Fitness/Conditioning for Upcoming Season

[nightowl1]

I am again with Biggie haha.. no offense intended or  offense taken.

The commitment needed for body building is intense... diet, workouts, scheduling, lifestyle... the whole shabang... way to go!

LA Trapper,
A very basic workout regime consisting of sailor squats, lunges, toe raises, various push ups, Pull ups, and various "rows" with dumbbells with the addition of cardio training including intense walking and biking is enough to keep anyone in a healthy condition capable of performing any hunting and life's various tasks.

For the type of condition 99% of us need, there is no need to lift heavy weight.Heavy weight being more than half your body weight. As your ability to dominate these routines progresses addition of more weight, new movements, or variations of these movements brings you to further levels and intensities.

3 days lifting 3 days cardio both lasting about 45 minutes a day with some yoga or stretching thrown in there will keep you tip top and ready

[LA Trapper]

Thanks guys for all of your input.  No one has been offended.  Man if we can't poke fun at one another in good nature, life would be boring.  Especially this group with similar likes.  

Thanks Nightowl.  I sit behind a desk 10+ hours a day and if I am not behind the desk, I am driving to sit behind another one at another location. Then go home and turn the lap top back on and work until late.

I would like to PM you with some specifics.  You have a wealth of knowledge.

When I was younger, I always looked at guys in their late 40's and early 50's and said how did they ever let that happen, they must not have any pride. Not me, I am going to stay ahead of the game and stay in shape.  Well, I am that guy now at 51.  Three good kids, a great wife, and trying to hang on to a job in this economy.  I need to get it together or face high blood pressure, diabetes, heart issues, you know the drill. No issues at present.

When I get back into a routine, I walk a lot.  Then jog in spurts and walk, jog, walk.  I do circuit training with a "w" curl bar.  A friend of mine gave me some rowing crew exercises with light weight and lots of reps. It works.  

Another buddy said hit the heavy bag.  It will take care of the cardio and the calories.  If you have not hit one lately, 45 seconds seem like 20 minutes.

I am looking to widen my options and a lot of ideas on here are great. If I remember correctly varying your work out reduces stress on your joints, reduces plateau, and keeps your work out time fresh.

Best of luck and don't injure yourself.

Billy

[Fritz]

My motivation is my family. I have a family history of heart disease and high cholesterol.  I eat as sensably as possible and run 20-25 miles a week.  I also do some pull-ups, situps, and pushups every week. I do all I can to stay as healthy as I can in this fast paced world we all live. I figure if I do have the "big one" I can at least die knowing I did my best.

[DEATHMASTER]

My wife was outside working . Came in and showered when she went to get dressed she could not stand back up.
The last two days have been hard to see the pain she is in. Muscles are in knots.

I need to get in shape so this does not happen to me. She could not move me like I can her.
Will need to get her on a core routine to keep this from happening. About once a year a nerve goes on her and it takes 1 to 2 trips to the chiro. and she is good. This is the worst I have seen and no chiro for the holiday.

KEEP H2O in you on the hot days and keep working out.

I need to get on this wagon.

[Mike Vines]

Originally posted by Davt:
Run 3-4 days a week, 6-12 miles each with a long trail run of about 20 miles every three weeks. Cycle 3-4 days a week 15-30 miles each with a long ride of 45-75 miles once a week. Gym with wts or swim 2-3 times a week. There, after writing that down I have broken a sweat, wheres the pizza.

If I did all of that, I wouldn't have the time to work, so therfore I wouldn't have the money to go hunting for which I was getting in shape for.  Oh it is such an evil cycle we all are in.  If anyone finds the right balance, please let all of us know how it was done.

[nightowl1]

Grapes, as great as that is it isn't necessary. A simple routine is all you need to keep up your health for hunting and life in general. You will be amazed at how much a very basic simple program can effect quality of life. As you get healthier and want to move to the next level it takes more and more effort.

Pound for pound the first step is always the most productive...

[virginiashadow]

I am 36 now with three children of my own.  I was involved with highly competitive sports until I was 30.  Nowadays my children are everything to me.  When I get home from work the last thing I want to do is "get away" from my kids to go to the gym to workout. I want to incorporate the things I do with them to make the activity a workout. If I take them down to the creek I bring the dogs with me...I play chase with all of them until I am breathing heavily.  If I am upstairs with the kids and playing I tell them to jump on my back and I do 20 squats then throw them onto the bed.  They laugh hysterically AND it gives me a workout.  Like today I took them fishing and let them swim in the creek. I swam with them and ran around on the banks jumping here and there and was acting like a kid again myself.

The only thing many of us have to worry about these days as we age is to prevent injury as we workout. In my line of work I cannot afford to be injured.  I also beat my body down with decades of workouts and sports from basically age 5 to age 30.  My joints are my concern and I baby them by being safe, yet I try to get my muscles vigourous workouts.  

