[divegeek]

It's possible that this post should go into chit chat, but I really think it belongs here. We carry firearms for self-defense partly in order to neutralize the natural advantage of those who are bigger and stronger and might wish to do us harm, but there are lots of situations in which a firearm is either inappropriate or where a gun AND physical strength, balance and flexibility are required. Especially as we get older, we get less flexible, gain weight and our bodies become less able to cope with violence. There are lots of cases where people are injured during confrontations simply by moving... without some ongoing conditioning you can actually tear your own muscles just by trying to move fast, which can leave you disabled just at the worst possible moment.

I'm no fitness guru, in fact I'm in moderately lousy shape. I'm 39, 6 feet tall, and 220 pounds. I can barely touch my toes, can't touch my fingers behind my back (with one hand reaching down past the neck and the other reaching up along the spine) and I've injured myself a couple of times in the last year just by walking or jumping. If I had to respond to a violent situation that required moving, not just drawing a gun, I'm not sure I'd be up to it.

So, for those reasons as well as general quality of life and improving my enjoyment of the sports I like (water skiing, snowboarding, scuba diving), I've recently started trying to get in better shape, so I thought maybe I'd share what I'm doing with all of you here. I'm hoping to start a discussion that will encourage everyone to help each other get in shape, to improve our ability to respond effectively if we ever get into a bad situation.

Below is a graph of my goal and my progress on the weight loss; it's linked from another site which updates it daily. I plan to post an update every couple of week about my flexibility goals and the physical training that I'm doing.

 

[divegeek]

First update:

To begin with, I'm primarily doing Yoga for Regular Guys a yoga-based program that's also focused on cardiovascular exercise and a little on upper-body strength, augmented with occasional hiking trips (2-3 times per week). Check out this amazing video that shows what a disabled veteran achieved using this program. Really inspirational. I also have a weight bench, but it's in storage as part of an effort to "declutter" the house to help it sell. I'll hit the weights again in the fall, but hopefully I'll be both lighter and stronger by then.

I started three weeks ago, at 218 lbs and with a 41.5-inch waist. As of today, I'm down to 215, with a 41-inch waist. I've lost a little fat and gained a little muscle, but I'm falling short of my goal of two pounds per week, so I'm going to start working out twice a day, minimum. One YRG workout and a hike if I have time, two YRG workouts if not. I'm not really changing my diet that much, just putting a little more focus on fruits and vegetables, reducing meat a little, and trying to reduce portion sizes of everything.

On the flexibility front, I can now bend over and touch all ten fingertips on the floor, my hips are a lot more flexible and I can touch my fingers behind my back.

 

[Ruger Collector]

Great job Shawn.. don't discourage yourself by expecting too much too fast. I like to get going in the morning with push ups and sit ups, though I have to use push up bars because of numerous youthful injuries that "didn't hurt" when they happened... Another thing to look foreword to, as you get closer to your goal: IWB holsters will become much more comfortable. :thumbsup:

 

[Guest]

Great job Shawn.. don't discourage yourself by expecting too much too fast. I like to get going in the morning with push ups and sit ups, though I have to use push up bars because of numerous youthful injuries that "didn't hurt" when they happened... Another thing to look foreword to, as you get closer to your goal: IWB holsters will become much more comfortable. :thumbsup:

I have a fitness plan for you; it involves a 20$ piece of equipment available at most hardware or farm supply stores but I will provide it at no charge. Just come out to the farm and I'll get you started.

 

[Mazellan]

Great job Shawn.. don't discourage yourself by expecting too much too fast. I like to get going in the morning with push ups and sit ups, though I have to use push up bars because of numerous youthful injuries that "didn't hurt" when they happened... Another thing to look foreword to, as you get closer to your goal: IWB holsters will become much more comfortable. :thumbsup:

I have a fitness plan for you; it involves a 20$ piece of equipment available at most hardware or farm supply stores but I will provide it at no charge. Just come out to the farm and I'll get you started.

Let me guess you need help chucking hay bails? :lolbang:

Jk..

