The old saying is that if you want to get big, you must eat big and lift big. The science behind this agrees, but it is more complicated than simply eating more. It does matter what you eat, how much you eat, when you eat, and how you exercise. It is not as simple as just getting on the SEE-food diet. Recent research shows that even with a calorie surplus and resistance training, mainly gaining lean muscle mass is no easy feat. See more at https://www.stewsmithfitness.com The Science of Weight G...
Jul 16, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 307
So I decided to start a new podcast and make it a LIVE QA session on top of discussing The Never Quit Mindset. With guests and without focused on those important moments in our lives when we decided to get tougher and not quit. Standby for more information, but I wanted to get a quick discussion on another potential change that is occuring within Air Force Special Warfare. For more info on AFSW training check out: https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/products/ebook-mil-air-force-pararescue-special-t...
Jul 10, 2025•44 min•Season 1Ep. 306
Stew Smith and Nick Barringer PhD (nutrition) discuss eating to gain weight for the "hard gainer". We define the term plus discuss training and eating options that best put on lean muscle mass. We also share a post from his instragram page: https://www.instagram.com/nickbarringer.phd.rdn/ I highly recommend following Nick if you want to get smarter with training, nutrition, recovery, and even cool tactical fitness science. From his page: Want to Gain Muscle, Not Fat? The Science Says... Intentio...
Jun 29, 2025•44 min•Season 1Ep. 305
Don't get beat down by the heat and humidity whether you work or work out outside this summer. Prepare your bag for hydration, electrolytes, cooling, and change of clothes options. If you do this right, you may find yourself tougher, more resilient to the extreme temps (over time) and still improve performance. It all comes down to body heat - Half of your fatigue is due to body heat. Cool down = second wind. See more training ideas at https://www.stewsmithfitness.com
Jun 29, 2025•52 min•Season 1Ep. 304
Retired Army Lt. Col. Nick Barringer, PhD, helps us break down some of the recent science behind training, testing, nutrition, and what makes a good spec ops candidate. Check out his Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/nickbarringer.phd.rdn We also did the following podcasts topics in the past: TFR 212 - Talking Nutrition Optimal Performance / Longevity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVKBMEaBh2I TFR 219 - Talking Nutrition for Spec Ops Selection - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfewfhZ6Zs4 T...
May 23, 2025•58 min•Season 1Ep. 303
Spec Ops Swimming Tests: Learning the CSS to get TO and THROUGH Spec Ops Selection - https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/css-help-series-quick-fix-to-crushing-the-swim The RULES: First, the 500yd Navy Physical Screening Test (PST) allows for the elementary side stroke, the breaststroke, or the modified side stroke nick-named the Combat Swimmer Stroke. The general theme is that these strokes must be "underwater recovery strokes." However, beyond the PST (getting accepted into training) wi...
May 06, 2025•48 min•Season 1Ep. 302
If you have never heard of EMDR - listen up: Dan walks us through his career and calling to serve and many of the things he has learned in the last 40 years of serving his community and now his fellow officers. EMDR therapy, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, is a form of psychotherapy designed to assist individuals in processing and coping with traumatic memories and other distressing experiences. It entails activating memories while simultaneously engaging in bilateral stimulati...
May 03, 2025•54 min•Season 1Ep. 301
Here is a top ten list of “What Makes Your Workout the Best”: 1 - The one you do consistently. The number one rule for exercise and physical activity is to make it more than a workout of the day, but something that fits into your schedule and becomes your lifestyle. 2—The one designed for your goals. Doing workouts that do not address your specific goals is generally unhelpful if you hope to see the results you want. Goals vary from aesthetics, health, and wellness to optimal performance for com...
May 03, 2025•49 min•Season 1Ep. 300
Stew Smith and Mark Christiani discuss the transition from military service into coaching and how the Army has evolved in it's creation of training programs for active duty and reserve soldiers with the H2F program. If you are interested in becoming a coach with military units, check this out. If you are a soldier and looking for answers on how to train, the Army has a group of highly trained coaches to help you. Some references to consider: H2F Program - https://h2f.army.mil/ O2X - Contract for...
Mar 25, 2025•59 min•Season 1Ep. 299
Join Stew Smith, Alex Gendzier, and former Navy SEAL Officer Rob Sarver on the type of preparation needed to transition from the military into civilian life optimally. See more at https://www.heroes-journey.net The new book, Warrior to Civilian - The Field Manual to the Hero's Journey Amazon - https://amzn.to/4l1QI4v is a 5-year research project by Alex, Rob, and dozens of veteran experts on the process of making a smooth transition out of the military and into the rest of your life. Much like h...
