2. If you can’t plan it — then you won’t get it. “Perceive/Achieve” = Goal Setting.

Teammates, here’s the second of my 10 Perfect Principles. I want to hear from you how this precept has changed your life because it’s all about Continuing Your Mission! Check out Andre Fredrick’s take on this principle.

CHARLIE MIKE — ALDEN

Andre Fredrick: “Another powerful promise, and one that I am still learning to employ in more facets of my life. I can recall making the decision to change my eating habits and how daunting it seemed, but I educated myself, set a plan in motion and started losing weight. As I shed pounds, I was left with a lot of extra skin. It was then that I first began thinking about working out to fill in the space.

I kept telling people, “I’m thinking about working out.” I realized soon after that “thinking about” something was really the easy part of the puzzle. Setting about achieving those goals was another matter, but I took a lot of the negative emotions that I was dealing with in those days and channeled them into achieving my goal.

Each day that I accomplished those small goals brought with it greater confidence and bigger aspirations.”

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
_________________________________________
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.

Teammates, do you remember last year’s March Madness Monster Mash?M4 — SEAL speak for so hard but fun workouts. Here’s the deal, get your Perfect Pushups, kneepad or towel, and water positioned in front of your TV – clear a path to your Perfect Pullup – bring over only your truest friends – have them sign a release from liability form so they can’t sue you after they realize they can’t move the next day! Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a little here, but having a little peer pressure always makes a Monster Mash workout more fun (and yes, makes you more sore!)…here’s how the M4 workout goes: dial in your favorite b-ball game and pick a team – each time they score a basket you do same number of pushups per points – every free throw is a pullup. Simple right? 

Now – how many games can you play – that’s the question?! Here’s an example – St. Mary’s vs Baylor– you’ve got a total of 4 guys in the room – 2 match St. Mary’s– 2 match Baylor – the real game is not who beats who on the court, it’s who completed the most pushup and pullups – now start to fill out brackets for each game, using the same teams, then tally up the total number of pushups and pullups performed – bet what you want – beer – dollars – apples – don’t care what it is, but make it meaningful enough to want to earn the bragging rights of winning your second annual MARCH MADNESS MONSTER MASH! 

BTW – you don’t have to stick with one pushup or pullup per point – strong teams can collect more points doing more pushups and pullups: just don’t burn yourself out, you never know how well your teams just might score! Now if you are looking for an even more hardcore workout, go to the Daily Workout blog and check out March Pushup Madness. 

HOOYAH AND CHARLIE MIKE – ALDEN

1. If you learn how to control the three things in life you can control, then you can create your destiny.

Teammates, over the next ten weeks, I am going to post my 10 Perfect Principles. Andre Fredrick, a man who has completely re-shaped his life and destiny, wrote his take on each. I want to hear from you too because it’s all about Continuing Your Mission! And the three things you can control: your body, your mind and your attitude.

CHARLIE MIKE — ALDEN

Andre Fredrick:  “This one hits me very deeply. In the initial days of my separation/divorce, I felt like my entire life was spiraling out of control. I grabbed at everything I could in an effort to maintain some semblance of control over my life. I learned to accept those things that I could never hope to change and have come understand the futility in trying.

Instead, I strive to focus on the relationship between my body, mind and attitude. This philosophy has allowed me to face and overcome the many challenges and obstacles that I have encountered since the dissolution of my marriage.”

Teammates, check out Don Shipley’s live webcam show today featuring yours truly. According to Don, the show covers “BUD/S Instructors, SEAL Snipers, SEAL Motivaters, SEAL Officers, SEAL Celebrities, SDV SEALs, 30-year SEALs and young, current Iraq and Afghanistan Veteran SEALs.”

Don will be introducing me at 4pm PT today. Listen in and text Don your questions: here’s a link: 

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/extreme-seal-experience

I’m Fired UP to talk to Don — and hear from the Teammates!

CHARLIE MIKE — ALDEN

Teammates, meet Andre Fredrick. His story has Fired Up Team Perfect and it will inspire you too. Andre, welcome to the Team CHARLIE MIKE — Continue Mission Andre!  Alden Mills

“To the Fine Folks at Perfect Fitness, I just wanted to share my story with you all. In November of 2008 I weighed 330 poundsand was heading into a divorce. In the wake of my separation, I re-evaluated my life and began to focus on taking care of myself. I began eating healthy and losing weight. Soon after, I purchased the Perfect Pushups and later the Perfect Pullups. I have used them everyday for the past year, and the transformation has been incredible.