Congrats on your progress Swillden! I need to start doing the same thing because you can't start out as a fat cop. You have to get that with seniority. :ROFL:

 

[divegeek]

Thanks for the support, guys.

I'm surprised there hasn't been any commentary on that video I linked to. It's pretty inspiring. This gentleman was morbidly obese and hadn't been able to walk unassisted for 15 years, due to an injury from the Gulf War. In less than a year, he lost 130 pounds and learned to not only walk, but run. He's now a part-time yoga instructor. An inspiring testament to just what a determined human being can accomplish.

 

[Cowboy]

Great post Shawn. Being 57 I think about this all the time, I can't believe how easy it is to pull a muscle or strain something just by doing a few exercises. Having good muscle tone even helps you shoot better.It is my lung capacity that is the hardest for me to deal with, if I had to wrestle a bad guy down I would be in trouble if I couldn't get it done fast. I am 6' and 199 and have lost 35 lbs in over the last year and a half. I need to take better care of myself just for a better quality of life and being able to protect the ones I love. Best wishes to you and keep us posted. I can use your post as motivation as well.

I wanna be this :super: and this :gun8:

 

[MarshallDodge]

I agree, this is a very good post. Staying in good shape gives you a definite advantage in a lot of ways.

On January 1st, I started the Body for Life program http://www.bodyforlife.com and would strongly recommend it. I have not followed the excercise portion of it like I should but the program has really done a lot for me and my wife. Our energy levels are much higher than they have been in a long time and we have both turned fat into muscle.

One thing I have learned is that you need to feed your body good things to get good results. Yes, that means cutting out fat, useless carbs and ice cream (this was tough for me), eating the right proteins, vegetables, and complex carbohydrates. I discovered how much I was starving my body of the things it needs. This creates all kinds of issues and is one reason your body stores up fat. Now I try to eat six meals a day made of one fist-sized protein, one fist-sized complex carbohydrate, a two servings of vegetables each day as well as LOTS of water. One nice thing about the BFL program is you get to pick one day a week where you can eat whatever you like.

I commend you for making the effort to improve your life. Keep up the good work! 8)

I forget to add....very cool video!

 

[TUNAPIRATE]

I'll second on the Body for Life program. Bill Phillips (the author/creator) can seem a little over the top sometimes but the program is based on solid principles. I guess in a nutshell it would be described as such:

1. Eat nutritionally sound food in real portions. About six "meals" a day.
2. Alternate cardiovascular exercise with strength training.
3. In each workout be sure to measure your exertion and breakthrough your "ceiling".

My wife was an Exercise Science major and a trainer. She really loves this program because it doesn't depend on any fancy equipment or "special" supplement. Just healthy eating, your favorite cardio exercise, and some dumbbells. No BS

I have started and stopped B4L several times. Although I haven't always followed through with the program I have seen some really encouraging results.

My $0.02

Tunny

 

[apollosmith]

I was committed to getting into shape, but instead had a good nap and thought better of it when I woke up. :lol:

Seriously though, I am in big need of getting into shape. I travel a lot, which means eating way too much restaurant food. And I really like to eat. As I see it, there are just three food groups - carbs, pork products, and mystery creams.

My goal is to lose 25 pounds and be in good shape by the time my elk hunt starts in November. If I can do that and then even maintain that weight (around 180 lbs) for the rest of my life, I think I'd be a lot better off. Now, I just need to get started... one of these days.

 

[divegeek]

Seriously though, I am in big need of getting into shape. I travel a lot, which means eating way too much restaurant food. And I really like to eat. As I see it, there are just three food groups - carbs, pork products, and mystery creams.

I travel a lot, too, and one of the things I really like about YRG is that I can easily work out in a hotel room. Hotel fitness rooms vary tremendously in quality, and I really don't like even the good ones. The yoga, though, gives me an excellent cardio/strength/flexibility workout in 30 minutes in my room. No equipment needed, just my laptop's DVD drive and an open space long enough for me to stretch out in.

