Ryan Wilson completed a long and challenging career in the Australian Army spanning 18 years, primarily in the Special Air Service Regiment, where he gained extensive experience leading teams in highly complex and uncertain environments on multiple combat tours.

During his time in the special forces, Ryan experienced many life-changing and challenging situations that sparked his interest in resilience, high performance, and operational management. Following his military career, Ryan commenced his journey into the whiskey industry, starting in 2020 as Business Development Manager for Whipper Snapper Distillery, and is now the General Manager overseeing the entire operation.

Ryan is active in the veteran support space. He is on the Board of Directors for the Veteran employment non-profit Working Spirit and is the WA manager for the veteran charity Wandering Warriors. He has recently founded a new charity called Working Paws Australia, which aims to raise money and provide financial assistance for medical bills and other areas associated with retired military and police working dogs.

He holds a BA in Politics and International Studies from Murdoch University and a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Western Australia. He is also a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) Course.

Ryan spent much of his career living and working throughout Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia, and is fluent in Bahasa Indonesian.

More about Ryan:

You can learn more about Ryan and the charities he’s involved with at his Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryanwilson_1984/

Timestamps:

00:00:22 Introduction to Ryan Wilson

00:01:55 Career Overview

00:04:16 SAS Selection: What makes people quit?

00:07:32 Mental Preparation: How to Keep Going and Stay Out of Your Head

00:10:40 Keeping An Internal Compass

00:13:40 Segmenting: A Thousand Manageable Steps, One At A Time

00:15:56 Stories of Selection & Low Points

00:19:13 What Are My Odds of Making It

00:22:20 End of Selection: Three Sentences and You're On Your Way Home

00:24:08 The Sword in the Stone Mentality

00:27:21 Selection Starts When the Stress Sets In

00:28:46 Sponsor Note: Mindfulness in Training App

00:31:32 Rationale for Snapping & Trainability

00:36:04 The Ability to Deal With Failure & Setbacks

00:39:30 How Powerful Nutrition Is & Can Be

00:43:23 Foundation for Metabolic Flexibility

00:45:32 Team Dynamics in Selection: Knowing When to Follow & When to Lead

00:47:21 Building Trust and Rapport With a New Group

00:50:32 Career Progression After Selection

00:54:06 Work/Life Balance Compared to the Army

00:58:23 Best and Worst Advice Ever Received

01:01:39 Outro

Daniel Allen is a doctor of clinical psychology and a strength and conditioning coach specializing in preparing candidates for military and special operations service in New Zealand.

He spent 6 years as a medic in the NZ Army before leaving to fulfill a dream to compete as a professional Muay Thai and MMA athlete and embark on a decade-long formal training in clinical psychology.

He has worked with people ranging from Olympians, professional and world-class athletes, to beginners starting out for the first time to successful New Zealand SAS candidates.

Dan’s wide-ranging academic background spans undergraduate study in Health Science, Exercise Science, master’s and doctoral psychology programs, and much to his wife’s dismay, he is currently in a 2-year neuropsychology program.

Dan’s doctoral research focused on factors that reduced PTSD and increased flourishing among military personnel in the years following deployment, including nutrition, sleep, exercise, social support, and leadership support.

His psychology background is similarly wide-ranging, including working as a high-school counselor, in a drugs and addiction service and, more recently, in a private psychology service.

Dan is passionate about understanding the relationship between nutrition, psychology, and performance and how these things facilitate resilience.

You can learn more about Dan at his website, drdancoach.com/ or on Instagram at @drdancoaching



Timestamps:

00:00:22 Introduction to Daniel Allen

00:01:46 Sidequest to Be Professional Muay Thai Fighter

00:06:40 Training in High-Level Gyms Around the World

00:09:15 How Did Daniel Allen’s Training Impact How He Coaches?

00:11:39 How to Separate Pain from Suffering

00:14:02 Exercise Science and Psychology Degrees

00:14:59 New Zealand SAS

00:17:49 What Would Daniel Change About How He Coached in the Past?

