Fuck Your Feelings, You Old Goat.
(In which I offend the delicate sensibilities of old people, fat people, Krav Maga True Believers, and 99% of the Three Percent…)
I’m currently suffering from a real job-induced case of severe “tennis elbow.” In the simplest terms, this is a case of a severely inflamed tendon in the elbow, from repetitive, high-stress, high-impact overuse. This particular case of tennis elbow, in my right arm (and yes, I am right-handed), is having a profound impact on pretty much everything that I do: from swinging a hammer, or carrying groceries and kids and other loads, to shooting and yes, (gasp!) my PT (seriously, my deadlift loads currently would be a joke for a serious strength athlete half my body weight).
It’s one of those nagging things that comes up, seemingly with far greater frequency after I passed forty, than ever arose in my younger years. What, even in my late-thirties would have been cured by a day of rest, a couple 800mg “Ranger Candy” boluses of Motrin, and a quart of water, has been nagging at me for the better part of a fortnight, with no real signs that it is going away (the fact that I have repeatedly foregone the “rest” part of that treatment, and replaced it with topical anti-inflammatory cremes and rubs, and then just “sucked it up,” to drive on and get done what needs to get done is immaterial…really…). It has become one of those things that, very distantly, and only occasionally heard, like a hollow cry from across the valley, reminds you, “Haha, dude! You ARE after all, mortal, and you are NOT getting any younger!”
It’s the same reminder my body gives me in the mornings, when I awake, and feel the arthritic stiffness that is the legacy of the broken hips, back, and femurs—along with a host of equally serious, but less dramatic old injuries—of a lifetime of hyper-aggressive combat athleticism and life. It has become, disturbingly, the sound of the Sirens’ song, tempting me to drive the ship that is my life, onto the rocky shores in a quest for the physical bliss of letting myself relax, and get fat, lazy, and useless.
STOP!!!
Relax. While I AM going to touch on the fact that this is not a temptation that I am willing to allow myself to succumb to, instead choosing to have myself bound to the metaphorical mast of duty, so I can hear the song, without failing, this is NOT going to be the expected “Oh, gee, look, John Mosby is bitching about me not doing my PT again,” article that you are probably thinking it is…much…
Instead, this is a discussion about the role we—as the elders of your tribes—have to play, even as we recognize that we are –if not “past,” then at least—rapidly approaching, the pinnacle of our physical prowess. While there are things I’m far better at now than I ever was in my teens, twenties, or thirties, they are generally not the things that require the maximum amount of physical agility.
Too often (admittedly, mostly in the past, as I’m entirely too busy to waste my fucking limited time these days on the nonsense ravings and pleading protestations of the spineless “ne’er dones” of the Internet), I’ve seen the rantings of “preppers” and “patriots: who self-identify as “old,” or “crippled up,” about their inability to A,B, or C physical training tasks, whether that is PT, or actual defensive shooting drills, instead of sitting their fat ass on a bench, behind a table at the range, but their “willingness” and “ability” to “take some with me,” as they “die on my hill.”
At the calculated risk of micro-aggressing your self-deluded imagined “safe spaces” of glory, it’s utter, absolute, complete, bullshit, for a number of reasons. Yes, that’s right. If you lay claim to a willingness to “die on a hill,” because you’re too “old/crippled/tired” (translated into English as, “I’m a lazy fucking Oxygen Thief who doesn’t actually care about my people”), you are fucking full of shit. Don’t like it? Wanna kick my ass? Take a number and get in line. Or, let me know. I’ll invite you to a class, on me, and you can give ‘er hell. I’m passed giving two shits about whiny bitches.
At the risk of sounding melodramatic (as if the last two sentences of that last paragraph weren’t enough, right?), I’ve spent my entire life immersed in some aspect or another of “warrior culture.” I’ve been training in combat sports since I was a kid. I learned to read by reading old army Field Manuals and Soldier of Fortune magazine (as well as all the other mercenary porn magazines of the late 70s, and 80s.) I went in the military at 18. I signed into Fort Benning less than 48 hours after I was handed my high school diploma, and in one form or another, I’ve been involved in training myself and others, professionally, for interpersonal violence on the collective and individual levels, ever since.
