The Art of Manliness - April 03, 2014


Episode #23： Navy SEAL Training With Stew Smith


Episode Stats

Length

28 minutes

Words per Minute

176.37503

Word Count

5,103

Sentence Count

331

Misogynist Sentences

2

Hate Speech Sentences

1


Summary

In this episode, retired Navy SEAL Stu Smith talks about his experience as a Navy SEAL and what it takes to become a member of the elite fighting force, the United States Navy SEALs. He also discusses the training that SEALs undergo and how to prepare for it.


Transcript

00:00:00.000 Brett McKay here and welcome to another edition of the Art of Manliness podcast.
00:00:19.740 Now, the U.S. Navy SEALs have a reputation as being one of the world's most elite fighting
00:00:24.940 forces.
00:00:26.100 They're often the first soldiers in, performing special operations like small direct attacks
00:00:29.980 and special reconnaissance.
00:00:31.860 Because of the dangers that SEALs are placed in, though, Navy SEALs have to be tough, both
00:00:36.380 physically and mentally.
00:00:38.260 Candidates wishing to become Navy SEALs must go through buds, what many military experts
00:00:42.280 describe as the toughest military training in the world.
00:00:45.720 And how does a man prepare for something like that?
00:00:48.720 Well, our guest today helps men prepare for the grueling training of the Navy SEALs.
00:00:52.860 His name is Stu Smith.
00:00:54.300 Stu is a retired Navy SEAL himself and is now a certified strength and conditioning specialist
00:00:59.160 devoting his time and energy to helping other people achieve their dreams of serving in
00:01:03.400 law enforcement, emergency services, and the military, particularly in the field of special
00:01:08.160 operations.
00:01:09.580 Stu has written several books on the topic of fitness, such as The Complete Guide to Navy
00:01:13.180 SEAL Fitness, The Special Ops Workout, and The SWAT Workout.
00:01:17.080 In addition to writing books, Stu has also appeared on shows like National Geographic's
00:01:21.160 Fight Science, where he provides his expertise on Navy SEAL training.
00:01:25.280 Stu, welcome to the show.
00:01:26.260 Hey, thanks for having me.
00:01:28.420 It's an honor.
00:01:29.400 All right.
00:01:30.100 Well, Stu, let's just get right off the first question.
00:01:32.340 Let's just talk about your background, because I'm sure our listeners are interested in your
00:01:36.360 experience as a Navy SEAL.
00:01:37.960 Why did you become a Navy SEAL?
00:01:41.540 Well, good question.
00:01:44.260 I would have to say that my first objective was I knew I wanted to serve my country somehow,
00:01:50.700 and I really wasn't sure in my early teens, because I have family members that are firemen,
00:01:57.020 police officers, military, retirees, and veterans.
00:02:01.280 I knew one of those things I was going to do, and I wound up going to the Naval Academy and
00:02:07.820 then really starting to learn more about Navy SEALs.
00:02:12.000 Originally, I decided I wanted to probably be a pilot when I went to the Naval Academy,
00:02:17.180 but then there were some SEALs on board, and I tell you what, they just kicked our butts,
00:02:21.680 and it was something that I guess I enjoyed.
00:02:25.980 And I knew I wasn't going to play any more football, so I decided to turn my body around
00:02:34.680 from a powerlifting football player into more of an endurance-type, you know, stamina guy
00:02:42.140 like Navy SEAL training required, and it took me a couple years to do it, but I wound up doing it,
00:02:48.220 and just I've been doing it ever since.
00:02:50.760 I'm in my 40s now and really enjoy that type of training.
00:02:54.540 Wow. And so how long were you a Navy SEAL?
00:02:57.940 Almost eight years.
00:03:00.380 Wow.
00:03:00.820 So I didn't retire.
00:03:02.580 Okay.
00:03:03.140 Retirees are, you know, 20 years and above, but I resigned after eight years.
00:03:08.080 Okay.
00:03:08.980 So, yeah.
00:03:09.580 Okay.
00:03:10.280 Well, so like I said in the intro, and I've seen plenty of shows about this, but the Navy SEALs
