Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Forensic Psychology is a podcast that provides an illuminating window
into the workings of the criminal mind. Now here's your host,
doctor Carlos.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Welcome back everybody. Today we have a special guest, Ryan Blackwell.
You can find more information about Ryan at Well trained
elite dot com. He's a veteran of the US Navy.
He's also a Purple Heart recipient. He's a USA Wrestling
Bronze certified coach. He also has a bachelor's and Science
and exercise Physiology, Strength and Conditioning, Nutrition, wrestling the NCAA Wrestlers.
(00:54):
So today we're going to be talking about a lot
of different topics. One of the topics we're going to
cover is this incredible experience that he had, unfortunately and
fortunately that he made it through where he was actually
in the Pensacle and Navy base shooting. We're going to
be listening to that story. A little bit later on,
he's going to be talking about that when he confronted
(01:15):
the gunman who approached the door. We're going to be
listening to that story. We're also going to be talking
about fitness and health. We'll be talking about wrestling, but
most of all also about keeping cool and calm under
high stress situations. So this is going to be one
of those great podcasts. We're gonna be covering a lot
of topics before we get started. Make sure to share, subscribe,
hit that I like button, you know, we like it.
(01:36):
It's not waste any more time. Welcome to the show,
Ryan Blackwell, Welcome sir.
Speaker 3 (01:40):
Thank you, thanks for having me.
Speaker 4 (01:42):
Thank you very much for being here.
Speaker 2 (01:43):
And I forgot to mention this before we started the show,
but thank you very much for your service as well.
So Ryan, before we get to that incredible time that
you had two years ago, the harrowing experience, before we
get to.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
That, when I learn a little bit more about you, what.
Speaker 5 (01:59):
Got you into rite.
Speaker 6 (02:01):
Came background. I mean my father he wrestled and it
never pushed it on me.
Speaker 3 (02:06):
Really.
Speaker 6 (02:07):
It was a Actually I was like in pe class
I remember, like elementary school and they had like a
wrestling week or whatever, and that's where I first learned.
I came home until my dad said, hey, on a
wrestle and he's like, I got you. Then from there
it was just like wide open, you know.
Speaker 5 (02:20):
And I was.
Speaker 6 (02:22):
When that happened, and you know, it's kind of took me,
took me for a ride and really built me as
a young man.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
You know, I really love wrestling a lot. People who've
heard my podcasts are Urban Combatives. We've had a couple
of wrestlers on here, and I always found such a
great sport because it helps you in.
Speaker 5 (02:38):
So many different ways.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
The discipline factor, the conditioning factor, the mindset factor we'll
be talking about later.
Speaker 5 (02:47):
Also the I think the self defense factor is pretty big.
Speaker 4 (02:51):
I mean, we saw that.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
I don't know if you're a follower of UFC or not,
Oh yeah, but you remember years back. I mean and
even now, anybody who sees a wrestler knows knows where
that fight's going to end up. It's very unlikely it
doesn't go to the ground. Did you find that wrestling
helped you at all? I mean, it helped you a
lot in the sense of feeling confident, feeling more secure
about yourself.
Speaker 6 (03:13):
Yeah, definitely, you know, especially developing like a competitive mindset
at an early age.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
It really kind of did that for me.
Speaker 6 (03:24):
And then you know, you just just you build on that,
and then it just you set goals, you accomplished them,
so goals accomplish them, and it just paralleled with life
a lot and I feel like my dad kept me
kind of on the straight and arrow as far as
coaching me, and I had other great coaches and mentors
along the road as well. And yeah, it really really
I think played factor just molding me right, because it
(03:45):
was it was a mentality that I was developing kind
of subconsciously without really knowing, right, working hard, knowing hard
work pays off, or trying to be the hardest worker
in the room, or whatnot, developing all those principles and characteristics.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Not just in the sense of feeling I don't want
to say secure, but I guess I guess you could
say secure in yourself, feeling that if somebody was to
bully you, somebody was to pick on you, and you
can take care of yourself.
Speaker 5 (04:10):
Did you ever have that, Yes, definitely.
Speaker 6 (04:13):
I mean it's you always kind of like every wrestling season,
anything about it, Like if it's a lot of kids tested,
you know, you wrestle for two years and you wrestle
for three years.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
Now the new kid comes in room.
Speaker 6 (04:23):
What's easy to wrestle somebody that doesn't know what they're doing.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (04:27):
So it's kind of like, yeah, you get a sense
of like a little bit of like, Okay, I have
self confidence for sure, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
I know how to use my body, you know.
Speaker 6 (04:36):
A little bit of spatial awareness, you know, because of
boundaries on the wrestling mat, right you have to keep
it in bounds and body positioning and just leverage and yeah,
all that stuff really really just like I said, runs
that parallel with just life and applying it.
Speaker 4 (04:52):
I did it.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 4 (04:56):
Did it help it all?
Speaker 5 (04:57):
During your Davy days?
Speaker 6 (04:59):
Navy days, ye had definitely with the mindset coming in
being structured, you know what I mean. Wrestling's eighty percent
mental uh, twenty percent physical. That's just the skills and
techniques you learn. Then from there it's just muscle uh
conditioning and reps, you know, muscle memory and your mindset.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
That's what you got.
Speaker 6 (05:17):
There's a lot of goal setting and self talk, you know,
I mean, arousal control. You got to be able to
you know, like control your breathing, be able to kind
of like see yourself in the arena or on the mat,
wrestling some visionary opponent, right and getting yourself. That's a
sports psychology aspect behind it. So like that that's the
biggest thing, like a lot of competitors and all sports
across the boards where we're really with something as a
(05:38):
individual as wrestling, where it's a one versus one type
of thing. That's that's where I think the differences are
one and lost the master. They're one of loss, Like
it's in your mind, like how how well you like
really tapped in and that's likes and wrestling's one of
those deals where like you got a choice put to really,
if you want to be successful, you got to kind
of adapt and adjust, you know what I mean, You
got to develop that mindset.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
That's great, that's extremely true.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
And wife, a lot of people don't tend to adapt,
get stuck where they're at. And that's the interesting part
is when we talked. Now we'll talk about a little
bit about your story about what happened in Pensacola, because
you attribute a lot of why you were able to
get out of there and why you're able to do
what you did to your wrestling background, to your mindset.
Speaker 4 (06:23):
But before we get to that, tell us a little
bit about what happened.
Speaker 5 (06:26):
What it was. The first thing you heard was it
was a gunshots, people yelling. What was the first thing
to give you indication there was trouble.
Speaker 6 (06:33):
Definitely, there's a gunshot that had sounded. It just echoed
through the building and then you kind of hear the
commotion unfold after that.
Speaker 4 (06:42):
What did you do when you heard the gun shots?
Speaker 6 (06:44):
So we there was like two other people in my
office and then like what we said, secured the office,
so you know, closed the door, and it took cover
on some furniture office twelve by sixteen roughly furniture as
you know, probably about ten feet away in the doors,
press press furniture, you know, basic office material. And there's
(07:05):
two windows located in the back.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Of the office.
Speaker 6 (07:06):
And one of the sailors I was in there took
cover behind one desk, and the other one took cover
behind me, behind the other desk and the other side
of the office. And that's kind of like as you know,
and we got we got to call off, called on
on one and then I had called the supervisor, told
them not to enter the building. And that's pretty much
how how the initial reaction went. Once the uh, the
(07:27):
initial chaos unfolded.
Speaker 4 (07:29):
Did you have any.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
You know, people who are obviously who know about guns
that bullets can go through those desks? You still put
it in front of you because you never know why
you could hit inside of there. Did you think about
that at all, realizing Okay, this is kind of somewhat comfortable.
Speaker 5 (07:43):
I can't relate too much on this.
Speaker 3 (07:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:45):
So it was kind of like quick and then it
wasn't really like you had like time. It was just
like that happened, and then we are our target was
engaged or our office was engaged, and we were.
Speaker 5 (07:58):
The next two. Wow.
Speaker 6 (07:59):
Yeah, so it was just kind of happened, and then uh,
we were able to take cover and get a call
off and say, you know, kind of report the shooting
and then tell the you know, the the other supers
for office, not the end of the building. And you know,
as he said that, that's whenever the gumy he had
shot out. The door was like half window pane half wood,
so he shut the window pane and stayed on the
(08:22):
other side of the door, so he just kind of
had the barrier of the door between us and just
shot us. Like I said, ten and twelve feet away.
I got hit six times, and then he had put
four He had hit a fourteen round magazine, so they
had put fourteen rounds in our office between the between
all of the wounds received between everyone rounds. Oh yeah,
(08:44):
so he had he had a pistol, a nine millimeter
pistol and fourteen rounds.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Man, what was going through your head at the time.
Speaker 6 (08:55):
Initial reaction was like, oh man, I've just been shot,
you know what I mean. But even prior to that,
I would say, you kind of it's like fight or
flight or freeze, right do And my initial reaction was like,
I'm not dying today, you know. That was that was
just kind of my mindset was like I just went
(09:15):
straight to that. And then it was like automatically like
solved the problem, you know, like that's like what this
is what we're it, what we got like solved the problem.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
So that's like how it unfolded. Like once we were
there and we got engaged.
Speaker 6 (09:30):
I took around in my arm and I was still
on the call, and I had dropped my phone, and
I rotated and I covered the female behind me, so
I was still like a I wasn't on top of her,
but I was, you know, roughly like a foot away
from her, and I was in a crouching position. And
I had gotten hit five more times and one off
the side of my rib cage under my right arm,
(09:51):
and I took two in my back since I was crouching.
One on the right side of my lower back hit
came outside inside of my thigh, and then the one
and the left side of my back hit my public
and kill my left hip, and then I took another
round into the back of my right calf then went
into my left foot, and from that moment, I just
I I fell over right, and then I just was like,
(10:12):
was really stunned, you know. And then I just like
remember covering my head and just saying like, all right,
I don't get hit in the head.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Don't get hit in the head. You know. It was
my initial reaction.
Speaker 6 (10:22):
And then from there I was like I kind of
started like you don't want to die, and then like
you start getting a little I got a little bit
comfortable in a sense. I found a little bit of peace,
kind of accepted my fate just because it was just
ongoing and you're like, all right, play dead from me
in my dead you know, I mean, you don't know
if you're dead yet. Then all of a sudden, my
phone just started going off against this so on the call,
(10:43):
and it was just saying like black Boile's still there,
so it made me snap back into uh into things.
I kind of had a daze to me and I
was able to come back through and I crawled over
and got my phone and I told him that we
have all I made a visual of the room and
it was this is fractions and I saw the female
I had been hitting her leg and I saw that
(11:03):
the other sailing office said that he's been She had
a flesh wing her leg and he had been hitting
his leg. And I looked at the door. I didn't
see a shooter, and I just said, hey, we've all
been hit. I'm gon get us out here. I'll call
you back. And then I just kind of just.
Speaker 3 (11:15):
Something like I only thought I got hit twice, like
I felt it my arm.
Speaker 6 (11:19):
I felt the back of my leg, but I didn't
feel the rest right. And I had a lot of
adrenaline rolling, so I was I just hopped up and
I just ran to the window and worked on getting
the window open.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
But my there was an AC unit in the.