Today, I met a young NCO. He was an army Staff Sergeant (the same rank I held when I ETS’d), who was 24 years old. Think about that. He was not even in High School when 9/11 happened. He was not even out of diapers when I went to Basic Training. I see young guys with multiple combat deployments, who were in grade school, when I was getting out of the army. Fuck, I am THAT old guy, now (I mean, not really. I’ve never driven a taxi in Columbus, claiming to be the former Regimental Sergeant-Major of the Ranger Regiment, or around Fayetteville, NC, claiming to be a former Delta Squadron CSM. So, there’s THAT, at least….).
If I am ever again called upon to ruck up, and go conduct a six-day combat patrol through the mountains, I am NOT going to be a happy individual. So, why do I still train? I have a pretty respectable legacy behind me in that area. I can whip out my DD-214 and show some student who questions how I know how this shit I am teaching actually works. “Well, dude, look what I did ‘back then!’” It will elicit the appropriate “oohs!” and “aahs!” and they will probably pay attention, and still learn something. My children will continue to believe, as my oldest told someone a few weeks ago, “Daddy is a superhero!” So, why do I bother?
Because I care not just about me. I care about my people. My children, my wife, my cousins and siblings and nieces and nephews, and my oath-sworn kin and their children as well. I care about passing on the life-saving skills and knowledge that I have (not just in the “face shooting” spectrum of skills either. Fat people make shitty gardeners, and worse livestock husbandmen), to ensure that my people, and thus the cultural values of our tribal community, survive the death throes of this imperial civilization (and if you are still in denial about THAT, well, you’re dumber than a bag of rocks sitting in a pond full of shit).
You know who doesn’t care about my DD-214? You know who doesn’t care about what a hard-dicked, soul-stealing, gunslinger I used to be? My best friend’s son. All he knows, if I’m a fat, lazy bastard, who drinks too much, is “Uncle John? Meh, he’s an old fat fucker. He tells good stories, but I figure they’re about ¾ bullshit!” You think he’s going to pay attention when I tell him he needs to eat right, lift heavy shit, run far, fast, and know how to shoot, move, and communicate? Not just “no,” but “Hell, no!” He’s going to go back in the house, away from the old farts, sitting on the porch, swapping yarns, and get right back to playing video games. Hell, I don’t even blame him. I would’ve done the same damned thing.
You can preach all you want, to your kids about “respect your elders!” but if those elders don’t earn that respect, they’re not going to get it. If you’re that elder, and you’re trying to pass on life lessons to the youth of your community/clan/tribe/church congregation/militia unit/what-the-fuck-ever, you’d damned sure better be able to walk the walk, rather than spinning a skein of bullshit yarns, or nobody is going to take you serious.
It’s really, Leadership 101, straight out of The Ranger Handbook: Be, Know, and Do.
If you’re going to tell your young tribesmen that they need to eat healthy, whole foods, instead of fast food and packaged, processed snacks, you’d better BE an example of the benefits of that diet. You’d better KNOW what they should be eating, why they should be eating it, and how to make it palatable. And, you’d better DO it. You tell me, “John, you should eat organic, grass-fed beef, and eggs from pasture-raised chickens! It’s better for you, and it tastes better too!” but I see you scarfing down a Sausage, Egg, and Cheese McDouble or three for breakfast, I’m going to know you’re full of shit.
If you want your young bucks to actually be able to fight well, as light infantrymen, in a grid-down scenario, to protect your community (and by inclusion, your precious self and all your resources), nobody expects you to outperform a 20-year old college athlete, but you’d better be able to at least keep up, most of the time, and you’d still better be able to outperform him at some of the stuff (like, oh, I don’t know, the shit that you’re supposed to be able to do better, like decision-making, “multi-tasking,” thinking and planning, etc, even on the run). If you can’t, then why in the fuck would they listen to you, just because you fought “in the ‘Nam,” or—for those of us of a younger, but still aging generation—“…in the ‘Stan?” Sure, I’ll listen to the old ‘Nam, Korea, and—rapidly decreasing—World War Two veterans at the local VFW or Legion Hall. Hell, I’ll even buy their beers. You’d better bet your ass though that everything they tell me is going to get filtered through whatever other experiences I have, or—in the case of the young buck who’s never been—think I have.
