Now that I am Motivated, what do I do?
Once you have made the decision to get up and do something, no matter how “uncomfortable” you may feel, or how much it “hurts”, you want to get in shape, and you want it now, what is the next step?
Is your diet in control? If so, what do you want to do? What activity gives you the most pleasure? Ok, I can hear the replies to that one, but yes, even sex can help you, but, make sure you are healthy enough, and that your partner is ok with it. My point is, if you have a favorite activity, do it! For me, it is the gym and heavy iron, even though I have over three decades of training under my belt, I have to start slow, and so do you, otherwise, you may hurt yourself and have to start all over again.
I don’t know what caused you to get out of shape, I know my reasons, and I know how complicated that subject can get, there are just so many variables involved, like injury, illness, financial, marital, the list goes on an on, but what ever the problems were, if you have now made the decision to get fit, good for you, and yes, you can do it!
If you enjoy winter activities like snow boarding or skiing, you don’t want to just go get on a slope and go, just like any activity, you have to start slow, but, for over-all fitness, regardless of your “target”, like skiing , the gym is a great place to start. Again, start slow, and work your way up.
The main point is, once you are motivated and have made that firm, un-movable decision, without any doubt, just get up and do something! For some people, the swimming pool has been reccomended as a starting point, and that is a great place to start, it can help you get stronger and increase your mobility without putting as much stress on old painful injuries, but unless swimming is your thing, it may get old, once you have gotten all you can get from it. What do I mean by that? Let’s use a dumbbell for an example, like in the picture. Do you see that little bitty one on the top right of the rack? That looks like a two pounder, if you were to use that and do curls with it, how long would it be until it felt like you have nothing in your hand? With the dumbbells, you simply move to the next heavier one, then the next and so on. With a swimming pool, once you have overcome the set resistance of walking, treading water or whatever, there is no place to go, but get faster at those activities, yes, playing games and such can be fun, but unless you do it an awful lot, you will plateau, and your progress will seem to stop. No, I am not saying the pool is bad, but I am saying, that is just one tool, add a few more for even better results.
Just don’t let whatever you like get boring, boredom is probably the worst enemy, so keep it fun! If you do that, you will see the results you are looking for! You can do it, one step, one rep, and one bite at a time!
Over Weight or Over Fat? Running vs Weight Training?
If you served in the military, before 1983, you may not have experienced the first changes that I know of, about weight restrictions. I joined the Army in 1982, and for my height, 5′ 7″, the limit was 205 pounds, I know this, because that is what I weighed and was told that I was at the limit for my height. This was of course after basic, and AIT, was after passing my PT test at my unit in Germany, and was just part of their physical requirement check-up. I was not fat, not even close, but, I was at the max for my height. Within 6 months, when the next evaluation came along, I of course passed my PT test again, but this time, 205 pounds was over weight! The chart used at that time said I was to be no more than 176 pounds, that is now, 29 pounds over weight! I hadn’t changed, the chart did!
From what I have read, the Army is using body fat along with the height/weight/age chart now, that is good news, because I would not wish what I have been through on anybody! (Read This, Click Here)
After being told that I was now fat (over-weight), I was shocked, but that was just the beginning of the embarrassment, they put me in an extra-PT group and we had to do PT twice a day! This by itself was fine, it got me out of the boring, motor pool and do maintainance routine, but there I was, with a bunch of fatties from the head shed, like clerks, secretaries, and such. The spec-5 that was in charge of our PT was so fat he breathed hard just standing there! All of my fellow platoon members, were rolling on the ground laughing, it was awful! We went on a run, around the block, not even a mile, and I was one of maybe four or five that made it all the way, and, it was my first time to be the one calling cadence, because the spec-5 was the firt to fall out, he didn’t make it out of the gate!
