Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Physical conditioning books????

Nah, I did enjoy working out with a former IDF unarmed combat instructor and another guy who was one in the 22nd SAS and even older than ME. But, guys like that lose interest and take other jobs, leaving the "lattes" to pose as instructors. Vancouver is like Seattle, lotsa "lattes" and desk jockies, it ain't a loggin'town no more.

Seriously, give crossfit a whirl for 6 weeks and let me know what you think. Plus, there's two affliates in Vancouver to help you get going.

"I need to be able to keep up with my partner, just 40, climber in Alps, Himalayas, skier, hunter and hiker. I know about keeping fit for an old guy, but, I want to really kick butt and just need the up-to-date techniques shown here."

If I remember your in your early 60's. Think turtle and finish the race. You need more than "up-to date techniques", when staying up with 40 year old Alps and Himalaya climbers, skiers, hunters and hikers. That is an elite class of individual. Be careful internet friend. A qualified personal trainer may be money well spent.

Battue

I'm surprised at how hard yoga can be. It's actually helped strengthen a lot of the back muscles that were messed up in my accident.

Kutenay,
From your posts, sounds like your 40 year old 'partner' is pretty athletic and for you to achieve that same level of strength, endurance and flexibility may be a challenge.

Is your 'partner' a she ?

Take your time..work on breathing, resiliance, flexibility exercises..Keep the core strong and the hamstrings and glutes flexible..that'll keep the lower back from getting dragged down ..

Dancing isn't bad exercise...and is fun with the right music and partners..

I dance with my two beagle dogs for 30 minutes every day when I get home just to see them roll their eyes and bark & howl at me..:)

Stair climbing..as dull as it can be( UP & DOWN SLOOOWLY, shifting your weight to the leading foot leg ONLY after it has been placed..)

is great exercise..

I'll be 60 next May..and move more thoughtfully and deliberately than when I was 25..or 45..BUT I still can go the distance..

As your strength and resiliancies improve, get the pack out and load it up and walk with it in rough country or on the stairs in the closest eight story building..:)

Attend to your diet, proper vitamins, maybe some glucosamine-chondoitin for the joints..or just eat the ends off chicken bones and some salmon steaks broiled twice a week..:)
A whole lot of staying in good condition is your mind and heart-set..Refuse to die and be weak..Jim

Jim: I need more training in reading between the lines!!!

Battue

What I've learned, I'm closing in on 64, is that staying in shape must be done year around. That can be very boring. I "get by" by putting a movie on the machine to take my mind off of the drugery.
The other thing I've learned is that the muscles get much stronger, faster than the ligaments and the tendions. That's why so many runners - 70% - injure themselves and quit before they finnish a year if they are new or returnee's to running. If you have any physical damage, I'd seek the advice of a therapist and go as slow as they say you should. Sure, you may not get to the level of your partner, but at least you have a real chance to heal properly and, eventually, have a shot at it.
I've seen it over and over. Over training, too much, too soon, and the injuries just get worse. Unfortunately, they often take a very long time to heal properly. Always way too long. I know of no other way to do it.
Best of luck and advice to you. Would like to see you around for many more years. E

I wonder what the average age that "use it or lose it" really starts to sink in... for me it was late 30's when I had to stop playing B-ball and started to feel "old".

My wife has become a fitness fiend. Eremicus is dead-nuts correct about too much, too fast. I keep trying to tell my wife that. I always played sports, she didn't (although she's naturally skinny and fit). Anyway I'm an old pro at nursing injuries along and she's in new territory. Kind of breaks my heart to see her limping around the house, but she's obsessed and won't stop running. So yes- muscles get stronger much faster than tendons and ligaments, and if you do too much too fast you'll end up with tendonitis (my personal show-stopper) or another chronic injury that will put the kibbosh on your fitness program for YEARS possibly.

I'm "only" 42 but I can read the writing on the wall, and it says that from now on, I can choose to be in pain from inactivity, or pain from activity... might as well stay active.

