In this episode we sit down with Greg Gottfried. He's a strength and conditioning coach, and fitness podcast host, who's going to pump you up for the apocalypse. So put on your 80s sweatband. We're going to lift heavy.
How is Greg Gottfried? [...] I'm a strength and conditioning coach. I'm also a track and field throws coach. [...] I also teach CPR and First Aid. I'm a member of my local CERT. And just recently got my HAM license.
Do you consider yourself a prepper?
Absolutely! And I haven't been my whole life. Hurricane Katrina is what flipped the switch for me. Seeing how helpless people were and the lawlessness... just the devastation really forced me to be honest with what situation my family was in. [...] Since Katrina, I've really gone full bore to make sure my family is safe and prepared.
Did watching the aftermath of Katrina make you think, "my G-d, what if this happen to my family?"
Yeah! Like I said, it was like a light switch for me. [...] It was like a cartoon lightbulb going off. I was sitting in a town house and we two shared walls. And I was thinking we don't have any extra food. We don't have any water. And my shotguns are stored at my parents house. What the hell do we do?
Portland is not a bastion of firearms love and affection. How does that work for you in your area? And is preparedness looked at as being weird in your area?
Guns are a hot topic here. And we're not exactly the most welcoming of firearms. [...] It's not something I talked about a lot before I got into all of this, but believe it or not they were all closet preppers too.
It always surprises me how there are more people into guns and prepping than most people think. It just takes opening up a little bit, often.
Where does preparedness, physical fitness, and nutrition intersect for you?
[...] Like I mentioned before, I'm a member of my local CERT and First Aid. I'm a member at the local gun club also. And I can't help but notice how terrible shape people are in. [...] Or the things they're prepping are horrible foods. And it's the thing I like to do: help people fill in those gaps. So when I'm talking to someone about nutrition... I'll bring up, "Well now that you have all these healthy foods, what if we get snowed in? Do you have acces to more foods like this?" Or when I'm talking to people about compressions, it's like... do you think you can maintain chest compressions for 15 minutes before an ambulance shows up? Or can you get that 300 pound vicim out of harms way?
I just notice a lot of people are not physically fit. And they call themselves preppers. It kind of gets under my skin. If you're not ready for life right now, how are you going to be ready when a catastrophe hits.
Are we going to talk about becoming a gym rat today: making working out like a part time job? How deep are we going to go here?
It can be really simple. What's important is that we can move through a full range of motions... in compound movements, like a squat or hip hinge, or be able to push or pull and be pain free.
A lot of people are just sitting at their desks all day long. [...] And they just can't move around very well. They just don't have that mobility that they once had as kids.
What's important is being about to move through life more efficiently.
How do we get there... How many hours a week are we talking for the average person to get and stay functionally fit.
It doesn't need to take forever. A good well rounded workout done in an hour. And you don't need to do that every single day. But 3 to 5 times a week is fine. So we're looking at 3 to 5 hours a week. Max.
The key is to make sure you're doing the right things. And there it's really important to make sure, especially us guys, and we're finding a trainer or coach get us where we need to go.
What do you see people get wrong?
That's a great questions. The number one thing I see people get wrong is all they do is cardio. Not that there's anything wrong with cardio. [...] As far as being effective in life and getting the most bang for our buck I think the real value is in strength training.
And making sure it's a well rounded strength training routine. So what you're doing is some sort of squat, some sort of hip hinge, a push, a pull, and a waited carry or bridging.
[...] Plus, there's been a lot of studies that have shown heart rate and metallic effect of doing resistant training, or lifting weights, lasts for fare longer post workout than if you were to do cardio.
In the event of a zombie apocalypse, what is this strength training and firmer butt going to do for me?
One, you're going to be able to get over all your obstacles... Jumping walls and climbing trees won't be anything for you.
Let's step back a little bit, and let's take it from just a small weather thing. Let's say a tree falls down in the road way. Cardio isn't going to help you with that. Deadlifting is going to help you move that tree.