I thought this would be a good time to re-post for those of us who make New Year’s Resolutions.
Are you up for the challenge this year?
Let us know in the comments below and remember: Do Not Quit!
Are You Strong Enough To Handle The Dude That’s Trying To Date Your Daughter? Do You Have That “Ole Dude Strength”?
When I was a young man growing up, I got into a few fights. I can say that I only lost one, and that was to Charlie Brown when I was about 7 or 8 years old. It’s hard to imagine my 8-year old Big Homie getting into a fight, but I guess we had to really grow up fast in my ‘hood.
But what’s really funny, is that over the years, my dad probably got into just as many fights with the neighborhood kids as I did. He didn’t allow foolishness, swearing or bullying around his house or his children. After a while, cats in the neighborhood appreciated the fact that my Ole Dude didn’t play. He once even chased the thug that stole the bike he “made” (I wish I had pics, that bad-boy had a steering wheel!) for blocks, hurdling fences like an Olympic hurdler, before the dude just gave up and dropped the bike to flee for his life.
Smart decision.
That’s Ole Dude strength and determination right there.
But what about today? First, IF dad even has a presence in the home, would he even be able to physically protect his children or wife? Could you be like James Evans in your house? For my fellow Good Time aficionados you know nobody was coming into that house and whipping James. Where are the men like that on TV? Now-a-days, it is the woman of the home doing the protecting and dad is sitting there looking like Homer Simpson.
Good example
Bad Example
So, that’s why I thought the goals below by strength coach Dan John were a great idea for CSDs to set for themselves. To give us “Ole Dudes” a good bar to shoot towards in the gym. Most of us aren’t doing manual labor jobs like our parents, but we sit on our tails all day and the research is mounting that office jobs are taking years off of our lives. Plus, when we were younger, we might have exercised to look a certain way, impress a young lady or something, but now that we are older, it’s also about being healthy and having so-called “functional strength”.
…and yes, you still need to look good for your wife as well. If you want her looking as good as she did when you got married, how close are you to that wedding picture?
But I digress…here’s what Dan John recommends:
Push
Expected: Body weight bench press
Game Changer: Body weight bench press for 15 reps
Pull
Expected: 8-10 pull-ups
Game Changer: 15 pull-ups
Squat
Expected: Body weight squat
Game Changer: Body weight squat for 15 reps
Hinge
Expected: Body weight to 150% bodyweight deadlift
Game Changer: Double body weight deadlift
Loaded Carry (Farmer Walk)
Expected: Farmer Walk with total body weight (half per hand)
Game Changer: Body weight per hand
Personally, I think these are great CSD goals to set. Perhaps you can get an early start on your ’13 New Year’s resolution?
In a few years, some young man is going to likely try to ask to date my daughter (may I recommend Voddie Baucham’s book, What He Must Be: If He Wants To Marry My Daughter http://www.gracefamilybaptist.net/store/product/what-he-must-be-book/to hear how we’ll likely deal with this in my house) and I want him to understand that not only do I have a mental and spiritual presence in my house, but a physical one as well.
Now some of you reading this may think I’m being shallow and that’s fine. But I remember meeting fathers when I was a young man who were scared of their daughter’s date and their little-girl knew it. She knew dad would not come looking for her if she was in trouble and that he could not protect her from that abusive boyfriend or predator.
However, my dad proved to many fools that “Old Man Strength”, was not a myth.
Now it’s my turn.
So, how close are you to the goals above? Let me know!
Thankfully, I think today (at the seasoned age of 42, 5’11 and 210 lbs.), I can go in the gym and hit the Game Changer on the Pull-Up, Squat and Deadlift. But getting the Bench Press and Farmers Walk are going to take some work for me as I’m only at the Expected level.
If we get a good response, perhaps we can turn this into a CSD-team goal for 2013! We could post workout recommendations, monitor progress, etc. What do you think? I’d love to hear your story!
Just because we’re getting older and we can’t do all of the things we did at 22, we have more motivation to push now than we ever did back then, those precious God-given gifts that He has made us protectors over.
CSD
Furious Fathering 