The next day, Top called me into his office and put me in charge of the Fat Platoon, that is what they called us, made up of the over weight and failed PT test group, and I was instructed to get everybody in the group Fit! I said, “Yes!, First Sargent” and walked out to the group. I was an E3, but now, I was in charge of getting about 20 tubbies in shape, so, I marched everybody to the gym! Now, I am loving this extra PT, I get to go to the gym on Army time, not mine! I started the group off with a sort of circuit training, using the limited equipment we had, an old Universal Machine, a stationary bike, a jump-rope or two, and of course Free Weights and a basketball court. We were a bit disorganized at first, but, it worked out pretty good.
After about 2 weeks, my CO, an arrogant, skinny, pencil-neck, geek, was mad, because he never saw us do anything, he wanted to see us running, so, I got called into Top’s office again, where he informed me what the CO wanted, again, I said, “Yes, First Sargent” and walked out to my “trainees” and told them we had to go for a run at least once a week, and I fibbed a bit, and told them that we had to do at least two miles or I was getting replaced, and that the extra PT was going to just be running from now on, when we marched out the gate, I have never heard such a loud group of but maybe 20 soldiers, something was different about them, and me, I was actually proud, not embarrassed!
Once we were about 5 minutes underway, we still had a tight formation, no one was lagging or falling out, we were actually picking up speed! Here we are, the “Fat Platoon”, and we are running! Where we ran, there were only a few options, places where the sidewalk was wide enough, or a street that was not too busy, even to just turn around and go back the way we had come, without stopping, which kills momentum. Since around the block was not allowed this time, we had to do at least a mile, according to Top. Our options on this road were, around the block, one mile, two miles, or the next was just over three. As we got close to the cut-off for one mile, the squad was going strong, and something strange happened, the whole squad wanted to do 2 miles! So, we passed that first turn, there was no turning back, it was either two miles or failure!
As we ran, all the way through the gate, it was now time for the afternoon formation, and everybody, every platoon, every battery, every single soldier at Bismark Kaserne was outside, watching us, all of us, not even one had fallen out, so, instead of just stopping, we make a victory lap, all around the inside of the Kaserne, about a quarter mile rectangle, past every single formation, and all the way back to our unit, which is right at the front gate. As we stopped, I didn’t have to tell them that they had done a great job, they knew it, you could see the look on every single face. I dismissed the squad to their platoons, we were about 5 minutes late to formation.
The next morning was our “Brigade Run”, which meant that everyone from the Kaserne went on one big group run, before formation, Top called me aside and told me to go the Headquarters building and get the Brigade colors, which is a big flag, I was thinking that I was just supposed to bring the flag back to Top, but,as I get there, the harness to help support the thing, was strapped on me, I knew what that meant, I had to run 7 miles with about a 50 pound flag! Whats worse, is that it meant I was running in front of the entire brigade!
The next day, the “Fat Platoon” was given 6 weeks to train as we pleased, then those that had not passed the previous PT test were to take it over, everyone passed! Then came the weigh in, guess what, each one of us had gained weight! Now I am guessing, but I would say that the average for the group, we had lost at least 3-5 inches in the waist, some were a lot more, some were less, but, everyone was in better shape.
After all of this, those of us that were the “over weight” group, had to get a fat test, if we passed great, but, if we failed, we would be barred from re-enlistment, awards, or anything positive, then, would be given another 2 months to lose the rest of the “weight” or get kicked out of the Army, NO ONE FAILED! All of us had room to spare, we were over weight, but not over fat!
By using weight training, we had all gotten stronger, this had made it easier for us to run, do push-ups, and the fat loss had made sit-ups a breeze, so, get in the gym, push some iron, ignore the scale, and get fit!
Where are you and where are you going?
Where you are is only important as long as you let it be, just get off the couch and do something, only then will you will be able to see where you are going!
I have been much like the guy in this picture, proud of the past, feeling like I was still on top, while pushing myself further and further away from it, by guzzling beer and eating anything and everything. I threw my trophies away years ago, and I had boxes of them, I had been the best, and a great baseball player when I was a kid, all the way up to High School, but I quit, because I “grew up” , drinking and girls were more fun than baseball, and getting paid to play a game, never crossed my mind, baseball was for kids, and I was a man.
