DISCLAIMER: You assume all risks involved with this or any other physical training program. Please use your head, if you are not at the level of fitness I prescribe workouts for then please SCALE DOWN the workout. I will be happy to assist you if you will email me if you are not sure how to proceed. modrndaypatriot@gmail.com
As a 15 year veteran of the fitness industry I have trained the Corporate Athlete (businessmen on the go),
the Traditional Athlete (mainstream sports from youth to pro), the Industrial Athlete (Police, Fire, EMT/Paramedic, and Military) and of course the Domestic Athlete (stay at home moms, among the highest of callings). I have always leaned toward a no nonsense approach that was designed to improve the trainee's level of "general physical preparedness", aka GPP. As I feel this term is self-explanatory I will move on.
Needless to say, we live in a world of increasing uncertainty. This has illicitated an ever increasing number of people who have taken steps to prepare for the "unknown". Often referred to as "preppers", these people go to great lengths be ready for natural or manmade catastrophic events. Whether you are a prepper or just work out for the benefits of being healthier, chances are you want your program to deliver results "where the rubber meets the road." This article will hopefully turn you on to or further your efforts in an approach that will not just help you look and feel better, but most importantly help you be prepared for anything.
DIVERSITY
One of the first rules in training for GPP is that routine is the enemy. Body part splits (eg chest and back on Monday, legs on Tuesday, etc) will NOT do much to get you prepared for the demands that a economic crash, war, earthquake, or for that matter most athletic events will place on you physically. I have experienced great results in my own training and in training my clients with "mixing it up". A very typical training session may consist of rotations of a weighted movement (barbell, kettlebell, dumbbell, sandbag, or even a tractor tire) with a bodyweight movement (pushups, pullups, situps, etc) followed by a short intense cardio event (400 meter run, approx .25mi). The combinations are endless and while taxing will definetely not become boring. In addition, we very rarely follow a set pattern. Life is random as should be your regiment.
BIG EXERCISES EQUAL BIG RESULTS
Real physical challenges will force us to use full body movements (running, climbing, jumping, lifting heavier objects, and throwing). These are all things we should be practicing. A biceps curl will not even come close to preparing one to move fallen trees, heavy rocks, or clear brush to set up shelter.
We favor a big training movements of both bodyweight and external load variety.
External load movements would be presses (all overhead presses and bench press which is good for overall upperbody strength), deadlifts, squats (all varieties), cleans and throws. While I may occasionally post a video on technique, put YouTube to good use and check some of their vids out on the various lifts. The CrossFit community seems to have the market cornered on technqiue.
Bodyweight exercises would be like those you commonly see in the military: pullups, pushups, situps.
Don't be discouraged if you can't do a pullup. Start with negatives (get your chin up over the bar and lower yourself slowly) and before long you will be getting 3 very strict pullups. They also make resistance bands strong enough to support bodyweight. Simply loop a band around a bar, step in to the bottom of the loop as if you were stepping into a stirrup and do pullups til your heart's content. As always feel free to email me and I help you whatever way I can. Depending on your fitness level, rope climbs are excellent as our box jumps (which can be done on just about any park bench).
In our next installment I will talk about the cardio conditioning end of things and how these exercises can be combined to make a well rounded training system. Til then, God Bless.
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