00:03:15.720 BUDS training, it has a reputation of being one of the most grueling physical experiences
00:03:20.440 in the world.
00:03:20.960 And what goes on at a typical BUDS training?
00:03:24.540 Well, I will tell you this.
00:03:26.740 It is grueling.
00:03:28.580 It's, you know, pretty challenging.
00:03:30.280 However, if you go there very prepared, and when I say very prepared, I mean, being able
00:03:36.120 to run and swim and do hundreds of repetitions of calisthenics, you actually do pretty well.
00:03:43.000 And, you know, after four years of Naval Academy, I actually thought Naval Academy or BUDS training
00:03:50.560 was a lot easier than four years at the Naval Academy.
00:03:55.040 So, it is possible to make it through that type of training, but it requires really a couple
00:04:01.940 years of preparation to do it.
00:04:03.860 But, you know, an average day, you're probably going to spend a couple hours each day doing
00:04:09.000 some kind of workout.
00:04:10.120 And these are usually calisthenic-based pull-ups, lots of variety of abs, push-ups, dips, usually
00:04:18.920 four or five miles worth of running.
00:04:22.080 However, there's extra things that go on through the day that just kind of grind on you.
00:04:26.820 Like, just running to meals, it's a mile run to where you eat from where you train and
00:04:32.940 a mile back.
00:04:34.000 So, you do that three times a day.
00:04:36.380 And then, you know, typically every week there's a two-mile ocean swim.
00:04:42.300 There's a four-mile timed run on the beach in boots and pants.
00:04:47.040 And, you know, there's an obstacle course that's a pretty tough obstacle course.
00:04:50.280 Typical obstacle course takes you about, you know, anywhere from seven to eight minutes.
00:04:54.740 But it's so hard.
00:04:56.860 I mean, it's in soft sand, lots of upper body work, rope climbs, you know, things like that.
00:05:01.940 And, of course, you know, all the boats that you see on the documentaries, you know, carrying
00:05:06.580 those boats around for several hours a day wears you out, too.
00:05:11.060 So, you know, after, you know, a 12 to 14-hour day of that, you're pretty done.
00:05:16.740 Wow, yeah, I can imagine.
00:05:19.020 And one of the things that you often see in the documentaries and the shows about Buds
00:05:22.900 is that infamous bell that you ring if you're ready to quit.
00:05:27.840 Why do you think, I mean, what separates the men from the boys in Buds training?
00:05:32.280 Why do men fail the training program?
00:05:36.100 Well, you know, that bell was something that I think we all kind of feared.
00:05:40.340 But we didn't want to go anywhere near it.
00:05:42.540 Because we were afraid that if we went anywhere near it, it would kind of suck you in.
00:05:46.440 You know, so every time it came out, I just wouldn't even look at it.
00:05:51.580 You know, it was one of those things that, you know, I just tried to avoid.
00:05:55.800 But, you know, unfortunately, there is a majority of the people that go to SEAL train and don't
00:06:01.580 make it.
00:06:02.000 And the prime reason is they're just not prepared.
00:06:05.480 And that can be a variety of things, prepared mentally or prepared physically.
00:06:10.360 And when I say mentally, maybe you're just not prepared to handle, you know, people yelling
00:06:17.820 at you and being stressed out and being tired and having to do the same thing over again.
00:06:23.300 Maybe it's, you know, mentally as well, because you're very uncomfortable because you always
00:06:28.160 have sand on you.
00:06:29.800 So you're going to have sand in your pants and your boots, you know, pretty much all day.
00:06:35.260 I mean, you're just wet and sandy most of the day.
00:06:37.620 So there's a discomfort level that's not, that's a big killer.
00:06:43.860 Physically, you know, people fail in the runs, the swims, not being very comfortable in the
00:06:49.040 water.
00:06:49.540 And the water's cold.
00:06:50.740 That's another one.
00:06:52.400 You know, typically the water's somewhere between 50 and 60 degrees year-round out there.
00:06:57.960 And it doesn't take long to, you know, really get hypothermic.
