{Guest Post}- 12 Lessons In Strength
In lieu of an amazing addition to our family, I asked some friends to cover for me in the realm of newsletters and blogs for a few weeks. When I first posted about guest contributors, honestly I was shocked at how many people reached out to help. The fitness industry is amazingly giving and I definitely wrote some I.O.U's to the fine folks you are going to be reading over the next few weeks!
First up is a gentleman by the name of Jim Hatcher. I first met Jim through a mutual friend, John Moljo (a 3 Things Podcast frequent flyer), when he was critiquing a presentation John and I were giving for seminar. Jim is a retired businessman, college administrator and volunteer reserve deputy sheriff. He is not a trainer or coach but what's really amazing, and why his article is going to kick ass, his opinions are based upon 60+ years of lifting weights, training with good coaches and achieving some pretty decent “big goals.” I asked him to comment on the “ lessons learned” over the years and here we are!
Without further adieu, I'm going to hand it off to Jim!
My love/hate relationship with weight training began in 1954 when I decided to try out for the junior high school wrestling team, a sport that I continued through high school and college. My performance was at best mediocre, but I made the teams and tried to compete to best of my ability. That junior high coach believed that optimal training was wind sprints, wrestling and HAMMER CURLS!
So, I guess you could say that it all began for me with those hammer curls.
Following college graduation I was employed in higher education for the next 20 years. I like to describe myself as a pretty common guy who has done a couple of uncommon things. The first occurred during this twenty year span in which I began to dabble in powerlifting. The higher education environment was important because it meant that weight rooms were generally available and there were coaches who had some knowledge of weight training, albeit pretty limited. My best “coaches” were accomplished lifters who wrote articles in Powerlifting USA, a magazine. I attempted to train as they did. (A mistake, by the way) My virtual mentor was Dr. Fred Hatfield, best known as “Dr. Squat.” That first uncommon thing: At 45 I placed third in my weight class in a National Powerlifting Meet. So much for mediocrity! It was a big goal and I had spent a lot of time just preparing and qualifying for that one event. More on that in a bit.
Then it happened!
I changed jobs, traveled extensively, worked long hours, entertained, etc. and quit working out.
Fast forward to retirement.
Following retirement I was introduced to kettlebells and a new love affair began. I had had enough of weight lifting and kettlebells helped fill that void. It is significant that I also had my first true personal trainer, a RKC certified kettlebell instructor. His name wasn’t Mike, but there was this “I want to be like Mike” thing driving me so I began that journey toward the second big goal or uncommon thing. I decided to attempt to complete the StrongFirst level 1 kettlebell instructor certification and at 72 I did just that. At the time, and perhaps it is still true, I became the oldest person to ever pass this extremely difficult certification. Take that mediocrity!
So, what have I learned and in no particular order:
Most things in health and fitness are a journey, punctuated with some highs and some lows best managed with wisdom. The “wisdom” is the hard part.
If you are going to have big goals, have a plan as to what you intend to do after completion otherwise you might just be lost and sit down.
Good training partners help keep you faithful to the effort, accountable and consistent.
Consistency trumps (small t) most other variables. No show, no growth.
A good trainer is like money in the bank. It is like earning compound interest over time. Foster a symbiotic relationship with your trainer based upon mutual understanding, reasonable expectations and respect for one another.
Always have a plan otherwise you are wasting precious time.
Nutrition counts.
As you age a bit, you must learn to listen to what your body is telling you otherwise injuries, fatigue and frustration will sap your will to continue.
Recovery time is your “best friend” and you must recognize that overtraining breeds fatigue and fatigue is cumulative. When it bites you in the butt it will make a mess of that plan, derail your motivation and force you to take a few steps backwards.
Love what you do and have fun with it. The longer the view the better.
As you get older your big goals are pretty simple: Eat better, sleep better, feel better and have more energy for your family, your friends, your hobbies and your avocations.
Do hammer curls and presses they make you look good!
These bullet points are not frivolous. Spend some time thinking about each of them. If you are a client, remember, it is a journey, a very personal one that only you can determine the outcome. Foster those “Highs” and minimize those “Lows.”
If you are a trainer, think about how do I teach these life lessons to my individual clients in a way that encourages a long term symbiotic relationship?
I could have done better on all of these, but I can also look back with a great deal of satisfaction. As I approach 80, weight training and consistency in outlook (I hate saying positive mindset) have served me well.
Now 5 x 5 of those hammer curls before bed!
Interested in more of Jim's work? You can check him out on thee Original Strength Broadcasts here and here as well as on the Health Oddity Podcast, right here and right here. Enjoy!
Friends of Purposeful Strength, before you go...
Before we part ways this week, I wanted to let you know the finishing touches are going down on my new program, Start Here. I am super excited to be able to offer this program for FREE and have it encompass goal setting, taking action on those goals, a fitness program, and exercise FAQs!
If you want to stay in the loop on all things 'Start Here', do me a favor and make sure you click here to get on the email list so I can send you the finished program!