By the time reality caught up with me, I had stopped working out, and I had my first weight set when I was eleven, weight training was very important to me, baseball wasn’t, but, I had quit both of them! Since I wasn’t a baseball star anymore, the girls went away too, I was too busy working, and really needed a change, so, I joined the Army. Why? Because I knew I needed a good kick in the butt and felt that the Army could give it to me! History repeats itself, if you let it, and I did.
This time, it was not all my fault, I got hurt, to the point I couldn’t stand for more than about five minutes, the pain was and is incredible, I tried to train through it, I was not about to let myself get fat again, but, I did. Now, after signing up with the VA to get some help, and 4 years of CT scans, X-rays, and doctor visits, after being informed that my problem was permanent and would never go away, I had earned it, the neurologist told me. I had raced Mountain Bikes, downhill was my event, I had been a runner, trained at more than marathon distances, and now, I have the spikes growing out of my spine to prove it! The doctor told me that all the crashes, and pounding from running, not to mention the tonnage I had lifted in my life, had given me a spine that normally takes over seventy years to get, and that is a very active, almost crazy like Evil Knievel, kind of active, and had gotten fat on top of it all.
Once I knew my pain would never go away, I gave up hope that I would ever get back in the gym, or compete at anything ever again, I felt like the world had come to an end, all I had left was the glory days, pain pills, my computer, TV, beer and food. When I got hurt, it was stupid, I stubbed my toe, and in the jerking to keep my balance, I had done something, that still is with me, proof that you just never know. At that time, I was in pretty good shape, I am 5′ 7″ and then weighed 275 pounds with a 36″ waist, bench pressing up to 495 pounds, squatting up to 705 pounds, and doing dead-lifts of about 405 pounds, but, that was over, and I now weigh 282 pounds with a 50″ waist.
My biggest frustration, is now, my biggest motivation, every time someone tells me that if I lost weight, my back would feel better, I felt like punching them, because I was really trying, had cut my beer consumption down to almost nothing, a 12 pack a month, eating soup and vegetables and hardly ever any junk, but, I was totally inactive, pain was winning, and I knew that I needed more activity, but walking is my biggest enemy, so, what could I do?
I have decided to just suck it up, and get my fat self back in the gym, no matter how bad it hurts, and how many people look at me funny when I walk in the door! Walking, or even standing for more than a few minutes is out of the question, but, I can sit, and squats only take a couple of minutes per set, then I can sit and wait for the pain to subside before my next set. My doctor had used my anger, and embarrassment to motivate me, and I signed up for the MOVE program, I need to thank him. Now, I know where I am going! I don’t care about weight, I need to lose fat, and I know how to do that, get back to the iron!
Motivation: Where does it come from?
Motivation is one of those things that can come from different places, sometimes, it comes from others, but it is best when it comes from within. Motivation is an energy that is both positive and negative, sometimes at the same time.
Remember when the Drill Sargent got on your case? I do, and in the beginning, getting dropped for 20 push ups was like being told to pick up a car! Then, something happened, it got easier, and I was doing push ups in my spare time to get better!
What happened, was it simply that I was getting in better shape? No, I was motivated! I did not want to look weak in front of the rest of the platoon! I know, some people strive to be the best, some, just don’t want to be embarrassed. I was the latter.
What motivated me? Where did it come from? Initially, from the Drill Sargent, he forged the need to succeed, and the fear of failure within my mind, both were negative energies. Once I no longer was afraid of failing, I wanted to be the best! Now, the energy was coming from me, it was now positive and that is when it is the most powerful.
This website is an instrument to create this positive energy within me, it too is starting as a negative, I am afraid of failing, I do not want to stop my training and stay fat! By writing, and sharing with others, I will get beyond this fear, and be once again motivated by success. I love my workouts, I always have, and during these last 6 years of pain, I wanted more than anything to be the old me again, and I will! Not only will I get stronger and leaner, but I will do everything I can to help others do the same, both here, and within my new group of friends at the VA MOVE program. I look forward to others joining the cause and helping, together, we can do it!