise is in goal setting. His research focuses on how to set goals to increase and maintain physical activity, and he is particularly interested in how different goal setting approaches make us feel while we pursue them — as well as how they influence our mental health. As part of an international team of researchers he published "The (over)use of SMART goals for physical activity promotion: A narrative review and critique." This article aimed to answer a few key questions:Is the SMART framework based on theory? Is it consistent with existing evidence? Does it consider what type of goal is set? Is it applied consistently? Is it being used as originally intended? Does it carry any risks?Once you learn the history of SMART goals, some of the answers become a lot less surprising...
Transcribe →Personalized Training Plans (Research Review)
Aug 2401:12:24Tap to summarizeMOPs & MOEs is powered by TrainHeroic!To continue the conversation, join our Discord! We have experts standing by to answer your questions.In this week's episode we're breaking down some recently published research. Specifically, "Personalized, Evidence-Informed Training Plans and Exercise Prescriptions for Performance, Fitness and Health" by Henning Wackerhage and Brad Schoenfeld. Up front, the article itself is an opinion piece, but it's based on an extensive review of the literature, and provides thorough citations. It's a useful article specifically because it synthesizes so much evidence into some practical guidelines for coaches.The authors advocate for an athlete, client and patient-centered approach whereby an individual’s needs and abilities are the main consideration behind all decision-making. They also lay out a subjective, pragmatic six-step approach that details how to write a training plan or exercise prescription that is partially based on scientific evidence.
Transcribe →Human Performance in ROTC with Mauri Dimeo
Aug 1701:32:04Tap to summarizeMOPs & MOEs is powered by TrainHeroic!To continue the conversation, join our Discord! We have experts standing by to answer your questions.Find Tactical Alpinism on Instagram hereYou can find Mauri's podcast on Spotify or on Apple PodcastsWe recently had Mauri on to discuss his research on lactate threshold based training, but after he joined the conversation on our Discord we found out we missed an even more important topic. Fitness plays a huge role in ROTC cadets' ranking, and those rankings determine their choices of component and branch. As an instructor, Mauri's human performance focused approach dramatically enhanced his school's outcomes, so in the conversation we explore what worked.We discussed news of a cadet's death at Advanced Camp, you can find that story here.You can find coverage of the ROTC "rebalancing and optimization" (downgrading programs) here.
Transcribe →The Presidential Fitness Test is Coming Back, What Does that Mean?
Aug 10, 202501:26:16Tap to summarizeOn July 31st President Trump signed an executive order re-establishing the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition and directing the new council to develop a proposal on bringing back the Presidential Fitness Test. This test figures prominently in the childhood memories of many Americans, with pride for some and trauma for others. In this episode we break down the latest news within the decades of historical context that got us here. You can read "The Soft American" here (we consider it mandatory reading for MOPs & MOEs followers)For background on our mention of physical education in Europe (especially the Turnverein movement) check out our episode History of Army Fitness with Dr. EastFor some context on the President's Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition, check out our episode with former council member Rob WilkinsWe mentioned Maintenance Phase's episode on the PFT and you can find that hereWe also mentioned a similar perspective on the test presented in this article on VoxDrew referenced the official history of the council provided on the HHS websiteAlex referenced the FitnessGram teacher training which provides an overview of the program This article highlights the lack of academic scrutiny focused on physical education, including FitnessGramThe source of the claim that the average school budget for physical education is $764 annually is this article from TimeYou can read the La Sierra High School Physical Education handbook here, including the basic philosophies as well as the specific events and standards
Transcribe →Part Time Warfighters, Full Time Performance with Mark Christiani
Aug 3, 202501:38:13Tap to summarizeMOPs & MOEs is powered by TrainHeroic!To continue the conversation, join our Discord! We have experts standing by to answer your questions.This episode includes a reference to this Defense Health Agency report that found that the more H2F resources provided for Reserve soldiers, the better results they saw.If you follow the MOPs & MOEs blog, you already know this week's guests from things like his 5 part series "The Other 28 Days" on how to implement human performance for part time service members or his "Maximizing Fitness Efficiency" piece on minimal effective dose training. Members of our discord server know he's always bringing research citations to the conversations happening there.Mark Christiani is an Army Veteran who served in Ranger Regiment before transitioning into the human performance space. He currently works with O2X as an On-Site Human Performance Specialist at the 81st Readiness Division of the Army Reserve. Mark served as the Brigade Lead Strength and Conditioning Coach for GAP Solutions for not just any brigade, but 44th Medical Brigade where Drew works. He holds a Master of Science in Sports Medicine from Georgia Southern University and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and Registered Strength and Conditioning Coach (RSCC).
Transcribe →News & FAQs: Joint Fitness Test, NDAA, Running Injuries, and more!
Jul 27, 202501:07:49Tap to summarizeThis week's episode we're answer a few audience questions, going through some military fitness news, and discussing some recently published research. It's a bit of rapid fire content, if you want a deeper dive on any of the individual topics, please let us know!Here's everything we discuss:Joint Fitness Test RumorsAir Force Fitness Test ChangesOccupationally Specific Fitness Test for EODMarine Corps Body Bearers PT StandardsUpdates on Athletic Trainer ContractsNDAA and Human Performance FundingCongressional Amendments and Military SpendingRunning Injuries and Research InsightsModernizing Army Dining: A Critical PerspectiveMAHA Wins: Analyzing Food Industry ChangesNeck Training: Myths and Practical Insights
Transcribe →Lactate Threshold: Assessing Endurance for Tactical and Mountain Athletes with Mauri Dimeo
Jul 20, 202501:30:41Tap to summarizeMOPs & MOEs is powered by TrainHeroic!To continue the conversation, join our Discord! We have experts standing by to answer your questions.Find Tactical Alpinism on Instagram hereYou can find Mauri's podcast on Spotify or on Apple PodcastsYou can download a copy of Mauri’s thesis, “Relationship Between the Lactate Thresholds and Endurance Performance in Trained Runners” hereIn this episode we're returning to the topic of how mountain athletes and tactical athletes have similar fitness demands. Mauri is particularly qualified to discuss this topic since he is a bit of both. His perspectives include being an infantry officer, alpinist, coach to endurance athletes, certified mountain guide, and more.Mauri served in a multitude of leadership roles as an infantry officer in the US Army. During that service he applied many advanced planning and navigation techniques to make mountain missions successful. He adapted the military's operational planning process for use in the mountains by combining military planning and navigation techniques with mountain objectives. He now leads Tactical Alpinism, where he provides training and education for both tactical professionals and civilians pursuing high levels of performance in the mountains. This includes both physical training and technical mountain navigation.
Transcribe →