KEEP YOURSELF IN THE FIGHTKEEP YOURSELF IN THE FIGHT
Chase The Vase
Retired Command Sergeant Major and ultrarunner Zach Lever talks about combat trauma, his wife’s journey through alcoholism and AA, and how extreme endurance helps him keep going. The conversation focuses on staying in the fight against mental health struggles, addiction, and life’s biggest giants with positivity and grit.
56:37•5 Oct 2026
KEEP YOURSELF IN THE FIGHT with Veteran Ultrarunner Zach Lever
Episode Overview
- Trauma is often buried in military and police cultures, making it harder to ask for help until it explodes at home.
- Zach’s wife Tracy chose AA, worked the steps, and her sobriety around 14 years ago stabilised their family during their children’s teenage years.
- Ultrarunning and deliberate suffering give Zach a way to process pain and create mental "levels" of strength he couldn’t reach elsewhere.
- Naming the inner "bitch voice" and choosing the quiet "king voice" helps push through moments when quitting feels tempting.
- Rest, food, and a brief pause can transform a low point, so decisions to quit are better made after recovery rather than in the darkest hour.
“I think I've seen enough bad stuff in my life that I just want goodness now, and that's the only thing I'm going to channel all my stuff for.”
What are the common struggles and victories in addiction recovery? This conversation with retired Command Sergeant Major and ultrarunner Zach Lever gives you a raw mix of battlefields, brutal races, and family healing.
You’ll hear Zach joking with hosts Cowbell Rob and Brock Bevel about tiny shorts and ridiculous costumes, but the tone quickly turns serious as he talks about combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, losing soldiers, living with trauma and a leaking heart valve, and watching peers die by suicide. He’s honest about how much is internalised in both the military and policing, and how rarely people send a "rip signal" for help in real life.
The episode will particularly resonate with anyone affected by alcohol. Zach shares how his wife Tracy fought her way through alcoholism, chose AA, worked the steps, and has been sober for around 14 years. He credits her recovery with saving their family and keeping their children safe during vulnerable teenage years. Ultrarunning becomes Zach’s coping tool: hundred‑mile deserts, 10‑day races, and a 3,000‑mile American flag relay where he ran about 250 miles at a blistering pace on minimal sleep.
He explains how suffering on purpose quietens his mind and feels like "a little vial of dopamine" that helps him handle old trauma. Brock pushes him to name the inner voices during those races – the "bitch voice" that wants to quit versus the quiet "king voice" that says "get up". Throughout, Zach keeps returning to one simple idea: "keep yourself in the fight".
Whether it’s addiction, mental health, grief or sheer exhaustion, he urges people to rest when needed, seek support, and then step back in. If you’re facing your own giant – alcohol, trauma, or just life feeling too heavy – how might you keep yourself in the fight one more day?
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