Speaker 6 (11:31):
Window and I had removed the window AC unit, but
the window had slid down in my right arm. I
got hit my median nerves, so that gave me partial
paralysis of my right limb and it I kind of
I didn't have function at the time of being able
to lift the window up, so I had another two
in office were able to get up and help with
the window. And then we had jumped out the window
(11:51):
and proceeded to you know, carry on to find them
and provide first aid.
Speaker 4 (11:57):
Tense and tense man, So when.
Speaker 5 (12:00):
You were.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
You think you were you were helping. Did you go
out the window yet? Did you use your bloody arm?
Speaker 5 (12:06):
I think it was a winded.
Speaker 6 (12:08):
Yeah, so I had. I had went out the window.
It was probably like seven foot droppers, so nothing too
too bad. I was an elevated first level building, multiple
story building. When we're on the first level, I was
elevated and jumped out land in the butshes. The other
two proceeded to come behind me, and I just remember
elevating my arm on my head, and I saw three
guys standing at a building across is about one hundred
(12:30):
yards away, and.
Speaker 3 (12:32):
I the other person I was in office.
Speaker 6 (12:35):
When they got out, they kind of heard somebody they
felt like coming back in, so they had went one
way and I had already took another sailor with me
and we started running towards the gentleman that I saw,
telling him active shooter and you know, trying to get
some help. And once we had gotten into the building,
that's whenever we were able to kind of like stop
for a second, you know, like really kind of like
(12:57):
take a look at what just happened, because that at
first it was initial just get get out of there,
you know what I mean, And then like now it's like, okay,
let's see what we have. Let's like make the call again.
So I like, but but prior to all that, I
had to like really get myself back into the right
state of mind. So I was like trying to catch
my breath and process everything. So I just called my
wife real quick and told her I loved her, and
(13:18):
I told her to call the family and told my
love them. So I wanted to make sure she knew,
you know, and everything that just happened.
Speaker 3 (13:24):
And I went right.
Speaker 6 (13:25):
Back to telling them like trying to get towels and
provide first aid, and then on my arm, I was
I was starting to black.
Speaker 3 (13:32):
Out a little bit because I was a lot of losing.
Speaker 6 (13:34):
A lot of blood and I had just ran and
I sat down and I kicked my feet up and
then I ended up kind of coming through again, and
I just remember on my belt.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
I reached for my belt and I was able to.
Speaker 6 (13:45):
Get some assistance and take my belt off and apply
a tournique to my right arm with my belt. And
so that's where I thought the most like quick fixed
option was my arm because my leg. I knew I
had a bad spot on my leg. I just you know,
I was just trying to move and get out of
the building. So I had gotten them back on the phone,
so I made the tourniquit and the guy that I
had previously called that my supervisor that was on during
(14:07):
the the he heard the whole shooting. He was en
route to come get me because he was already on base,
so I gave him some directions. He came to the building,
he picked me and the other guy up, and then
we were able to get to the front gate. And
once we got to the front gate, it was kind
of there was a lot of traffics all pushed back
and everything was locked down, and there was trying to
(14:27):
get the ambulance up front wasn't working. So we ended
up getting transported, well, I got transported by the Sheriff's
department here locally because we just have time to wait, right,
And so they had put me in the back of
the cruiser, and I guess I was I was like
I got out of the truck and I was walking
around like when I pulled up in the pickup truck
(14:48):
from my supervisor. I was walking around like saying, hey,
you know, like we got to get to the hospital now,
and they're like an once is coming and it wasn't
coming yet because it was so you know, traffic was
backed up and everything. So just tough situations since morning
rush hour, right, and that was on base and whatnot.
And so the one of the sheriffs you said, you're
not dying on my watch game my cruiser. So then
(15:10):
I had opened up the door and I saw another
police officer back that had been shot in the leg
and it was just bleeding out pretty.
Speaker 3 (15:17):
Good in the backseat of the car.
Speaker 6 (15:19):
So as I crawled in the back of the car,
I stuck my left elbow into his wound on his
leg to stop the loss of blood. And then he
had ended up pulling on my turniquit because I was
holding on the tournique with my left arm.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
To apply the pressure.
Speaker 6 (15:33):
So we had to help me out by pulling on
the belt to help like keep my arm tight, and
that's what we did to the hospital, and yeah, I
ended up going into the hospital and once we had
pulled up the hossbody and I walked right in and
then kind of went from there as far as what
what actually happened happened, you know what I mean, get
the to what the damage is.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Incredible amount of mindfulness that you had being in that
present stays that phenomenon. Now you attribute a lot of
that to you mentioned earlier wrestling helping you to be
able to stay calm and focused.
Speaker 4 (16:08):
Is that true?
Speaker 5 (16:10):
Right?
Speaker 6 (16:10):
I would say, just with you're presenting a lot of
stressful situations in life in general, but especially with the
sport of wrestling. You know, you're a competitor, You're having
to make weight, you're going to practices, you got to
do school.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
There's a lot of different things.
Speaker 6 (16:24):
And I haven't competed, you know, since two thousand and
fifteen seasons, so I've been I've been out of college
for a while now, but still sticks with you because
it becomes so muscle memory and second nature that the
mindset is just kind of instilled and you just it
just builds throughout life, right, you get a little bit
of a callous and a little bit more of a
callous and definitely staying composed. And I want to say
(16:48):
like through some of the military training as well, just
being in a stressful environment, staying composed and just like
kind of figure it out, ye know what I mean,
not don't like freak out, figure it out. So that
was kind of like the motto. But it was also
like it's one one shot. That's it, you know, like
there's it's not really like you can run it back
(17:11):
or this don't work.
Speaker 3 (17:12):
We got something.
Speaker 6 (17:13):
I was like, we're on a limited timeline, like throughout
that duration of events, like I just described you, it
took twenty seven minutes from the moment I got shot
because of that phone call that I had made to
the point of acting the office, through all the little
checkpoints along the way to the to when I had
ride to the hospital. I had made one last phone
call to my father right when I was pulling up,
(17:33):
telling him at where I was at.
Speaker 3 (17:35):
And he was on his way there.
Speaker 6 (17:37):
My parents live out of State's there on their way already,
and the kind of everything logged the timeline, so it
just kind of shows you there in twenty seven minutes,
it was it was a rush. It was it seems
like hours, you know, as it unfolded in minutes in between,
but it was seconds in fractions.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
It was, it moved fast.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
Well, that's the weird things when I've spoken to police
officers and special forces guys as well, who in combat,
especially that the officers. There's one officer, Brian Murphy, a
buddy of mine. He was he encountered a mass shooter
and at a sick temple in Wisconsin. But we were
talking about time dilation. In twenty seven minutes, that's like
a week.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
Yeah, when you're that kind.
Speaker 5 (18:16):
Of everything just slows down.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
It's kind of interesting how our brain starts slowing everything down, and.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Then we have auditory exclusion.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
You don't hear very much of what's going around you,
and it's it's really an amazing thing. So I can't
even imagine. Twenty seven minutes must have felt like forever.
Speaker 6 (18:34):
Yeah, and it was especially with like the amount of
blood that I was losing too, you know what I
mean trying to like, so it was like I was
in a race against time. But it was like an
hour glass, like it was my body was essentially an hourglass, right,
it was running out of blood because I was bleeding out,
and it was I needed to get somewhere fast.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
And it happened and it worked out.
Speaker 6 (18:56):
But it took a lot of like willpower and just
not giving up, you know what I mean, Like staying focused,
you know what I mean, staying composed, Like Okay, you
get a wrench stone in here, what do we do now?
All right, figure it out, and you just kind of
just keep just keep even keeled. I guess, you know,
you know, I would say, like that would be like
the best thing, and then I and then at the
end of the day, I'd already accepted my fate, you
(19:17):
know what I mean. I accepted my fate when I
initially got shot because I thought I was going out
then and then my phone on the with it still
be on the call brought me back in because I
was saying, like, you know, Blackboy's still there, you know
what I mean. So I had already went through that
whole traumatic experience.
Speaker 3 (19:33):
And I don't even know if you want to stay traumatic.
Speaker 6 (19:35):
It's definitely like undescribable as far as like what I
what I encountered as far as like as soon as
all that initial gunshot had happened and my body it
took that, you know, took all that force and the
blows to it.
Speaker 3 (19:50):
I you know what I mean, you're kind of drifting off.
Speaker 5 (19:54):
You know.
Speaker 6 (19:54):
So it was it was kind of just crazy, like
I said, the experience as far as like what the
human he is capable of doing. And then with me
having my degree in exercise physiology and being able to
provide like a wrestling background behind it and getting you know,
some education training through the US State Wrestling and whatnot,
it allows me to kind of really apply my knowledge
(20:16):
that I've learned throughout all that with training and just
like how I had to cost me back for four months,
so I had to do a lot of physical therapy
and uh I had I had it reverse, which was
which I was very lucky to have.
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Oh yeah, I had my body and I had to.
Speaker 6 (20:31):
Do some very extensive physical and occupational therapy and it
kind of made me tap back into, you know, the
grassroots of what my education was and what my foundation
was and to be abld even with my diet with
the claus to me, I had to change my diet
up a lot, but I was used to doing that
as a competitor and a wrestler. It was something else
second nature to me. So it was just being a
(20:52):
diet during the season for eight months was nothing new,
you know. So this was only four months really and
then you know, after the math, you got to kind
of get to be careful with certain items. But for
the most part, I was really able to rely on
my training, right, And that's just like through that whole
evolution of events, I was able to rely on my
training and even to the point of first staid. On
(21:15):
my gap between the Navy and college, I was in
ocean lifeguard in Myrtle Beach, so I was able to
learn a lot of first aid training as well, you know,
during that time. And so it was really, like I said,
just relying on training, like kind of tapping back into
what Ryan Blackwell is like made of in a sense.
Speaker 5 (21:35):
Yes, he touched on so many time, so many topics. Again,
we're talking to Ryan Blackman from well Trained Elite dot com.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
You can find out more about him in an amazing
story and what his company does over there as well.
And what his company does is actually one of the
things I think he even agrees with is saved him,
which is being physically fit, having that mindset, and it's amazing.
A couple of points, I guess one, just listen to
you talk about that. How powerful a simple word or a
(22:04):
couple of words blackwell, are you still there?
Speaker 5 (22:08):
Kept you focused and motivated you in a sense.
Speaker 2 (22:11):
That's amazing just to hear those words, how powerful they
are because we hear them all the time in the movies,
right right, You don't think about it, but now hearing
you just gave me a whole different perspective on that
just changed the way your mind worked.
Speaker 5 (22:23):
It just flipped everything on.
Speaker 3 (22:26):
Yeah, it was, like I said, very unique experience to
say the least.
Speaker 4 (22:32):
Now on your physical fitness.
Speaker 2 (22:33):
But actually before we get to the physical fitness component,
one more thing before we get to that, the tourniquit.
In today's world, I see a lot of survivalists and
a lot of people training individuals out there. We live
in a very different world. In the last three years,
crime is going up, but this is actually a really
important part of it. I see some of these individuals
now either gun classes or self defense classes, but they're
(22:57):
also incorporating tourniquet training.