It's a great workout option for road warriors, to offset that restaurant food. I also try to look for lighter foods I can eat in restaurants, but that I still like. One of my favorite travel foods is sushi. It's possible to find a reasonable sushi place just about anywhere, it's really tasty stuff, and it's basically fat-free except for a little fish oil, which is good for you.

 

[Cinhil]

I'm no fitness guru, in fact I'm in moderately lousy shape. I'm 39, 6 feet tall, and 220 pounds. I can barely touch my toes, can't touch my fingers behind my back (with one hand reaching down past the neck and the other reaching up along the spine) and I've injured myself a couple of times in the last year just by walking or jumping. If I had to respond to a violent situation that required moving, not just drawing a gun, I'm not sure I'd be up to it.

Well I have never been able to do the reach one hand behind the neck and the other along spine even when I was 155lbs in High School. Flexibility was never something I was graced with very well. I was graced with strength and good cardio vascular ability. I was a swimmer and runner in High School and for a while after - then I injured my back, a few years later I tore four ligament out in my right leg. Then four years ago had a faulty mechanism on a chair at work snap causing me to crash to the floor further injuring my back. Walking is very difficult to do as are most strenuous exercises.
As you may imagine I have gained a bit of weight as a result of these injuries. This past year I began working with an online & phone health service provided by my work. I started concentrating on being able to walk a couple hundred yards if possible and have worked up to about 1/2 hour if able. It is still often extremely painful to do this. I have benefitted with greater cardio ability and some increased strenghth to the abdomen, thus better support to some degree for my back.

I am continuing with this routine and am now able to do so about 4 to 5 times per week. It may not seem like much but it has been great progress. I have also been concentrating on good nutrition and am beginning to add some strength training too. I also have a weight goal and hope to be able to get there but I know it will not be coming quick, I am just going to keep working at it. It all takes time.

I agree with Swillden that these efforts will pay off in the long run for all of us, especially for those of us over the hill. I applaud Swillden for his recent efforts, as well as this post, I think it may be beneficial for all of us to at least incorporate some form of exercise or meditation routine to help our overall health and general ability. These efforts will help should the need ever arise where we need to act fast in a self defense situation.

Thanks!

 

[divegeek]

Well I have never been able to do the reach one hand behind the neck and the other along spine even when I was 155lbs in High School. Flexibility was never something I was graced with very well.

From what I've been reading, flexibility is far more valuable than most people realize, and in fact it may be the biggest single thing we can do to improve our quality of life and reduce our chances of injury in our so-called "Golden Years". Page Falkinburg (aka Diamond Dallas Page, aka DDP) likes to say "Flexibility IS youth", and while he's annoyingly over-the-top (like Bill Phillips and every other major fitness "personality" I can think of), he's not wrong.

You guys are probably going to think I own stock in YRG or something, but I think you might want to look into it, Cinhil. The core of the program was developed to help DDP recover from his own back injuries, and over on warriortalk.com (where I first heard about the program) there are several people with back injuries who've found it really helpful. In addition to flexibility and cardio, the movements in YRG build a lot of core strength, especially in the back, and for people with injuries or other physical limitations the program contains a lot of information about how to adapt the exercises to your abilities.

 

[Mazellan]

Maybe we could start a "biggest looser" contest for our groups to see who can loose the most weight. IDK just an idea to help motivate us to get healthy.

 

[Guest]

Great job Shawn.. don't discourage yourself by expecting too much too fast. I like to get going in the morning with push ups and sit ups, though I have to use push up bars because of numerous youthful injuries that "didn't hurt" when they happened... Another thing to look foreword to, as you get closer to your goal: IWB holsters will become much more comfortable. :thumbsup:

I have a fitness plan for you; it involves a 20$ piece of equipment available at most hardware or farm supply stores but I will provide it at no charge. Just come out to the farm and I'll get you started.

Let me guess you need help chucking hay bails? :lolbang:

Jk..

