Get Stronger To Stay Resilient
You are going to get older. There is no way currently available to stop that. Now, do you want to get older in great shape or do you want to get older in terrible shape?
This is Michael, the owner of Formal Fitness Training and I would like to share with you a story in hopes that you change your life because of it.
I watched my dad go from an energetic, nothing can stop him person down to a shell of his former self over the course of seven years before eventually another heart attack took him from us. Starting at age 63, my dad began dealing with cancer, heart attacks, blood clots, and other issues, which were managed with dozens of bottles of medications. See, my dad was never in shape after about the age of forty, though he was active through gardening and tending his three acres of land. He was a smoker, enjoyed eating a high salt and high fat diet and having daily drinks. Never worked out after he left the ARMY but did have a brief stint lifting weights with me after retirement before COVID-19 came and made him fearful to return to the gym. None of this is meant to paint my dad in a bad light. He was a humble man who would do anything for his family and friends. He just didn’t prioritize the importance of being strong, nutrient dense, and healthy. Eventually it caught up to him, and I saw him go from being able to do anything to mostly stranded in a chair, utilizing a walker. Then balance became an issue, and he would fall multiple times per week. Eventually a heart attack (not his first) ended his life at my mother’s feet.
I rarely share my personal life on this website, but I want you to have a better life than my dad did. I want you to live stronger and healthier and never give up on yourself. I want you to love, learn, grow, and make a difference in the world. Remember my dad going forward? Every day from thirty-eight onward, I will live without my father. I can’t help but think it could have been prevented had he followed the principles I provide my clients and people who read this blog daily.
Getting stronger will prevent you from struggling to get out of a chair; it will help you walk and maintain your balance into your golden years. If you are lucky enough to have built a decent amount of money to retire, it will allow you to go experience the things you couldn’t experience while you were working for decades.
How do I get stronger?
Getting stronger is going to require work, sacrifice, and a well-thought-out program. It could quite possibly be the thing that saves your life. When my clients tell me they were able to carry cat litter, groceries, or run up a flight of steps without getting out of breath, it makes me so happy. It is the reason that I continue to be a professional fitness trainer because I want people to be the best they can be.
Steps to getting stronger: 1. Get a well-programmed routine or hire someone to write it for you. 2. Learn how to exercise properly and how to execute the moves written in the program or hire a coach to teach you. 3. Learn exercise periodization and track the weights you lift each routine. Knowing when to increase weights will allow you to add 2-5% to your lifts monthly. 4. Decide when you will take a programmed week off weight training to allow your body to rest and recover so you can rebuild and be more resilient (the 4 R’s, for building strength and muscle). 5. Get a workout partner, trainer, or both, and then never stop sharing what getting strong did for you with anyone who will listen.
Onward and upward, live your life with vigor! Live your life with pride! Get your ass off the couch. I want you to succeed, and you deserve it!
With Love
Michael
Michael Hartman
My mission is to give personal training participants a safe and effective workout designed specifically for their goals. Dealing with many sports injuries over the years taught me how to come back stronger every time. The competition is with yourself... Strive to bring out your best self and get better every day!