I met a young kid the other day, in a social environment. Early twenties, he’s a college student. Really nice kid. Conversation turned—as it seems to with increasing frequency these days, regardless of whom the conversation is with—about the “coming collapse.” He started telling me about how he is really well-trained and prepared for it, because he “used to teach Krav Maga.” Now, I’m not interested in a fucking debate in the comments to this article about how “awesome” and “effective” Krav is, “because IDF!” 1) The IDF guys I know laugh about the Krav marketing, 2) Whatever you THINK the Sayeret commandos are doing for combatives training is probably as accurate as what you think SEAL Team 6/DEVGRU is doing (in other words, not fucking very), and 3) Krav is a fucking joke. (I mean come the fuck on, US Krav guys are still teaching “Israeli Carry,” for fuck’s sake! If you think “Israeli Carry” is a good idea, do the world a favor, and go cut your own fucking throat, preferably before you breed that stupidity into the human gene pool.) None of that really matters though. What matters is, this was a kid in his early twenties. I guaran-damn-tee you, he didn’t weigh 125 pounds, soaking wet, in two pairs of boots. If he’s ever been in a fight in his life, it was getting beat up and shoved in a toilet in his high school gym class. However, because he “used to teach Krav Maga,” he is convinced he is a subject matter expert in combatives, knife fighting, and close-quarters gunfighting.
Do you think, for one minute, that me telling him, “Hey, dude, listen, that’s cool, but from a dude who has actually shot people for a living, for, like, real…that shit don’t work!” is going to make one bit of a difference in changing his mind to seek out more effective, REAL training? No. Fuck no. He doesn’t care. On the other hand, because I am—despite being “old”—still fit, strong, and training, I can “teach” him, in a friendly way, on the mats, that “that’s cool, but from a dude who has actually shot people for a living, for like, real…that shit don’t work!”
The offer of “Alright, you use whatever you think you’ve got to stop me from planting your face in the mat, and my foot in your cervical spine,” and then simply demonstrating, in a friendly training environment, on the mats (“Man, that’s really cool. We should train some time. Maybe you can show me some of that stuff!” actually works really, really, really well, in my experience. Far, far better than, “Your kung-fu sucks. My kung-fu is better!”), is convincing in a very visceral way.
(The same thing works for FoF training with firearms, incidentally. Even with AirSoft guns, the lessons of getting pellets smacking into your face shield, is apparently very convincing.)
“What the fuck is the point, John?” you are thinking. “I thought this was NOT going to be a ‘do more PT’ article?”
Your job; your role; your position, at the fall of empire, if you actually give a shit about ANYTHING beyond yourself and your material “stuff,” is to be a fucking mentor. You need to be making concerted efforts to pass on the traditions, values, and customs of your tribal/community culture, whatever they may be. From “these are the foods we eat, and this is why,” (that is a custom and the cultural value underlying it, for the anthropologically-challenged) to “we never hit women, because women are the mothers of the future of our tribe,” (again, a tradition and a value that is the reason for the tradition); from “hit him first, hit him hard, and keep hitting him until he can’t get up, because fair fights are for suckers, and if you lose, you—or someone else in the community—may die as a result,” to “stay fit and strong so you can protect the less able,” if you are not taking every opportunity that arises—and creating those opportunities when they don’t arise on their own—then you don’t actually give a shit.
If that is the case, you are the worst kind of caricature of a “prepper” or “patriot:” the kind who blathers about freedom, liberty, and cultural values, while really just being afraid of losing your stuff. If that is you, fuck you, I hate you, and I hope you lose all your stuff in a house fire, and the insurance company fucks you over.
If that is NOT the case. If you ARE creating and taking advantages of those opportunities for mentorship—or even just TRYING to do so—then you have to look at what kind of mentor you are being. Are you just THAT old guy, that the kids listen to because their REAL mentors convinced them to “respect their elders,” or are you the kind of mentor that actually mentors, by being a leader, and leading from the front? Remember, at the end of the day, ESPECIALLY when it comes to teaching, “Who Does More Is Worth More.”