00:07:01.880 But those are usually the biggest things.
00:07:03.600 I mean, injuries occur as well, you know, from people not being properly physically conditioned
00:07:08.140 enough to handle the mileage of running and the long ocean swims as well.
00:07:15.000 I imagine there's, I can see a lot of men who think they're really physically fit and
00:07:20.800 in shape, think they can just walk in and breeze by, but they actually weren't prepared
00:07:25.760 for the training.
00:07:26.680 Does that happen a lot?
00:07:27.960 Oh, absolutely.
00:07:29.540 I mean, people think that, you know, a 45 or 60-minute, you know, workout in the weight
00:07:36.400 room is going to prepare you for, you know, a day at SEAL training.
00:07:40.880 But when that day at SEAL training is, you know, 12 hours of some form of activity, you
00:07:48.500 know, no 45 to 60-minute weight room workout is going to do it.
00:07:51.800 I mean, you really need to spend, you know, several hours in a day running and swimming
00:07:56.480 and doing calisthenics.
00:07:58.240 You can add some weights if you need to just to work on your upper body strength.
00:08:02.360 But for the most part, it's just lack of preparation and just thinking that you're prepared just
00:08:10.140 because you were maybe a high school athlete and this is what you did for football training.
00:08:14.800 And, you know, it's really a different thing.
00:08:16.960 Like I said, I had my wake-up call when I went to Naval Academy and realized that I was not in shape.
00:08:23.080 And I thought I was.
00:08:25.780 And, you know, I could bench press a truck, but, you know, I couldn't do sets of 50 push-ups
00:08:32.300 over and over and over again like the guys that were going to SEAL training could.
00:08:36.540 And they just beat us down.
00:08:39.320 And, you know, I was like, I've got to get in better shape.
00:08:42.200 So it was one of the things I just made a mental change and said, I'm going to try to do this thing
00:08:46.380 and do it right.
00:08:47.840 And luckily we had a lot of good examples that were years in front of us that made it through.
00:08:53.080 And, you know, kind of taught us how to do it and, you know, helped out a lot.
00:08:57.920 Yeah.
00:08:58.300 So you've talked a lot about preparation, that if a man prepares, buds isn't that bad.
00:09:03.420 So, I mean, what can a person or man who's interested in becoming a Navy SEAL, I mean,
00:09:08.100 what can they do to prepare for the training?
00:09:11.540 Well, you know, like I said earlier, it requires, you know, just running to meals at six miles a day.
00:09:17.880 You know, so, I mean, you need to be able to handle many miles in a week, you know,
00:09:25.800 total mileage in a week of running.
00:09:28.720 I would recommend trying to get up to, you know, 25 to 35 miles of running per week, you know,
00:09:36.740 comfortably without injury to be up before you really, you know, sign on the dotted line to go into SEAL training.
00:09:44.220 Swimming is the same thing.
00:09:47.380 Not that kind of mileage, obviously, but, you know, being able to wear fins on your feet
00:09:53.280 and be able to swim for a couple miles is really a big requirement.
00:09:57.940 And that one kills people, not so much the cold water,
00:10:01.580 the fact that they didn't prepare their legs and ankles for wearing fins in the ocean.
00:10:06.600 And, you know, for a moment, you know, that's a moment when the instructors aren't yelling at you
00:10:11.620 whenever you're swimming.
00:10:12.580 So I actually enjoyed it, but I did a lot of swimming prior to it
00:10:17.100 and was able to actually have fun in the water.
00:10:21.060 And after that, you know, instead of, you know, trying to bench press a truck
00:10:24.560 and trying to get a 400-pound bench press, you're going to want to be able to do 400 push-ups,
00:10:29.600 you know, not at one time but within a workout, you know, and sit-ups and pull-ups.
00:10:34.300 You know, some of your pull-up workouts probably need to be, you know,
00:10:37.360 by the time you add it all up, you know, well over 100 repetitions of pull-ups.
