How many of you train for combat? Physically?

[Jordan]

I was wondering how many here train for combat as opposed to just marksmanship, civil self-defense, hobby shooting, etc?

The second part of my question relates to physical fitness training. Do you excercise with associated gear? Over rough terraign? Hone balance and agility over obstacles? At different temp extremes? That kind of thing as opposed to just "I lift", "play tennis", "use rowing machine".

I ask to keep myself motivated as much as anything. And as a reminder to those TFL members who anticipate the Revolution in our time (please don't argue that point here, it is not the intent of this thread).

I've found that my tight groups at 25, 50, 100yds seem a little flimsy when I start working through tactical drills fumbling all over like a novice shooter.

Just as importantly, try loading down with a little gear and sprinting, crawling, scrambling up a hillside as if someone were shooting at you. Or covering a distance with a heavy pack. That daily jog in my cute shorts and 4oz shoes didn't help much.
And I'm kidding myself to think that "adrenaline is just going to pull me through" when the SHTF.

What is your training regimen or maybe ideas on what it *should* be?

 

[Gunfighter]

Good topic. I am 6'2 300 lbs. My blood pressure is 124/70 pulse 65. I ride a mountain bike on and off duty. Currently assigned to the SWAT team I am used to moving in a buch of gear. I also try to roadmarch 2-3 times a week wearing a 35 lb alice pack. When ever in a stressful situation I work on controlling my breathing. I believe most people would feel a lot better if they just laid off the caffine and drank more water. Could I PT more. Yes. But not without cutting into my sleep that supports my work, court and PT. Nothing is off a benefit if it is done half assed. As far a firearms the only gun I "play" is my Ruger MK II. All others is training for the next time I will need to defend myself or others,

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When guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns.

 

[George Hill]

Judo, Paintball, chasing 4 sons around my back yard... (thats the hardest!)

 

[USP45usp]

As a smoker (I know, I'm one of those scumbag non-pc types) I realize that my lung capacity is far lower then it should be. I do exercise during work (moving constantly) and am at 166lbs (6' tall). My back is not what it used to be but can be "talked" into carring 20+ lbs over a long distance. I don't like cold or heat (extreme) but can survive in both. Could I do more.. yes. Should I do more... yes. Will I do more... maybe. The body is a remarkable tool; it can do things you wouldn't think and it will endure things that one may not think he or she can't. Survival is your number one instinct (sp) and your body and mind will ensure that you will survive to the greatest of it's ability.

USP45usp

 

[DAKODAKID]

I box 15 rounds or so a day, not much sparring mostly bag work and such.
I find It helps my overall body fitness and the strong delts help in shooting offhand.
I also smoke and I like beer.
Put me down for being politically incorrect x3!!!

 

[chadintex]

I practice the ancient oriental art of "Holding Down the Couch".
My job requires 10 hours a day of standing/walking. When I get home, I chase my son around. After all of that, I sit.
I used to be in better shape, now I just don't have the time for it.

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chadintex@hotmail.com

 

[Oleg Volk]

Just moving to my new apartment made me quite aware of why carbines in .223 are popular and .308 battle rifles aren't. Yet anothre factor that makes me wish for continued peace.

 

[Pave Pilot]

50, 4 count jumping jacks, 1 mile run with 10 lb weights in each hand, 50 sit ups, 1 mile run, 50 pushups, 2 mile run, 10 pull ups, 2 mile run,50 push ups.(at least 5 times each week)

The big advantage is that you do it almost anywhere. It takes about an hour.

I include hammer drills in any pistol session as well as back to target, hand gun on table behind - turn, pickup, point shoot double taps.

Works for me and I'm old.

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Freedom is never free: get on your feet or get on your knees.

 

[Dangus]

My friends and I train squad combat using paintball. We have friends in the DNR, so we go out to the woods nearby. My friend's dad owns 1 acre of those woods, which is surrounded almost completely by county forest, but with DNR guys with us, nobody is gonna harass us out there. We've built a fort on my friend's land, it has a tower, a roof, and sandbag walls.

We play one team with 4-5 guys vs. the other team with 10-30 guys, we defend, they assault. It's great. I've designed my own gun, and I have a machinegun version which we have mounted at the base. We play with armor when we can, so we can run our guns hot (350-400 fps), otherwise we play at safe levels if no armor is in use.

