One challenge that many of us face when trying to stay in shape is traveling. Now this travel could be for military deployments or business travel. Either way, even a short trip can throw a wrench into your fitness routine. Trust me when I tell you I have plenty of experience in this area and I talk a lot about this in my book corpsstrength.com.

The bottom line is I’ve been dealing with it all my adult life and still doing it since I retired from the Marine Corps. Just last week I made a return trip of almost 40 hours from Sierra Leone, Africa. The training we did there was awesome, but the trip over and back was not fun. There is no way around the fact that a trip of that length sucks, and there is going to be some jag lag and fatigue. The point is that you can take a few steps to make travel have much less of an impact on your health and workout routine.

First, if at all possible, you need to get some PT in before you get on the road. This will go a long way. We all know how airports are nowadays, the crowds, TSA, rushing around, it can make you nuts. If you can, get up early and get a workout in before you go, it will really take the edge off of your attitude. This is especially true if you are going to have to go through international airports, and especially so when you travel to 3rd world countries.

The second part is how you eat and drink during your trip. Now I have sat in airport bars and drank beer for hours waiting for flights and I still think a FEW beers can be a good thing, but if you drink to much while you are traveling you will pay for it later. It just seems that airplane “air” makes your a hangover worse, so try to keep your drinking minimal. With that limit your coffee, too much caffeine will add to your jet lag. I go with only 1 cup in the am on travel days. If you must drink coffee after that go decaf.

As far as food goes, its been my experience to try to eat very little while traveling. I avoid fast food and anything fried or high fat. Want to get sick? Just load up on too much coffee, greasy airport food, throw a half dozen beers, then get on a long plane ride. Its a sure plan to feel worthless when you get to your destination. I stick with low fat, high protein sandwiches and high octane snacks like trail mix, beef jerky and fruit.

You also need to constantly drink bottled water, traveling by air will dry you out in short order. To be perfectly honest when I get on a long flight, (6 hours plus) I get a apple juice, drop an Ambien and go to sleep. The combination of high carb juice and the medicine knocks me right out. Too much chow and/or alcohol tends to make it hard to sleep even with a sleep aid. Soft earplugs and a sleep mask are a must.

After you get to your destination, make every effort to get your body clock to match your new surroundings. This may mean you have to stay up when your tired but it will be a big help to get in some PT as soon as you can. After I returned from my recent trip late on Sat night. I slept a few hours then I got up early Sunday morning and went for a run. Now this run would never make the Olympic standard, but it did get me going. I then went to work early Monday morning after a another PT session and even after that 2 day trip from hell I was pretty much back to normal. By comparison the guy I traveled with had to take 2 days off to recover and still was half ass when he came back to work on Weds.

No doubt these types of trips will tire you out, however they don’t need to totally beat you down and screw up your routine long term, it just takes some planning and a little discipline to make it a whole lot less hassle. Good luck and be safe.
Semper Fi
MGunz

Note – My class, these are the most senior NCO’s in the Sierra Leone armed forces. We had a great 3 weeks of training. Everything from Land Navigation to International Terrorism. Great group of (tough) guys.

The book, ‘Corps Strength’ is also available from our friends at OP Tactical.

Now that the holidays are over, it probably comes as no surprise that we’ve put on a few pounds. Really? You mean weeks of partying, drinking and eating lots of great food, combined with lets just say a “reduced” PT schedule would cause you to gain some weight? No kidding Sherlock. Now its time to get back into the groove and shed that holiday weight before it starts adding up. Now forget the New Years resolution crap, you need to do this the right way. IMO the worst thing you can do to accomplish this is to start some “quick fix” nonsense you saw on TV, some infomercial diet, supplement or workout program to try and lose the extra pounds overnight. First off they are unhealthy, expensive and in the vast majority of cases do not work long term. Losing weight and getting in shape first starts with the right “mindset” and continues with a solid plan and consistent effort. In my best selling book: Corps Strength I discuss the proper way to lose and then maintain a healthy bodyweight. I include a common sense eating plan that I have used and have recommended to many others (with great success) for years. I was started using this diet over 30 years ago when I was a AAU boxer and I had to make the 147 lbs weight class, but still have the strength to fight. It worked well for me (didn’t help keep me from getting punched in the face however) and It doesn’t require any special foods or supplements. Losing weight and then keeping it off will never be easy, but it’s not impossible and I actually think it’s not as hard as many people make it. My plan has worked for hundreds and it can work for you to. Try It. Be safe and good luck.