00:10:42.940 So if that's how your workouts are going to be there.
00:10:45.680 Yeah, yeah.
00:10:46.580 I imagine that's a big change for how most men work out
00:10:50.220 because I think a lot of men are more interested in the bench pressing a truck as opposed to reps.
00:10:56.220 Right.
00:10:56.860 Yeah.
00:10:57.400 Well, real quick, Stu, based on your experience as a Navy SEAL,
00:11:01.640 what do you think are four lessons in manliness that an average Joe can take from a Navy SEAL?
00:11:07.180 I will say this.
00:11:08.020 One thing I learned about SEAL training is that those who make it through never quit.
00:11:15.800 And that's a big lesson for me.
00:11:18.120 And so whether I'm doing something around the house or doing something for my work,
00:11:24.940 you know, that never quit attitude is a great lesson in life.
00:11:30.940 And I still really carry it on with me today, whether it's, you know,
00:11:34.720 mowing my grass and it's dark out or, you know,
00:11:38.280 it's working on a project that I have a deadline and, you know,
00:11:43.620 the next morning, you know, working out, working through the night to get it done.
00:11:47.040 You know, never quit is a great lesson, I guess, that you can take with you.
00:11:56.940 And that's just being stubborn, really, is all it is.
00:12:00.600 Learn to deal with discomfort.
00:12:03.300 And what that will do for you is it will help you appreciate comfort more.
00:12:08.420 Because one thing that I love to do is, and that's about the only time where I sit still,
00:12:14.460 is during football season, I sit down in my basement and watch football.
00:12:19.400 And I just love it.
00:12:20.560 You know, every Sunday, spend a couple hours.
00:12:23.500 Sometimes if there's good games, I will clock up eight or ten hours of watching football.
00:12:28.380 And I just love it.
00:12:29.960 I try to earn that by busting my butt that morning working out.
00:12:34.780 But, you know, it's something that I really enjoy.
00:12:37.280 And there's nothing quite like being comfortable, laying on my couch, you know,
00:12:41.800 flicking the remote, you know, nice and warm basement.
00:12:45.780 You know, there were those moments of discomfort where I was cold and wet and sandy and miserable
00:12:51.520 that, you know, I can look back honestly and say, you know, I sucked that up.
00:12:57.940 That was pretty good.
00:12:58.700 I could still do it again if I needed to.
00:13:00.400 But, you know, right now I'm really quite content sitting right here doing nothing.
00:13:05.160 You know, it just makes the little moments that much better if you can learn to deal with discomfort
00:13:10.960 and not whine about it.
00:13:12.540 Yeah.
00:13:13.240 That's kind of a long answer.
00:13:14.600 So learn to deal with discomfort.
00:13:16.440 The next one is prepare.
00:13:19.600 Preparation.
00:13:20.300 I mean, whether you're preparing for an event, you know, we can call that event a mission.
00:13:24.600 You know, you need some motivation to complete that mission.
00:13:29.180 And, you know, you've got to be willing to work to make it happen.
00:13:33.060 What I come down to basically a real quick one is preparation, motivation, and perspiration.
00:13:38.560 You know, it's a great little three-part saying that I use often.
00:13:43.400 You know, no matter what I'm doing, it requires those three things.
00:13:47.360 And the last one is humility.
00:13:51.900 And one thing that you'll always see is that typically is, you know,
00:13:57.920 you pretty much have to pull it out of a guy when you meet him, you know,
00:14:02.800 if he was a SEAL or a former SEAL.
00:14:05.280 I know when people, you know, say, hey, he was in the Navy.
00:14:08.340 I said, yeah, I was in the Navy for a while.
00:14:10.060 And, you know, I get to talking to him for a good half hour for, you know, really, you know,
00:14:15.580 they start pulling things out of me.
00:14:17.020 Well, what did you do in the Navy?
00:14:18.020 I said, well, you know, I'm stationed here.
00:14:19.920 You know, it's just one of those things that, you know,
