How does fitness fit into your overall strategy?

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Good&Fruity

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Do you barely fit in your pants? :) Or do you work out regularly to maintain strength, endurance, or both?

Will being in better shape give you a much better edge in a tight spot?
 
Always does. It could in a few ways. Obviously most people would think twice about starting trouble with a guy who has bigger biceps than my whole body. being fit and in shape cold give you a an intimidating presence.

If a struggle did break out, having a strength, speed, or stamina advantage over your attacker is a good thing to have.

Can't defend yourself if your huffing and puffing after the first punch. At least not as well, and not in all cases. You get my point. haha
 
Of course, in hand to hand combat it's an obvious advantage. I was talking more about in a gun fight. Will being out of shape be a risk for some? I mean in a gun on gun situation, where statistically it's over in seconds most of the time, how important is being in shape? Does it come into play? If so how much?
 
How important is it? It's massively important.

Some of my firearms are heavy, like the S&W L-frame revolvers. Shooting off-hand, you want some upper body strength to hold the gun steady. For the semi-autos, when you square off, you want a firm, rigid triangle.

Right now, you could be squeezing a tennis ball, working on your grip strength. Essential for x-count shooting.
 
Gun fights are rarely static.

So is physical fitness important in a gunfight? Let's see...

Can you vault over a roughly hip height object in the time it takes for someone to get a gun out of a pocket?
Can you run crouched and non crouched for the distance of one city block?
Can you sprint across a street at breakneck speeds?
Oh yeah ... and afterwards ... can you group a chest size target at seven feet at the guy who managed keeping up?

Can you break open a door with your foot?
Can you shove aside an old moldy couch and a pallet?
Can you then crawl out a cellar window at roughly head height?
And then can you make the one mile run to the closest phone?

I'd say yes. It is. Quite important.
 
Yall need to spread the gospel to those who go to gun shows. I'm fatter than I should be at 5' 10" 220 lbs and I'm often one of the thinnest people at some of the gun shows I visit.

Maybe too much jerky?
 
Yes, to all of the above. Where did you get those?

I'm in extremely good shape. Though I'm wondering if my efforts are wasted and wouldn't be better served in firearms training.
 
Kickin a door?? wile in the army i have seen vary few that could acomplish this task save for the biggist of us or the worst of doors

the rest is a min of stranth and alot of cardio
a good regimen should consist of an hour a day (or more) with 3 days of cardio and 2 days of strangth training with can be acconplished with pushups and situps goal should be to run 2 miles in less than 20 min
 
Yes and no.

Of course if you care enough about your personal safety to carry a gun around, then it should be worth it to put some effort into staying reasonably fit, wear shoes you can run and fight in, and learn at least a little bit about how to fight if you aren't able to use your gun.

However, the reason we carry guns in the first place is to gain a decisive advantage over an attacker. Not matter how much I exercise, I can't guarantee I will be tougher than the bad guys. (The truth is, I was never that tough, and as I'm getting older I'm losing a lot of the advantages I might have once had. I can pass all of my army fitness requirements, which puts me in front of the general population, but it's still not great.) Take for example, a petite female. She can exercise, study some flavor of martial art, establish a serious mindset, etc, but she will never give herself a real advantage over a 210 lb attacker. All any of us can do is work to even the odds. If I thought fitness was the definitive advantage, I would just work out and stop carrying a gun completely.
 
Pull Ups and Chin Ups are also really good. I find when we focus on PU and SU scores we tend to lose the ability to do some pretty critical stuff like climbing all over terrain.

Kicking in a door arguably really shouldn't be done on a *good* door though ... I know I've tried a couple times and man ... it is hard.
 
I can still do 16 pull ups. Down from 22 that I used to do when I was younger. I worked it back up to about 19 before I decided that was more than enough. I'm in overall good shape, stength and muscle wise (I exceed the Army Ranger Fitness standards for pull ups, pushups, and situps). I'm also a martial artist, but I don't run, I guess stamina is my weak spot. Can't run worth a damn. What's worse is that I have no interest in running. I mean I do, but I find it so terribly boring that I just can't do anymore than two miles before I want to do something else lol.
 
