Boot Camper in the Spotlight

Do You Know Joe?

At first glance Joe Hirschman is just an average guy. But there's a lot more than meets-the-eye with Joe. He joined Body Basics Boot Camps last January and has been a regular ever since. From day one Joe understood what boot camp is all about. He is always the first one to arrive at 6am and starts his own warm up whether it be running a lap or doing light calisthenics. I imagine Joe's a self-starter in all that he does.

Like many men his age, Joe had let his diet and exercise take a back seat so-to-speak to his work and family. It happens to the best of us Joe! I wouldn't be here today if I didn't have my own story to tell.

But unlike many people, Joe decided to change his life, and man is he is on a roll! Below is Joe's story in his own words. As you read Joe's narrative, imagine what you would challenge yourself with. What makes Joe so special? Well, in two worda, "Joe does", and that makes him our boot camper in the spot light.

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Joe's Story

As a prefix to this story, I realized at this point in my life I want and need to challenge myself. Most people reach a point and everything becomes routine or work-related, but they are unchallenged on a personal level. Last September I took on 3 distinct and new challenges.

In no particular order:

1. To perform 35,000 pushups in one year.
2. To start exercising on a regular basis and drop 20lbs.
3. To learn a second language.

I started doing 25 pushups each morning and night. Soon after a co-worker told me I inspired him to do 75 a day. Doing this many push ups a day would really add up and I decided I would do 100-a-day for an entire year or 35,000 pushups. One hundred a day would be a bigger challenge and just seemed so much more impressive.

Forty-five weeks later, I have now done over 32,000 pushups and I am now shooting for 36,000 to 37,000 total pushups for the year.

This takes determination and a some effort. In addition I train four days-a-week at 6am. I have greatly improved my diet and I am in better shape than I have been in for quite a few years. Our 6am workouts with Larry Wasserman at bodybasicsbootcamps.com are an even bigger challenge with bigger results. Not only am I reaching new goals, but I am taking better care of myself.

My third goal is also a work in progress. I have been taking Greek lessons for the last 6 months. I am able to read and write in Greek which even impresses me! I have a decent vocabulary but stringing together more than a simple sentence and conjugating verbs is very complex.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. My message to you is to ask you to challenge yourself. Every day we are challenged professionally and invest a huge amount of time in our family lives, but we don’t create personal challenges since we are so busy at home and at work. There is much more time than we realize. Turn off your TV and turn that time into something more productive. You just might amaze yourself.

- Joe Hirschman

What's Really Stopping You From Getting In Shape?

Last night I received an email from someone who informed me that he may join boot camp, but he has to check his schedule with his employer. I wrote him back with this message,"Good luck, hope it works out".

I was angry at myself for letting him off the hook so easily because this person just "doesn't get it". He doesn't understand that boot camp is a metaphor for life. Nothing ever seems to fit into my schedule in a way that is perfect. It seems that no matter what I plan, no matter how far in advance, something comes up that throws a monkey wrench into the works.

In the end we are left with having to make a choice. We can move forward as planned and deal with the inconveniences (or consequences), or change our plans to accommodate an easier plane of existence, i.e., less stress and greater peace of mind.

Well, I've lived long enough to be able to look you straight in the face and tell you that "option B" will get you nowhere. If you are willing to give in to whatever will keep you from your dreams and goals then you will never accomplish anything in life worth while.

If you are the type of person who always changes course the minute things get tough, so that you'll have a more comfortable life then you also need to evaluate what it is you are asking for. Take health and having a lean muscular body for example. Do you think the people that look amazing have lifestyles that allow them the ease and flexibility to go to the gym everyday? Do you think that none of them have marriages, kids, or careers?

Take a good look in the mirror and ask yourself, "What is it that I really want?" What ever it is, if you want it bad enough, you'll do whatever it takes to get it. And if you don't, then either you don't want it bad enough, or your "fear" of success and thus lack of confidence is running the show behind the scenes.

If you desire to be fit, there are tasks you must do every day and that require focus, diligence, and the tenacity to handle life's unpredictable events. Unfexpected chaos is around the corner all day long. Sometimes its a business meeting that could keep you at work for an hour longer than you planned. So, do you skip your "after work" training session altogether, or do you just go an hour later? Depends on how bad you want the end result, right?

So back to my young man who clearly hasn't learned this lesson yet. He doesn't know what he really wants, or he doesn't want it bad enough.

T. Harv Eker has a great saying. "How you do anything is how you do everything". Think about your life. Where do you put the majority of your focus? What events occupy your time the most? Are you out of balance? Maybe it's time to shift your priorities a bit.

Changing the way we do things is often the hardest thing to do for some people. You have to really want to make change in your life. You have to be very emotionally distressed by your circumstances to effect great change. It always comes with a price. You must also be willing to make the necessary sacrifices and that means being uncomfortable to a large degree.

In the end having a lean muscular body or achieving anything for that matter boils down to three things. They are: knowing what you want, having powerful reasons 'Why" you must achieve it, and then be willing to be uncomfortable until you suceed.

Press on!
Larry