The Cove Podcast brings you candid, unfiltered conversations with the leaders, soldiers, and scholars shaping the Australian Army today. Each week, our host CAPT Todd Lempa sits down with uniformed officers and soldiers leading the change in the Australian Army as well as academics and international partners to unpack what modern warfare demands.
From redefining leadership and resilience in the modern Army to exploring lessons from combat operations, command culture, human performance, and the future of land power, The Cove Podcast reveals how the Australian Army thinks, learns, and fights. Whether it’s a Regimental Sergeant Major reflecting on combat, a general discussing Warrior Culture, or a psychologist unpacking mental readiness—each episode delivers a grounded look at the people and ideas driving the Australian Army forward.
Insightful, grounded, and authentic — this is where the Australian Army thinks out loud.
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The Cove Podcast brings you candid, unfiltered conversations with the leaders, soldiers, and scholars shaping the Australian Army today. Each week, our host CAPT Todd Lempa sits down with uniformed officers and soldiers leading the change in the Australian Army as well as academics and international partners to unpack what modern warfare demands.
From redefining leadership and resilience in the modern Army to exploring lessons from combat operations, command culture, human performance, and the future of land power, The Cove Podcast reveals how the Australian Army thinks, learns, and fights. Whether it’s a Regimental Sergeant Major reflecting on combat, a general discussing Warrior Culture, or a psychologist unpacking mental readiness—each episode delivers a grounded look at the people and ideas driving the Australian Army forward.
Insightful, grounded, and authentic — this is where the Australian Army thinks out loud.
‘It was grinding on me day in, day out—patrolling, heat, and loads I wasn’t built for.’
In this week’s episode, CAPT Todd Lempa sits down with WO2 Tavis Nicholson, the Warrant Officer Physical Training Instructor (PTI) at the Royal Military College – Duntroon (RMC-D), for a follow-on conversation expanding on his earlier episode, Beyond Snake Bites: The Evolution of Army Physical Training. This time, we move past concepts and dig into the practical reality of how to programme physical training intelligently across Army — not by guesswork, but by understanding the science and applying it tactically.
WO2 Nicholson starts by breaking down the foundational physical qualities soldiers actually need to perform: strength as the base of load carriage and durability; aerobic capacity as the silent engine behind every long patrol and recovery cycle; and the role of strength endurance, anaerobic capacity, and power layered on top. Drawing on Bondarchuk’s exercise classifications and years of coaching experience, he explains how units can move away from ‘one size fits all PT’ and instead build training around what soldiers actually lack — using ability-based grouping to tailor strength, aerobic, and endurance work without losing cohesion or tempo.
We explore why methods like Repetitions in Reserve (RIR), Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE), 1 Repetition Maximum (1RM) lifting, Maximal Aerobic Speed intervals, threshold running, and Zone 2 work differently for different soldiers, and why sequencing sessions correctly matters more than any individual exercise. WO2 Nicholson then talks to what he calls Avatars, scientifically backed Employment Classification profiles that describe where each trade in Army should dedicate their time at PT, contrasting a Rifleman with a Vehicle Mechanic.
Whether you’re a section commander looking to better understand your unit PT program, a platoon sergeant trying to reduce injuries, or an officer wanting to understand how to get the most out of your teams in-the-field and on operations, this episode provides the practical tools needed to build soldiers who can perform under pressure, recover quickly, and stay in the fight.
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Resources:
Little Black Book of Accessory Methods & Workouts
The Cove Podcast
The Cove Podcast brings you candid, unfiltered conversations with the leaders, soldiers, and scholars shaping the Australian Army today. Each week, our host CAPT Todd Lempa sits down with uniformed officers and soldiers leading the change in the Australian Army as well as academics and international partners to unpack what modern warfare demands.
From redefining leadership and resilience in the modern Army to exploring lessons from combat operations, command culture, human performance, and the future of land power, The Cove Podcast reveals how the Australian Army thinks, learns, and fights. Whether it’s a Regimental Sergeant Major reflecting on combat, a general discussing Warrior Culture, or a psychologist unpacking mental readiness—each episode delivers a grounded look at the people and ideas driving the Australian Army forward.
Insightful, grounded, and authentic — this is where the Australian Army thinks out loud.