Speaker 4 (22:59):
How do you think that was obviously for you was
quite important.
Speaker 5 (23:02):
But how about you think for the average person.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
No, I think it's definitely poring for the average person.
Speaker 6 (23:08):
I would say just to be CPR in First Aid
certif CPR in First Aid certified in general, you know
what I mean.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
And then like you can do your.
Speaker 6 (23:15):
Advanced training as far as the tourniquit training, but even
just having basic just like CPR training, especially for parents,
you know, being able to choking or this or that.
But uh, that that first and foremost. You know, like
there's a lot of you know, resources in the community.
I'm sure you could like get those or especially online
or whatnot.
Speaker 3 (23:34):
And uh, but.
Speaker 6 (23:35):
Outside that, yeah, with the turnerquit, that was just something
like you see it in the movies, you know what
I mean, you see it on this It wasn't like
you're just like living this movie script. But it it
really like it's kind of like the perfectay to paint
the picture, you know what i mean. Like you're sitting there,
You're like, I'm bleeding out, what do I do?
Speaker 3 (23:55):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 6 (23:56):
And I'm fading out, like I'm going I'm getting lightheaded,
and then it's just a go tournique my brain just
went straight tournique and then it just said belt, you know.
And then from there, as soon as I had sensed
it tight on my arm, an elevated mom up, I
had like a sense of adrenaline come back over me again.
Speaker 3 (24:12):
So you know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
It kind of maybe that initial like squeeze because I
developed a crush injury. So I also had my median
nerve had was partially severed, so my middle finger or
my ring finger, my middle finger, my index finger, and
my thumb were affected. My pinky and half of my
ring finger or operational. But now I'm getting function back
(24:35):
in my hand, but it's still like none be the
touch and whatnot, but it's coming back. So that's from
the nerve injury, nerves, you know, regenerate one over time
and then with the crush injury from the tournique from
squeezing it so tight. With that crush, it also sent
that pain signal to my brain. I think the receptors
took it as another source of adrenaline, you know, and
(24:56):
it was able to help me kind of stay focused again.
And I was like, all right, check that box in
a sense, right, because it was checkpoints out of the
office into this building, out of this building, into the truck,
and in the truck in the cruiser. Right, So that's
like the best way for me to process it and
break it down is like essentially, you know, there's like
checkboxes along the way, you know, it was just one
of them. Then Okay, then what happened next after that? Right,
(25:19):
got back on the phone, made the call. So yeah,
definitely important. Even that'd be familiar, I would say, just
in case, like you got to use a shirt or
a rag or something to know, like, hey, apply pressure
to when things happened, you know what I mean, Like
that was not expected or planned.
Speaker 3 (25:35):
I had to react.
Speaker 6 (25:36):
You know, I got to work at five point thirty
that morning, and that happened at six forty six, you know,
so I wasn't there that long, so it was really
I also had my morning coffee was still in my muck,
you know.
Speaker 3 (25:46):
So it was an early morning.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
And I don't know how old you are, but I
just got flashbacks Rambo because I remember he did the
Turniki remember that?
Speaker 6 (25:58):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (25:59):
No, it like that. So it's it's really bizarre for
me to like.
Speaker 6 (26:04):
See the way that it unfolded because there was a
ninety nine point nine chance. I mean, we were they're
shooting fish in a barrel, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (26:10):
It was just how fast were swimming circles is really
what it was.
Speaker 6 (26:13):
And to get out of that, and everybody in the
office made it out of that. Everybody lived that was
in our office, We were able all to make it
out of that. That that to me is us that's
that's just you know, insane in a sense like this.
Speaker 4 (26:31):
Absolutely, there was eight of you, I think right they
got out.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
There was three meet including me. There's three in my office.
Speaker 6 (26:37):
There was there was another, there was another lady that
was upstairs, another one that was downstairs. Three for five,
and there was three yes that that ended up being
passing away. So total eight and there was a few
two eight and the three police officers that were winded
as well, So love in total.
Speaker 4 (27:01):
Do you think the police officers took them out, didn't they?
Speaker 3 (27:03):
Oh?
Speaker 6 (27:03):
Yeah, the swat team they came and they definitely they
came in and eliminated him. So it was, uh, it
went on for a good duration of time because he
was able to get the advantage on him, you know,
because there's a double story building, so it was kind
of get the high spots in some areas in the
initial till uh, you know, until they were able to
get get the vantage point.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
I'm glad to neutralize that threat for sure, and thankfully
everybody got out of there.
Speaker 5 (27:30):
Amazing story. Incredible story.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
And for those out there in the situational awareness who
are listening to this that podcast, situation wars tactics, and
there's a.
Speaker 4 (27:38):
Lot here to learn.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Keeping your head on I guess focused, keeping focused throughout
the entire time, because it's not the time to worry
about anything at that moment. It's the time about getting
her plan and getting out. You know, plenty of time
to worry afterwards.
Speaker 4 (27:54):
Right.
Speaker 6 (27:57):
It's like not being like hyper vigilant or like anything
like that, but it's more just about being self confident
and ready in a sense. You don't have to gloat,
you know what I mean, boast and brag about I
got this, I got that, I know this, I know that.
You can be like a silent assass and you can
be the gray man, right and you can kind of
just know what you know and then just go about
(28:17):
your life and then if one day, if you have
to act on it, you're still have enough self confidence
that you should give your best effort, you know what
I mean that That's all I was trying to do
that day was give my best effort. And I knew,
like I was, I was gonna go out without it.
I wasn't gonna go out without a fight, you know
what I mean. I was going to go as far
and as long as I could. That was like a
(28:38):
you know kind of like.
Speaker 2 (28:41):
Where we went incredible stuff. How did it change you afterwards?
Did you become you mentioned hyper vigilin? Are you more hypervisual?
Are're hypervigilin now?
Speaker 6 (28:51):
In? Since I think, like you know, there's a few
positive things you should know, like you know, like even
going to a right, don't put your back through the door.
That's just not my style. Know your exits right, know
where your exits right. Things happen all the time, Know
where your exits right. Kitchen fire happens. You know your
exits right, and then knowing what your potential threats may
(29:12):
be right. And you can really kind of spot this
on and it's not like you stereotyping or classifying somebody,
but you can see if somebody's belligerent, or if somebody
is coming in and they just look like they're they're
doing something out of the norm in a sense of
causing it a distraction or being very loud or you
know what I mean, It kind of gives it stuff away.
It's the elephant in the room essentially, notice the elephant
(29:33):
in the room, right that that's kind of like the
biggest things that I feel like you're really focus on
more kind of seeing things before that before they happen,
which would probably be thinking three, four or five steps ahead. Right,
You're trying to play everything out and not just act
on a quick impulse decision. You're kind of but you're
you're working it out like you can work out a
little bit faster, right, you can work out to step
(29:55):
three a little bit quicker. And it's kind of like
relies back on muscle memory and like with like wrestling,
right as the example, like when you wrestle somebody or
three moves ahey, because you know, if you take them down,
you got to work to score points to do a turn,
and after that you're trying to pin them and then
you're trying to set them up for this and you
know what I mean. So it's that's like I said,
the parallels with life in the sport.
Speaker 5 (30:16):
Yeah, that's a great example.
Speaker 2 (30:19):
I know, I was watching some some wrestling tapes the
other day and there's so much going.
Speaker 5 (30:24):
On in wrestling. People don't realize it.
Speaker 2 (30:25):
It's like a chess game, like you mentioned, because you
have a lot of fake outs. You know, you try
to grab one foot, You act like you're going to
grab one foot, so they step forward or back, and
then you grab that foot they put forward. That's what
you wanted. You baited them into a certain direction. So
it's interesting because there's a lot of chess playing there.
And I also want to make sure people are realized
(30:46):
because sometimes you'll get this, oh, they're paranoid, But paranoia
is not that.
Speaker 5 (30:52):
Paranoia is thinking you're feeling or feeling that.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
You're threatening some capacity and there's nothing going on, but
you don't feel threatened.
Speaker 5 (31:01):
You're actually looking to see.
Speaker 2 (31:02):
Your environment and you're trying to plan ahead, which is
a very different game than paranoia.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Paranoia is a mental.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
Health condition a lot of times if you are and
those individuals can't function on life a lot of times
when they get hampered.
Speaker 5 (31:14):
But a huge difference between that and what you're talking about.
Speaker 6 (31:18):
Yeah, it's more just about being prepared in a sense,
you know, like if like we live from here in Florida,
so you're prepared during hurricane season for like when hurricanes
are coming, right, it's just more so being prepared rather
than being scared or this or that, Like, yeah, there's
gonna be fear involved, believe that, you know what I mean.
(31:39):
It's gonna be how you face the fear. It's not
going to not be present. If that ever situation occurred,
I know it was very present, but it was like
how do you face it and stay focused and being
able to like apply it, you.
Speaker 2 (31:52):
Know, absolutely absolutely. That's a great example. And heroes are
not fearless. They go there, they're having fear. They're just
very brave and they go through that fear right right,
we're all afraid.
Speaker 5 (32:07):
That in those moments.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
Later on you realize holy completely, well, I think what's
going on?
Speaker 5 (32:13):
Yeah, I've talked to a couple of guys on Delta.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
Force, which was interesting because their mindset's a little different.
Speaker 4 (32:19):
Those guys are different as it is.
Speaker 6 (32:21):
Well, I mean, I think if you tap into that
more and more times, you know what I mean, and
you become comfortable because at the end of the day,
it's about being uncomfortable, right, And what's the only way
to get comfortable uncomfortable by getting being uncomfortable right? And
if you make yourself uncomfortable a lot, it's going to
become the norm to where you're not going to probably
have that fear it's.
Speaker 3 (32:41):
Normal to you. That becomes normal, you know.
Speaker 6 (32:44):
And then that's where you have the transition back when
these guys go to try to adapt back into civilian life,
that they.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
Became a new norm.
Speaker 6 (32:52):
And that's like kind of beyond what we do for
wrestling and fitness at the gym, we do a lot
for veterans too, so like because like we kind all
know like what it is, you know, like purple heart
reciping or not, you know, disabled one hundred percent or not. Like,
we do a lot of stuff for veteran share at
the gym, trying to provide them outlets or the resources
that they need.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
So, yeah, it's been, it's been.
Speaker 6 (33:15):
It's been a very very crazy life experience for sure.
Speaker 2 (33:19):
I want to transition a little to the fitness in
our last minutes here. I know that's what you focused
a lot on over there. Will you physically fit when
that incident occurred?
Speaker 6 (33:27):
I was, Yes, I was it's kind of that mindset.
It's always kind of staying shape. I had just I
had wrist surgery, so I had my right hand reconstructed
my wrist a bone in there.
Speaker 3 (33:38):
So that's why I was in limbo.
Speaker 6 (33:41):
While I was out here kind of recovering from that
surgery I had about a year prior to the shooting.
It was in twenty eighteen when I had that wrist
surgery and they fused my wrist, so like they took
some bones out and fused four bones together, and it
created kind of like a frozen joint in a sense
in my right arm. So it was just more my
right arm.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
Yeah. So but I had started I was kind of
like running a lot, you know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (34:06):
And I was like going to the gym and I
was doing you know, different things and swimming right, and
it's just kind of like, yeah, I just kept that foundation.