Congrats on your progress Swillden! I need to start doing the same thing because you can't start out as a fat cop. You have to get that with seniority. :ROFL:

Still a bit early for bails but I will let you know when that fitness program comes on line. I usually only offer it three times a year as it is very intensive. My current fitness program is like pilates (however you spell it) but more focused around a shovel and a trench than fancy bloomers and disco music. I am offering it as a one time opportunity; every day the amount of trench available goes down (started at about 6k ft down to about 1200 ft now) so act fast!

I am also offering a weight and flexibility program called "laying pipe" (mind out of gutter please), again all materials will be provided and as an added bonus you can show off to your friends when you arrive at your next social gathering with the "laying pipe" badge of completion: a stunning set of royal blue hands and depending upon your level of engagement you could have some blue all the way up to your elbows, on your face, and in your hair.

Later in the year I will offer a less intensive trench filling program once the trench digging program expires. So those of you who are unfit and reticent to jump right into an intensive program may want to consider it.

 

[Mazellan]

Still a bit early for bails but I will let you know when that fitness program comes on line. I usually only offer it three times a year as it is very intensive. My current fitness program is like pilates (however you spell it) but more focused around a shovel and a trench than fancy bloomers and disco music. I am offering it as a one time opportunity; every day the amount of trench available goes down (started at about 6k ft down to about 1200 ft now) so act fast!

I am also offering a weight and flexibility program called "laying pipe" (mind out of gutter please), again all materials will be provided and as an added bonus you can show off to your friends when you arrive at your next social gathering with the "laying pipe" badge of completion: a stunning set of royal blue hands and depending upon your level of engagement you could have some blue all the way up to your elbows, on your face, and in your hair.

Later in the year I will offer a less intensive trench filling program once the trench digging program expires. So those of you who are unfit and reticent to jump right into an intensive program may want to consider it.

Sounds tempting lol.

 

[divegeek]

My current fitness program is like pilates (however you spell it) but more focused around a shovel and a trench than fancy bloomers and disco music. I am offering it as a one time opportunity; every day the amount of trench available goes down (started at about 6k ft down to about 1200 ft now) so act fast!

I'd do that if it were close to home. I'm all for exercise which actually accomplishes something.

BTW, I find it really interested to contrast the current reputation of Pilates (you spelled it right) with its origin. It was developed in WWI as physical therapy for wounded soldiers.

 

[Ty]

Still a bit early for bails but I will let you know when that fitness program comes on line. I usually only offer it three times a year as it is very intensive. My current fitness program is like pilates (however you spell it) but more focused around a shovel and a trench than fancy bloomers and disco music. I am offering it as a one time opportunity; every day the amount of trench available goes down (started at about 6k ft down to about 1200 ft now) so act fast!

I am also offering a weight and flexibility program called "laying pipe" (mind out of gutter please), again all materials will be provided and as an added bonus you can show off to your friends when you arrive at your next social gathering with the "laying pipe" badge of completion: a stunning set of royal blue hands and depending upon your level of engagement you could have some blue all the way up to your elbows, on your face, and in your hair.

Later in the year I will offer a less intensive trench filling program once the trench digging program expires. So those of you who are unfit and reticent to jump right into an intensive program may want to consider it.

*shudder*
I would have nightmares from doing this again. :sadstory: Growing up our scout master had a farm in grover Ut. Part of our camping project was to change out and move the big sprinkler pipe. We would head down there for a 5o miler then do a week of that. I'll vouch for it taking the fat off and building muscle though.

If i didn't just have shoulder surgery I'd be tempted come toss alfalfa bales when you needed though.

 

[Paul]

I think I'll just sit on my fat butt and watch you guys get in shape..... (yelling in opposite direction of computer monitor) Hey honey go grab me another Diet Coke please....

 

[manithree]

Let's see if I can resurrect this thread :roll:

divegeek, what do you think of YRG after a year?

I'm asking because I can't remember every being able to touch my toes (even though I was 6'1' 150lb. in my 20s), and after fracturing 2 vertebrae 3 years ago I know I still couldn't jump or roll to save my life or my family's.

So, I'm just curious.