It may not be real combat training, but the tactics and skills needed are defintely being drilled into us, and we are able to design our equipment and suits based on our experience.

We were thinking of starting, or joining a militia, but we definitely want to find or found one that isn't dependant on religion, racism, money, or anything else outside the desire to protect the bill of rights. The whole goal is to keep everything non-civil-liberties seperate to allow ourselves to be inclusive. I dunno yet though, I'm still young.

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The Alcove

I twist the facts until they tell the truth. -Some intellectual sadist

The Bill of Rights is a document of brilliance, a document of wisdom, and it is the ultimate law, spoken or not, for the very concept of a society that holds liberty above the desire for ever greater power. -Me

 

[Jorge]

I trained in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for awhile. Let me tell you, it's a whole lot tougher than it looks. Unfortunately, I don't have the time nor the energy to train in it anymore.

 

[fed168]

Aside from the running and lifting, I play rugby. Kinda difficult to do as an LEO, but good nonetheless. A good conditioner for hitting, running, hitting again, support, etc. Gotta be in shape.
BTW, went to work this weekend with a black eye from saturday's game, heh heh heh.

 

[Gary H]

Gunfighter:

Just getting out of the car must make a BG think twice.

Train in a realistic fashion; NO! Try my hand at fitness, YES!

I joined a Gym one year ago. My three-year membership cost about $1200. I've been back twice. I decided to toss my living room furniture and put in a gym. The best thing I ever did for myself.

I have a NordicTrack treadmill, Hoist free weights, rack, bench and central station machine. Their machines are awesome and great quality. I have an Everlast heavy bag mounted on one of their stands. Great setup, but you need a fortune in weights to stop it from moving. All is on 1/2" corrugated rubber flooring. I now work out at least five days per week. Surprisingly, I really like the heavy bag work.

 

[guerilla1138]

i do a little of both, just working out, on the bag, on the machines .ect, then i do all mt self defense routines and practice new stuff, with knives, and gun.
then occasionaly i will do some running around the hills with an alice pack loaded with gear, and my gun on my hip. practice some stress shooting after doing that, and then work on my cardboard torso targets, set up in different manners.
and on weekends sometimes i will get togather with friends and we will have paintball fights.
its about all i feel i need really.
study, try what you have studyed, learn it, train it. hope you never have to use it.

 

[WETSU]

I train regularly and year round. Weights? Three times a week, running once a week.On the fifth day I do one of the following: mountain bike, run again, 4 mile jog w/ 35 lb ruck, kayak, rock climb/rappel, swim, or cross country ski. Two days of rest a week.
About 1-3 times a month I cross train with kayaking, running w/ 20 lb pack and shooting. Throw in strict push ups in between. This weekend, rappelling from bridge into kayak, shooting, hike.
Two weeks ago, big land nav. exercise, through woods with 50 lb ruck and weapon. I do the occassional adventure race triathlon so it is in the front of my mind. I do a lot of things that are hot, dirty, smelly,difficult and leave a lot of scars and bruises, but they all make you tougher.
Haven't played rugby since college. I miss it sometimes. sniff.

 

[Correia]

Haven't weight trained for the last 4 months. Looking to find a schedule that allows that again. Run daily, except for Sunday. Alternate distance days (5-6 miles, about 10 minute mile pace), and speed days, (2 miles fast as I can). Paintball whenever I can afford it. Hiking on weekends when possible. Haven't been able to do martial arts for the last several months either. Trained for about 4 years twice a week in that previously. Recreational basketball couple times a month.

6'4" 255, best shape of my life. I lost a lot of weight, and changed my diet when I had to get my gall bladder removed.

Having a kid sure does force you to change your workout schedule though.

 

[USP45]

My job requires sitting behind a 'puter for 50 hours a week.

I choose to do things that require good physical fitness as my off time enjoyment.

Though my cardio level isn't as good as i'd like (and i'm working on it) i feel i'm as prepaired for "combat" as anyone could be.

Daily workout is a 2 hour mountain bike ride, rigorous.

2x or 3x per week i lift weights focusing on arms (curls, tricep presses), back (finger-board chinups), stomach (various), legs (squats, lunges), with all other muscle groups worked in lighter rotation.