Mar 21, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 298
Check out the options we have at https://www.stewsmithfitness.com if you are looking for a cycle to focus on running progression, calisthenics improvement, and strength maintenance - this is it: https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/spring-training-options Or if you need to focus on specifics of a fitness test or selection, we have options for you as well here - https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/collections/ebooks-special-operations-fitness-training-related Time to get moving.....
Mar 10, 2025•52 min•Season 1Ep. 297
Being coachable is a vital quality that can significantly impact your journey as a student-athlete, especially as you start the process as a military recruit and spec ops candidate. If you aspire to elevate your skills and enhance your performance to new levels, understanding what it means to be coachable can be the difference between getting to and through the goal in front of you. - Article - https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/how-being-coachable-will-lead-to-your-true-potential It's ...
Mar 10, 2025•57 min•Season 1Ep. 296
I am just curious - what is it that you do to challenge yourself everyday? Wake up early to train? Get hot / Get cold / Get uncomfortable? Diet / Fast? Set goals? Do tough endurance events? Remember there is a fine line between mental toughness and stupidity - what do you think that line is? For me it is pushing into injury - now you cannot train anymore. But in life or death situations there is doing whatever to get out alive. So that line is moveable depending on the situation......
Mar 06, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Season 1Ep. 295
See article on the intro topic: https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/your-path-to-spec-ops-any-success-starts-and-ends-with-you Are you preparing for the rigorous demands of military special operations or law enforcement SWAT training? If so, you are likely aware that success in this field combines thorough and intense physical preparation and mental resilience. While the journey to getting TO and THROUGH selection is crucial, the day-to-day grind is where your true character will emerge....
Mar 03, 2025•46 min•Season 1Ep. 294
We are starting off with an answer to this question then taking yours. What is better when doing PT Pyramids to improve cals / cardio: More rest to get more volume or active rest and do the best you can until failure? Check out https://www.stewsmithfitness.com for more programs and articles on topics of tactical fitness and more. Both actually - consider it an adjustment in intensity to produce more volume or more conditioning. Both are needed - work both.
Feb 27, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 293
In a physical activity study that collected data from over 300,000 participants for decades, those who started adding physical activity/exercise to their lives later in life (after 40-50 years) reaped the same benefits as those who never stopped working out from their teens to their 60s. So, it is never too late to start, whether you took a few decades from exercise after your early 20s or are entirely new to physical activity at 40-50 years old. Science Says You’re Not Too Late: Start Your Fitn...
Feb 11, 2025•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 292
How many have noticed this week that cold is relative. What was cold in December about 35 degrees now feels like a heat wave after a few weeks of 10-15 degrees. Just an observation on the ability of the human body to acclimate and "get tougher". Check out more articles on the topics of mental toughness and tactical fitness at https://www.stewsmithfitness.com
Feb 03, 2025•46 min•Season 1Ep. 291
This LIVE QA intro is about the Top Ten Ways (I think) that you can build mental toughness. Check it out - ask questions after the intro. Check out https://www.stewsmithfitness.com for more information found in article, books, ebook, coaching, and membership pages. Setting high standards is a commendable goal, but you are not going to win everything. You will have good days and bad days. Perfectionism can exacerbate feelings of inadequacy and imposter syndrome. Instead of striving for unattainab...
Jan 28, 2025•54 min•Season 1Ep. 290
See more articles at https://www.stewsmithfitness.com While it is a little more complicated than the title may imply, fueling with the right food (not caffeine), sleeping better, and exercising are the three activities that will give you the energy to exercise and be more productive throughout the day. The next time you say you don’t have the energy to exercise, try these helpful physical and mental tips to get something done: Do It, Especially When You Do Not Feel Like It—You will rarely wake u...
Jan 28, 2025•50 min•Season 1Ep. 289
Stew Smith and Jeff Nichols the coaching of gut checks. Defining gut checks and understanding how to incorporate them into your training so that they are actually useful activities is a challenge. Check out more programming at Stew Smith Fitness - https://www.stewsmithfitness.com and with Jeff Nichols at https://www.performancefirstus.com
Jan 02, 2025•43 min•Season 1Ep. 288
Most people, even scientists studying physiology and psychology, are puzzled by the mind-body connection. While we can classify and function areas of the brain, developing them determines toughness, attitude and why you want to do something challenging to achieve. The areas of the brain we understand well are thinking and feeling, but thoroughly understanding the "doing" part of the brain is complex. For this topic, I went down a rabbit hole in psychology and physiology studies. While these are ...