00:21:09 How to Balance Being Good at Running and Rucking

00:24:05 Predictors of Success

00:26:58 Most Common Mistakes in Prep

00:29:31 Test Within a Training Cycle

00:31:53 Fundamental Skills to Develop People’s Abilities

00:34:04 Sponsor Note on Segmenting

00:34:28 Questioning Your Sense of Belonging

00:41:02 Common Success Factors from Olympic Athletes to SAS Operators

00:45:21 Cognitive Flexibility and Growth Mindset

00:47:45 Operational Longevity

00:52:33 Limiting Factors During a Course

00:54:04 Candidates with Cushie Backgrounds

00:57:43 Gaining Awareness of the Landscape of Your Mind

00:59:43 SAS Candidates Do’s and Don’ts

01:02:31 Best and Worst Advice Ever Received

01:05:29 Outro

One of the most common training questions we answer, particularly in the winter when people’s kids are going back to school and concocting new diseases, is about training when sick.

While the answer is obvious if you’re bedridden or can barely feed yourself (Do not work out), how you manage yourself from when you begin to feel symptoms to when you’re back to 100% will make a big difference in your rate of recovery.

This episode covers what to do and not do when you're sick, how to transition back to full-intensity training, and factors that speed recovery and influence your propensity to illness.

You may want to refer back to portions of this episode so we have it published in written format on our website, broken down by sections.

You can read it here: https://www.buildingtheelite.com/training-when-sick/

Scott Ryder served for 22 years with the Australian Army, including 16 years as an operator with the 2nd Commando Regiment. He served in East Timor and multiple tours of Afghanistan and Iraq. He holds numerous commendations and a Masters of Business, and he works in veteran charities to improve the life of veterans and their families. He’s the author of the book Forged in Fire: An Australian Commando's Story of Life and Death on the Frontline, available at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and almost any other major retailer.

Scott’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scott_ryder_zero79/

Scott’s Linktree

Forged In Fire on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3B9TLFG

Timestamps:

00:00:22 Introduction to Scott Ryder

00:02:01 Time in Australia and the Military

00:03:23 Commando Selection

00:04:47 Having a Smaller Build in Selection

00:07:19 How Long Should Training Be?

00:10:37 Childhood Adversity Gives You Coping Skills

00:15:19 Functional Fitness and Training

00:20:19 No Resilience to Sleep Deprivation

00:21:32 Purpose and Performance

00:27:11 Sponsor Note: Train to Perform Well in Stressful Situations

00:30:47 Physical Fatigue Gages Where You Are Mentally and Physically

00:33:30 When You Don’t Remember Why You Signed Up

00:35:27 Scott Ryder’s Most Challenging Moments in Selection

00:37:39 Most Common Mistakes in Preparing for Selection

00:42:06 Don’t Talk to the Quitters

00:47:25 Learning Land Navigation

00:49:40 Common Threads of Successful Candidates

00:51:41 Once the Physical Playing Field is Leveled

00:54:27 Teamwork and Social Interactions

00:57:45 Scott Ryder’s Book

00:59:38 Best and Worst Advice Ever Received

01:00:18 Outro

Chris Frueh, PhD is a professor of psychology at the University of Hawaii. He has over thirty years of professional experience working with military veterans, servicemembers, special operators, private defense contractors, and firefighters; and has conducted clinical trials, epidemiology, historical, and neuroscience research. He was previously a professor of psychiatry at Medical University of South Carolina and Baylor College of Medicine.

He has co-authored over 325 scientific publications and is the author of Operator Syndrome, which is available on Amazon.

Website: chrisfrueh.com

Operator Syndrome on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ZuZfTx

Timestamps:

00:00:23 Introduction to Chris Frueh

00:00:59 Rundown of Chris Frueh’s Career

00:04:42 What is Operator Syndrome?

00:15:48 The Differences Between PTSD and Operator Syndrome

00:17:29 Types of Traumatic Brain Injury

00:22:14 TAL Proteins and Impact Trauma

00:25:56 Interventions and Treatments

00:30:13 Sponsor Note: Sleep Optimization Course

00:34:33 Nutritional Interventions

00:36:22 Fasting to Manage TBI

00:39:05 Different Stages of an Operator and TBI

00:43:56 Staying on Top of Hormones

00:48:37 Getting Treatment Outside of the VA

00:51:07 Finding Credible Help

00:54:12 Operator Syndrome Foundation

00:55:55 Best and Worst Advice Ever Received

00:58:12 Outro

Nico Seedsman spent 13 years in the Australian military, first as an electrical engineer in the Navy, then with a Recon unit in the Army, before spending his final eight years in the SAS.

