A Healthy Shift
A Healthy Shift Podcast with Roger Sutherland
Welcome to A Healthy Shift, the podcast dedicated to helping shift workers and night shift workers take control of their health, well-being, and performance.
I’m Roger Sutherland, a veteran of over 40 years in shift work. I know firsthand the unique challenges that come with working irregular hours, long nights, and around-the-clock schedules. I combine my lived experience with the latest science to help shift workers and night shift workers not just get through the job, but truly thrive.
In each episode, you’ll learn practical, evidence-based strategies to improve your sleep, nutrition, movement, stress management, and overall health. Shift work and night shift don’t have to mean poor health, fatigue, and burnout. With the right knowledge and tools, you can live well and perform at your best.
If you’re working shifts or nights and want to feel better, sleep better, and take back control—this podcast is for you.
Episodes
355 episodes
[357] - Sober Curious The Question Most Shift Workers Avoid
Shift work can make alcohol feel like the easiest “off switch” but your biology doesn’t agree.In this episode, we unpack the Sober Curious mindset and why even “normal” drinking can disrupt your sleep, mood, metabolism, and ...
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Season 2
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Episode 303
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16:29
[356] - Your host on Radio 3AW - Talk Back Radio 16-03-2026
We dig into why Monday mornings feel so rough, and why the answer sits in your circadian rhythm rather than willpower. We also take on the daylight saving fight and ask whether locking Australia to standard time could reduce real health risks.<...
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Season 2
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Episode 302
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36:48
[355] - Blue light does not inhibit you going to sleep, there I said it...
I challenge the biggest blue light belief and explain why the real danger is not whether you nod off, but what light does to melatonin and your circadian rhythm. I break down how your eyes feed the brain’s master clock and why managing light is...
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Season 2
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Episode 301
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27:41
[354] - World Sleep Day 2026 - Why Shift Workers Must Stop Accepting Bad Sleep
I mark World Sleep Day 2026 by cutting through the myth that poor sleep is just part of shift work and lay out a simple plan to protect brain and metabolic health. I explain the glymphatic system, hunger hormones, and the practical gear and rou...
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Season 2
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Episode 300
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22:44
[353] - Why Your Body Clock Trumps Your Diet
I break down why timing beats diet for shift workers and how aligning meals to your body clock cuts cravings, supports sleep and trims your waist. We explain the science behind intermittent fasting and time-restricted eating, then give simple r...
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Season 2
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Episode 299
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17:00
[352] - The "Tired but Wired" Circuit Breaker
I share a science-backed routine to flip a wired brain into real rest, using EMDR-style bilateral audio, low-profile sleep buds, and simple breath work. We explain why exhaustion sleep is not restorative sleep and how to create a clean transiti...
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Season 2
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Episode 298
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28:14
[351] - Your host on Radio 3AW - Talk Back Radio 02-03-2026
An edited version of my segment on 3AW Melbourne, Australia Overnight.Talking shift work and anything else that comes up along the way.We push past fear talk and culture wars to focus on what steals our best selves: chronic sleep ...
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Season 2
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Episode 297
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38:51
[350] - You Can Miss The Job And Still Be Right To Leave
In this episode I explore the bittersweet reality of leaving policing and other frontline roles, sharing lived experience and practical ways to reclaim health, identity and purpose. You can honour what the job gave you, let go of what harmed yo...
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Season 2
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Episode 296
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26:50
[349] - You Don’t Have a Sleep Problem You Have a Shutdown Problem
We unpack why most shift workers don’t have a sleep problem, they have a shutdown problem, and how a four‑minute S.L.E.E.P. routine creates a reliable off‑ramp from adrenaline to deep, restorative rest. We keep it simple, practical and repeatab...
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Season 2
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Episode 295
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17:46
[348] - Guest Appearance on 3AW Melbourne "Nights" with Karalee Katsambanis - 20-02-2026
We share a simple way to fix chaotic sleep in a 24/7 life, led by coach and former police veteran Roger Sutherland. Hot showers, light exposure, breathwork, and better meal timing help shift workers sleep deeper, recover faster, and feel human ...