Weekends: Summer - rock climbing (I'm leading 5.7 now! love the 'Gunks), whitewater kayaking (LOTS of swimming), or mountain biking, depending on the weather.

Winter - ice climbing (leading NEI-4), backcountry skiing (XC and Telemark), in that order!!!

I love extreme temperatures... and rain/snow. When the weather forcast is supposed to be really terrible, i am at my happiest. There is no such thing as "bad weather"; only "bad gear". I've had many "cozy" -15F nights spent in the White's of New Hampshire.

And yes, my lawn reflects my lack of attention (it's tough to mow the lawn when you are away doing something stupid! and fun!!)

As a result of my recreational activities, i'm proficient with ropes and rappelling, orientation (especially at night), swimming (in whitewater, surf, cold, burried under gear...), working with frozen hands on delicate equipment, skiing/hiking with loads over rough terrain (my ice rack is in excess of 50 lbs.)

I also have all the equipment required to live in a cold/wet environment for extended periods without gas/oil/electricity. Not to mention, i've collected enough duplicate equipment to outfit a small arctic expedition!.

Tactically speaking, i'm not shooting as much as i used to, but i'm going to start supplimenting this with the LFI suit of classes soon (hopefully).



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~USP

"[Even if there would be] few tears shed if and when the Second Amendment is held to guarantee nothing more than the state National Guard, this would simply show that the Founders were right when they feared that some future generation might wish to abandon liberties that they considered essential, and so sought to protect those liberties in a Bill of Rights. We may tolerate the abridgement of property rights and the elimination of a right to bear arms; but we should not pretend that these are not reductions of rights." -- Justice Scalia 1998

 

[WETSU]

USP45.
Mom told me I didn't have a twin brother. Where have you been all these years? Hey man you sound like my kind of dude, right down to the foul weather. I'm going to kayak Lake Michigan sometime in Oct-Nov, so I leave two days every week open in my schedule. The reason? Every day I check via internet the wind speed, water temp and wave height. Winds gotta be up there, water temp is sitting around 65 -I want it 50, and waves of 5-7 ft are nice. It will be sometime this month I sense. When it lines up, I drop everything and go. Nothing like it.
Rockclimbing, haven't done Gunks. Mostly Joshua Tree (in winter) and some Accadia in fall. Ditto on the cold weather. I sleep like a baby in a snow bank, bed of pine boughs, a small fire and food in my belly.
I even like your name. That is my preferred field sidearm. Full sized, .45. A nice gun. Never lets me down no matter what I do to it.

 

[eeniii]

You guys aren't going to hug are you?

 

[USP45]

WETSU, I love you, man! You flatlander you!

hmm... 5-7 footers? Sounds like fun to me!

Some day come on out to the Cape Cod National Seashore for some kayaking on the outer beaches! Sounds like what you describe in Lake Michigan, only it's like that 75% of the year. Its a great use for a whitewater kayak when i simply don't have the time to drive to VT, ME, CT or Central MA for a dam release.

ShowanGunks, or The 'Gunks, are the "Yosemite of the East Coast" and well worth the trip.

image courtese of www.gunks.com


One of these day's i'm going to get my act in gear an put up a web site with pic's from all the stupid things i do.

As for the USPs, i gotta agree with you completely, they simply cannot be beat! I'm trying to figure out a way to build in a holster for my CamelBack HAWG so i can take my .45 Compact riding with me, i think it gets lonely when i'm gone ( and i definitly miss it.)

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~USP

"[Even if there would be] few tears shed if and when the Second Amendment is held to guarantee nothing more than the state National Guard, this would simply show that the Founders were right when they feared that some future generation might wish to abandon liberties that they considered essential, and so sought to protect those liberties in a Bill of Rights. We may tolerate the abridgement of property rights and the elimination of a right to bear arms; but we should not pretend that these are not reductions of rights." -- Justice Scalia 1998


[This message has been edited by USP45 (edited October 02, 2000).]

 

[beemerb]

Damm you people sure don't leave room for a beat up old man do you?Bad back and ticker.Can walk about a mile without carring anything.If it does happen I am climbing into my truck with my gear,join a friend in his rig with gear and they will have to come and get us.I will guantee when they do they will pay dearly.Maybe more then they want to pay.

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Bob--- Age and deceit will overcome youth and speed.
I'm old and deceitful.