This being my first blog article I wanted to write something interesting about fitness. Something to get you excited about what I have to say in the future. Maybe a tip that you don’t yet know. A “secret” if you will to help you “magically” lose fat, gain muscle, look hot in a bathing suit, be stronger, feel better, etc., etc. But I think what is most important is to get you thinking about why. Why should I get off the couch? Why should I eat healthy? Why should I MOVE?! (and I promise the “interesting” stuff is to come)...
I’ve been coming across this subject a lot lately. Too often, in fact, to go on any further without attempting to answer it for you, my fellow man or woman. What it all comes down to is, SURVIVAL.
Someone asked me recently what I am interested in when looking for a future mate or “co-creator”. The first thing that came to my mind was that I am looking for a survivor. A man that I know will be able to survive if something out of the ordinary happens. I’m not looking for the guy that makes the most money. Not the attractive model type guy. And certainly, as I am so not a materialistic person, I am not looking for the man (as I roll my eyes) that has the nicest watch or the diamond necklace. I can go on and on here. What I am interested in is, will he be able to survive if or when the, excuse me… sh!t hits the fan.
What do I mean by this? Let me try to explain.
It is no secret that I am obsessed with zombies. I love the movies, the books, the comics. Anything having to do with zombies, I am in. Not because I want to be a zombie. *Cringe!* But I am interested because, if it’s possible that they will someday roam the earth by biological warfare or any other way, I want to be ready. If anything is possible, I want to be ready for it. Or, take for example, the devastation that happened in the movie 2012.
If there is a worldwide catastrophe, I want to be ready. If there is a local catastrophe, I want to be ready. Don’t you?! Can you honestly say that you are ready? Can you run without stopping for 30 minutes? 15? Five? How about this, can you run at all?!
If you have to pull yourself out of or to the top of something to save your life, and be honest with yourself because you are the only one that needs to know, can you? Try it now.
If you have to carry your child and a bag of supplies across country, can you? Or, as Gene posed to me one day, if someone breaks in to your house and goes after your family, can you protect them?
If you are a woman, can you protect yourself?
Of course you can argue that this will not happen. Factor in religious beliefs and depending on them maybe you think you will be saved from disaster because you follow your faith so devoutly. But why chance it? I know this may upset you, but please understand that I am not attempting to dispel your beliefs. Consider, even on a small scale, what the world has been through recently. Remember the devastation of Hurricane Katrina when it hit New Orleans. How many people were displaced let alone how many perished? And remember the tsunami that hit Sri lanka and literally wiped the region clean.
Okay, these are extreme examples, and yes at ground zero there will be little chance for survival. But wouldn’t you want to have a chance to save yourself and your family because you are physically ready? If anything happens, wouldn’t you want to save yourself from fire, extreme weather, or from other people?
Learn how to protect yourself now. Learn how to grow food on your own. Learn to build a fire. Learn how to clean water for drinking. Learn first aid. Learn how to construct and how to fix. And please do yourself a favor and MOVE! Push, pull, jump, climb, crawl, run, (fight!) and be ready to save yourself, your family, and your neighbor. Yes, you can prepare and enjoy it all the while. Enjoy feeling healthy. Enjoy looking healthy. Play a sport, pick up a new hobby, build something, and be social.
But most important of all, be ready!
Gene Townsel is a fellow personal trainer at American Family Fitness Southside, as well as a father, coach, and future survivor.