I wasn't like at my peak performance by any means.
I'd definitely been in better shape, but I was definitely
had a foundation. I wasn't with a very like sediment
or anything like that, Like I was active.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
The reason I asked because I know a lot of
people who've been injured.
Speaker 5 (34:30):
I haven't asked people to have been shocked, but I
know from.
Speaker 2 (34:32):
Speaking to doctors, recovery is usually a lot better if
you're in good physical condition, right.
Speaker 6 (34:37):
I feel like I kind of like I wear my
wounds well in a sense, I was able to bounce back,
you know what I mean. So, like I opened the
gym within the first year of the shooting, so I
had a bag for the first four months of it.
Speaker 3 (34:50):
So at SAMs they got the reversal.
Speaker 6 (34:53):
I kind of like on that second half of the year,
I focused all my intention on creating this well trained
you know, the training facility, and we made it happen
a year to the date of the shooting. And that
was still with my arm all messed up and my
legs and everything. But I was able to like focus,
and I put myself in a lot of uncomfortable situations
to be able to like get my dream a reality
(35:14):
as far as what we had going on here. And
it was a lot of help in the community, a
lot of uh, you know, just like kind of tapping
in their own personal resources to just put the put
the bill and everything and it really, uh it.
Speaker 3 (35:26):
Really all came together.
Speaker 6 (35:28):
But it also helped me heal because I was forced
to be active, I was forced to use my right hand,
which I was I had, I was, I was like
briefly I was right hand dominant. Then throughout the recovery,
especially with the closs me bag, I was left hand dominant.
That I had to learn how to do left hand
because I kid had no use of my right arm
(35:48):
at the time. Then as my function started coming back
in my right arm, I started learning how to do
everything right handed again. So now I've like, you know,
I had to reteach myself how to do everything back
to writing right handed. Wow, there's thanks. Yeah that you
know that I have some issues with as far as
just like pinching and grabbing just because of the uh tissue,
Like this finger is feeling numb.
Speaker 3 (36:09):
But yeah, it's.
Speaker 6 (36:11):
Been it's been a lot of a lot of a
lot of stuff through the recovery that definitely attributes back
to this well trained the facility, you know what I mean,
and being able to kind of stay focused through the
whole duration of the events.
Speaker 5 (36:24):
Tell us a little bit about functional fitness.
Speaker 2 (36:26):
I think we were talking a little bit before the interview,
tell us them about what that's all about.
Speaker 6 (36:30):
Yeah, so we we we provide a functional fitness class
and it's more circuit training and durrance base where we're
kind of moving weight. It's not super heavyweight, and there
are different stations set up so you know, essential circuit training, resistance,
you know training, or maybe some type of pliometric or
some something of that nature, like mix it all up, right,
(36:50):
so you kind of get a full body workout and
it's on on clock, and it's like, you know, certain
periods of you're active and there's rest periods in between.
And it's been really a good hit, especially with the
younger generation. So our our gym is primarily youth. Actually,
like I would say, like ninety percent of our members
our youth Thistle or youth. We have over one hundred
(37:12):
and thirty members currently and coming on our second year
coming up this you know, anniversary of the shooting Summer
six and so we have the other ten percents made
up of like the active duty or retired personnel, military personnel,
or just people just in the community that want to
stay active. And we have some adult programs, but primarily
we do a lot for the youth with wrestling and
(37:33):
we have a pe class, so we do a lot
of we have a well trained pe so that's elementary
age based kids where they come in and we do
kind of sometimes we do the old school pe games
like double dutch and you know, kickball and dodgeball, and
then other times we're doing relay races, are different exercises
with like tennis balls or whatever, so we really mix
it up and try to make it fun. Really, our
(37:55):
biggest goal is to teach them how to just do
fitness for life in a sense. So if we're doing
some then with stations and it's minimal equipment and a
lot of this stuff they can purchase now from Amazon.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
Or Walmart or whatever.
Speaker 6 (38:07):
Now they're learning something they can apply the rest of
their life because now they know how to structure a workout.
Speaker 3 (38:13):
They're literally just taught themselves.
Speaker 6 (38:14):
Okay, I can put five exercises together, I can do
thirty seconds on the clock. I can do a twenty
second rest in between, and I do that five times
to each station, and that's do that a couple of times,
you know, two times through and change up a couple
of times, and that's almost a thirty minute workout, you know,
and then we add you know, your of course, we
like to warm them up properly so we can try
to do injury prevention and then we then you know,
(38:37):
cool them down and stretch and do a lot of
mobility work as well, and which helps also with the kids,
you know, with growth aiding in their development right because
they're really they're in their developmental years, especially as they're
entering puberty and that middle school age range and that's
where we have the bulk of our functional fitness class
is primarily that middle school high school age range, which
is perfect, you know, because we're able to really get
(38:58):
them active and kind of get them really familiar and
having fun. It's not it's not your typical gym, you know,
it's not like the barbells and squats there wrestle that.
We have a lot of equipment, you know, as far
as like sandbags or dumbbells or slam balls or you know,
dummies or punching bags. We have all that so kind
of helps you get creative and then it taps in
(39:20):
that creativity side of things too, and it's just really
makes fitness fun.
Speaker 3 (39:26):
And that's the day. We want to make it fun.
Speaker 6 (39:27):
We want them to learn something and do it right
proper form, you know, especially with our wrestlers that we're
able to interact with. We can really touch based on
a lot of nutritional aspects as far as key hydration
and what foods to stay away from that might be
too rich in this or too much in that, you know,
and like kind of keeping a clean diet as far
as like vegetables and fruits.
Speaker 3 (39:48):
We don't do anything crazy.
Speaker 6 (39:49):
We just really tell them keep a colorful plate, you know,
and drink water, you know, stay hydrated.
Speaker 3 (39:54):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (39:54):
You know, if if you had the option between cookies
and an apple, you're gonna take the cookie with apples
the better option in the sense it feel on your
next work out, right, or a lot of these guys
they love Russell, they love competing, and we have kids
competing from fourteen years old through eighteen years old, so
we have a wide age base, right, so there's a.
Speaker 3 (40:10):
Different way to appeal to each and every one of them.
Speaker 6 (40:12):
And of course as they get into high school, they're
doing a little bit more weight management.
Speaker 3 (40:16):
So we really help those guys the best we can.
Speaker 6 (40:17):
But as a kid, just with them developing, we just
really just try to tell their parents just hey, you know,
if they want to PB ANDJ before bed, they're probably tired,
and they're probably hunger because they burn a lot of
calories from wressel projects today, you know, so give it
to them, you know that you want them to grow, right,
you don't want especially this before like wrestling, people feel,
you know, the lighter you are, the more advantage you have.
Speaker 3 (40:37):
But that's not really the case.
Speaker 6 (40:39):
We're just trying to, you know, just build, build something
that's like lasts long, you know what I mean, enough
for them to be able to give back to the
next generation. That's kind of what you want to do, right,
and it just kind of keeps that circle rolling. And
it's just such like tenfold, you know, from every direction,
from the functional fitness to just the advice we can
provide on certain topics, from the better inside of the
(41:01):
house of the fitness to the nutrition. And it's very
We're very fortunate. Need let's just say, I'm very fortunate
in myself to being able to respond the way I did,
to be racked through this situation and be able to
kind of do the right steps all along the way
and be able to continue to apply that mindset now
to you know, the business aspect of life and provide
(41:23):
my family and you know, we.
Speaker 3 (41:24):
Just wraprom my new baby grown to the world. She's
five months old.
Speaker 6 (41:27):
Oh congratulations, it's been it's been a roller coaster of events, right,
very very active past two years.
Speaker 3 (41:35):
So that's been very thankful and grateful.
Speaker 5 (41:38):
That's a great program.
Speaker 2 (41:40):
People don't realize how important it is for kids to
be healthy and physically fit. It really changes the dynamic
of their development is to get older. It makes it
a lot easier for them to stay fit as they
get older, and makes some body develop a much stronger.
Speaker 5 (41:56):
There's so much going on there, and that's a great,
great program.
Speaker 2 (41:59):
I'm really glad to hear that. And again I'm a
big opponent of wrestling. So if the kids are training,
they learned discipline, they learn self defense. There's a lot
of things we've learned to respect other people. You know,
in today's society, Ryan, I think you and I both know.
Speaker 5 (42:11):
You know.
Speaker 2 (42:12):
I think people have gotten a lot of softer in
today's society.
Speaker 5 (42:16):
We get a lot of what we want.
Speaker 4 (42:17):
If you want something, to just go grab it or
order it. It's done.
Speaker 2 (42:21):
And you made a comment earlier, did you have to
get comfortable being uncomfortable? And that's so true because I
think we've gotten so used to being comfortable, even the
supply chain stuff that we see now.
Speaker 5 (42:33):
You know, people have to shake stuff off.
Speaker 2 (42:35):
Last year we had that incredible weirdness with the toilet
paper thing. I think that was a classic example of
people not being comfortable being uncomfortable.
Speaker 5 (42:46):
Crazy times.
Speaker 2 (42:47):
Again, Ryan Blackwell, you can find more about him at
well Trained Elite dot com. I can only say it's
really you're an amazing person, an amazing story, and I thank.
Speaker 4 (42:59):
God you're on our side.
Speaker 3 (43:01):
Yeah, no, thank you, and.
Speaker 5 (43:02):
Thank you very much for your service.
Speaker 2 (43:03):
Again, any other places you want to send up besides
Well Trained to Lead dot com, I'm not sure if
you have an Instagram accounter.
Speaker 3 (43:10):
That's uh yeah, everything is that well Trained to Lead.
Speaker 6 (43:12):
So if you have an in and Facebook, they can
just put that in and then if you go to
the website just for for the contact format, doing information
or if you know you want to you know, have
we travel a lot of tournaments, you know, so we
do also like travel teams. You know, if you're interested
in are well trained for a weekend, we could kind
of do something like that for coming to your neighborhood
(43:33):
where we're wrestling a tournament. And yeah, other than that,
any just advice needed or you know, we're always doing
stuff for the kids. We always you know, are very
accepting of anything, you know, wrestling shoes, the headgear to anything.
A lot of the kids we try to get back
to them the best we can. So like donation wise,
we have you know, we have the U Shoes where
(43:54):
we kind of go like get shoes back and giving
back to a kid in the program. You know, so
just kind of cycles its way through to the know
good no more and you just doumb away, right, And
it's kind of kids grow fast enough, so any anything
like that, you know, it's really just all about the kids,
the community and the veterans is our biggest approach at
the moment. And yeah, no appreciate you guys support. And
like I said, you can any of any well trained
(44:15):
to lead on any of those Twitter or not, Twitter,
Instagram and Facebook and then of course you can fill
out to contact us for him.
Speaker 3 (44:22):
We'll get back with you.
Speaker 5 (44:24):
Awesome stuff.
Speaker 2 (44:25):
Thanks again Ryan for doing this, Thank you everyone for listening.
They should have shared subscribe hit that I like button.