Jan 02, 2025•46 min•Season 1Ep. 287
See latest article - https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/dont-do-these-things-with-your-css-technique-and-training INTRO to LIVE QA - Look at all the health and wellness benefits you may be neglecting by not exercising your legs: Burn More Calories - You burn more calories whenever you decide not to skip a leg day. Because of the larger muscle groups working (legs, glutes, and back), you use more energy to train in the given time of your training session. Working hard is tough—maybe that...
Sep 27, 2024•44 min•Season 1Ep. 286
This book focuses solely on our most recent Fall transition phase. The transition from high-repetition calisthenics to a high-mileage running phase is a reverse progression. Mileage and reps are reduced throughout the weeks as you focus on shorter and faster runs and heavier repetitions of calisthenics using some weights, sandbags, weight vests, TRX, and other tools to make calisthenics more difficult. Running Miles: THIS WORKOUT Program (FALL): Running Starts at 25 miles per week and regresses ...
Aug 23, 2024•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 285
Stew Smith (https://www.stewsmithfitness.com) and Jeff Nichols (https://www.performancefirstus.com) discuss what being fatigue resistance is and how to build it. Check out the wide spectrum of ways to build it and how to feed it throughout all the phases of tactical fitness and special ops selection prep. #1 – FUEL / HYDRATION - ALL THE TIME PERIODICALLY - 1-2 TIMES A WEEK: #2 – Hills, beach, stair stepper, weighted (rucks, sleds)– that makes running harder #3 – Higher volume lifting, calistheni...
Aug 23, 2024•44 min•Season 1Ep. 284
Tactical Fitness Report 240 - Top Ten Questions About Tactical FItness and Selection Prep See link for article version: https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/transforming-weakness-the-top-ten-questions-received-by-readers-podcast-listeners It is no secret that I receive countless emails, DMs, and texts from readers of my articles and listeners to my podcasts and LIVE QA sessions (Mon/Tues) each week. I enjoy answering them as they also give me ideas to write articles ( StewSmithFitness / M...
Jul 28, 2024•36 min•Season 1Ep. 283
Peak performance or just surviving hard training days in extreme weather conditions can be blamed on or sustained by the quantity and quality of the fuel entering the body. Hydration, adding electrolytes, and nutrition choices are critical to success regardless of the intense activity, but your strategy of re-filling and re-fueling matters in high temperatures. Start with the basics of hydration, adding electrolytes when sweating profusely, and nutrition. Find foods and hydration supplements tha...
Jul 16, 2024•54 min•Season 1Ep. 282
See more articles and embedded videos at https://www.stewsmithfitness.com The term “tactical” often finds its way into discussions to set apart the extraordinary as “military grade” or the stylishly functional as “tactic-cool.” About 15 years ago, this term extended into a new realm—tactical fitness, which focuses on the physical preparation essential for military, law enforcement, and firefighting professions. The transformation from athlete to tactical athlete is based on many similarities but...
Jul 10, 2024•59 min•Season 1Ep. 281
Check out related article: https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/summer-training-what-is-your-weakness-that-you-are-ignoring The summer presents a unique opportunity to elevate your performance as you prepare for military or special operations service. Learn about Seasonal Tactical Fitness Periodization - https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/seasonal-tactical-fitness-periodization-what-is-it-why-is-it-important This is your chance to transform every weak link into a strength, to bui...
Jun 12, 2024•47 min•Season 1Ep. 280
Here is a group workout I do with 800+ high school recruits / candidates at Naval Academy Summer Seminar. My goal is to teach them some strategies to improve on their entrance fitness test as well as the Naval Academy fitness test: Plank, Pushups, 1.5 mile run - taken every semester. Warmup 100-meter run or 20 jumping jacks or jump rope, 10 push-ups, 10 squats 200-meter run or 20 jumping jacks or jump rope, 20 push-ups, 20 squats 300-meter run or 20 jumping jacks or jump rope, 30 push-ups, 30 sq...
Jun 05, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 279
Tyler Koch has a degree in psychology and a master's degree in exercise physiology. Developed and implemented the first-ever S&C initiative for Undergraduate Pilot Training. Former Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for the 71st Flying Training Squadron. Former Head of Human Performance for the 158th Fighter Wing. Current Physician Assistant Student at Penn State University pursuing orthopedic medicine. For LinkedIn connection - go to - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-koch-m-s-c-s-c-s-a0...
May 09, 2024•58 min•Season 1Ep. 278