00:14:22.100 you don't have to wear on your sleeve that you were.
00:14:26.080 But humility is a big one.
00:14:28.200 And it doesn't have to be just because you were a former SEAL, but just over anything.
00:14:32.440 Yeah, have some humility.
00:14:33.600 Yeah, being able to say, yeah, I'm wrong.
00:14:35.480 Yeah.
00:14:35.760 And you're wrong, you know.
00:14:37.540 But your wife wins.
00:14:39.360 Yeah.
00:14:39.500 All the arguments makes everybody happier.
00:14:42.520 Yeah.
00:14:42.840 Just everything.
00:14:43.760 Yeah.
00:14:44.060 Yeah.
00:14:45.840 We're going to take a quick break for your words from our sponsors.
00:14:49.180 And now back to the show.
00:14:51.100 Well, Will, Stu, you resigned your commission as a SEAL, I guess, almost 10 years ago, it's been?
00:14:57.040 Yeah.
00:14:57.520 Yeah, it's been a little bit of a decade now.
00:14:59.600 Yeah.
00:14:59.800 Well, and so now you devote your time to training individuals who want to do what you did,
00:15:04.840 people who are wanting to do special ops in the military.
00:15:07.840 Also, just the police and firefighting and emergency rescue.
00:15:13.520 What's your approach to fitness in getting these men and women ready for their respective work?
00:15:18.320 Well, you know, the cool thing about it is there's no gray area in what these men and women have to do at their training programs.
00:15:27.960 Typically, they all have a fitness test that they have to take, and it's fairly competitive.
00:15:36.480 No matter what branch of service it is, no matter what local law enforcement or firefighting department is, it's competitive to get in.
00:15:46.080 And you really need to have good scores and not just, you know, minimum standard scores.
00:15:51.560 You know, I tell people, you know, just because it says you can pass with 20 push-ups doesn't mean that's your goal to get 20 push-ups.
00:16:00.500 You know, that's the minimum standard.
00:16:01.800 That's like getting a D on a test, you know, if you score these minimum standards.
00:16:07.360 And, you know, statistically, people who score better on those entrance exams do better in that training, no matter what the training is, whether it's SEAL training or it's Maryland State Police Department, it doesn't matter.
00:16:22.620 Typically, the folks that score well on those entrance exams do well at the training and succeed.
00:16:28.040 And then, secondarily, it's, you know, preparing them for the training at hand.
00:16:34.960 You know, a lot of times, you know, they're not going to have certain events that are being tested.
00:16:41.900 You know, but like if you go to ranger school, you're going to have to put about 50, 60 pounds on your back in a backpack and be able to move around with that thing pretty much all day long for miles and hours.
00:16:54.120 You know, that's something that you need to practice.
00:16:56.120 Because if your first day showing up at ranger training is putting on a backpack for the first time, you're going to be hurt.
00:17:03.600 You know, so it's just really preparing people for their actual, you know, grueling physical events that they have to take.
00:17:12.340 It's very, very functional as opposed to, I guess, kind of the typical things you often see going on at the gym.
00:17:19.420 Well, yeah, but, I mean, there's nothing wrong with gym workouts.
00:17:22.100 Don't get me wrong.
00:17:23.620 I'm a big fan of them.
00:17:24.840 You know, like I said, I was a power lifter and spent many, many hours, you know, in the gym, you know, doing three sets of five bench press and three sets of five squats.
00:17:34.200 And, you know, I cut my teeth on that type of training.
00:17:39.500 But, you know, when it comes to a job where your life or your partner's life or a person you're trying to save's life really rests in your hands and your fitness level can, you know, really be a good predictor of whether or not, you know, you're going to survive or not.
00:18:00.060 But it's very important, and that's what I really try to stress to the young men and women that are about to serve their country in any capacity is that, you know, fitness could mean life or death for you.