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Season 2
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Episode 294
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43:21
[347] - Six Books That Changed How I Think About Health, Sleep and Shift Work
I share six essential books that help shift workers cut through diet myths, understand circadian biology, tame artificial light, refine sleep timing, and navigate hormones in midlife. The core message is rhythm: align light, food, sleep, and ho...
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Season 2
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Episode 293
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20:57
[346] - Your host on Radio 3AW - NEW TIME - Talk Back Radio 16-02-2026
An edited version of my segment on 3AW Melbourne, Australia Overnight.Talking shift work and anything else that comes up along the way.We move from public trust and “cashies” to why organisations say there’s “no money” for staff w...
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Season 2
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Episode 292
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37:37
[345] - Why Your Pre-Workout Is A Waste of Money
We break down why most pre-workout powders are expensive caffeine with underdosed extras, then lay out a simple, research-backed routine that suits shift work and real recovery. We explain energy balance, protein timing, caffeine dosing and sle...
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Season 2
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Episode 291
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24:01
[344] - The Danger of Accepting a New Normal
We shine a light on the quiet creep of dysfunction in shift work and how easily poor sleep, stress, and compassion fatigue become the “new normal.” We share lived experience, biological facts, and simple steps to set boundaries, protect sleep, ...
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Season 2
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Episode 290
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30:12
[343] - When Symbols Matter More Than Your People
I examine how performative activism, DEI optics, and the exclusion of police from community spaces erode trust while frontline workers carry the load. The focus turns to funding basics that actually help shift workers: staffing, fatigue managem...
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Season 2
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Episode 289
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13:58
[342] - Part 3 - When Discipline Replaces Leadership
We confront how discipline gets misused as a management shortcut across police, nursing, paramedicine and the military, and why that destroys trust on the floor. Roger shares personal experiences from four decades on shift to map the pattern an...
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Season 2
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Episode 288
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28:01
[341] - Your host on Radio 3AW - NEW TIME - Talk Back Radio 2-02-2026
We dig into how breath shapes stress and sleep, why weekend late nights wreck Monday, and how to reset your body clock with light and routine. Roger shares how breathwork helped him move past PTSD and offers a simple exercise drivers can use ri...
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Season 2
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Episode 287
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37:24
[340] - The Pause That Changes Arguments, Eating and Stress
Stress shuts down the thinking part of the brain and pushes us into automatic reactions. In this episode, I explain how nasal breathing helps bring the prefrontal cortex back online so you can pause, reset, and respond instead of reacting. I sh...
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Season 2
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Episode 286
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19:28
[339] - The Fitness Industry Is Failing Shift Workers — Here's How
Most fitness plans are designed for people with stable schedules, not rotating rosters. In this episode, I explain why one-size-fits-all programs collapse for shift workers and what actually works instead. I break down an evidence-based, flexib...
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Season 2
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Episode 285
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18:20
[338] - Shift Work, Stubborn Weight, and What Actually Works
Night shift weight gain is not about discipline. It is biology. In this episode, I explain how circadian disruption affects metabolism, why insulin resistance rises after dark, and how hormones like cortisol, leptin, and ghrelin drive cravings,...
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Season 2
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Episode 284
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28:44
[337] - I've got a challenge for you...
Feeling better on shift does not start with strict diets or perfect routines. It starts with habits that actually fit real shift work life. In this episode, I share the approach that kept me healthy through more than 40 years on rotating roster...
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Season 2
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Episode 283
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23:35
[336] - Your host on Radio 3AW - Talk Back Radio 22-01-2026
We explore FIFO life through real rosters, heat, and health, then pivot to policing priorities, youth crime, and whether small rules can shift big behaviours. Practical tips on hydration, sleep, and electrolytes sit alongside a candid look at b...
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Season 2
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Episode 282
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40:56
[335] - Part 2 - What Happens to Police Officers After the Job Stops Caring
There is a persistent myth that officers leave because they cannot cope. In this episode, I challenge that belief and explain why it is culture, not character, that pushes good people out.I talk about what happens after the badge comes o...
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Season 2
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Episode 281
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13:18
[334] - Part 1 -The Cost of Silence in Policing How Speaking Up Ends Careers
Silence in the workplace is often mistaken for professionalism or resilience, but in my experience, it’s one of the biggest drivers of burnout, resignations, and long-term psychological harm.In this episode, I share my personal experienc...
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Season 2
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Episode 280
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17:20