Stay safe out there, everybody,
Forensic Psychology is a podcast that provides an illuminating window
into the workings of the criminal mind. Now here's your host,
doctor Carlos.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Welcome back everybody. Today we have a special guest, Ryan Blackwell.
You can find more information about Ryan at Well trained
elite dot com. He's a veteran of the US Navy.
He's also a Purple Heart recipient. He's a USA Wrestling
Bronze certified coach. He also has a bachelor's and Science
and exercise Physiology, Strength and Conditioning, Nutrition, wrestling the NCAA Wrestlers.
(00:54):
So today we're going to be talking about a lot
of different topics. One of the topics we're going to
cover is this incredible experience that he had, unfortunately and
fortunately that he made it through where he was actually
in the Pensacle and Navy base shooting. We're going to
be listening to that story. A little bit later on,
he's going to be talking about that when he confronted
(01:15):
the gunman who approached the door. We're going to be
listening to that story. We're also going to be talking
about fitness and health. We'll be talking about wrestling, but
most of all also about keeping cool and calm under
high stress situations. So this is going to be one
of those great podcasts. We're gonna be covering a lot
of topics before we get started. Make sure to share, subscribe,
hit that I like button, you know, we like it.
(01:36):
It's not waste any more time. Welcome to the show,
Ryan Blackwell, Welcome sir.
Speaker 3 (01:40):
Thank you, thanks for having me.
Speaker 4 (01:42):
Thank you very much for being here.
Speaker 2 (01:43):
And I forgot to mention this before we started the show,
but thank you very much for your service as well.
So Ryan, before we get to that incredible time that
you had two years ago, the harrowing experience, before we
get to.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
That, when I learn a little bit more about you, what.
Speaker 5 (01:59):
Got you into rite.
Speaker 6 (02:01):
Came background. I mean my father he wrestled and it
never pushed it on me.
Speaker 3 (02:06):
Really.
Speaker 6 (02:07):
It was a Actually I was like in pe class
I remember, like elementary school and they had like a
wrestling week or whatever, and that's where I first learned.
I came home until my dad said, hey, on a
wrestle and he's like, I got you. Then from there
it was just like wide open, you know.
Speaker 5 (02:20):
And I was.
Speaker 6 (02:22):
When that happened, and you know, it's kind of took me,
took me for a ride and really built me as
a young man.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
You know, I really love wrestling a lot. People who've
heard my podcasts are Urban Combatives. We've had a couple
of wrestlers on here, and I always found such a
great sport because it helps you in.
Speaker 5 (02:38):
So many different ways.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
The discipline factor, the conditioning factor, the mindset factor we'll
be talking about later.
Speaker 5 (02:47):
Also the I think the self defense factor is pretty big.
Speaker 4 (02:51):
I mean, we saw that.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
I don't know if you're a follower of UFC or not,
Oh yeah, but you remember years back. I mean and
even now, anybody who sees a wrestler knows knows where
that fight's going to end up. It's very unlikely it
doesn't go to the ground. Did you find that wrestling
helped you at all? I mean, it helped you a
lot in the sense of feeling confident, feeling more secure
about yourself.
Speaker 6 (03:13):
Yeah, definitely, you know, especially developing like a competitive mindset
at an early age.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
It really kind of did that for me.
Speaker 6 (03:24):
And then you know, you just just you build on that,
and then it just you set goals, you accomplished them,
so goals accomplish them, and it just paralleled with life
a lot and I feel like my dad kept me
kind of on the straight and arrow as far as
coaching me, and I had other great coaches and mentors
along the road as well. And yeah, it really really
I think played factor just molding me right, because it
(03:45):
was it was a mentality that I was developing kind
of subconsciously without really knowing, right, working hard, knowing hard
work pays off, or trying to be the hardest worker
in the room, or whatnot, developing all those principles and characteristics.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Not just in the sense of feeling I don't want
to say secure, but I guess I guess you could
say secure in yourself, feeling that if somebody was to
bully you, somebody was to pick on you, and you
can take care of yourself.
Speaker 5 (04:10):
Did you ever have that, Yes, definitely.
Speaker 6 (04:13):
I mean it's you always kind of like every wrestling season,
anything about it, Like if it's a lot of kids tested,
you know, you wrestle for two years and you wrestle
for three years.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
Now the new kid comes in room.
Speaker 6 (04:23):
What's easy to wrestle somebody that doesn't know what they're doing.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (04:27):
So it's kind of like, yeah, you get a sense
of like a little bit of like, Okay, I have
self confidence for sure, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
I know how to use my body, you know.
Speaker 6 (04:36):
A little bit of spatial awareness, you know, because of
boundaries on the wrestling mat, right you have to keep
it in bounds and body positioning and just leverage and yeah,
all that stuff really really just like I said, runs
that parallel with just life and applying it.
Speaker 4 (04:52):
I did it.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 4 (04:56):
Did it help it all?
Speaker 5 (04:57):
During your Davy days?
Speaker 6 (04:59):
Navy days, ye had definitely with the mindset coming in
being structured, you know what I mean. Wrestling's eighty percent
mental uh, twenty percent physical. That's just the skills and
techniques you learn. Then from there it's just muscle uh
conditioning and reps, you know, muscle memory and your mindset.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
That's what you got.
Speaker 6 (05:17):
There's a lot of goal setting and self talk, you know,
I mean, arousal control. You got to be able to
you know, like control your breathing, be able to kind
of like see yourself in the arena or on the mat,
wrestling some visionary opponent, right and getting yourself. That's a
sports psychology aspect behind it. So like that that's the
biggest thing, like a lot of competitors and all sports
across the boards where we're really with something as a
(05:38):
individual as wrestling, where it's a one versus one type
of thing. That's that's where I think the differences are
one and lost the master. They're one of loss, Like
it's in your mind, like how how well you like
really tapped in and that's likes and wrestling's one of
those deals where like you got a choice put to really,
if you want to be successful, you got to kind
of adapt and adjust, you know what I mean, You
got to develop that mindset.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
That's great, that's extremely true.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
And wife, a lot of people don't tend to adapt,
get stuck where they're at. And that's the interesting part
is when we talked. Now we'll talk about a little
bit about your story about what happened in Pensacola, because
you attribute a lot of why you were able to
get out of there and why you're able to do
what you did to your wrestling background, to your mindset.
Speaker 4 (06:23):
But before we get to that, tell us a little
bit about what happened.
Speaker 5 (06:26):
What it was. The first thing you heard was it
was a gunshots, people yelling. What was the first thing
to give you indication there was trouble.
Speaker 6 (06:33):
Definitely, there's a gunshot that had sounded. It just echoed
through the building and then you kind of hear the
commotion unfold after that.
Speaker 4 (06:42):
What did you do when you heard the gun shots?
Speaker 6 (06:44):
So we there was like two other people in my
office and then like what we said, secured the office,
so you know, closed the door, and it took cover
on some furniture office twelve by sixteen roughly furniture as
you know, probably about ten feet away in the doors,
press press furniture, you know, basic office material. And there's
(07:05):
two windows located in the back.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Of the office.
Speaker 6 (07:06):
And one of the sailors I was in there took
cover behind one desk, and the other one took cover
behind me, behind the other desk and the other side
of the office. And that's kind of like as you know,
and we got we got to call off, called on
on one and then I had called the supervisor, told
them not to enter the building. And that's pretty much
how how the initial reaction went. Once the uh, the
(07:27):
initial chaos unfolded.
Speaker 4 (07:29):
Did you have any.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
You know, people who are obviously who know about guns
that bullets can go through those desks? You still put
it in front of you because you never know why
you could hit inside of there. Did you think about
that at all, realizing Okay, this is kind of somewhat comfortable.
Speaker 5 (07:43):
I can't relate too much on this.
Speaker 3 (07:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:45):
So it was kind of like quick and then it
wasn't really like you had like time. It was just
like that happened, and then we are our target was
engaged or our office was engaged, and we were.
Speaker 5 (07:58):
The next two. Wow.
Speaker 6 (07:59):
Yeah, so it was just kind of happened, and then uh,
we were able to take cover and get a call
off and say, you know, kind of report the shooting
and then tell the you know, the the other supers
for office, not the end of the building. And you know,
as he said that, that's whenever the gumy he had
shot out. The door was like half window pane half wood,
so he shut the window pane and stayed on the
(08:22):
other side of the door, so he just kind of
had the barrier of the door between us and just
shot us. Like I said, ten and twelve feet away.
I got hit six times, and then he had put
four He had hit a fourteen round magazine, so they
had put fourteen rounds in our office between the between
all of the wounds received between everyone rounds. Oh yeah,
(08:44):
so he had he had a pistol, a nine millimeter
pistol and fourteen rounds.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Man, what was going through your head at the time.
Speaker 6 (08:55):
Initial reaction was like, oh man, I've just been shot,
you know what I mean. But even prior to that,
I would say, you kind of it's like fight or
flight or freeze, right do And my initial reaction was like,
I'm not dying today, you know. That was that was
just kind of my mindset was like I just went
(09:15):
straight to that. And then it was like automatically like
solved the problem, you know, like that's like what this
is what we're it, what we got like solved the problem.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
So that's like how it unfolded. Like once we were
there and we got engaged.
Speaker 6 (09:30):
I took around in my arm and I was still
on the call, and I had dropped my phone, and
I rotated and I covered the female behind me, so
I was still like a I wasn't on top of her,
but I was, you know, roughly like a foot away
from her, and I was in a crouching position. And
I had gotten hit five more times and one off
the side of my rib cage under my right arm,
(09:51):
and I took two in my back since I was crouching.
One on the right side of my lower back hit
came outside inside of my thigh, and then the one
and the left side of my back hit my public
and kill my left hip, and then I took another
round into the back of my right calf then went
into my left foot, and from that moment, I just
I I fell over right, and then I just was like,
(10:12):
was really stunned, you know. And then I just like
remember covering my head and just saying like, all right,
I don't get hit in the head.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Don't get hit in the head. You know. It was
my initial reaction.
Speaker 6 (10:22):
And then from there I was like I kind of
started like you don't want to die, and then like
you start getting a little I got a little bit
comfortable in a sense. I found a little bit of peace,
kind of accepted my fate just because it was just
ongoing and you're like, all right, play dead from me
in my dead you know, I mean, you don't know
if you're dead yet. Then all of a sudden, my
phone just started going off against this so on the call,
(10:43):
and it was just saying like black Boile's still there,
so it made me snap back into uh into things.
I kind of had a daze to me and I
was able to come back through and I crawled over
and got my phone and I told him that we
have all I made a visual of the room and
it was this is fractions and I saw the female
I had been hitting her leg and I saw that
(11:03):
the other sailing office said that he's been She had
a flesh wing her leg and he had been hitting
his leg. And I looked at the door. I didn't
see a shooter, and I just said, hey, we've all
been hit. I'm gon get us out here. I'll call
you back. And then I just kind of just.
Speaker 3 (11:15):
Something like I only thought I got hit twice, like
I felt it my arm.
Speaker 6 (11:19):
I felt the back of my leg, but I didn't
feel the rest right. And I had a lot of
adrenaline rolling, so I was I just hopped up and
I just ran to the window and worked on getting
the window open.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
But my there was an AC unit in the.