Nico left the military after suffering catastrophic multi-system health issues and eventually brought himself back to health through a combination of stem cell therapy, indigenous medicine, and an intensive focus on recovery.

Nico is now an actor who has made appearances on Apple TV and Paramount networks, a high-performance coach, the CEO and founder of Odin Stem Cells, and the founder of a veterans philanthropy organization called Warrior Refit.

Learn more about Nico: https://www.instagram.com/niclonewolf/


How to prepare for Australian SAS/Commando Selection:

https://www.buildingtheelite.com/australian-sasr-selection-process-sfet-training/

Building the Elite Coaching App:

https://www.buildingtheelite.com/sof-training-app


Timestamps:

00:00:21 Introduction to Nico Seedsman

00:01:02 Nico Seedsman Career Overview

00:06:50 Spiraling Health

00:10:40 Regenerative Medicines

00:13:01 SASR (SAS) Selection

00:16:31 Fighting the Internal Battle In Your Head

00:26:21 Prepping for Selection

00:33:07 The Social Dynamic During Selection

00:38:40 Fitness Level vs. Mentality/Personality

00:44:14 The Way You Train & Effect On Health

00:46:38 One-Percenters

00:49:11 Sponsor Note: High Emotional Stability & High Conscientiousness

00:53:48 Best & Worst Advice You’ve Ever Gotten

00:54:41 Wrap Up

Many types of fear are learned responses based on memories from previous experiences. There are, of course, also innate fears. Like other animals, we’re naturally prone to be highly vigilant the first time we’re exposed to things like heights, deep water, snakes, and spiders. But, for most things in life, fear is not a primal instinct but a learned association.

These learned associations can come from almost anything, from old injuries to bad experiences or past failures, including fear responses we might not even be consciously aware of.

While learned fear responses are normal and sometimes helpful, they can also hinder performance if we can’t move past them. A strong learned fear response leads to a disproportionately strong stress response, amplifies anxiety, and makes your emotions run rampant. This makes you more prone to burnout and reduces resilience. In challenging times, when one difficulty bleeds into the next, these responses can make the difference between burnout and growth.

To recalibrate these fear responses, we have to look at how they’re created, the predictions our brains make based on the environmental cues around us, and the way we mentally and emotionally process those moments.

As military theorists put it, we have to do the work “left of bang” rather than repeatedly trying to deal with the symptoms after the fear response has taken over.

Lt. Col. Matthew Perry is an active-duty Marine with over 16 years of experience in the infantry and reconnaissance community. He has served in all four Marine Divisions and deployed throughout the Pacific and in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

As an infantry officer, he served in the 7th Marines as a rifle platoon and 81mm Mortar Platoon Commander, with the 2nd Marine Division as an infantry Battalion Executive Officer and as the operations officer at the 2nd Marine Regiment.

As a Reconnaissance officer, he served as a Force Platoon Commander and Force Company Commander with 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion and as the Operations Officer at 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion.

His civilian education includes an undergraduate degree from Louisiana State University and a graduate degree from Syracuse University. He is a graduate of the Marine Corps Infantry Officer and Basic Reconnaissance courses and Army Ranger School.

Instagram: www.instagram.com/redstick6/

Timestamps:

00:00:21 Introduction to Matthew Perry

00:01:22 Matthew Perry’s Career & Educational Background

00:05:12 Writing & Social Media

00:07:47 Reading List & Recommended Resources for Leadership

00:09:38 Vietnam

00:11:30 Practical Leadership Experience - Becoming a Better Leader

00:15:11 Important Mistakes & Valuable Lessons

00:23:16 Performance & Potential

00:27:10 Incentivizing Your Team

00:32:52 Basic Reconnaissance Course (BRC) & Recon Qualification

00:38:06 Haircuts, Sideburns, and Shaving

00:43:28 How to Scale Your Leadership

00:50:40 The Role of Health and Physical Fitness in Leadership

01:00:45 Wrap Up