00:18:12.040 It really could.
00:18:13.200 You know, if you can show up there in good shape, you know, you have a better chance of making it through the training, being less stressed at the training so you can actually learn your job a little better.
00:18:23.000 And, you know, being able to save somebody's life if need be.
00:18:27.760 Yeah.
00:18:28.080 So what about nutrition?
00:18:29.200 What's your philosophy about nutrition?
00:18:30.660 Are you one of those advocates of caveman eating?
00:18:33.240 Do you use supplements?
00:18:34.080 I mean, what's your approach to nutrition when you're advising your clients?
00:18:38.940 Well, good one.
00:18:40.560 You know, I've never been big into supplements.
00:18:44.020 Just never have.
00:18:46.320 Always been kind of natural.
00:18:47.780 And my take on supplements is like this.
00:18:50.900 Pretty much, if you're, like, are you familiar with the MRE in the military, meal ready to eat?
00:18:59.320 Yeah.
00:18:59.700 Basically a meal in a bag you put in your backpack, and, you know, if you don't have a cafeteria, you know, you eat it out in the field.
00:19:08.140 Well, that's my kind of take on supplements.
00:19:12.360 Basically, if I don't have good food, whether it's at my house or I can't make it to a good restaurant and get a big salad or something like that, what I'm going to do is, you know, I'll supplement in that day if I need to.
00:19:29.260 However, if I have the food, I don't really need the supplements because I eat good meats, good proteins, you know, good complex carbohydrates and salads, fruits and vegetables and things like that.
00:19:40.460 That's kind of where I am.
00:19:42.000 And I really focus more on performance fitness.
00:19:45.540 So if you're, you know, like I said, working out hard, you're working out several times a day or a couple times a day, you know, you really need to eat often and eat a lot.
00:19:56.220 However, not everybody's in that mentality, so I understand that.
00:20:00.740 So I've also been doing a lot of reading and trying to find something that I think is cool, that I think will work.
00:20:08.740 It's a little controversial, but, you know, it's similar to the caveman diet that you asked me about.
00:20:14.020 It's called the warrior diet.
00:20:15.560 You ever heard of that one?
00:20:16.480 I have not heard of that one.
00:20:17.960 Yeah, it's pretty cool.
00:20:18.760 So it's, Bori's a, you know, former Israeli Defense Force special ops guy, the guy who wrote it.
00:20:30.480 And it makes a lot of sense.
00:20:32.340 I'm testing it out right now, and I'm testing it out in the meat of my workout program because typically the way I work out is throughout the year, I create a big bell curve of the 12 months.
00:20:44.240 And basically between April, May, June, July, and August, that's the longest days of the year.
00:20:51.120 Therefore, those are my longest workouts.
00:20:54.000 And then towards the second half of the, you know, last quarter of the year and the first quarter of the next year, kind of taper down and start building back up.
00:21:04.200 So I go through this big sine curve through the year.
00:21:07.220 And basically just, it's kind of like what I call my solstice training program.
00:21:11.240 You know, if the days are longer, my workouts are longer.
00:21:13.420 If they're shorter, my workouts are shorter.
00:21:16.780 And what it has enabled me to do at 41 years old is maintain some longevity.
00:21:23.760 And I still am able to do, you know, workouts with 20-year-old kids that want to be SEALs.
00:21:30.140 And so it's a lot of fun kind of doing it that way.
00:21:33.680 And like I said, I just go through a little cycle, just basic periodization and, you know, physiology.
00:21:39.660 And, you know, just cycle it through because there's no way you can maintain a peak level of performance year-round.
00:21:46.940 You know, there's an off-season, there's an on-season.
00:21:49.040 And that's basically all it is for me.
00:21:51.340 Huh.
00:21:51.600 So you mentioned this warrior diet.