Semper Fi
MGunz

In the US military each branch of the service has its own physical fitness test and even within each branch there are different PT tests for special duties (such as Special Forces). While they are all different the purpose is basically the same; to measure a service members level of physical conditioning. Running, pushups, crunches, swimming, etc. are just some of the different methods used to accomplish this. However in my opinion the absolutely best way (and the simplest) to test strength is by the pull-up. There is no way to fake a pull-up, either you can pull your weight up, or you can’t. It’s a pure and honest way to gauge your strength, and it’s not only a way to measure your fitness, but should be a staple of any workout routine. I have been doing them for over 30 years and have made them apart of every training plan I put together for Marines and International students alike. In my book Corps Strength I outline several different ways to effectively incorporate pull-ups into PT. I also outline how to improve your pull up ability. Yes they are a hard exercise, hard to do and hard to improve, but in the end worth it. Try it.

Be safe
MGunz

Just about everyday here at the International training center I run PT with my foreign military students. One of the (many) things I had to adjust to from my 28 years in the Marine Corps is that international military’s all have very different views on PT. Depending on the country, their programs vary from something like our US training, to mostly playing soccer, to almost nothing. So you can guess that these students arrive in a wide range of physical condition, experience and understanding of how to PT. To overcome these different backgrounds I’ve had to keep it simple and basic to make it effective. You can’t get deep in the weeds with complicated training routines when some of your students are literally wearing the first pair of actual “running shoes” that they have ever had on their feet. Plus, back in their home country they may not have access to any exercise equipment at all. Despite our “low tech” approach, the funny thing is that when utilizing the most basic of programs, consisting of calisthenics, stretching, aerobic conditioning and combat related movements our students make great improvements in their physical condition. It just proves something I know from years of training people, that you don’t need the high tech, latest and greatest exercise gear (and expensive supplements) to get and stay in great shape, to include keeping your weight in check. In my book “Corps Strength” I outline an effective and simple system to get you in top condition that has worked for thousands. Keep in mind that simple and basic doesn’t mean easy however, so it stills takes effort in any case. However the bottom line is the that it works and that is what keeping it simple is all about. Try it.
Good Luck
MGunz

I can’t post pics of my international students, this is a pic of me carrying a fellow instructor during PT.

It was just another day in Iraq, after a few months everyday seems the same. Truly a Ground hog” day. I was walking back from the Tac Center to my hootch when I heard that loud whistling overhead roar that’s either a low flying jet or incoming round (we didn’t do out bound from Al-Asad). Before I could actually figure it out, I felt the ground shudder and then heard the familiar dull thud of an Iraqi rocket landing about 1/4 mile to my left. Right after that, another overhead “Whoose” and another thud, only this time closer and to my front. I didn’t wait for the third (which came a few seconds later) I was hauling ass for the building. It may be the fastest 100 yards I ever ran on my life. I don’t think my feet actually touched the ground. LOL. Luckily no one was hurt from that barrage, the rockets mostly landed in a nearby helo parking area. The point of this lame “war story” is that sometimes you just have to run to save your ass. I only had to run a little way in that case but the fact is as a member of the military, those in law enforcement or firefighting, your very survival could easily be determined by how fast, or how far you can run. In my opinion, running is the single best fitness exercise there is. I also don’t think there is a better way to burn calories to help keep your weight in check. Plus, you can do it almost anywhere. In my book Corps Strength I outline how to include running in an effective overall fitness plan. I know many people don’t like to run, and some will tell you that running is bad for you. Well I have been running almost daily for over 30 years and while I sometimes feel every minute of my 51 years I have no physical problems from it, and I will continue to do so until that big rocket finally catches up with me. Until then I’ll keep going and I highly suggest you do the same.

Semper Fi
MGunz