In a year’s time, I managed to shed 130 pounds and am in the best shape of my life. I have told everyone I can about how amazing your products are, and I really just wanted to share my story with you and thank you for helping to transform my life. I have attached a photo so you can see what your products have done for me. Thanks again!”

Best,

Andre H. Fredrick

Teammates, Part II from Mark de Mori – thanks again mate! I look forward to following your success. CHARLIE MIKE — Alden

“My big breakthrough came when I out boxed big favourite and former heavy weight title challenger Ed Mahone in early 2008, I put in a performance you would not have thought possible after watching my first few professional fights and attracted the attention of one of the worlds top promoters Don King. This was my ticket to USA and it was everything I had worked so hard for and dreamt of. 

Up until the last few weeks I continued to train myself in the style mentioned, but thanks to my sponsor Alan Burns and a contact I made I now find myself in Oxnard California, training full time and a drastically different program with World Crown Sports training team. 

The biggest change is the quantity of sessions, we train at least twice a day and sometimes three, which is not that bad when the only thing I have to worry about each day is training and what time MTV is showing the new Jersey Shore episode. 

 The first two weeks were a struggle, We did weight training, boxing, running and agility work, I hated all of it. The part I do like however is all my meals for the day are brought to my fridge every morning. I had never trained this hard or this often, I hit the wall, got insomnia, hated training, felt like I was going backwards and was definitely not my usual jovial self.

Three days of rest was the prescription to cure me, I think I slept more in those three days than the previous two weeks, I started again feeling fresh, but soon felt tired and run down again. I stuck at it despite not enjoying it, because my other option was to get a real job, and that was much scarier than fighting 12 rounds against a prime Mike Tyson to me. 

So I continue on, because I know this trip is make or break, and the training team in charge know more than I do, and true to their word, by week 5 I started to keep up, the high rep (20 reps) weight training doesn’t seem like someone has a blowtorch on my muscles anymore and the running has , while certainly not enjoyable, become bearable. 

“Those who run seem to have all the fun,” sung by Madonna in whatever song it was, (the testosterone in me refuses to let me look it up) always pops into my head when I’m running, my lungs are burning, my legs feel like prosthetics made out of lead and I feel like punching Madonna in the face. 

Well it’s week 8 and I feel like a new fighter, there is no area I don’t feel like I have improved on, I am extremely glad I kept an open mind and reminded myself If I don’t evolve and adapt I become extinct. 

The real test of the training will be when I finally step into the ring for the first time since July 31 2009, but I am confident I will make the explosive impact I am training for. ”

Mark de Mori

www.twitter.com/markdemori

www.worldcrownsports.com: www.twitter.com/worldcrownsport

Teammates, you’ve met Mark de Mori before on CHARLIE MIKE. His professional story just keeps getting better — when you see him fighting on TV soon, you’ll say you knew him when! Mark is going to take us through his professional boxing career and he will also create the Mark de Mori 21-day workout! HOOYAH! Thanks Mark. Alden Mills

“My professional boxing career started in 2004, in Australia: it feels like a life time ago. It all started after a stop/start amateur career that never really saw me scale any great heights due to the fact I wasn’t training hard enough and I was usually fighting grown men while still a teenager. After eleven amateur fights I decided I just didn’t care enough to make all the sacrifices to get in the ring and I gave it away. 

A few years passed where I gave into other people’s ideas of what I should focus on in life and I found I missed boxing more and more, so without a clue what I was doing but armed with some knockout power, I moved across the country aged 21 to start my career as a professional heavyweight. 

Weighing in at around 260 pounds when I restarted training it was very challenging, many times in those first  few weeks I wondered if this comeback was such a great idea, surely just getting some tattoos and gold boxing gloves on a chain would satisfy my tough guy urge?  At this stage I was still yet to develop the mental strength necessary for the life of a professional fighter. 

While I was successful in every fight bar one by 2007, I was not making the improvements I needed to make any sort of impact on the boxing world. I had a few different trainers and tried lots of different methods with mixed results, basically I couldn’t see myself making the millions to compensate for the likely brain damage that would ensue as I became a drooling old man. 

I decided to stop trying other peoples methods and do my own thing, sounds like a bad idea I know, but with a better attitude to training I started studying my favourite fighters on YouTube.com and dvd every day, mimicking them in the gym and trying new things I had noted from the video sessions, at this point in time I had decided to change my weight training from a bodybuilding style, which is all I knew, to a full body program focused more on maximal strength as some research I read claimed it would also improve my hand and foot speed. 