00:21:53.040 What are some of the kind of controversial aspects of it?
00:21:56.920 Of which?
00:21:57.520 Oh, you mentioned that the warrior diet has kind of some controversial...
00:22:01.980 Well, it's just not your typical meal plan.
00:22:04.480 You know, it's not your typical meal plan of, you know, you eat breakfast, you eat lunch, you have a snack.
00:22:10.400 You know, he's all about, you know, not eating.
00:22:13.560 You know, and going through a little bit of a hunger phase during the day and kind of cleans out your system.
00:22:20.360 And, you know, he says soldiers have to get used to being hungry.
00:22:23.660 And that's true.
00:22:24.960 I mean, at ranger school, you don't eat but one MRE a day, you know.
00:22:30.500 Yeah.
00:22:31.080 I mean, it's basically to simulate, hey, what supply can't get to you, right?
00:22:37.240 And you're out in the middle of nowhere and you just have to rely on, you know, what's there and one meal a day.
00:22:44.340 So it's kind of a rationing mentality that they go through their training.
00:22:48.240 They lose a lot of weight out there at ranger school.
00:22:52.820 But, you know, it's just, it has some, like I said, it has some controversial things to it.
00:22:57.620 But the one thing that usually I will shut any diet book down if it tells me I can't drink beer.
00:23:03.520 And that's just one of those things.
00:23:05.400 If it says, you know, you need to stop drinking beer, otherwise, you know, that's, yeah.
00:23:10.220 I don't drink a lot of beer.
00:23:11.580 I don't drink a lot of beer.
00:23:13.060 But, you know, I enjoy beer with a barbecue.
00:23:15.780 With your football games.
00:23:16.860 Yeah, with my football game.
00:23:19.220 You know, and even then, you know, it's one or two.
00:23:22.140 You know, I'm not drinking six-pack down in my basement, you know, watching a football game.
00:23:27.460 Otherwise, I'd be completely useless.
00:23:30.320 But, yeah, I mean, like I said, you know, moderation.
00:23:33.540 Everything in moderation, that includes beer.
00:23:35.820 Yeah.
00:23:36.500 Well, Stu, most of your programs that you have on your site, the books you sell, are geared towards primarily to help people train, prepare for work in the military.
00:23:47.840 Can a man who isn't in the military, doesn't plan on becoming a special ops guy, still benefit from your programs?
00:23:54.660 Oh, yeah, sure.
00:23:55.440 In fact, I have many guys who used to be in the Navy or military, never been in the military or law enforcement, and have been using my routines for years at all ages.
00:24:09.120 You know, a couple – it's neat to get emails from guys who are in their 50s, you know, early 60s that are, you know, still able to crank out pull-ups, you know, in their workout.
00:24:19.440 And, you know, some of them have altered – instead of running, they do more swimming and biking, a little less, you know, impact on their joints.
00:24:28.640 But, you know, whatever cardio you can get, you still need to get some kind of cardiovascular activity.
00:24:35.080 And, you know, nothing wrong with non-impact cardio as well.
00:24:38.560 Two things I'm probably going to do as I age will be swimming and yoga, you know.
00:24:44.420 And I'm not doing yoga right now, but definitely when I become a, you know, dirty old man, I'll be doing yoga.
00:24:54.400 All right, Stu, final question.
00:24:55.960 I mean, what's the one thing that holds people back from getting in shape?
00:24:59.800 Because I know – I'm sure there's a lot of our listeners who are like, man, I really need to get off my butt and start, you know, working out.
00:25:06.860 What's holding them back and what can they do to overcome that?
00:25:10.680 Oh, good one.
00:25:11.660 Well, my biggest thing that I've seen people have problems with is they start doubting themselves.
00:25:19.960 And typically it's not immediately, right?
00:25:22.460 Some people would doubt people right – doubt themselves right from the start and, you know, not even try.
00:25:28.300 But most folks are very motivated.