It doesn’t matter if you’ve got a really bad case of tennis elbow. It doesn’t matter if you’ve got a jinky knee or hip, or a bad back. It doesn’t matter if you think you’re past your prime. You need to have good, quality information to pass on, and you need to be ABLE to pass it on by demonstrating it, and showing that it works. Be a GOOD mentor for the youth of your tribe. Be a LEADER. Quit making excuses. Go get training. Learn to do shit the right way, instead of the lazy way, then pass the good information on.
I’ve had men in their seventies show up to my classes. They couldn’t keep up with the guys in their twenties all the time on the physical stuff, and neither they, the other students, nor myself, expected them to. I’ve had guys show up to my classes, realize they weren’t fulfilling their potential, yet, and change their life afterwards. From becoming serious strength and conditioning athletes, to beginning training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, to becoming fucking gardeners in their 1/8th acre, suburban backyards.
Seriously…I saw just the other day, a former student, who wasn’t a weight lifter before he took his first class with me a couple years ago, is entering his first powerlifting competition…in his 50s. I posted an email from a former student a couple years ago who credited surviving a heart attack to the PT program he began doing AFTER he took my class. I know of three men, all friends, who started training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, after training with me. One is in his sixties, the other two in their fifties. What the fuck is your excuse again?
So yeah, I’m old now, and getting older by the day. I am still going to continue doing PT, and shooting and doing dry-fire every day. I’m still going to do my combatives training. Not because I have delusions of being some sort of super-guerrilla commando raider in the “Coming Revolution,” but because I know that, if I want my children and grandchildren, and our cultural values, to survive the death throes we are currently living through, they are going to need a tight-knit community of kith-and-kin who are just as dangerous as my children and grandchildren will be (and are, really, already, on a pound-for-pound basis), to help them. The only way THOSE members of the tribe are going to take my training advice serious is if I am able to SHOW them why it works, rather than just telling them old war stories.
Go. Train. Be Dangerous. Be a Mentor.
————————————————————————-
Editorial/Admin Bullshit Stuff:
A few readers have emailed asking about the proposed subscription-based training stuff. We’re still working on how to make that happen, and even if it should (apparently it should, according to the very…ahem…vehement responses I got from a couple of trusted confidantes…). If my previous track record of trying to monetize shit on this blog, such as the t-shirt, sweathshirts, ball caps, and patches/stickers sales effort, is any indication, it should go live sometime shortly after the climax of the world’s next imperial civilization, in roughly 2600CE, by the current calendar. HH6 and I are however, among a host of other, equally–perhaps more–pressing issues, trying to figure that out.
Also considering trying to record a few podcast episodes this winter, once I get started working on the next book. Any interest in it? I actually like doing the podcast interviews I’ve done with folks, and I almost feel like I can get more information across, more expeditiously, in that manner, than I can in articles, as long as I can stay on track while speaking (as anyone who has ever actually been in a class with me will attest however, I am really, REALLY good at going off on tangents, and then struggling to find my way back to the last en route rally point of the conversation…)
MountainGuerrilla 
New to your stuff but really liking the information, as well as your presentation. Have listened to the podcasts you’ve been on and enjoyed those, too. Thanks so much and please keep up the good work, in whatever form you decide is the best to get it out to us.
Did your mother teach you to speak like that?
Fuck yes.
“So, why do I bother?
Because I care not just about me.”
As I fight the aches and pains, there are times when I ask myself the same question.
Knowing I’m not alone helps to keep me moving. It’s in the keeping moving, we don’t seize up. (Literally and figuratively)
Excellent article – forwarding to my group of which includes those as young as I (25) to those in their mid 50s. I appreciate your view of the leadership role – BY EXAMPLE!!
I’d be very interested in more podcast interviews. Reading posts is great, but podcasts are a great way to better understand and listen to what you have to say.
How about signing your rants and leaving your creds? Anybody can write this stuff. But not anybody can shoot straight and fast. DVC
Skeptical Old Goat (with two tennis elbows from Square Deal B’s)
I think that podcasts are a great idea.
Matt
Yes, more podcasts!
Do this for your elbow, it works. Fixed mine in about 2 weeks after a year of ice & cortisone w/o results. Check it out: https://www.absolutept.com/shooters-elbow/
I agree with Matt. The podcast sounds like a great idea.
You should be on the greatest podcast around again….THE SPEARHEAD TRANSMISSION!
I forgot to click the notify me tab. So I’m commenting again.
