I’ve always been athletic. Not a big guy but in high school I played baseball and football and while in Japan got into martial arts. In my junior year of college at Florida State, (Go Noles) weighing in at a whopping 128 lbs, I got into weight training and two years later in Illinois, got into serious body building. As I said, I was not a big guy but I was dedicated, worked out extra hard and started drinking a daily morning protein shake to help put some pounds and muscle on. Later I got into competitive body building and that really increased both the work outs and the supplements. If Arnold recommended it, I took it. Hell, if anyone recommended it I took it. At one time I was taking over 31 different pills to increase strength, stamina, energy and muscle in addition to the Protein Shakes every morning. The only thing I didn’t do was steroids. My last contest before I moved to Tucson with PSE in 1980 was the Mr. Chicagoland and I was a month away from 40. I was the oldest guy in the contest and weighed in at a ripped 154 lbs.
Well I never competed after that so I cut down on the supplements. Besides they were making me goofy. I did continue to hit the weights. Between running Hawk Associates my advertising agency and bowhunting.net with Robert Hoague my life has not slowed down and has actually gotten more hectic since moving to this incredible retirement destination of Green Valley, AZ three years ago. I still hit the weights three times a week but I also play tennis and golf three times a week, take my wife dancing, help coach tennis, chair the HOA Architectural Review Committee and Neighborhood Watch so stamina and strength are important to me. There isn’t a day I don’t do something physical. I have to admit though I was starting to run out of gas. For some strange reason I didn’t seem to have the strength or the energy I had just 20 years ago. So when my friend Tracy Breen sent me some PR on a company he was working with, I decided to give Wilderness Athlete a try.
I went to the site and placed my order thinking ‘what the heck, can’t hurt’. I ordered the 28 Day Challenge because it had just about everything I wanted. About a week later the box arrived. Here is what I got.
- 28 Day Challenge Guide and Tracker
- 2 Tubs of Meal Replacement Shake
- Tub of Hydrate & Recover
- Tub of Energy & Focus
- Bottle of Multi-Vitamins
- Bottle of Lean Life
- Tub of Green Infusion
I also order their Ultimate Pre Work Out, a couple of caps, short sleeve T-Shirt and long sleeve shirt. I was ready to see if this stuff was as good as what I bought religiously from the Master Blaster himself, Joe Weider of Muscle and Fitness Magazine.
I haven’t taken the Lean Life but will start as I’m slowly putting some extra weight on. But, on to the trial. I started the mornings with a Meal Replacement shake; 1 banana, 3 fresh eggs, handful of peanuts, tablespoon of peanut butter, tablespoon of honey, some almonds, good scoop of frozen yogurt, tablespoon of Chia seeds, cup of frozen blueberries, scoop of the Meal Replacement powder and Green Infusion topped off with non-fat milk. Then on work out day, Tues, Thur and Sat about 30 minutes before I head to the gym I take 3, or 4 Pre Work Out pills. On those days I made the shake after the work out.
I took the multi Vitamins as directed and every day for lunch I had a glass with the Energy & Focus. When I played tennis or golf I added to a bottle of water, a scoop of Energy & Focus and Hydrate & Recover that I drank during play. I used to buy GatorAid by the containers of powder so I could mix my own but I’m now hooked on Hydrate & Recover and Energy & Focus, as it has a great taste and doesn’t have the sugar. Believe me when I say keeping properly hydrated and keeping your energy and focus at their highest levels is vital when you exert yourself, especially during the hotter months. Down here in paradise we, when not injured, play golf and tennis year round. The heat can be a fast killer or a slow drain on your body. Hydrate & Recover and Energy & Focus in water is a necessity for me now.