My own plan worked extremely well, I was improving hugely in a short time, faster and fitter, without feeling burnt out and stale, I also became much more disciplined with my diet, aiming to keep leaner and lighter, my fighting weight went from around 240 to 230 and people noticed the difference in my performances. One of the biggest differences in my training and the conventional boxer is I decided running was not important. I know some very fit heavyweights who did not do the normal slow running boxers believe in, my disdain for running may have had something to do with me accepting this plan with open arms like a long lost friend. 

Part II:  My big breakthrough came when I out boxed big favourite and former heavy weight title challenger Ed Mahone in early 2008 — stay tuned for the next installment.”

Mark de Mori @markdemori on Twitter

Hi Gang, Marcus Colburn aka Mojo Frog here!  After a month or so back at it “PERFECT”ly, I’m already getting close to what I was when I left off months ago (remember that unfortunate collision?), so it’s all good. Train light at first and go for repetition, with an assist from your partners. Keep a log of your gains because of your “PERFECT” plans. So check this out…  I will probably train a solid 90-minutes before I go in for my “PERFECT CLEAN” bon vivant feast. That’s frog talk since my mom is from Paris! There are 2 schools of thought on this though. I just tend to use both. 

Why train hard before you eat a big meal?   That’s been a long time secret of mine since the days of my “Fat Steven Segal phase” (how do you like the pic of me and Segal in Vegas?). After you train very intensely, you’ll deplete the majority of your glycogen (Stored Energy) stores, sugars and fats in your blood stream. That way all the excess calories we consume go straight to our muscles, which will help us recover and repair faster. Bottom line, though, to be “PERFECT”ly honest, I still think your biggest meal of the perfect Navy SEAL deal, especially for muscle improvement; other than a big breakfast, should be WHEN your body deserves the calories. That will ALWAYS be AFTER a HARD workout. 

“PERFECT RECONSTRUCTION” That has been how I always made a comeback work! You have to decide what Methods will work for you. We are all different! That’s why they still can’t figure out why some quit BUD/S & some stick it out. Me, I always ate & drank every time I had the opportunity. After the chow hall I ALWAYS had my pockets full of anything I could grab — apples,carrots, tomatoes, oranges, & bananas! We would run all the time to meals & back & I was always dropping things from my overstuffed pockets. One time I dropped a stolen tomato out of my pocket while running back from the chow hall with a boat on my head. I couldn’t very well bend down & pick it up. That would have put more strain on my boat crew. So after the other guys ran it over with their boots; MY BOAT CREW LEFT KETCHUP FOR THE BLACK SHOES! (grins)))))))))) 

Where do you see the most strength gains?

HOOYAH

NUFF SAID!

Teammates, Tom Rancich’s nephew Max O’Meara is attempting to summit Everest next month. Very timely! I plan to summit Mt. Shasta in May – I’ve already started training. I asked Max how he’s preparing for his Everest summit – check it out! He has a blog in the works too. Perfect Fitness, VRHabilis and Fire in the Gut are all proud sponsors of Max’s climbing mission. CHARLIE MIKE Max! ALDEN 

Max’s pre-Everest routine: “In a typical week I’ll try to tax my legs 3 times, 4 if my recovery is fast enough. Long days on the bike and/or elliptical machine to eliminate the pounding of constantly running on asphalt help my knees stay healthy and the Stairmaster is my favorite machine for a killer workout. High intensity interval training is a key component to training for such a strenuous endeavor and it keeps my cardiovascular system running in high gear. Rest and recovery days are just as important as training days and allow my muscles time to repair.  Keeping a strong core and upper body are very important as well and 2 days a week I workout my core and upper body with a variety of bodyweight exercises. 

To keep my body fueled for these workouts, having a good diet is essential. As for training to climb where the saturation of oxygen in the air is 1/3 of that at sea level, having a high level of fitness will certainly benefit me but the key to my success will be slowly acclimatizing to the lower oxygen and air pressure levels. On the hill, climbing at a slower pace is less draining on my body and that will ensure that I have energy left for my summit bid at the end of May. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast. Climb On!” Max O’Meara 

Last words from a proud “Uncle Tom”: Max successfully conquered 23000 ft in Argentina (Mt. Aconcagua), his last “qualifying” climb. He is looking to offset the cost of the trip with sponsorships—so if you are interested in seeing your logo/ company name at the top of the world, this is your chance [max.omeara @ yahoo.com]. Haven’t known this man to fail yet! Just astounding that he graduated from high school two years ago and has already qualified for the climb. Climb On! Tom Rancich, CEO, VRHabilis