TANGO ALPHA — Take Action this summer Teammates! Australian boxer Mark DeMori, knows how to have fun and stay in shape. His fitness equipment: the Perfect Pushup Mobile (2 pounds light) and Perfect Handles. Here he is on the deck of a yacht off the Greek isles! HOOYAH Mark!

Last week’s blog outlined TANGO ALPHA and how to define your objective.  Next up:

2. Understand the purpose of the objective – the weaker the purpose, the weaker your determination will be in accomplishing your goal. In accomplishing any goal, your ability to persevere is your key to success – it’s all about persistence, and the purpose of your goal will power your persistence.

Example: I want to lose 20 pounds to look better in a swimsuit – that’s not a very compelling purpose – however, if you said I want to lose 20lbs because I’ll be able to live longer and do the things  ____ that matter to me (explain exactly what those things are – hike a mountain, run a race, set an example for my kids, attract someone who cares about being in shape as much as I do, etc.), then you’ve got the building blocks of a stronger purpose that will fuel you when feel like slacking on your goal.

What are your building blocks?

CHARLE MIKE — ALDEN

Teammates, Stew Smith needs no introduction here– but for new readers, Stew was my SEAL Team BUD/S swim buddy. Last Friday he was a guest on Don Shipley’s extremeseal webcam show — check it out! Stew is The Man when it comes to getting young men and women ready to crush military and first responder physical readiness tests.

Here’s Stew responding to a comment from last year that pushups don’t work your legs.  Check out all his CHARLIE MIKE blogs by searching on Stew Smith. AMM

“You actually work several muscle groups…

Your chest / shoulders / triceps are doing the actual pushup – BUT you also have to have the following muscles flexed (“working”) during the entire movement or you would not be able to do a pushup:

abs / lower back / upperback / hips / thighs / calves

In order to straighten your legs you have to use your leg muscles – that is why the pushup is truly a full body exercise compared to a bench press that does the same basic movement.

It is an isometric flex in the legs but it still an effective exercise. To really work the legs you should add squats or the 8 count pushup…where you stand up in between each rep of a pushup.”

Stew
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Stew Smith is a former Navy SEAL, and author of several fitness and self defense books such as The Complete Guide to Navy SEAL Fitness, Maximum Fitness, and SWAT Workout. Certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and as military fitness trainer, Stew has trained hundreds of students for Navy SEAL, Special Forces, SWAT, FBI, ERT and many other law enforcement professions. You might also have seen Stew on Fight Science Special Ops on the National Geographic Channel.

Guest blogger: Stew Smith CSCS

An aspiring SEAL asked: I am currently training in order to go to BUD/S. I picked up your Perfect Pullup and have been using it a lot but am unsure as to where I should be at physically in relation to the Perfect Pullup and what some good workouts would be to really get the training and muscle growth that I need to be more successful at BUD/S. I was just wondering how do you become a Navy SEAL?

Good question – You need to be able to perform the SEAL PST well and should feel like you could do it again. In fact, my SEAL wanna-be’s and I frequently do a double PST = that means:

500 yd swim
pushups – 2:00
situps – 2:00
pullups – max reps
1.5 mile run

Then we do it again…once you get to that zone and can do sets of 80-100 pushups and 20+ pullups you are there but your runs and swims have to be fast too. See Top Ten BUD/S Things You Need to Know Article below:

Some say it takes lifetime of preparation to become a Navy SEAL – I recommend young guys to get involved with:

1. Team Sports – it helps to know what it means to be a team player – working together with a group of people to accomplish a goal / mission…

2. Fitness – yes you need to be fit – getting to a high level of physical fitness will also enable you to grow mentally tough as well. It is tough to go to failure on sets and run so hard you feel ill afterwards. Sometimes it takes getting over these physical hurdles by mentally willing yourself through them…

3. Grades – you have to be smart – many enlisted SEALs are college grads, know a language, logical and analytical thinkers, some are very creative as well.

4. Talk to a recruiter either officer or enlisted recruiter – you can enlist after high school or go officer after college via ROTC, OCS, or USNA – if you do not know these acronyms – then do some research.

5. – Finally – read www.stewsmith.com/linkpages/toptenBUDS.htm – it is the Top Ten Things you Should Know Before BUD/S…

Stew Smith CSCS

FREE WORKOUTS IN MARYLAND – If your travels bring you near Annapolis or Baltimore MD, come join our PT group. We PT, Run, Swim 5-6 days a week usually in the morning during the week and in the afternoon on weekends. We use running, swimming, Perfect Pushups and Perfect Pullups…

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Stew Smith is a former Navy SEAL and fitness author, certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) with the National Strength and Conditioning Association. If you are interested in starting a workout program to create a healthy lifestyle – check out the StewSmith.com Fitness eBook store and the Stew Smith article archive at StewSmith.com. And of course, if you have any questions about fitness for your profession or for your personal health, please feel free to email me at stew@stewsmith.com.

Stew Smith CSCS
Personal Trainer to the Heroes of Tomorrow