Speaker 6 (11:31):
Window and I had removed the window AC unit, but
the window had slid down in my right arm. I
got hit my median nerves, so that gave me partial
paralysis of my right limb and it I kind of
I didn't have function at the time of being able
to lift the window up, so I had another two
in office were able to get up and help with
the window. And then we had jumped out the window
(11:51):
and proceeded to you know, carry on to find them
and provide first aid.
Speaker 4 (11:57):
Tense and tense man, So when.
Speaker 5 (12:00):
You were.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
You think you were you were helping. Did you go
out the window yet? Did you use your bloody arm?
Speaker 5 (12:06):
I think it was a winded.
Speaker 6 (12:08):
Yeah, so I had. I had went out the window.
It was probably like seven foot droppers, so nothing too
too bad. I was an elevated first level building, multiple
story building. When we're on the first level, I was
elevated and jumped out land in the butshes. The other
two proceeded to come behind me, and I just remember
elevating my arm on my head, and I saw three
guys standing at a building across is about one hundred
(12:30):
yards away, and.
Speaker 3 (12:32):
I the other person I was in office.
Speaker 6 (12:35):
When they got out, they kind of heard somebody they
felt like coming back in, so they had went one
way and I had already took another sailor with me
and we started running towards the gentleman that I saw,
telling him active shooter and you know, trying to get
some help. And once we had gotten into the building,
that's whenever we were able to kind of like stop
for a second, you know, like really kind of like
(12:57):
take a look at what just happened, because that at
first it was initial just get get out of there,
you know what I mean, And then like now it's like, okay,
let's see what we have. Let's like make the call again.
So I like, but but prior to all that, I
had to like really get myself back into the right
state of mind. So I was like trying to catch
my breath and process everything. So I just called my
wife real quick and told her I loved her, and
(13:18):
I told her to call the family and told my
love them. So I wanted to make sure she knew,
you know, and everything that just happened.
Speaker 3 (13:24):
And I went right.
Speaker 6 (13:25):
Back to telling them like trying to get towels and
provide first aid, and then on my arm, I was
I was starting to black.
Speaker 3 (13:32):
Out a little bit because I was a lot of losing.
Speaker 6 (13:34):
A lot of blood and I had just ran and
I sat down and I kicked my feet up and
then I ended up kind of coming through again, and
I just remember on my belt.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
I reached for my belt and I was able to.
Speaker 6 (13:45):
Get some assistance and take my belt off and apply
a tournique to my right arm with my belt. And
so that's where I thought the most like quick fixed
option was my arm because my leg. I knew I
had a bad spot on my leg. I just you know,
I was just trying to move and get out of
the building. So I had gotten them back on the phone,
so I made the tourniquit and the guy that I
had previously called that my supervisor that was on during
(14:07):
the the he heard the whole shooting. He was en
route to come get me because he was already on base,
so I gave him some directions. He came to the building,
he picked me and the other guy up, and then
we were able to get to the front gate. And
once we got to the front gate, it was kind
of there was a lot of traffics all pushed back
and everything was locked down, and there was trying to
(14:27):
get the ambulance up front wasn't working. So we ended
up getting transported, well, I got transported by the Sheriff's
department here locally because we just have time to wait, right,
And so they had put me in the back of
the cruiser, and I guess I was I was like
I got out of the truck and I was walking
around like when I pulled up in the pickup truck
(14:48):
from my supervisor. I was walking around like saying, hey,
you know, like we got to get to the hospital now,
and they're like an once is coming and it wasn't
coming yet because it was so you know, traffic was
backed up and everything. So just tough situations since morning
rush hour, right, and that was on base and whatnot.
And so the one of the sheriffs you said, you're
not dying on my watch game my cruiser. So then
(15:10):
I had opened up the door and I saw another
police officer back that had been shot in the leg
and it was just bleeding out pretty.
Speaker 3 (15:17):
Good in the backseat of the car.
Speaker 6 (15:19):
So as I crawled in the back of the car,
I stuck my left elbow into his wound on his
leg to stop the loss of blood. And then he
had ended up pulling on my turniquit because I was
holding on the tournique with my left arm.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
To apply the pressure.
Speaker 6 (15:33):
So we had to help me out by pulling on
the belt to help like keep my arm tight, and
that's what we did to the hospital, and yeah, I
ended up going into the hospital and once we had
pulled up the hossbody and I walked right in and
then kind of went from there as far as what
what actually happened happened, you know what I mean, get
the to what the damage is.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Incredible amount of mindfulness that you had being in that
present stays that phenomenon. Now you attribute a lot of
that to you mentioned earlier wrestling helping you to be
able to stay calm and focused.
Speaker 4 (16:08):
Is that true?
Speaker 5 (16:10):
Right?
Speaker 6 (16:10):
I would say, just with you're presenting a lot of
stressful situations in life in general, but especially with the
sport of wrestling. You know, you're a competitor, You're having
to make weight, you're going to practices, you got to
do school.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
There's a lot of different things.
Speaker 6 (16:24):
And I haven't competed, you know, since two thousand and
fifteen seasons, so I've been I've been out of college
for a while now, but still sticks with you because
it becomes so muscle memory and second nature that the
mindset is just kind of instilled and you just it
just builds throughout life, right, you get a little bit
of a callous and a little bit more of a
callous and definitely staying composed. And I want to say
(16:48):
like through some of the military training as well, just
being in a stressful environment, staying composed and just like
kind of figure it out, ye know what I mean,
not don't like freak out, figure it out. So that
was kind of like the motto. But it was also
like it's one one shot. That's it, you know, like
there's it's not really like you can run it back
(17:11):
or this don't work.
Speaker 3 (17:12):
We got something.
Speaker 6 (17:13):
I was like, we're on a limited timeline, like throughout
that duration of events, like I just described you, it
took twenty seven minutes from the moment I got shot
because of that phone call that I had made to
the point of acting the office, through all the little
checkpoints along the way to the to when I had
ride to the hospital. I had made one last phone
call to my father right when I was pulling up,
(17:33):
telling him at where I was at.
Speaker 3 (17:35):
And he was on his way there.
Speaker 6 (17:37):
My parents live out of State's there on their way already,
and the kind of everything logged the timeline, so it
just kind of shows you there in twenty seven minutes,
it was it was a rush. It was it seems
like hours, you know, as it unfolded in minutes in between,
but it was seconds in fractions.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
It was, it moved fast.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
Well, that's the weird things when I've spoken to police
officers and special forces guys as well, who in combat,
especially that the officers. There's one officer, Brian Murphy, a
buddy of mine. He was he encountered a mass shooter
and at a sick temple in Wisconsin. But we were
talking about time dilation. In twenty seven minutes, that's like
a week.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
Yeah, when you're that kind.
Speaker 5 (18:16):
Of everything just slows down.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
It's kind of interesting how our brain starts slowing everything down, and.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Then we have auditory exclusion.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
You don't hear very much of what's going around you,
and it's it's really an amazing thing. So I can't
even imagine. Twenty seven minutes must have felt like forever.
Speaker 6 (18:34):
Yeah, and it was especially with like the amount of
blood that I was losing too, you know what I
mean trying to like, so it was like I was
in a race against time. But it was like an
hour glass, like it was my body was essentially an hourglass, right,
it was running out of blood because I was bleeding out,
and it was I needed to get somewhere fast.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
And it happened and it worked out.
Speaker 6 (18:56):
But it took a lot of like willpower and just
not giving up, you know what I mean, Like staying focused,
you know what I mean, staying composed, Like Okay, you
get a wrench stone in here, what do we do now?
All right, figure it out, and you just kind of
just keep just keep even keeled. I guess, you know,
you know, I would say, like that would be like
the best thing, and then I and then at the
end of the day, I'd already accepted my fate, you
(19:17):
know what I mean. I accepted my fate when I
initially got shot because I thought I was going out
then and then my phone on the with it still
be on the call brought me back in because I
was saying, like, you know, Blackboy's still there, you know
what I mean. So I had already went through that
whole traumatic experience.
Speaker 3 (19:33):
And I don't even know if you want to stay traumatic.
Speaker 6 (19:35):
It's definitely like undescribable as far as like what I
what I encountered as far as like as soon as
all that initial gunshot had happened and my body it
took that, you know, took all that force and the
blows to it.
Speaker 3 (19:50):
I you know what I mean, you're kind of drifting off.
Speaker 5 (19:54):
You know.
Speaker 6 (19:54):
So it was it was kind of just crazy, like
I said, the experience as far as like what the
human he is capable of doing. And then with me
having my degree in exercise physiology and being able to
provide like a wrestling background behind it and getting you know,
some education training through the US State Wrestling and whatnot,
it allows me to kind of really apply my knowledge
(20:16):
that I've learned throughout all that with training and just
like how I had to cost me back for four months,
so I had to do a lot of physical therapy
and uh I had I had it reverse, which was
which I was very lucky to have.
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Oh yeah, I had my body and I had to.
Speaker 6 (20:31):
Do some very extensive physical and occupational therapy and it
kind of made me tap back into, you know, the
grassroots of what my education was and what my foundation
was and to be abld even with my diet with
the claus to me, I had to change my diet
up a lot, but I was used to doing that
as a competitor and a wrestler. It was something else
second nature to me. So it was just being a
(20:52):
diet during the season for eight months was nothing new,
you know. So this was only four months really and
then you know, after the math, you got to kind
of get to be careful with certain items. But for
the most part, I was really able to rely on
my training, right, And that's just like through that whole
evolution of events, I was able to rely on my
training and even to the point of first staid. On
(21:15):
my gap between the Navy and college, I was in
ocean lifeguard in Myrtle Beach, so I was able to
learn a lot of first aid training as well, you know,
during that time. And so it was really, like I said,
just relying on training, like kind of tapping back into
what Ryan Blackwell is like made of in a sense.
Speaker 5 (21:35):
Yes, he touched on so many time, so many topics. Again,
we're talking to Ryan Blackman from well Trained Elite dot com.
Speaker 2 (21:42):
You can find out more about him in an amazing
story and what his company does over there as well.
And what his company does is actually one of the
things I think he even agrees with is saved him,
which is being physically fit, having that mindset, and it's amazing.
A couple of points, I guess one, just listen to
you talk about that. How powerful a simple word or a
(22:04):
couple of words blackwell, are you still there?
Speaker 5 (22:08):
Kept you focused and motivated you in a sense.
Speaker 2 (22:11):
That's amazing just to hear those words, how powerful they
are because we hear them all the time in the movies,
right right, You don't think about it, but now hearing
you just gave me a whole different perspective on that
just changed the way your mind worked.
Speaker 5 (22:23):
It just flipped everything on.
Speaker 3 (22:26):
Yeah, it was, like I said, very unique experience to
say the least.
Speaker 4 (22:32):
Now on your physical fitness.
Speaker 2 (22:33):
But actually before we get to the physical fitness component,
one more thing before we get to that, the tourniquit.
In today's world, I see a lot of survivalists and
a lot of people training individuals out there. We live
in a very different world. In the last three years,
crime is going up, but this is actually a really
important part of it. I see some of these individuals
now either gun classes or self defense classes, but they're
(22:57):
also incorporating tourniquet training.
