Keep Learning

As of late, I’ve learned a lot. About myself. About other people. About things I’m interested. About my job. Some of it, I learned the easy way. Some things were taught to me in a harsh way. Either way, learning has been a constant in my life more so recently than other times. 

I would argue that the day I don’t learn something new, no matter how minor or insignificant it may seem, is the day I’ve given up on life. I’ve vowed to make the effort to find everyone I can who is knowledgeable in an area I want to be better in and pick their brains. I want to be a good NCO (Non-commissioned officer) in the military and have been blessed to have incredible leadership that encourages learning and development to be a better leader to soldiers. I’ve learned more than anyone can ask for in the past five months. 

The point today is short and simple– learn every day. Read books. Talk to someone you look up to. If you’re looking to make your dream career a reality– talk to someone who has done it. Read more books on it. Increase your mental capacity to strengthen your whole kit. Most importantly, never stop adding to that kit. 

 

Final thoughts on learning:

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing you can do is keep your mind young.

-Mark Twain

Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell ’em, ‘Certainly I can!’ Then get busy and find out how to do it.

-Theodore Roosevelt

 

“Humans are more valuable than equipment.”

-U.S. Special Forces on the human mind and mental capacity

Good F*cking Advice

*Disclaimer- Profanity Ahead, sorry if I offend you.

**Disclaimer- Just kidding about the offending you part.

 

First off, if this doesn’t motivate you– shame on you. If I haven’t posted this yet– shame on me. This is the Ethos of Good Fucking Design Advice, a website whose business is motivating and inspiring you to be a damn hero.

 

 

After my second actual good night’s sleep here in (OPSEC) I woke up at 0230 in the morning to workout. Fueled by pre-workout, a bad ass gym playlist and cold Afghan weather, I dominated my morning. I then clicked on my iPod and read the aforementioned good advice and decided over the next few weeks, I’m going to be writing pieces over the mos pertinent ones on there. Ones that inspire me to get the hell out of bed, stop feeling sorry for myself and taking on the day with a violence of action. I already covered believing in yourself on a completely separate occasion.

 

Work outside of your habits-

 

I would argue that being uncomfortable is necessary for your success. Those who stay in the comfort zones, whether that’s on their couch, never upping their workout intensities or never doing anything that scares them don’t improve. Being uncomfortable is a cruel mistress. She can present you with the satisfaction of facing your fears and moving up to new heights you never thought were possible. She breaks bad habits and builds healthy ones, but she can turn on a dime and send you back to square one. Always look for new, dynamic ways to reach your goals. Nothing is impossible. Those who decide enough is enough– that suddenly being comfortable all the time is no longer an option will succeed in today’s world.

 

So do it. Today. Get up earlier. Take a cold shower. Go without a shitty donut for breakfast. Talk to a stranger. Take responsibility. Start living like a warrior. I want to hear your stories! What have you done today to work outside of your habits?

 

Believe in Yourself

This is the very basic element for success. Just believe in yourself. Whether you are trying to break a habit, get out of a depressing point in your life, or work up the courage to run your first 5k. Believe. In. Yourself. When you decide to improve yourself and become an active force in your life you may have outside support or you might not– but that’s not the biggest enemy you will have. Your most tedious battle will be the symphony of voices in your head letting you know that you’re weak, that you don’t need to get out of bed, that you’ve been like this for so long already that nothing is gonna change. Bullshit. You’ are your own worst enemy and you have to do whatever you can to drown out those voices, buckle down and make things happen. Because once you believe in yourself, once you know you can work your way out of any situation with what you’ve got, you’re unstoppable. You’ve always been unstoppable. And don’t you forget that.

 

 

Athletics or Aesthetics?

I’ve been thinking about my long term goal as of late. It seems like a lot of guy I’m deployed with are looking to sculpt a beach body while here, others are training just to pass their PT test. Which got me thinking if I’d prefer a decently good looking body with extreme athletic capability or a just a strong beach body. I realized that I’d rather be the guy who can ruck for miles, then run and finish it off with an intense bodyweight workout session. I personally strive for athletic capability of aesthetics. What are your thoughts on the subject? I want to hear from you.

 

Workout of the day-

Three mile run with 25 burpees after every mile.

Warmup and Cool down on your own. Make sure to stretch.

METCON workout 02JUL13

Metabolic conditioning workout. Whenever I can possibly call weight training cardio– I make it happen.

Dynamic warm-up

1.)Barbell complex-
6 dead lifts
6 hang-cleans
6 front squats
6 push-presses
6 back squats
12 push ups

500m row or 2:00 speed rope

2.) barbell complex (add weight)

400m row or 1:30 speed rope

3.) barbell complex

100m row or :30 speed rope.

Cool down and stretch

Drink water.

“Don’t half-ass two things. Whole ass one thing.”
– Ron Swanson

Welcome to the grind– let this fuel your motivation

Some Tuesday Motivation

X-Ray Training Program

One of the foundations of the Warrior Athlete is military training both physical and mental. We owe it to ourselves to not only lead a fulfilling, healthy life but to be able to come great adversity physically, mentally and morally.

 

My main objective in life is to become a member of the Special Forces— the Green Berets. To prepare for the incredibly challenging selection process I’ve begun to develop a workout routine that will help me succeed. I include work capacity, strength and mental preparedness objectives.

It’s an 8 day cycle right now and I’ve hammered out the first four days routine for sure. I’m going to dedicate a new page to it. If anybody has ideas for improvements, comments or gripes, feel free to comment. I’m going to try out my first 8 day cycle starting tonight and will post my data accordingly to see if it’s what I need to make realistic progress towards my goal.

 

Stand by for more!

Warrior Athlete 2013

At the beginning of the year I said there would be some big things coming your way and I’ve finally hashed out a rough plan for my new plan: The Warrior Athlete. We’re moving on from just trail running and looking at the bigger picture. I’m looking to recruit some people who know about fitness, don’t mind getting dirty and who are willing to help me out with this project. I want to start early, train often and get involved with our communities this year so we can make a difference.

I’m also working on Warrior Athlete training programs that are designed for the outdoors and will help increase strength, work capacity and mental toughness. If you’re new to fitness or are just looking for a different way to work out, get in touch. We’ll get strong.

There will be more to follow soon!

Dominating my Monday

Today started my week off rather well. It was the first official group run– which consisted of myself and a fellow Iraq veteran and professional bad ass. We ran a good four miles through the Bangor City Forest’s east trail, the Veazie Railroad Bed and the Bangor Land Trust. I was feeling good by the end.

This afternoon, I hit the gym and to spice things up, tried my hand at some German Volume Training (more to follow on this.) My muscles are twitching and I’m cooking up some delicious, protein/calorie packed burgers to build on to my muscle. The idea behind GVT is to complete 10 sets of 10 repetitions with the amount of weight. I started my week off with chest and back.

I loaded up a barbell with 105lbs and managed to choke out 10 sets bench presses, but started slipping my last four when I could only push out seven or eight at a time. I then moved onto my back exercise and successfully completed 10 sets of five with 135lbs on the bent-over barbell row.I stopped there with my GVT exercises and then moved onto three sets of 15 regular push ups and 3 sets of 3 chin-ups. That pretty much did it for me and now it’s time to recover.

Any of you guys lift weights out there? If so, what are your lifting goals and what are your favorite exercises? Let me know in the comments section!