#semperannoying

[gunsgearandgirls]

The Marines still want me.....

[padgettsthoughts]

Fuck

I'm going to miss my battle buddy

[padgettsthoughts]

THIS IS SEMPERANNOYING. <===

ANNOYING THE SHIT OUT OF PADGETT (The person that runs this blog)

YOU SHOULD FOLLOW HIM BECAUSE I'M SEMPERANNOYING'S BEST BUDDY AND BUDDY IN THE BUDDY PROGRAM.

HE'S STILL A NOOB AT THIS BUT HE'LL GET IT.

[swolemix]

(kinda) Outta request:

A little tidbit on motivation!

I've been a pretty big slack-ass the last month on my personal workouts and workout goals. The main reasons being: 

Off on school break

Christmas with the family (the food)

Christmas with the family (the scheduling conflicts)

Christmas/New Year's with friends (you know why)

Anyway, I'm definitely kicking myself in the ass and pushing myself harder. So this is about motivation and how I'm managing to go from a month(ish) of slacking to back on my feet with 4-6 days of workouts.

I'm starting slow.  I'm not going to dive right back into the workout I had before slacking, no matter how much it rocked and killed me into glorious strength and endurance.  If I even tried that it would demotivate the hell outta me.  Instead I'm starting with more cardio than weight lifting.  Yes, a HUGE shock to everyone out there, I'm sure; but cardio has always been a morale booster for me because I can run, tuned out from everything else in the world around me (just me and my songs).  So doing more cardio while starting with a lighter weight lifting regimen will allow me to keep what strength and endurance I have left over and to get my body used to exercise once again.  Probably gonna be 3 days strict cardio and 2-3 days weight lifting (lighter weights, I'm not gonna go out and immediately pick back up with 185 bench press... probably start out with 135 and high reps to help boost metabolism and retrain myself, proper technique is a must)

I'm comparing myself to... MYSELF!!!!!  <gasp!!!!>  This is because I cannot judge anyone else based on me and cannot judge myself based on anyone else.  I love Fight Club (both book and movie) and although Tyler Durden states we are not unique beautiful snowflakes, I must disagree.  Every man/woman/child/person/individual is built differently from every other.  Stop judging yourself on others and do what makes you what you want (so long as you don't hurt any other being while doing so).  I have pictures of me at my best and at my worst and I use those as a reference to where I am now and where I would like to be.  Going from there I will reference those pictures every week or two to see how I've progressed.  Even Schwarzenegger (among many other body builders) was known to look at himself in the mirror to see his own weak points and what he wanted to improve on.

I'm setting goals based on myself and my life and my plans through life.  As you should know by now, I'm a sergeant and medic in the United States Army, Tennessee Army National Guard.  This means I must "always maintain my arms, my equipment, and myself."  You may say, "woah, dude you're just a 'Nasty Girl,'" and, insults aside, yes, I am National Guard, but that doesn't mean any less of my position or job.  I am also a member of a time honored corps, the Backbone of the Army, a leader of men.  Because of this I must stay physically ready for any job the Army is willing to throw at me.  I also plan on staying in until I'm eligible for retirement (at the earliest, I'll probably stay in afterwards for a bit longer, I don't wanna be completely retired at 41 years old).  All of this put together means I have to stay as true as possible to the Tactical Athlete aspect of exercise, in both strength and conditioning (endurance).  So I tailor my exercise routines to keep me at an acceptable weight and body fat percentage for the Army, while gaining as much strength and endurance as possible.  This means switching between bulking phases and what I call endurance phases (I've heard them called cutting or shredding or toning phases, I'll lose weight and some strength, but gain the ability to do a little bit lower weight at a much higher volume, basically my capacity for work goes up).  Each person has to find their own goals and build off of them for how they want to workout and to get the results they want.  Good luck finding it, I still struggle with this; but don't be despondent with that news, perseverance is key, and over time you'll get it!

I have new equipment.  This should be lower on the list because it is a very shallow thought process, but I was blessed enough to receive new running shoes for Christmas, and anytime you get something new that you know you will use there is a noticeable "perk-up" in your mood and thoughts and behavior.  The night I got these shoes I went and ran for the first time in a month and a half.  I didn't think I would make it a mile before wanting to stop (I planned on pushing through), but instead was able to go for three at the same pace I had been using before I stopped running.  Part of this was due to my previous running shoes being two years old and having at least 1300 miles on them, but it was also partially due from the "perk-up effect" (I'm coining that btw...).  As I also said though, this is a very shallow form of motivation and I understand that not everyone will be able to use this; however, a similar "perk-up effect" could be found by changing your diet, or allowing yourself certain treats after specific goals are met.  So pick something shallow (but not sinister) to reward yourself with along your trials and tribulations if you are unable to get new shoes or workout shorts or sweat bands (apparently sweat bands are coming back in style? idk...)

Hopefully this will help lift any spirits that are down and give insight to yourself and what you want.  It's taken me a long time to figure myself out and discover my strengths and weaknesses and to compensate for them.  Keep up the hard work, and, as always, send me a shout if you have any questions!  Here is the question mark?

And quick shout-out to #semperannoying for the compliments and motivation!!! Thanks dude!