John, its late. PLEASE put on a fu*king SUP class already. I know it is hard to find the time. I am trying to do the training you tell me to do. I need the skills and I am ready to go with 20 fans of yours. We can do 2 classes in a week if you have the time.
Thanks for all you do man! Post the “Members Only” link…they will come!
Oh, and I’m 49. I have the same darn pissed off ligament in my right forearm for about 4 months now. 85% better. It heals S L O W L Y. It sucks! Wear that wussy little band they sell at CVS/Riteaid. It helps alleviate the pain and keep you in the fight to drive on.
Reblogged this on The way I see things … and commented:
As the title implies – the easily offended need to move along. As for me, I am a deplorable and find brutal honesty refreshing 🙂
Are you preparing for your next opportunity to defend the Constitution?
———-
It doesn’t matter if you’ve got a really bad case of tennis elbow. It doesn’t matter if you’ve got a jinky knee or hip, or a bad back. It doesn’t matter if you think you’re past your prime. You need to have good, quality information to pass on, and you need to be ABLE to pass it on by demonstrating it, and showing that it works. Be a GOOD mentor for the youth of your tribe. Be a LEADER. Quit making excuses. Go get training. Learn to do shit the right way, instead of the lazy way, then pass the good information on.
Having had tennis elbow those wussy bands do work and if JM was to wear one IMHO they wouldn’t be a wussy band no more, just don’t start wearing those lily white tennis shorts that are popular with them too.
You also might try acupuncture if you can find someone who is interested in doing a trade, the deal is acupuncture is something you can do overtime that has whole body health implications that can be very good IMHO.
I’m in on the paid tab “members only” thing and the next book and the video project I hope one day before I die you get done.
It is what it is bro!
I just returned from a 2 mile speed hike with 35 pound ruck and rifle chasing my idiot dog around hill and dale. Now your post and a Ranger Cocktail as I contemplate the glowing truth in this latest rant of your’n. Think it hurts now? Try it at 70. *G*
Start the revolution, I’m getting old and it sucks!!
Dear Old Goat,
To reduce inflammation (from activity or an inflammatory diet…), get a couple mini-jugs of MEGA FOODS TURMERIC WITH BLACK PEPPER AND BLACK CHERRY.
Add a midget scoop or three to your sardine mix before smearing the muck on gluten-free sandwiches or crackers.
Add it to your home-made non-seed oil salad dressings.
Add it to your smoothies.
Add it to your skillet of bone broth as you simmer your veggies before poaching your eggs.
You can thank me later.
LargeMarge
Good shit
Thanks John & HH6!
Tho we’ve never met, (prob never will), I TOTALLY get your input! I spent 40+ yrs. as a FIELD Missionary, and, (at 71) REALLY appreciate your “mentoring” counsel…I joined an FTX Training program 3 years ago, and, (as work permits), I attend & “stay the course” as best I can..learning firearms from one of your young brother “Berets”, (2 tours in both sandboxes), and am getting more accustomed to the regime…I’ve devoured “Good Fences Make Good Neighbors”! Quite profound John. And, (after practicing the same convictions for years), I can DEEPLY identify. Those concentric circles HAVE TO exist; and, TRUSTS are BUILT, not given without proof of deserving.
This site is REALLY very helpful and encouraging John.
And, just an aside: J. S. Mosby is one of my favorite, (and one of Gen. Gorge Pattons’ father’s close friends), warriors. As is also Col. David “Hack” Hackworth, and Jim Morris,[I’ve got most of his books].
May God bless & prosper your endeavors & family!
Look into recovery programs for baseball players. I’ve never had it, but a few guys I’ve played with have and it worked for them. Don’t have specifics, but you will probably end up buying 1.5 lb gay weights.
I think the subscription-based training and podcast episodes would be great and you can count on my support. Great article that unfortunately I recognized a bit of myself in the legit criticisms you made. I have been slacking off a little with the “I getting old” BS excuse but this is the kind of kick in the ass that will get me back on track. I’ve always thought a little shame/embarrassment goes a long way. Thanks for the articles I appreciate them.