My wife has been reading any number of books lately. I'll ask her which ones stand out. I've been going to the gym with her (hey, Hells Canyon elk next year!! It's already time to start training for THAT!) and my favorite for low-impact is probably the eliptical trainer. I LOVE to swim but I just hate pools.. so I do that in "wild" water, rivers and lakes, in the summer. But swimming is amazing exercise. Just the chlorine... bleah.

I took a number of yoga classes, Kunda Lini (sp) in college. The idea was not so much fitness as other things back then. At any rate, it can be INCREDIBLY physical. It's much more about core strength and -not to get too hippy dippy here- getting your body energy functioning right. Pretty amazing stuff. Take a class with young attractive women in it for an added bonus.

To me the number one villian is IMPACT. For that reason, my favorite "dangerous" activities are hiking and downhill skiing. Skiing is an incredible builder of core strength and is remarkably low-impact, though it's hard on your knees in some ways other than impact. At any rate I credit skiing, and no longer working retail on my feet all day, with the wonderful and unforeseen lack of pain in my bad hip- which I, uh, tore up skiing 20 years ago. :-)

-jeff

Some terrific advice above...

I'm 51, and my work varies between long bouts at the computer writing reports and pretty physical fieldwork. The former is toxic, and the ratio is getting worse. A couple of years ago, thinking about heavy longbows, elk hunting, and my increasing pain and soreness, I went through a number of books, a couple of videos, and talked to a bunch of people. Here is what I found:
1) Eremicus is dead on about joint strength. You can train for that, primarily by going slow and building steadily.
2) You need to do resistance and cardio, both. No getting around it. And you need to supplement them with some flexibility and balance training.
3) You also need to do what you are training for, but do it harder.
4) Not to contradict #3, but you also need variety. Crossfit is great.
5) The whole new thing of functional exercise (getting various muscle groups working together efficiently, especially in the core) is not a gimmick.
6) Psychological stress really truncates performance. And regular rest is good.

The two books that really made a difference for me are:
Core Performance Essentials, by Mark Verstegen.
Outside Magazine's guide to training (I don't remember the precise title).

The Egoscue books on stretching and rebalancing exercises were also very helpful. There was a great deal of asymmetry in my strength. I also use the Marine Corps training manual.

My routine, even when I'm working long hours, is to do the Verstegen routine and some minor supplemental stuff for 30 minutes 3x week, plus a little warm-up and stretching. I'll mix it up with the Marine Corps techniques when I'm stagnating or bored, but that's not often. Verstegen's techniques (and those of his competitors) kick ass. Then twice a week I'll hit a rowing machine (at home), gym stuff (ellipticals, etc.) near my office for a break, or take the dog for a river swim or woods run in reasonable weather. I do intervals on the cardio machines, and you can get in a full workout that way in 20 minutes. I'll supplement with pullups and some quick freeweight routines here and there, usually after cardio. On weekends I either make up for missed sessions or take a break, but there's usually something physical going on.

Several months before elk season, I'll start loading a backpack with weight plates, getting up to 80 lbs or so, to build the stabilizing strength that actually allows you to pack meat without injury or soreness.

I need to find something more for stress relief/flexibility. The yoga chick thing has profound charms and physical benefits, no doubt, but--and talk about flame material--what really worked for me when I tried it in grad school (again, due to a woman) was tai chi. It improved my mood, my general physical well-being, and my balance. I just need to take some time (in short supply these days) to get into it.

I tried taking a combination yoga-pilates class at the health club near my office a couple of winters ago, thinking it would be good for me and combine contact with both yoga AND Pilates women. Instead, it felt like hourly sessions at Abu Ghraib. I did find out the distracting fact that there are women in Missoula who spend a lot of time doing yoga and Pilates and could likely break my back, using only a small number of core muscles...

But I digress. Doing the Verstegen/cardio/loaded backpack routine, and probably in less time than it sounds like, I found hunting this year the easiest in a long time. My young son and a guy I occasionally hunt with complained. With my two closest hunting partners, who also train hard, we did some very tough bivy hunts. And, at the risk of cliche, though I started all this only to hunt harder, I have also come to resent it when I have to miss a session. We are all creatures of habit, I suppose.

