Disk Golf

I have found a new obsession, or at least another form of exercise that should be fun.

Disk Golf.

I have been seeing these around here and there during my travels. There is a course at my daughter's college and also one close to our home at a local park.

It is really quite simple. Golfing with a frisbee. You throw, walk, throw again until you can get the disk into the "hole", which is a metal basket with chains hanging to catch the disk and help it find its way into the basket.

The wife and I went out to Sports Authority on Saturday and I picked up a 3 pack. Not too cheap, but not a set of real golf clubs either.

Monday morning I went over to the park alone and tried it out. I ran through the 9 "hole" course using the different disks, just to get a feel for the technique. One disk is supposed to be for driving, another for mid-range and one for putting and approach. I really couldn't tell the difference as I would throw all three from each point and sometimes the "putter" would go the farthest. Maybe it is my skill level.

So I got the hang of it then went through the course again, with just one disk (I choose the putter) and actually scored the game. I pretty much suck, but there is a lot of room for improvement. I couldn't get even one hole at par, but I need something to strive for.

All in all it was pretty fun and I hope to keep at it for a while and hopefully actually get better at it.

As far as workout level, it is pretty minimal, but I was outside and moving from place to place covering ground. I went for a short 3K run after playing, just to finish off some kind of workout.

My Workout Routine

I have been interested in fitness for quite some time. I remember when I was around 11 or 12, I was already trying to work out with free weights and do some running. I was pretty skinny then, but the interest was there. I never considered myself a jock in high school, but doing energetic things has been a part of my routine for quite some time.

After joining the Coast Guard, fitness became even more important for me. At first, I wasn't really doing much. Of course boot camp had its requirements and I easily met all of those, but wasn't in the 700 club if I recall that moniker correctly.

After doing my first tour on a ship, then going to school, I was introduced to more intense weight lifting as a lot of the techs from the shop would head over to the gym after work and get a good workout in. We supported each other and talked manly gym talk. It was a bonding experience.

And so it went as I piled on the years of my career and alternately piled on muscle and weight, back and forth through the years. My running and biking would ebb and flow also, depending on the season and my inclination. My wife and I were also introduced to "real" volleyball and eventually wallyball, which has become our passion. We also do Adventure Races together and have had some success in our endeavors in this sport.

And so we come to the present, where I prepare for what I am hoping will be a physically challenging CPO Academy experience. Lately, I have been doing a lot of research into the different services Physical Fitness programs and tests. I'm telling you there are quite a bit of differences, but what it usually comes down to is upper body strength and endurance, core strength and endurance and aerobic ability and endurance; pushups, sit-ups and running.

I have found some good information all over the Internet and within our network. I looked into the Boat Crew Physical Fitness Standards, the Coast Guard Fitness Assessment from the Personal Wellness Profile, the Army Physical Fitness Test, the Marine Corps Physical Fitness Program and Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (MCMAP).

To keep my workouts constantly changing and challenging, I am right now doing a lot of stuff from the Marine's Fitness program. They concentrate a lot on pull ups, but mix in so much other stuff, it stays interesting.

Some of the things I am doing are:
A circuit course of 10 different exercises, mixing body weight and weighted exercises followed by 40 yd sprints.
Core exercises followed by a 1.5 mile run.
A few rounds of a 1/2 mile run, then exercises that consist of pushing, pulling, squatting and overhead lifting.

I tell you they can be intense.

Also, in a serious attempt to get my body weight and fat percentage to something I am comfortable with, I have started on a program of my own making that mixes these workouts (at least 6 times a week) with some smart eating. I have lately been logging EVERYTHING I eat on a couple of websites that show me exactly what nutrients and calories I am taking in and what I'm getting too much of and what I am not getting enough of. It is very enlightening and I have dropped a good amount of pounds in the few weeks I have been at it.

I may post some of my workouts here as things move along.

CPO Academy Doings

I am in the process of preparing to attend the CPO Academy. The requirement to attend kind of revolved around my advancements until I found myself a Master Chief without the school. The story of why I haven't gone is long and convoluted, so I won't go into that now. Suffice it to say. It is time for me to go.

As a Rating Force Master Chief, it is a requirement to have attended a Senior Enlisted Leadership School in order to do the job. I am actually really looking forward to attending and have started all the preparations for it. I'm way ahead of schedule. The problem is I don't actually have orders to a class yet. I am hoping to get into the April 18th class and am confident that there will be an opening when the time comes. I will be in that class.

Whenever I encounter anything new or challenging, I usually immerse myself into learning everything I can about the subject. I research and Google everything I can think of about the subject and try to gain as much knowledge about this new thing in the hopes that some of it matures into wisdom. I am also an almost obsessive list maker. I like seeing things orderly and accounted for, which I'm sure surfaces in any Myers-Briggs typing I will be doing. I usually can't watch a movie or read a book without having to research something from the event to gain more knowledge.

I am well into my check list for the CPO Academy. Last week I submitted my profile and saw medical and admin to complete the required prerequisite physical fitness and weight paperwork. I have also already completed my Senior Enlisted Joint Military Professional Education Course in preparation for the Academy. My Educational Assessment update is already on its way to the Institute and I am well into the other requirements that you need to show up with for the class.

I'm also rigorously implementing a fitness and diet plan to get me as lean and mean as I can get to fulfill that requirement of the class. I have adopted some USMC workout routines to get myself into fighting shape. I will be talking more about that in a later post.

So as that one hurdle (orders) looms, I prepare myself to do something I should have taken the time and effort to complete 10 years ago, but I try to not look back too much (unless it is to examine a mistake I don't want to repeat) and go forward with confidence and maximum effort.

Here is my CPO Academy Checklist:

Receive orders to class Enroll in CPO Academy Welcome Course Submit Student Profile Complete Physical Fitness Form Complete PAR-Q Request College Transcript Submit Educational Assessment Reserve Flights Purchase Shuttle Tickets Prepare Bullets for Award Pick up Medical Record Review President's Challenge Prepare/update IDP Complete Unit Performance Factors form (UPF) Choose Clep Exam Maintain Weight Standards Enroll/Complete EJPME

I intend to track my course as I prepare for the academy and continue this blog as a day by day journal of my preparations, goals, accomplishments and challenges of attending the United States Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Academy.

R,
ETCM Joe Harold