"John...I'm ready for the second phase..."

Monday, May 2, 2011

It had been exactly a month since Jeff and I had met to get him started on a structured training program. Jeff is a bow hunter and is planning a three-week trip to Colorado to do some elk hunting this August. He knows the terrain he’ll have to travel in pursuit of his quarry could be mountainous and rugged…and he was far from ready for it. He didn’t do well on the initial fitness testing and weighed in at 317 pounds. “I’m ready, John. Design me a program and I’ll do every bit of it,” he pledged after the test.

I wrote him a program that, for four weeks, would have him hiking and biking. I suggested step-ups and hills during the hikes to increase the intensity, and thus the calorie burn. He had a bike and wanted to incorporate that, which I plugged in. After four weeks, I told him it would be time to come and meet me in the Metropark for an introduction to a survival workout and ‘phase two’ of his regimen.

He called right on schedule and we agreed to meet. I told him to be prepared to get muddy and be ready to lift heavy things. We planned to meet in the park at the bottom of Ox Lane and adjacent to the rugby field. “I know the place…I hike by it all the time and I’ve seen people playing there. Looks like a rugged sport,” he said

I took a 45-minute bike ride to meet him there, carrying my backpack with hiking shoes, TRX bands, and my running shorts loaded inside. It’s an uncomfortable way to ride, but it’s better than driving the car. Jeff was there when I arrived…and so was Jason and the Mayfield girls rugby team (he coaches them), so I left my bike with him for safe keeping. “We’re doing the Back to Basics workout,” I told him and Roland…Jason’s roommate, great friend and fellow coach. Both have done the workout with me and knowing what Jeff was about to go through, asked the obvious question. “Um…why are you wearing blue jeans. Didn’t my dad tell you what he’s going to do to you?” Jeff mumbled something about not knowing…which, of course, was totally false. I think he thought if he showed up in jeans I might go easy on him. “Think again…big boy. I’d bring some shorts for the next workout. Now…let’s do some push-ups to get this thing started,” I said as I dropped to the ground at the edge of the practice field. As I completed my tenth push-up…alone…I barked at him to drop to the ground. He did…but after three, complained that he had severe pain in his ribs on both sides. I thought it might have something to do with being out of shape, but when he grimaced in pain and mentioned that he’d pushed a car out of some mud…well…stupid, but I believed him.

We headed off down the bridle path after performing 20 step-ups. I don’t believe in hurting people just to show them how out of shape they are. It’s a technique used in some Fitness Clubs and I think it’s very unprofessional…and dangerous. Anyway, we stopped a couple of hundred yards in and I had him picking up one of my rocks and lifting it overhead. He was struggling after 8 lifts, but kept pushing to 10…then dropped it back in the mud. “Man…I thought I was stronger than that,” he said. When we reached my favorite log, he was breathing heavily from his second set of step-ups. I noticed during the first set that he’d been stepping kind of casually and I’d told him to pick up the pace if he wanted them to do any good for his cardiovascular system.

I demonstrated the proper lift technique and had him grab and pull it from the mud to his chest. After 15 repeats, he dropped it. “Now…get the other end and lift it like this,” I said as I grabbed the log and pushed it overhead. When I went to drop it, I noticed movement in the mud where it landed. It was a beautifully colored garter snake and I was worried I’d crushed it, but when I picked it up again, it slithered off, unharmed.

We made to the cabins where I hooked up the bands and had him do some upper body work before telling him it was time for the abdominals. He grimaced when I said this. “I’ve been dreading this moment. It always hurts so much the next day,” he said. I was surprised he was worried about a particular muscle group. “Jeff…with what I’m doing to you, you’ll never notice your abs tomorrow. You’re just going to be one giant ache from head to toe.” This seemed to give him little comfort as he dropped to the earth and we went through the crunches and lower ab exercises. I showed him how to do high knee skips and then we went over to the picnic tables for hop-ups. After doing one and hearing the table groan, I figured it would be better if we used the concrete steps instead.

He opted out of the bear crawl…the pain in the ribs again…but did some ‘walk the line’ for balance. I pointed to the steep hill behind the pavilion and said “let’s climb…but be ready to slip in the mud.”

I headed up and made it to the halfway point with great difficulty…there was no dry footing anywhere. I hopped on top of the concrete abutment that was strategically placed half way up the hill, and waved him up when he reached it. “How…did…you…get…up…there…?” He was gasping out the words from the stress of the climb. The concrete block is about 5 feet high and requires some upper body strength and a little flexibility. Jeff was short on both at this point in the workout and after trying and failing, declared “I AM going to get up that thing…some day soon.”

We did a few more lifts and returned to the cars. Jason and Roland were waiting and happy to see that I hadn’t hurt Jeff. “He’s down 13 pounds in four weeks and he’s going to peel off another 50 before the elk hunt,” I said. Jeff is one of those guys who aren’t afraid to work, set goals, and share them with others…all the ingredients he’ll need to succeed. People who work like him inspire me, too. Another six weeks or so, and we’ll move into ‘phase three’. Get ready, Jeff.

Oh yeah…I finished by riding home. All in all…another great workout day.

Survival Workout duration: 60 minutes. Bike duration: 70 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 100 to 150 bpm for workout and 130 bpm for bike ride.
Calories burned during workout: 600 for workout and 1000 for bike ride.