Have to say, I’m ambivalent on podcasts. I like the idea of you talking and spreading knowledge, but it seems every time you go on a podcast, you just end up explaining the basics and/or material you put up here 6+ months ago, perhaps with different terminology. If you had a specific subject on what you were going to talk about, I’d be all ears, but otherwise I just can’t say I think it’s a good idea. If you were to find a similarly knowledgeable gentleman to talk about this stuff, and you guys had a debate or whatever, *that* would be fantastic. If you held your own podcast, I’d be interested as well. But if it’s just another interview with a new podcast? Then this reader would ask you to stick to the subscription-based stuff and/or focus on the next book.
I agree on the idea of dualling experts or contrasting a Group vs Team approach to a given situation. That would be more interesting than discussing basics with an under-informed host.
I couldn’t agree more with the above statements!
If you don’t have my address anymore, get a hold of Brian in Spokane . There is a company near me that has put out a real good natural product that I have been on for a month and I am off all the opiates ect.
I would be happy to send you a bottle on my dime. Your a good man and as is your family.
Hugs to the family, you too.
RangerRick
North Idaho
Another vote for paid subscription and the podcasts. Thanks again (and again and again) for the inspirational posts.
US Census Bureau says there are 324.5M people in the US. So the 1% of the 3% you didn’t offend comes out to about 97,000 dudes/dudettes. I think that’s more than enough to win. Now we just have to get them all to read your blog.
BTW, great article. Keep on keeping it real.
After having surgery for golfers elbow on my off arm I started having issues in my dominant arm. Not wanting to deal with surgery again I started researching alternatives. Found out about the thera-band flexbar. Best 20 bucks I ever spent. After about a month of using it all of my pain was gone. You should give it a shot. You can get one on amazon.
Great article and very inspiring, I just turned 50 years old, 5″9 175 lbs, not very impressive, but I ruck once a week, 5 miles with 55 lbs ruck, 3 pretty steep hills, in the great Texas hill county, keeping my time around 1 hour, and love deadlifting, once a week, best 400 lbs 5 max.. I went to the range today, and their were 4 young kids from England, visiting, the United States, wanted to shoot some guns they rented from the range, AR and a pistol, none of them could get the concept of putting ammo into a magazine, had a lot of fun showing them the basics, they did ok. My Point, these kids were young fit looking 20 year old. and all they did was complain, about the heat, and how their hands hurt from shooting the rifle, they each bought a box of wolf 20 round ammo, that I loaded for them, and I loaded extra 30 rounds of American Eagle, I gave them each, and they were all wore out, its not that hot, come visit in July, I still ruck in that heat, Without Mental Drive, your not going to move forward. These dudes kept talking about call to duty, just like my kids, I need to find away to pull them away from this crazy fantasy world, and into harsh reality.
My ex-brother in law used to sell spray foam insulation. Great stuff(no pun intended)- it was. He showed me how good it was. Where he lost me was when he was describing how regular fiberglass insulation didn’t do anything and was worthless. That is not the case.
I had been building for years, and that exposed him to me as a blatant bullshitter, and made me question his overall knowledge and character. Yeah, he is my ex-brother in law, and he did go out of business.
I have also trained for years in a gym that had BJJ, Muay Thai and Krav Maga. I have yet to see the secret BJJ move or hold or lock that beats a solid round of shots to the face, or a knee to the gut. Whether Muay Thai strikes or Krav Maga strikes (haven’t seen the difference actually). I’ve trained at least a little in them all. Real fights are melee’s, and its best to avoid being on the ground as much as possible. Now if you want to say size and aggression make difference, I would have to agree.
But then you were saying something about “my ju jitsu is better than your karate” or something?
I’d advise anyone to train whatever they can unless its a place that teaches that silly stuff where the guy drops five feet in front of the mystical sensei, without anyone touching him.
And yeah, leadership should be by example. In all things. Even speech.
I’m 69 and still work out because we are the weapon, the firearm is just the tool.
The problem with a lot of people who seek martial arts training for self defense is that they associate wide spread and popular with combat effective. And when they are at the gym, they ask “is this street effective?” and they are told “yes”.
They don’t stop to think that no gym is going to say “no, it isn’t” – the gym want their students to keep coming back and paying to learn the system/art.
They have a vested interest in the answer they give to the students.
But the students don’t normally think of that. And they learn the system/art, and end up believe they are learning good skills, and end up happy “knowing” that they could take on a knife wielding gang banger. It becomes their security blanket for the big, bad, scary world.