This is a great book
http://books.google.com/books?id=Mc7-AQAACAAJ&dq=inauthor:Mark+inauthor:Verstegen

Firedog--
Agreed; that's one I referred to in my post. Incidentally, Kute, you don't need or you can improvise most of the equipment Verstegen and others want you to use. I'd buy an exercise ball in the right size, a chin up bar, some resistance bands, free weights, and maybe a simple bench, but that's it. The latter two can be procured very cheaply at yard sales or through classified ads almost anytime.

Verstegen has great info like you mentioned. We use his books in the Fire station to keep in shape. Have found the workouts in the book linked above to be very easy to follow and also full of information. I have three of his books and all are great.

it's one of them fad diet foods... fermented bovine bodily fluids....

Hey Kute,

I've been using this set up of resistance bands for two years now. I have had to buy some replacement bands due to wear, but all and all ironmind makes a great product here:

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/prodinfo.asp?number=1240

Also, if you are considering cables/bands for resistance this book written by John Brookfield is very good. Has some very innovative exercises in it:

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/ironmind/prodinfo.asp?number=1303

A word of caution for anyone using bands. Make sure if you�re performing exercises where the band(s) are close to your face that you have some sort of protective sheaf over them. Had a band break about a year ago and it left a heck of a welt on my cheek. Can't imagine what would of happened if it hit my eye.

Levi

Oh yeah, I forgot...
'strawberry banana low fat yoga'

Hello Guys

Interesting thread. I find Gyms to be very counterproductive mentally - i.e. its hard to remain motivated, so now I don't use one.

I think its very important to find an exercise mode you can enjoy - even though you have to work hard physically !!

I'm a bit lucky in that I still enjoy running (at 46), and have no issues with it (yet?). But I only run cause I need it to build heart lung capacity for rowing.

Sliding seat rowing (and for that matter fixed seat) is very low impact, uses a lot of muscle groups and requires/maintains a high degree of flexibility. Best of all in nearly any location it is away from most other folks, in a generally restful environment ie on the water. If for any reason you can't get on the water I haven't seen a rowing club yet that doesn't have a Concept II rowing machine.

It will take a while for a novice to be able to handle a single, but once mastered it is very good both mentally and physically.

Cheers - Foster

Women in tight athletic clothing are good motivators to work out. They have those in my gym. It works for me....:)

All look and no touch soon wears a guy down . . . .

Book I used was called PT for the Navy Seal. It focused on working out with the only necessary equipment being a chinup bar, everything else is based on body weight exercises. I still have some goals that need heavy weights to accomplish but I find myself moving more and more towards some of the off beat training methods just to stay motivated. I have been pushing the iron pretty hard since I was 16 and variety takes some of boredom away. Recently I have been playing with a couple of 20lb kettle balls a perfectpushup.com kit to take some pain away from my wrist and running.

I notice everyone gave tips on how to speed you up to stay with the 40 year old but Im more devious. I say on the first break or even before you leave the car cram as much of your heavy stuff into his back as possible

Good cardio condition gets you to the game, but raw strength and joint stability gets it off the hill and out of the steep stuff safely. Best exercise for making your knees track straight, and for adding severe strength to your hips/thighs/hams, is the freeweight squat - no machines. That's all well and good, but it's a rare occasion that anyone whom I see in a typical gym squatting is doing so correctly. Things to remember:

1. Barbell resting either immediately above or immediatly below ridge on shoulder blades. It only hurts the first two times you do it, so don't use a pad.
2. Head up, take HUGE breath - this will force your spine to stay straight.
3. Feet a bit wider than shoulder width, toes pointed in same direction as kneecaps (whatever direction is most comfortable - for me it's "out" just a touch, not straight ahead).
4. Settle yourself down as if you were told to sit in a low stool below and behind you, but you don't know for sure that the jackass who told you to "sit" actually placed a stool there.
5. Drop until top of thigh is parallel to floor
6. Keep weight over heels/arches, not on toes

If you get to where you are not limited by your technique, but rather your strength, and you work on that edge for a while, no other exercise will add overall body strength like the heavy squat. It is so physically taxing, that other muscle groups receiving little or no attention will grow as well, due to increased testosterone production.