Speaker 4 (22:59):
How do you think that was obviously for you was
quite important.
Speaker 5 (23:02):
But how about you think for the average person.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
No, I think it's definitely poring for the average person.
Speaker 6 (23:08):
I would say just to be CPR in First Aid
certif CPR in First Aid certified in general, you know
what I mean.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
And then like you can do your.
Speaker 6 (23:15):
Advanced training as far as the tourniquit training, but even
just having basic just like CPR training, especially for parents,
you know, being able to choking or this or that.
But uh, that that first and foremost. You know, like
there's a lot of you know, resources in the community.
I'm sure you could like get those or especially online
or whatnot.
Speaker 3 (23:34):
And uh, but.
Speaker 6 (23:35):
Outside that, yeah, with the turnerquit, that was just something
like you see it in the movies, you know what
I mean, you see it on this It wasn't like
you're just like living this movie script. But it it
really like it's kind of like the perfectay to paint
the picture, you know what i mean. Like you're sitting there,
You're like, I'm bleeding out, what do I do?
Speaker 3 (23:55):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 6 (23:56):
And I'm fading out, like I'm going I'm getting lightheaded,
and then it's just a go tournique my brain just
went straight tournique and then it just said belt, you know.
And then from there, as soon as I had sensed
it tight on my arm, an elevated mom up, I
had like a sense of adrenaline come back over me again.
Speaker 3 (24:12):
So you know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
It kind of maybe that initial like squeeze because I
developed a crush injury. So I also had my median
nerve had was partially severed, so my middle finger or
my ring finger, my middle finger, my index finger, and
my thumb were affected. My pinky and half of my
ring finger or operational. But now I'm getting function back
(24:35):
in my hand, but it's still like none be the
touch and whatnot, but it's coming back. So that's from
the nerve injury, nerves, you know, regenerate one over time
and then with the crush injury from the tournique from
squeezing it so tight. With that crush, it also sent
that pain signal to my brain. I think the receptors
took it as another source of adrenaline, you know, and
(24:56):
it was able to help me kind of stay focused again.
And I was like, all right, check that box in
a sense, right, because it was checkpoints out of the
office into this building, out of this building, into the truck,
and in the truck in the cruiser. Right, So that's
like the best way for me to process it and
break it down is like essentially, you know, there's like
checkboxes along the way, you know, it was just one
of them. Then Okay, then what happened next after that? Right,
(25:19):
got back on the phone, made the call. So yeah,
definitely important. Even that'd be familiar, I would say, just
in case, like you got to use a shirt or
a rag or something to know, like, hey, apply pressure
to when things happened, you know what I mean, Like
that was not expected or planned.
Speaker 3 (25:35):
I had to react.
Speaker 6 (25:36):
You know, I got to work at five point thirty
that morning, and that happened at six forty six, you know,
so I wasn't there that long, so it was really
I also had my morning coffee was still in my muck,
you know.
Speaker 3 (25:46):
So it was an early morning.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
And I don't know how old you are, but I
just got flashbacks Rambo because I remember he did the
Turniki remember that?
Speaker 6 (25:58):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (25:59):
No, it like that. So it's it's really bizarre for
me to like.
Speaker 6 (26:04):
See the way that it unfolded because there was a
ninety nine point nine chance. I mean, we were they're
shooting fish in a barrel, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (26:10):
It was just how fast were swimming circles is really
what it was.
Speaker 6 (26:13):
And to get out of that, and everybody in the
office made it out of that. Everybody lived that was
in our office, We were able all to make it
out of that. That that to me is us that's
that's just you know, insane in a sense like this.
Speaker 4 (26:31):
Absolutely, there was eight of you, I think right they
got out.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
There was three meet including me. There's three in my office.
Speaker 6 (26:37):
There was there was another, there was another lady that
was upstairs, another one that was downstairs. Three for five,
and there was three yes that that ended up being
passing away. So total eight and there was a few
two eight and the three police officers that were winded
as well, So love in total.
Speaker 4 (27:01):
Do you think the police officers took them out, didn't they?
Speaker 3 (27:03):
Oh?
Speaker 6 (27:03):
Yeah, the swat team they came and they definitely they
came in and eliminated him. So it was, uh, it
went on for a good duration of time because he
was able to get the advantage on him, you know,
because there's a double story building, so it was kind
of get the high spots in some areas in the
initial till uh, you know, until they were able to
get get the vantage point.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
I'm glad to neutralize that threat for sure, and thankfully
everybody got out of there.
Speaker 5 (27:30):
Amazing story. Incredible story.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
And for those out there in the situational awareness who
are listening to this that podcast, situation wars tactics, and
there's a.
Speaker 4 (27:38):
Lot here to learn.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Keeping your head on I guess focused, keeping focused throughout
the entire time, because it's not the time to worry
about anything at that moment. It's the time about getting
her plan and getting out. You know, plenty of time
to worry afterwards.
Speaker 4 (27:54):
Right.
Speaker 6 (27:57):
It's like not being like hyper vigilant or like anything
like that, but it's more just about being self confident
and ready in a sense. You don't have to gloat,
you know what I mean, boast and brag about I
got this, I got that, I know this, I know that.
You can be like a silent assass and you can
be the gray man, right and you can kind of
just know what you know and then just go about
(28:17):
your life and then if one day, if you have
to act on it, you're still have enough self confidence
that you should give your best effort, you know what
I mean that That's all I was trying to do
that day was give my best effort. And I knew,
like I was, I was gonna go out without it.
I wasn't gonna go out without a fight, you know
what I mean. I was going to go as far
and as long as I could. That was like a
(28:38):
you know kind of like.
Speaker 2 (28:41):
Where we went incredible stuff. How did it change you afterwards?
Did you become you mentioned hyper vigilin? Are you more hypervisual?
Are're hypervigilin now?
Speaker 6 (28:51):
In? Since I think, like you know, there's a few
positive things you should know, like you know, like even
going to a right, don't put your back through the door.
That's just not my style. Know your exits right, know
where your exits right. Things happen all the time, Know
where your exits right. Kitchen fire happens. You know your
exits right, and then knowing what your potential threats may
(29:12):
be right. And you can really kind of spot this
on and it's not like you stereotyping or classifying somebody,
but you can see if somebody's belligerent, or if somebody
is coming in and they just look like they're they're
doing something out of the norm in a sense of
causing it a distraction or being very loud or you
know what I mean, It kind of gives it stuff away.
It's the elephant in the room essentially, notice the elephant
(29:33):
in the room, right that that's kind of like the
biggest things that I feel like you're really focus on
more kind of seeing things before that before they happen,
which would probably be thinking three, four or five steps ahead. Right,
You're trying to play everything out and not just act
on a quick impulse decision. You're kind of but you're
you're working it out like you can work out a
little bit faster, right, you can work out to step
(29:55):
three a little bit quicker. And it's kind of like
relies back on muscle memory and like with like wrestling,
right as the example, like when you wrestle somebody or
three moves ahey, because you know, if you take them down,
you got to work to score points to do a turn,
and after that you're trying to pin them and then
you're trying to set them up for this and you
know what I mean. So it's that's like I said,
the parallels with life in the sport.
Speaker 5 (30:16):
Yeah, that's a great example.
Speaker 2 (30:19):
I know, I was watching some some wrestling tapes the
other day and there's so much going.
Speaker 5 (30:24):
On in wrestling. People don't realize it.
Speaker 2 (30:25):
It's like a chess game, like you mentioned, because you
have a lot of fake outs. You know, you try
to grab one foot, You act like you're going to
grab one foot, so they step forward or back, and
then you grab that foot they put forward. That's what
you wanted. You baited them into a certain direction. So
it's interesting because there's a lot of chess playing there.
And I also want to make sure people are realized
(30:46):
because sometimes you'll get this, oh, they're paranoid, But paranoia
is not that.
Speaker 5 (30:52):
Paranoia is thinking you're feeling or feeling that.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
You're threatening some capacity and there's nothing going on, but
you don't feel threatened.
Speaker 5 (31:01):
You're actually looking to see.
Speaker 2 (31:02):
Your environment and you're trying to plan ahead, which is
a very different game than paranoia.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Paranoia is a mental.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
Health condition a lot of times if you are and
those individuals can't function on life a lot of times
when they get hampered.
Speaker 5 (31:14):
But a huge difference between that and what you're talking about.
Speaker 6 (31:18):
Yeah, it's more just about being prepared in a sense,
you know, like if like we live from here in Florida,
so you're prepared during hurricane season for like when hurricanes
are coming, right, it's just more so being prepared rather
than being scared or this or that, Like, yeah, there's
gonna be fear involved, believe that, you know what I mean.
(31:39):
It's gonna be how you face the fear. It's not
going to not be present. If that ever situation occurred,
I know it was very present, but it was like
how do you face it and stay focused and being
able to like apply it, you.
Speaker 2 (31:52):
Know, absolutely absolutely. That's a great example. And heroes are
not fearless. They go there, they're having fear. They're just
very brave and they go through that fear right right,
we're all afraid.
Speaker 5 (32:07):
That in those moments.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
Later on you realize holy completely, well, I think what's
going on?
Speaker 5 (32:13):
Yeah, I've talked to a couple of guys on Delta.
Speaker 2 (32:14):
Force, which was interesting because their mindset's a little different.
Speaker 4 (32:19):
Those guys are different as it is.
Speaker 6 (32:21):
Well, I mean, I think if you tap into that
more and more times, you know what I mean, and
you become comfortable because at the end of the day,
it's about being uncomfortable, right, And what's the only way
to get comfortable uncomfortable by getting being uncomfortable right? And
if you make yourself uncomfortable a lot, it's going to
become the norm to where you're not going to probably
have that fear it's.
Speaker 3 (32:41):
Normal to you. That becomes normal, you know.
Speaker 6 (32:44):
And then that's where you have the transition back when
these guys go to try to adapt back into civilian life,
that they.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
Became a new norm.
Speaker 6 (32:52):
And that's like kind of beyond what we do for
wrestling and fitness at the gym, we do a lot
for veterans too, so like because like we kind all
know like what it is, you know, like purple heart
reciping or not, you know, disabled one hundred percent or not. Like,
we do a lot of stuff for veteran share at
the gym, trying to provide them outlets or the resources
that they need.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
So, yeah, it's been, it's been.
Speaker 6 (33:15):
It's been a very very crazy life experience for sure.
Speaker 2 (33:19):
I want to transition a little to the fitness in
our last minutes here. I know that's what you focused
a lot on over there. Will you physically fit when
that incident occurred?
Speaker 6 (33:27):
I was, Yes, I was it's kind of that mindset.
It's always kind of staying shape. I had just I
had wrist surgery, so I had my right hand reconstructed
my wrist a bone in there.
Speaker 3 (33:38):
So that's why I was in limbo.
Speaker 6 (33:41):
While I was out here kind of recovering from that
surgery I had about a year prior to the shooting.
It was in twenty eighteen when I had that wrist
surgery and they fused my wrist, so like they took
some bones out and fused four bones together, and it
created kind of like a frozen joint in a sense
in my right arm. So it was just more my
right arm.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
Yeah. So but I had started I was kind of
like running a lot, you know what I mean.
