Recently, one of our coaches came across this article about comparisons to Military Fitness and Civilian Physical Fitness. After having spent time training members from the Naval Special Warfare community in Coronado we wanted to pass it along to our Veteran Training team and readers.

(And just to be clear on a personal note to a few of you from Team 3… No, we have not forgotten about the “issued” swimmies to swim the Coronado Bridge).

Training to be a Navy SEAL is far more challenging than training for an Ironman. But a Navy SEAL who has had recent Ironman success had these tips for would be Ironmen or even those who want to be successful at triathlon or whatever your athletic goals are.

1. Eliminate self-limiting thoughts. More often than not, people have preconceived notions about what is possible for them to achieve. They sell themselves short. Abolish thoughts that hold you back from achieving your true potential.

2. Optimize your skills. Everyone begins at a different place and each of us are dealt a different set of genetic cards. Use that to your advantage and optimize your assets.

3. Be willing to spend the effort and energy to be successful. Anyone can succeed if they are willing to work at it. Too many people want to reap rewards without the sacrifice that is necessary to achieve any goal.

4. Enjoy the journey. If you can enjoy the pursuit of excellence, you’ve got it made. Aiming to enjoy only the end result makes it impossible to endure the necessary sacrifices to achieve any goal really worth having.

5. Be a student. The more you understand about what it is you’re trying to do and how to do it, the easier it is to be successful. Be a student of your passion.

6. Persevere. There are many things that can get in the way of successfully achieving any goal. You have to be willing to figure out how to get over, under, around or through those obstacles. Keep trying.

7. Develop mental toughness. It is not the physical challenges that keep men from successfully surviving the SEAL training, it is mentally giving up. You need to start believing that you can do it, you can be successful. Others have been successful before you, you can do it too.

8. Be prepared to suffer. When you are training for an event as large as a 140.6-mile triathlon, it is a long haul. There is going to be bad weather, aching body parts and times when you are just plain tired. Know that some stress, followed by rest, will make you stronger physically and mentally.

9. Take strength from others. This tip is particularly valuable for race day. Right when you are thinking things are really bad for you, look around. You’ll see that others are suffering too. Knowing you’re not the only one and that other people will suffer generates energy, if you’re willing to accept it.

10. You must want success. Doing something that is difficult requires that you want to be successful with every fiber of your core. The intense desire to succeed helps you overcome obstacles that crush other people.

11. Avoid over-training. It is easy for highly motivated people to over train. Achievers are often rewarded for doing more and working harder. While you must work hard and do the prescribed work, you must also rest in order to reap the benefits.

You may not be capable of becoming a Navy SEAL, but you are capable of successfully becoming a triathlete. So be inspired and inspire others.

“The only easy day was yesterday.” – Displayed at the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado

Commissaries support Soldiers Fitness Program by helping families make healthy food choices:

 In its role as nutritional leader for the armed forces, the Defense Commissary Agency has rallied behind the Army’s new Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program to help soldiers and their families get fit by making healthy food choices at their commissary – and at savings of 30 percent or more on their purchases.

The new inspirational program calls for multidimensional fitness in the realms of physical, emotional, social, family and spiritual health.

Good nutrition plays a critical role in every facet of fitness. For Military on post your commissary can provide you with the tools you need to eat healthy.

The agencyon post  plans a TV spot for airing on military media educating DeCA customers about the program, as well as posting program information in commissaries worldwide. DeCA’s dietitian, Karen Hawkins, herself a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve, will not only talk about the program’s importance on various radio shows, she’ll also be available to answer questions from soldiers and their families about diet and nutrition.

Veteran Training would like to say thank you to our Brave men and women.

WASHINGTON – Too fat to fight? Many American children are so overweight from being fed french fries, pizza and other unhealthy foods at school lunchrooms that they cannot handle the physical rigors of being in the military, a group of retired officers say in a new report.

National security is threatened by the sharp rise in obesity rates for young people over the last 15 years, the group Mission: Readiness contends. Weight problems are now the leading medical reason that recruits are rejected, the group says, and thus jeopardize the military’s ability to fill its ranks.

In a report released Tuesday, the group says that 9 million young adults, or 27 percent of all Americans ages 17 to 24, are too fat to join the military. The retired officers were on Capitol Hill advocating for passage of a wide-ranging nutrition bill that aims to make the nation’s school lunches healthier.