00:25:31.020 They go buy a gym membership for a year in that first week of being highly motivated, and they're ready to go do this thing.
00:25:36.960 And, you know, you notice that the gyms are packed in January, you know, every New Year's resolution, and by February it's gone.
00:25:44.220 Well, that's what happens to most of us.
00:25:47.060 We're very motivated that first few weeks, and then, bam, phase two hits, and I call this phase two, is you start doubting yourself.
00:25:55.100 Well, what I try to tell people is just go ahead and start doubting yourself from the start, right, and get over it as quickly as possible because it's a natural phase that happens.
00:26:08.160 And I call it the five phases of fitness, five psychological phases of fitness.
00:26:12.940 You know, that first phase is highly motivated.
00:26:15.360 You're ready to do anything, ready to go, ready to train for a marathon.
00:26:19.120 You know, phase two, bam, about two weeks into it, you're done, right?
00:26:23.680 You've quit.
00:26:24.560 You know, you see no results yet.
00:26:26.080 You just haven't given it up.
00:26:28.000 But really, it's all about the long haul.
00:26:30.540 You know, like, don't worry about the two weeks.
00:26:33.280 Let's worry about the whole year, right?
00:26:35.680 And wait for results at the whole year because I tell people all the time that, you know, give me a month, I can change the way you look.
00:26:43.300 You know, give me a year, I can change your life.
00:26:45.300 And it's really true.
00:26:47.120 You spend the whole year adding fitness to your life.
00:26:49.960 You would be a whole different person that later of the year.
00:26:53.220 And like I said, phase three is you've conquered your doubt.
00:26:56.340 Now you're ready to roll.
00:26:57.760 And you've created a habit of fitness.
00:27:00.560 That's the biggest thing.
00:27:01.420 Once you conquer your doubt, you've kind of created that habit.
00:27:04.340 And once you've created that habit, it's really hard to get out of it.
00:27:08.320 You know, you really kind of miss it whenever you're not able to work out.
00:27:12.500 You'll find little ways to squeeze in a workout, whether it's just doing crunches and push-ups at the end of the day or going for a walk after dinner.
00:27:20.980 You know, you'll find a way to do something.
00:27:23.900 And then that phase four is all of a sudden now you're fit.
00:27:27.660 And you're associating yourself with people who are fit.
00:27:32.320 You know, and you have more confidence.
00:27:34.120 And you can do other things.
00:27:35.920 And, you know, you're able to run up and down the steps without being winded.
00:27:39.080 You know, just these little things that occur to you and you realize, wow, there are some really big results here other than, you know, me trying to see my six-pack abs.
00:27:51.120 Right?
00:27:51.540 Just better quality of life.
00:27:53.360 And then my final and last phase five is, you know, you start planning.
00:28:00.120 You start saying, you know, I'm going to run a 10K.
00:28:01.920 You know, or I'm going to run a marathon.
00:28:04.120 Or you start setting physical goals for yourself, whether that's you want to bench press 400 pounds or you want to run a marathon.
00:28:11.440 It doesn't matter.
00:28:12.180 Cool thing about it.
00:28:12.920 Fitness is a journey, not a destination.
00:28:15.520 And you just keep bouncing from one journey to the next.
00:28:19.300 Awesome.
00:28:19.640 Well, Stu, thank you for your time.
00:28:21.100 It's been a pleasure.
00:28:22.880 All right.
00:28:23.300 Well, great.
00:28:23.760 Thank you.
00:28:24.140 Our guest today was Stu Smith.
00:28:26.680 Stu is a personal trainer who focuses on helping men prepare for work in the military, special operations, fire departments, and police work.
00:28:34.060 For more information about Stu's work and programs, check out his website at stusmith.com.
00:28:42.820 And that wraps up another edition of the Art of Manliness podcast.
00:28:46.660 For more manly tips and advice, make sure to check out the Art of Manliness website at artofmanliness.com.
00:28:52.960 And until next week, stay men.