On a completely different subject, I vote for paid subscriptions, or the ability to buy select articles and SOPs or whatever. Podcasts don’t interest me personally.
JM,
I was a Ranger long before it was cool…good fortune to attend Ranger School and be a platoon leader in a Ranger Company in Vietnam, followed by a tour as an advisor to a Vietnamese Ranger BN (Biet Don Quan)…I am 70 and still work out hard, run and ruck. I have 3 bulging discs and I am about to get my right knee scoped….I will keep after it.
Here is my advice, you can gut check thru some of this…but sooner or later you need to take care of the nagging injuries OR you will go down hard. Fact of life. Getting old is not for pussies
I have tendinitis in both my elbows at one time or another. Ice the living shit out of your elbow. Naproxen and or Ibuprofen twice daily (always with food). The longer you let it go, the longer it will take to recover. I am getting over achilles heel tendinitis…its taking awhile because I ignored the problem..
Uh RAH!
Inspirational…Way to lead the way!
Mr. Mosby, it’s possible your tendonitis is originating from a trigger point in your forearm. Self-treatment for forearm trigger points is simple and effective. I can relate to the slow healing/recuperation that comes with age!
Try arnica oil for the elbow. Ice too is a miracle. My elbow joints hate me some days after chopping wood or swinging the pick ax. Arnica helps. Thanks for your post.
Also, do you have a good link to a dry fire regimen? Or want to describe yours? I’ll search your site and if you’ve already answered that, thanks!
Sam,
You are very correct! John, get this problem checked out by a medical professional, then follow their advice so it does not get worse. I have a buddy that injured his shoulder and continued on for about six months thinking it would get better. It didn’t and he finally went to a doctor. $50,000 worth of surgery and rehabilitation later he has the use of his right shoulder back, but injured the left shoulder in the meantime because it was taking up the slack, so another $50,000 worth of surgery and they are both fixed (tendons had snapped and had to be repaired). Get what needs to be fixed done now, while all the infrastructure exists!
I find sometimes that the best way to teach youth is to let them ‘do it wrong’ first, lacking any case of moral danger, then show them the right way to do it. It destroys that mental image of themselves as a know it all.
This technique really works – fixed me up in 3-4 weeks:
https://www.absolutept.com/shooters-elbow/
Spot the fuck on.
Great rant
For you old guys…I am 66….hoped to be fat, lazy and retired by now…hasn’t worked out
Current circumstances and the apparent state of things has necessitated me to “prep”
Shoot….went to appleseeds….kept shooting til rifleman…mentoring as instructor in training
Move….read starting strength…starting lifting…squatted benched deadlifted last night…ready to teach proper lifts!
Communicate…passed ham exams…tech Nov 2015…gen&extra Jan 2016…got equipment….started talking
73
Train hard…die old…always face the enemy
From your description it is highly likely that, as you press on, you are further tearing your right forearm extensor carpi radials brevis muscle. As you have admitted, your pushing through your injury is only delaying/preventing healing. In fact, you may turn a completely curable (by rest) injury into a permanent injury that may—or may not—be alleviated by surgery. Pain is injury. Get the memo. Apparently it is not only the fat guys who are as dumb as a “bag of rocks etc.”
As an old guy, it is always great to get a kick in the butt for motivation. Thanks
Did I hear “free class” .. lol .. do I really have to disagree .. because I don’t (re: disagree).
Down my way .. good luck gettin anyone off their azz to train .. my local trainers have had to cancel classes or run them with 1 person because everyone thinks they are rambo.
One of these days (next year) I’ll come see ya’ / yenz. Promise.
45 yr old ex-navy submariner / diver
John,
Spot on as always. The PT never gets easier, and the rucks and armor always seems heavy, yet I keep putting it on, and keep humping the hills, as best I can. Coming up on 50 now, and the old injuries and hard miles are still taking a toll. But, like stated above, a serious injury needs immediate attention, they will never fix themselves. Just like half of a gunfight is NOT getting shot, half of a good PT program is not getting injured and knowing how to recover properly, as it is getting harder to bounce back as the clock and calendar rolls on! Keep preaching it Brother, we’re all listening!