Speaker 6 (34:06):
And I was like going to the gym and I
was doing you know, different things and swimming right, and
it's just kind of like, yeah, I just kept that foundation.
I wasn't like at my peak performance by any means.
I'd definitely been in better shape, but I was definitely
had a foundation. I wasn't with a very like sediment
or anything like that, Like I was active.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
The reason I asked because I know a lot of
people who've been injured.
Speaker 5 (34:30):
I haven't asked people to have been shocked, but I
know from.
Speaker 2 (34:32):
Speaking to doctors, recovery is usually a lot better if
you're in good physical condition, right.
Speaker 6 (34:37):
I feel like I kind of like I wear my
wounds well in a sense, I was able to bounce back,
you know what I mean. So, like I opened the
gym within the first year of the shooting, so I
had a bag for the first four months of it.
Speaker 3 (34:50):
So at SAMs they got the reversal.
Speaker 6 (34:53):
I kind of like on that second half of the year,
I focused all my intention on creating this well trained
you know, the training facility, and we made it happen
a year to the date of the shooting. And that
was still with my arm all messed up and my
legs and everything. But I was able to like focus,
and I put myself in a lot of uncomfortable situations
to be able to like get my dream a reality
(35:14):
as far as what we had going on here. And
it was a lot of help in the community, a
lot of uh, you know, just like kind of tapping
in their own personal resources to just put the put
the bill and everything and it really, uh it.
Speaker 3 (35:26):
Really all came together.
Speaker 6 (35:28):
But it also helped me heal because I was forced
to be active, I was forced to use my right hand,
which I was I had, I was, I was like
briefly I was right hand dominant. Then throughout the recovery,
especially with the closs me bag, I was left hand dominant.
That I had to learn how to do left hand
because I kid had no use of my right arm
(35:48):
at the time. Then as my function started coming back
in my right arm, I started learning how to do
everything right handed again. So now I've like, you know,
I had to reteach myself how to do everything back
to writing right handed. Wow, there's thanks. Yeah that you
know that I have some issues with as far as
just like pinching and grabbing just because of the uh tissue,
Like this finger is feeling numb.
Speaker 3 (36:09):
But yeah, it's.
Speaker 6 (36:11):
Been it's been a lot of a lot of a
lot of stuff through the recovery that definitely attributes back
to this well trained the facility, you know what I mean,
and being able to kind of stay focused through the
whole duration of the events.
Speaker 5 (36:24):
Tell us a little bit about functional fitness.
Speaker 2 (36:26):
I think we were talking a little bit before the interview,
tell us them about what that's all about.
Speaker 6 (36:30):
Yeah, so we we we provide a functional fitness class
and it's more circuit training and durrance base where we're
kind of moving weight. It's not super heavyweight, and there
are different stations set up so you know, essential circuit training, resistance,
you know training, or maybe some type of pliometric or
some something of that nature, like mix it all up, right,
(36:50):
so you kind of get a full body workout and
it's on on clock, and it's like, you know, certain
periods of you're active and there's rest periods in between.
And it's been really a good hit, especially with the
younger generation. So our our gym is primarily youth. Actually,
like I would say, like ninety percent of our members
our youth Thistle or youth. We have over one hundred
(37:12):
and thirty members currently and coming on our second year
coming up this you know, anniversary of the shooting Summer
six and so we have the other ten percents made
up of like the active duty or retired personnel, military personnel,
or just people just in the community that want to
stay active. And we have some adult programs, but primarily
we do a lot for the youth with wrestling and
(37:33):
we have a pe class, so we do a lot
of we have a well trained pe so that's elementary
age based kids where they come in and we do
kind of sometimes we do the old school pe games
like double dutch and you know, kickball and dodgeball, and
then other times we're doing relay races, are different exercises
with like tennis balls or whatever, so we really mix
it up and try to make it fun. Really, our
(37:55):
biggest goal is to teach them how to just do
fitness for life in a sense. So if we're doing
some then with stations and it's minimal equipment and a
lot of this stuff they can purchase now from Amazon.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
Or Walmart or whatever.
Speaker 6 (38:07):
Now they're learning something they can apply the rest of
their life because now they know how to structure a workout.
Speaker 3 (38:13):
They're literally just taught themselves.
Speaker 6 (38:14):
Okay, I can put five exercises together, I can do
thirty seconds on the clock. I can do a twenty
second rest in between, and I do that five times
to each station, and that's do that a couple of times,
you know, two times through and change up a couple
of times, and that's almost a thirty minute workout, you know,
and then we add you know, your of course, we
like to warm them up properly so we can try
to do injury prevention and then we then you know,
(38:37):
cool them down and stretch and do a lot of
mobility work as well, and which helps also with the kids,
you know, with growth aiding in their development right because
they're really they're in their developmental years, especially as they're
entering puberty and that middle school age range and that's
where we have the bulk of our functional fitness class
is primarily that middle school high school age range, which
is perfect, you know, because we're able to really get
(38:58):
them active and kind of get them really familiar and
having fun. It's not it's not your typical gym, you know,
it's not like the barbells and squats there wrestle that.
We have a lot of equipment, you know, as far
as like sandbags or dumbbells or slam balls or you know,
dummies or punching bags. We have all that so kind
of helps you get creative and then it taps in
(39:20):
that creativity side of things too, and it's just really
makes fitness fun.
Speaker 3 (39:26):
And that's the day. We want to make it fun.
Speaker 6 (39:27):
We want them to learn something and do it right
proper form, you know, especially with our wrestlers that we're
able to interact with. We can really touch based on
a lot of nutritional aspects as far as key hydration
and what foods to stay away from that might be
too rich in this or too much in that, you know,
and like kind of keeping a clean diet as far
as like vegetables and fruits.
Speaker 3 (39:48):
We don't do anything crazy.
Speaker 6 (39:49):
We just really tell them keep a colorful plate, you know,
and drink water, you know, stay hydrated.
Speaker 3 (39:54):
Uh.
Speaker 6 (39:54):
You know, if if you had the option between cookies
and an apple, you're gonna take the cookie with apples
the better option in the sense it feel on your
next work out, right, or a lot of these guys
they love Russell, they love competing, and we have kids
competing from fourteen years old through eighteen years old, so
we have a wide age base, right, so there's a.
Speaker 3 (40:10):
Different way to appeal to each and every one of them.
Speaker 6 (40:12):
And of course as they get into high school, they're
doing a little bit more weight management.
Speaker 3 (40:16):
So we really help those guys the best we can.
Speaker 6 (40:17):
But as a kid, just with them developing, we just
really just try to tell their parents just hey, you know,
if they want to PB ANDJ before bed, they're probably tired,
and they're probably hunger because they burn a lot of
calories from wressel projects today, you know, so give it
to them, you know that you want them to grow, right,
you don't want especially this before like wrestling, people feel,
you know, the lighter you are, the more advantage you have.
Speaker 3 (40:37):
But that's not really the case.
Speaker 6 (40:39):
We're just trying to, you know, just build, build something
that's like lasts long, you know what I mean, enough
for them to be able to give back to the
next generation. That's kind of what you want to do, right,
and it just kind of keeps that circle rolling. And
it's just such like tenfold, you know, from every direction,
from the functional fitness to just the advice we can
provide on certain topics, from the better inside of the
(41:01):
house of the fitness to the nutrition. And it's very
We're very fortunate. Need let's just say, I'm very fortunate
in myself to being able to respond the way I did,
to be racked through this situation and be able to
kind of do the right steps all along the way
and be able to continue to apply that mindset now
to you know, the business aspect of life and provide
(41:23):
my family and you know, we.
Speaker 3 (41:24):
Just wraprom my new baby grown to the world. She's
five months old.
Speaker 6 (41:27):
Oh congratulations, it's been it's been a roller coaster of events, right,
very very active past two years.
Speaker 3 (41:35):
So that's been very thankful and grateful.
Speaker 5 (41:38):
That's a great program.
Speaker 2 (41:40):
People don't realize how important it is for kids to
be healthy and physically fit. It really changes the dynamic
of their development is to get older. It makes it
a lot easier for them to stay fit as they
get older, and makes some body develop a much stronger.
Speaker 5 (41:56):
There's so much going on there, and that's a great,
great program.
Speaker 2 (41:59):
I'm really glad to hear that. And again I'm a
big opponent of wrestling. So if the kids are training,
they learned discipline, they learn self defense. There's a lot
of things we've learned to respect other people. You know,
in today's society, Ryan, I think you and I both know.
Speaker 5 (42:11):
You know.
Speaker 2 (42:12):
I think people have gotten a lot of softer in
today's society.
Speaker 5 (42:16):
We get a lot of what we want.
Speaker 4 (42:17):
If you want something, to just go grab it or
order it. It's done.
Speaker 2 (42:21):
And you made a comment earlier, did you have to
get comfortable being uncomfortable? And that's so true because I
think we've gotten so used to being comfortable, even the
supply chain stuff that we see now.
Speaker 5 (42:33):
You know, people have to shake stuff off.
Speaker 2 (42:35):
Last year we had that incredible weirdness with the toilet
paper thing. I think that was a classic example of
people not being comfortable being uncomfortable.
Speaker 5 (42:46):
Crazy times.
Speaker 2 (42:47):
Again, Ryan Blackwell, you can find more about him at
well Trained Elite dot com. I can only say it's
really you're an amazing person, an amazing story, and I thank.
Speaker 4 (42:59):
God you're on our side.
Speaker 3 (43:01):
Yeah, no, thank you, and.
Speaker 5 (43:02):
Thank you very much for your service.
Speaker 2 (43:03):
Again, any other places you want to send up besides
Well Trained to Lead dot com, I'm not sure if
you have an Instagram accounter.
Speaker 3 (43:10):
That's uh yeah, everything is that well Trained to Lead.
Speaker 6 (43:12):
So if you have an in and Facebook, they can
just put that in and then if you go to
the website just for for the contact format, doing information
or if you know you want to you know, have
we travel a lot of tournaments, you know, so we
do also like travel teams. You know, if you're interested
in are well trained for a weekend, we could kind
of do something like that for coming to your neighborhood
(43:33):
where we're wrestling a tournament. And yeah, other than that,
any just advice needed or you know, we're always doing
stuff for the kids. We always you know, are very
accepting of anything, you know, wrestling shoes, the headgear to anything.
A lot of the kids we try to get back
to them the best we can. So like donation wise,
we have you know, we have the U Shoes where
(43:54):
we kind of go like get shoes back and giving
back to a kid in the program. You know, so
just kind of cycles its way through to the know
good no more and you just doumb away, right, And
it's kind of kids grow fast enough, so any anything
like that, you know, it's really just all about the kids,
the community and the veterans is our biggest approach at
the moment. And yeah, no appreciate you guys support. And
like I said, you can any of any well trained
(44:15):
to lead on any of those Twitter or not, Twitter,
Instagram and Facebook and then of course you can fill
out to contact us for him.
Speaker 3 (44:22):
We'll get back with you.
Speaker 5 (44:24):
Awesome stuff.
Speaker 2 (44:25):
Thanks again Ryan for doing this, Thank you everyone for listening.
They should have shared subscribe hit that I like button.
Stay safe out there, everybody,
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