Today, The General would like to quote from the classic work of flawed genius Charles Darwin, the Theory Of Evolution:

“…From this it may be inferred that: In a world of stable populations where each individual must struggle to survive, those with the “best” characteristics will be more likely to survive, and those desirable traits will be passed on to their offspring. These advantageous characteristics are therefore inherited by following generations, becoming dominant among the population through an extended period of time. This is natural selection. It may be further inferred that natural selection, if carried far enough, makes changes in a population, which will lead, eventually to new species arsing. These observations have been amply demonstrated in biology, and even fossils demonstrate the veracity of these observations.

To summarise;

1. Variation: There is Variation in Every Population.
2. Competition: Organisms Compete for limited resources.
3. Offspring: Organisms produce more Offspring than can survive.
4. Genetics: Organisms pass Genetic traits on to their offspring.
5. Natural Selection: Those organisms with the Most Beneficial Traits
are more likely to Survive and Reproduce.”

STOP!

You are bored, yes?
To be quite honest, The General does not blame you.

So please allow The General to simplify this for us all…

If our corrupt and decadent civilisation collapsed tomorrow, would you be a survivor or a statistic?
Think about it?
What do you base your answer upon, Comrade?

Who do you want to be:

Sarah Connor or Sarah Jessica Parker?
Russell Crowe or Russell Brand?
Fighter Or Fashion Victim?
Fearless or Fop?

Let’s make this even simpler, shall we?
Here’s what the Theory Of Evolution should really have said:

ONLY THE STRONG SURVIVE

Weakness or  Strength?

It’s your choice, and you make it everyday, whether you realise it or not…

General Out

…it’s literally nothing to do with strength & weakness, the anti-inflamatory drug changes the dynamic between your stomach lining and stomach acid in favour of the acid, which is damaging.

The General:

But it hasn’t hurt [him]. If it was all about chemical reactions then strong people would get ill as often as weak people, but we don’t.

J-Dog:

What do you think it’s about if it’s not about chemisty?

The General:

It’s about who you are. Strong people are not bio-chemically different to weak  people, so according to your theory there should be no difference in rates of sickness between the weak and the strong.

J-Dog:

No! That’s the same logic as the smokers who argue that their grandma smoked twenty cigarettes a day and lived  until she was ninety, so smoking isn’t unhealthy.

The General:

The twenty-a-day ninety year old is an exception. The rule is that weak people are more susceptible to illness than strong people.

J-Dog:

What makes you think strong people get ill less than weak people?

The General:

Observation. Experience.

J-Dog:

Maybe it’s the other way around.  Maybe strong people are only strong because they’re not unfortunate enough to get ill, where as weak people are weak because they get lots of illness?

The General:

Interesting theory…but if that were the case, it wouldn’t be possible for a weak person to become strong, would it?

J-Dog:

I guess not. So you’re saying all, or most of us, start off weak but can become strong through hard work and focused training?

The General:

Ov Corz! In the West everyone starts off weak, as they grow they can choose to stay weak like normal people, or become strong like you did, J-Dog. They could all become strong, but they choose not to.

J-Dog:

But not all weak people get sick, although maybe it is more likely, and yes most people choose not to become strong. However, you say this as if they are to blame, but most of them don’t know how to get strong.

The General:

I agree, but that too is part of their weakness. We live in an information rich society, so said information is available, but it’s implementation, whilst simple, isn’t easy.

J-Dog:

It’s not about easy! I didn’t have this information until we met.

The General:

But when you had the information, you used it. Your path has not been easy, but you have forged a new you in the fire of knowledge, effort and willpower. Why can’t everyone do this? Because they don’t want to hear our message, they want the magic bullet solution, the instant gratification fix.

J-Dog:

But there is no quick fix!

The General:

Exactly, but the weak, the lazy, the stupid, don’t want to hear this simple truth.

J-Dog:

Then they will remain weak.

The General:

Yes.  But we will continue to be strong. The General may use this conversation as the basis of a future blog about strength & weakness…

J-Dog:

Don’t you dare!

The General:

General Out

Why do the scrawny boys with no functional strength or muscle size feel the need to do a nonsense of an exercise like decline bench press?

Why do the overweight guys with no functional strength or stamina think that endless bicep curls will help them towards the look they desire?

Why are so many women – and some men – afraid of lifting either themselves or iron because they believe they’ll get ‘muscle bound’?

It really isn’t about how much you can bench, or how many pointless hours you can spend on the ‘cross trainer’ before boredom sets in.

It’s about what you can do, and, more importantly, who you are.

Because…
If you’re the guy who can’t walk upstairs without getting out of breath.
If you’re the guy who can’t push or pull his own weight around.
If you’re the guy who can’t act when action is needed.

Then really, what use are you?
To your family, your friends, your neighbours?
I’m not saying we should all have skills and training.

But I am saying this:
If my kid had fallen in the street, I’d want to be able to run out in front of a car and scoop him to safety.
Wouldn’t you?
But could you?
You don’t need to be a superhero to do this…you just need to be capable of doing what nature designed your body for!

Wake up and smell the coffee.
Because too many of you are sleeping…

General Out

J-Dog has been asked by many of her friends to show them how to use Kettlebells so they can be as fit as her.

The F-Unit has admirers and wannabees who want to know how to have abs like her.

The secret must be Kettlebells, right?
Wrong.
The secret must be diet, right?
Wrong.
So the secret must be long cardio sessions, right?
Wrong again, comrades.

So what is the secret?

What has turned J-Dog from a 75kg unconditioned student into a 55kg athlete with a frightening power to weight ratio?

What has given the F-Unit the ripped abdominals and sleek, toned muscles of a professional athlete?

The same thing.
The same simple thing.
Is it complicated, this ‘secret’?
Can it really be that simple?
Yes comrades, it’s as simple as ABC:

Attitude
Belief
Commitment

To quote Tyler Durden from the excellent movie Fight Club:

“Without pain, without sacrifice, we have nothing”

The answer to your problems lies within you.

You already know the path that leads to the future you want.
Why are you afraid to follow it?

General Out

Does The General mean Happy New Year?

No, ov corz not.

Throw your calendar away, and understand the most important thing about your new year’s resolution:

It’s a lie.

To your family, your friends, and more importantly, to yourself.

You don’t need to wait for the year to roll over to change who you are. All you need to do is to want that change enough. Sadly, most people don’t.

Most people use injuries, timescales, families, location, and yes, the time of year, as an excuse to not change. Not because they don’t want to change, but because they are afraid to.

Our biggest fear is not that we are weak, but that we are powerful beyond measure.

You can live your life in fear, never having what you want or believe in…or you can be brave enough to change.

The General’s good friend The Foxx is not afraid to change. For the past 3 weeks she has been tired, running a temperature, sometimes dizzy…it would have been easy for her to sit around and wait til she was better. Blame the bug she has for stopping her from changing. Wait until the new year…does this mindset sound familiar?

The Foxx did none of these things…she trained – hard – for the last 3 weeks.

She pushed herself.

She refused to accept physical limitations.

That’s why she’s the F-Unit.

She did this how?

She manned up. She got on with it. She didn’t whine (well, maybe, just a liitle bit…) She focused on what she wanted to change, and what she needed to do.

She became a warrior

If you want to change, you need to do the same.

Focus on your goal.

Accept the changes that are neccessary, and make them happen.

Grab your nuts.

Become the change that you want to see in yourself.

General Out