“Scuba Steve” in Idaho
Nice post, thank you. I’m 61 and getting harder than when I was a youngster. As you say, one of the best ways of leading youngsters from the front, is to not be the fat old man. Get ripped in your old age. You will feel better both physically and mentally. And the youngsters of your tribe WILL respect you more for your walking the truths that you talk.
A side note on “Israeli Carry.” From JM’s books I know that he is a fan of appendix carry. Me too, prior to buying his books. FWIW, any good Browning HP is a good candidate for appendix carry, cocked and locked. Or if yours has an original-type thumb safety and if you trust your holster, some will go to condition zero after holstering the gun. Smarter people than me, do this re-holstering iteration. They are some serious BHP users due to the fact that they are not from here. Take it or leave it, condition zero in a good holster, even in appendix, is one way of getting around a deficiency of the older guns in modern times. Condition three in appendix carry for a BHP is a non-starter for me. But I can’t say the same for M1911 lockwork. Still valuing my balls and femoraral arteries, I wouldn’t carry a M1911 in appendix and with its lockwork done by me, due to what I’ve seen of such at 24x.
And I think Glocks are fine in appendix, with some knowlege.
seen at 24x.
I trust the sear-hammerhook engagement of a HP much more than that of a M1911. And I used to make a living at one of those NW Arkansas shops looking at sear-hammer relationships under a 24x magnifier.
Banamine in your morning orange juice, off label but It will get rid of the pain and inflammation. Lots of “vets” use it. The only side affect is it makes you want to chew your cud.
Very inspiring article, your writings keep me motivated to do my daily P.T. everyday regardless of what gets in the way, aches and pains, kids back in school or mandatory overtime at work. If I cant get home to workout, with weights in my backyard, due to work schedule, I setup a pipe at work and attach a small lifting jack to the middle of the pipe, with bunch of tie wraps, I will go thru military presses, do pushups and run some stairs, during lunch. You can always find away to get it done, hope your tennis elbow gets better, for some reason lots of ice, has always worked for me.
Thank You.
From an Old Fart in Training.
I use a “somnitrol” device, also known as a palm massager. I set it for an hour and go to sleep.
I had a lateral hyper-extension of my knee, after six months I was still limping. This MP3 looking device had me walking in three weeks and running in 6. I’m only 59, still young and I noticed that we do heal more slowly.
Your viewers have great advice on treatment and cures.
I’m 50. Just got there 6 or 8 months ago. It’s too easy to sit back and get fat. Ain’t happening, effed up discs and all. Still benching and squatting well over 300 pounds sans juice or HGH. Eating well; almost have six pack. Still elusive. Got some recognized deficiencies in the form of shooting, cardio, ass kicking. Spent some time with Uechi-ryu when younger. We’ll be working on these. Didn’t serve as a young adult. Should have. My oldest are heading in that direction.
Thanks Sam Brady for tendonitis recovery routine.
JM is a badass.
A few observations from the high side of 50:
1) If you wake up and you’re not in pain, it is considered presumptive evidence that you died in your sleep.
2) Everything hurts, especially when it’s done correctly.
3) Retirement is verbose for “death.”
4) As Jack LaLanne said (in his 70s): “There are mornings I’d rather take a beating than work out.” He did it anyway and he’s somewhere laughing his ass off at you.
5) You don’t have to like it. You just have to do it.
6) “Mind must be the stronger, heart the bolder, courage must be the greater, as our might lessens.” Jeff Cooper had that (in Old English) engraved over his fireplace, a reference to the Battle of Maldon in 991 AD. Whoever wrote that lived in a fucked up, pain-filled, shit-stinking world without naproxen, steroid injections, knee replacement, anesthesia, antibiotics or basic hygiene, where “old” mean “over 30” and a superficial cut could buy you a slow, horrible death from sepsis. Now it’s 1000 years later and you’re bitching about your back hurting from your Barcalounger. Getting older? Have a nice, hot, fresh cup of Suck It Up And Deal With It. You’re not getting out of this alive.
This was beautiful.
Yeah, I have a bit of teary-eyed puppy-love myself….sniff……
Blunt and to the point. Outstanding!
“The Old snakes venom is no less lethal” (Ranger Up)
This bitch sure is 1 sick puppy I mean old dog