The military group acknowledges that other things keep young adults out of the armed services, such as a criminal record or the lack of a high school diploma.

Although all branches of the military now meet or exceed recruitment goals, retired Navy Rear Adm. James Barnett Jr., a member of the officers group, says the obesity trend could affect that.

“When over a quarter of young adults are too fat to fight, we need to take notice,” Barnett said. He noted that national security in the year 2030 is “absolutely dependent” on reversing child obesity rates.

Recruitment isn’t the only problem posed by obesity. According to the report, the government spends tens of millions of dollars every year to train replacements for service members discharged because of weight problems.

This isn’t the first time the military has gotten involved in the debate over school lunches. During World War II, military leaders had the opposite problem, reporting that many recruits were rejected because of stunted growth and inadequate nutrition. After the war, military leaders pushed Congress to establish the national school lunch program so children would grow up healthier.

The program was established in 1946, “as a measure of national security,” according to the original bill language.

Today, the group is urging Congress to eliminate junk food and high-calorie beverages from schools, put more money into the school lunch program and develop new strategies that help children develop healthier habits.

The school lunch bill, currently awaiting a Senate vote, would establish healthier options for all foods in schools, including vending machine items. The legislation would spend $4.5 billion more over 10 years for nutrition programs.

The Army is already doing its part to catch the problem earlier, working with high schoolers and interested recruits to lose weight before they are eligible for service, says U.S. Army Recruiting Command’s Mark Howell. He added that he had to lose 10 pounds himself before he joined the military.

“This is the future of our Army we are looking at when we talk about these 17- to 24-year-olds,” Howell said. “The sad thing is a lot of them want to join but can’t.”

The first thing we tell new recruits we’re training to go into the service is: Don’t believe the movie magic.

Our Instructors and Coaches from the different Military Braches have been attached, trained and served side by side with the Military Elite. But one of our daily questions is, “How do Navy SEALS train to hold their breath?”

The answer… they don’t.

Veteran Training provides the Best Triathlon Coaching, Personal Training & Boot Camp Services in Pembroke, Hanover, Hingham, Duxbury, Kingston, Plymouth, Scituate, Cohasset & Marshfield Massachusetts.

Veteran Training would like to says Great Job to MSG Eric Ross & MSG Eric Turk, Special Operations Command (Our own Alma Mater), winners of the 2010 Best Ranger Competition.

In July 1981, the Ranger Training Department was asked to design and conduct a “Ranger Olympics” in order to identify the best two-man Ranger team in the Army. From the beginning, the objective was clear, competition should place extreme demands on the team’s physical, mental and technical abilities as Rangers. The standards of performance must vastly exceed those required by the average Soldier.

The competition is a 3-day event consisting of physical and mental tasks undertaken with very little rest between events. Selected events must be completed to remain in the competition. The historical attrition rate averages approximately 60%. Competitors are not aware of test sequence until arriving at the test site. The competition has grown over the years to be one of the highlights for Fort Benning with multi-media coverage and outstanding guest speakers.

 This week the Two-man U.S. Army Ranger teams competed in the annual David E. Grange Jr. Best Ranger Competition at Fort Benning May 7 through 9, 2010.

The three-day competition challenges the two-man Ranger teams in events that will test their physical conditioning, Ranger skills and team strategies. The events are purposely scheduled back-to-back and around the clock from the start of the competition to the finish line.

Conducted on a ‘come as you are’ basis, no tasks or events are announced prior to the competition. In the past, competitors have faced events such as rock wall climbing, rappelling, weapons firing, rope bridges, extended road marches and land navigation courses, Rangers skills and parachute jumps.

All events are timed and competitors score points for each completed event. Both team members must complete each task. It is estimated that each competitor will cover upwards of 60 miles on foot over the course of the weekend.

The Best Ranger Competition was established in 1982 and has been a mix of the Ironman and Eco-Challenge competitions all rolled into one event. Of the 49 teams that started the 2009 competition, only 24 finished the last event, a 9-mile canoe event followed by a four-mile buddy run to the finish line at Fort Benning’s Freedom Hall.

*We also would like to mention the other Special Operations Command Members who placed in the 2nd and 3rd place positions.