Can't run worth a damn. What's worse is that I have no interest in running.
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That's kinda me, Except for add on to that that both my shins have massive stress fractures.
I find other Cardio, like from machines or really long distance swimming does the trick though. My run time without any fast running over 2 miles is still at 15:30ish.
 
Fitness should always be part of the plan. No, you can't be fitter, stronger, faster than any potential attacker but your level of fitness may just tip the balance in your favor at a critical moment. Bad guys don't announce themselves from an unobscured distance of 50 feet, they try to surprise you at contact distances. Being able to fight clear enough to draw may save your life.
 
Crap knees and very bad wrist so I gave up running and lifting.

Its also just to darn hard to eat fig newtons and hold a cup of coffee while walking on a treadmill. ;)
 
It's easier to hit a big fat guy than a little skinny guy
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A lot harder to knock him down, though.

Not that I'm advocating morbid obesity for the ability to withstand body punches, but it is a factor. I'm 5'10", 182# and 12.6% body fat. So average height, better than average build, pretty fit. But I'd be at quite a disadvantage in hand to hand combat against someone 6'3" 350 lbs, even if he is out of shape. Obviously technique can have significant impact on the outcome, and I'd be quicker and more nimble, no question. But someone that size gets hold of me or gets me down, I'm in a bad spot.

Luckily, most people just aren't that big.

But in summary, yes, physical fitness is very important, not just for self defense, but life in general. Other than being a smoker (I know, I know), I take very good care of myself. You only get one body for the rest of your life.
 
Due to a heart problem, (paroxysmal atrial tachycardia) I can’t run more than a couple of hundred yards, but I can do 100 pushups in 3 minutes and 15 pullups. I can do 15 reps with 420 lbs on the Nautilus leg press machine (new personal best this morning).

At age 65, that’ll have to do.

And yes, it helps with shooting, especially IDPA and steel, where you have to move fast and swing through some pretty wide arcs in a hurry.
 
It is important that a person can move their body weight wether you are 100lbs or 300lbs. Such as chin ups/pull ups, push ups, tricep dips, and lunges. It is also helpful if you can run a flight of stairs without being completely winded. Sadly I dont think that many people can do this.
 
i am a strong proponent of taking a martial arts course; which ever style appeals to you for at least 6 months. it is unlikely that you NEED this skill but it can teach you how to move with out tripping over your own feet. it will change the way you stand, improve your balance and teach you how to fall. it will also teach you that you can take a beating without being beaten. and grace and finess can help to fill in for the raw strength that may fade with age.
 
Fitness?

There is an obesity epidemic in this country. I'd like to say that isn't noticeable at shooting ranges, but it is.

Heart disease is still the leading cause of death for men, and much of it is delayable ("preventable") with fitness. Diabetes and stroke take their toll, too, and are also often related to "lifestyle choices."

To me, it's never made much sense to carry a gun "in case" you need it to defend your life--but then don't wear a safety belt, since you're more likely to die in a car crash than gun fight. Similarly, it makes no sense to ignore death from obesity-related illness.

Oh, do you mean it might help you in a fight? Maybe: dull the adrenaline-rush, etc. But more importantly, it could help you run away faster, before any shooting! :D
 
To me, it's never made much sense to carry a gun "in case" you need it to defend your life--but then don't wear a safety belt, since you're more likely to die in a car crash than gun fight.
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While a statistical anomaly, more family memebrs and close friends of mine have died from violent crime than automobile accidents. That leads to a personal view that self defense is more likely to save my life than a seat belt. May not make sense, but try to shake that kind of life experience.
 
I'm getting too old to run, jump, and play, that makes me like a rattle snake.
I'll let you draw the mental image:)
 
While a statistical anomaly
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I suspect that most people are statistical anomalies. Whenever my wife and I fly, the top of headrest hits me (uncomfortably) in the neck, and hits her (uncomfortably) at the top of the head.

Because it was designed to be perfect for the "average" person. :rolleyes:
 
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