My weight training work outs are usually full body. I change the routine around but generally start with some stretching, then trunk twist on the machine and crunches on the incline board for abs. I then do three sets of leg extensions and curls and finish with 3 sets of 20 reps of leg presses at 200 lbs. Then I do three sets of back at 100 lbs, 10 reps each, then chest, incline presses and 3 sets of flies. Then shoulders followed by curls and triceps, 3 sets of 10 shrugs with 55 lb dumbells and finish up with 30 sit ups and some more stretching. I noticed on my first work out with the Pre Work Out pills that I had more energy. It was no fluke. Over the next two weeks everything was increasing, my energy, stamina and strength. I would hit the gym at 5:30 am and hit the exercises hard until about 7:00, work until 2 and then play golf. I would play three sets of tennis during the off days and just never got tired. My sit up routine went from 50 sit ups to 80. I increased not only the reps of each exercise but also the weight. I cut the time between sets in half, to less than a minute and in the second week I added a day of aerobics with the rowing machine starting at 15 minutes and then 30, and stationary bike where I would ride for 15 minutes and while seated I would do 3 sets of 100 hammer curls with 10lb dumbells.
I felt like Superman. Honestly, I have spent the past 40 years working out, competing, taking huge amounts of pills, proteins, etc, etc etc. I have never felt the boost I get from any product, ever, like the boost I get from these products from Wilderness Athlete.
I told myself when I moved to Tucson with PSE in 1980 that I would compete in a body building contest…when I was 70. Well two years ago I tore my Rotator cuff in three places and was out of sports for 3 months. I ballooned up to 198 lbs. I discovered when a body is at rest and consuming large quantities of Scotch and Lays Potato chips followed by a large tasty meal capped off with a bowl of ice cream, it’s really not hard to put a few pounds on. It really took its toll and dragged me down. When ready, I went back in the gym with the intent to get back to 175. Life’s a challenge. Then I tore a hamstring. Healed and then blew out three discs in my lower back. Yeah, it’s not easy getting old but, here is what my drive is, to get back to where I want to be so I can do the things I want to do. So, with my back kinda healed, I was back to the gym, back on the courts and links and back on the dance floor and I finally, slowly got back doing what I love. So, right on plan, two weeks into my trial of the Wilderness Athlete products I tore the medial meniscus in my right knee, another surgery and another recouping. I’m back in the gym, the rest will come later. When I tore the knee I went off all the products. Wouldn’t be fair to try and continue to evaluate the products if I couldn’t put them really to the test.
So, I started them again this past week, went to the gym and I will continue to use them through my total recovery and beyond. I have no doubt that so long as I am physically active with body building, tennis, golf, dancing and in the fall when I’m in the mountains after javalina, or deer or elk, Wilderness Athlete will be the gas I’ll be putting in my engine. The proof is there. I’ve never felt the affect from anything I’ve ever taken to match Wilderness Athlete products.
Right in the middle of my recouping time I had the pleasure of speaking to Mark Paulson the power behind this incredible company and its products. Mark knows a thing or two about sports and commitment, about pushing the human body to extremes and the drive it takes to be an athlete who never gives up, never quits and never take defeat lying down. He has assembled an educated, inspired team of professionals who have formulated what I personally consider to be the best products for the athlete who wants the best in their body so they can get the best out of it. Mark Paulson “We all love our gear and the latest gadgets but the undeniable fact remains that the most important piece of equipment you own is you! Take care of yourself and you can hunt well into your twilight years, neglect your health and the odds are stacked against you”.
If you want the fuel to be able to get the most out of everything you do, from extreme sports, to hunting, hiking, mountain climbing, biking, and everything in between, do yourself a favor, go here, Wilderness Athlete, check out the products and the people who make them happen and then order – still not convinced, find more reviews at Amazon. I’m sure you will be as satisfied as I am at the results. I only wish these products were available years ago when I was an undersized, older guy trying to compete on the body building stage. Now with all that has happened and still having the drive to compete at all these levels I know I have to be smarter and take advantage of everything good I can get from taking products from Wilderness Athlete every day. You are probably younger and in better physical shape but want to compete at whatever sport you like. Regardless of what that sport is, I will guarantee you Wilderness Athlete has the products you need to succeed. Here’s to your health. I’m trusting mine to WA.