Just some suggestions. Make the workouts FUN and you will reap the benefits.  As a longtime gym junky I do not see myself ever going back into the gym.  I want to see and experience the outdoors with my kids, and fuse my workouts with the adventures we have together.

[LA Trapper]

Nightowl,

I sent you an email.  Did you receive it?  Your email address is hidden so I had to back door it through the Trad Gang System.  I generally have bad luck with that situation.  If you did not receive it, can you email me so I can capture your address?

Thanks;

Billy

[celticknot]

I start off with alot of manual labor but thats everyday for me. I run 5+ miles several times a week. shoot everyday ever if its only a dozen arrows. By the fall I will be backing the 5+ miles I ran. I have very tender shoulders so I will have to build up to it. I have smoked for 15 years, just quit last week and I went for a 5 1/2 mile speed walk/ run this morning and it only took an  hour and I didn't over exurte myself. I was sweating but the humidity was 90% and it had rained earlier. Give it a shot guys it's really not that hard.

[virginiashadow]

Celtic....I am PROUD of you man for quitting the smoking.  Both my grandparents died when I was 7 from smoking related causes.  I actually quit chewing last summer, cold turkey and have not looked back since.  KEEP up the good work.

[arky714]

I'am not training for the olymlic games just a simple elk hunt in the colorado mountains,I will be 64 in july cannot run a marathon ,been walking 4.5 mile in the national forest 4 or 6 times a week ,just keep it fun its called bow hunting not hell...

[pdk25]

If you live close enought to a good Brazilian Jiu Jitsu school, give them a try.  Participating in the randori after the lessons will really put your cardio and muscular endurance to the test.  Lots of fun, too.

[Zog]

The best piece of BOWHUNTING exercise gear I ever got was a little backpack in which I put 50 lbs of lead shot.  Wear it and walk the dog up and down hills, mow the lawn with a pushmower, go bow stumping, climb stands, whatever.  Excellent workout and not so hard on the joints with repetitive motion!

I also wear a pulse monitor to be sure I am getting a workout with it.

You don't need a special pack, you of course could just wear your hunting or back pack.  But with two bags of lead shot in my camelbak transformer, the pack is very small.  It isn't comfortable in my shoulders, but that is all part of the exercise.  Then when I wear my nice hunting pack with good shoulder straps and hip belt it feels like nothing!!

3 months before hunting season, go on 3 to 4 mile walks with it on.

[Liquid Amber]

I turned 65 yesterday and have dropped my weight from a high of 197 to 175 over that past few years.  I spend a lot of time just walking the woods [professional forester], maintaining our two acre yard and gardens, and watching what I eat.  

All I need to do to get my blood working is push a wheelbarrel full of dirt from the low end of the yard to the upper end.    

I also cut, load, haul and split a couple cords of firewood annually, mostly during July and August.

I shoot regularly from my elevated deck or any place in the yard, working out more with a heavier bow than I hunt with.

My goal is simply to stay active.

[celticknot]

Hey virginia shadow good work buddy. Proud to hear of anyone getting off of that stuff. I am still struggling with quiting I have smoked on and off for the last 2 months but as long as I keep quiting I will one day. Thanks for the support bud I appreciate it.

[ren sarns]

I lift a little,  but mostly work the cross trainer with a pack on to simulate what I normally carry.

[Raging Water]

My 75 year old Dad is a 2 1/2 tour Vietnam Vet.

That man can out walk anybody.

He still walks, at a strong pace, thru the hardest terrain he can find.

Occasionally, he will drop for sit ups and pushups, or grab a tree limb for pull ups, or do some body weight squats.

Oh, he will pick up anything heavy, a rock or log, and throw it. He walks to the object, picks it up again and throws it. He will do this for a few hundred yards.

You will be fit and ready to go in no time.

[Mike Byrge]

Billy,
Buy a treadmill and walk/jog 3 miles before work and do pushups throughout the day at work. (helps if you've got an office w/ a door so you don't have to explain).

Keep track of the push-ups in an Excel spreadsheet and you'll be surprised at the progress you make!

With work hammering you like it is keep your workouts "easy" or you won't do them.  There is a time to go hard and a time to just do what you can.

[Mike Byrge]

Should have added that I did buy the P90 program last year and it is a good one.  The workouts are 30-45 minutes six days a week and mix of cardio and strength training.  I didn't see the results that they claim but I pretty much ignored the diet part of the program and just did the workouts.

It was worth it IMO and I plan to start another 90 day cycle soon.

[virginiashadow]

Thank you celtic....remember you are not alone when you are trying to quit by yourself.  People are pulling for you and I wish you the best quitting for GOOD.

Brett