Sergeant Tony's Blog

In 1971 Fred Smith, a former Marine, founded a little company that now employs about 99.9% of Shelby County. He founded the company in Little Rock, but moved it to Memphis in 1973 when airport officials in Little Rock would not agree to provide facilities for the fledgling company’s airplanes.

(Hey Little Rock! … WHAT WERE YOU CLOWNS THINKING?!)

Smith called his little company “Federal Express.” You might have heard of it. That was a pretty grandiose title for a little company with a handful of airplanes and a small cadre of pilots.

After a few years people started using the shorthand, “Fed Ex” to refer to the company.

In 1994, bowing to the will of the people, the company’s name was officially changed to FedEx. It’s even become a verb. (”I need to ‘fedex’ this box to Charleston.”)

There are a lot of people known today by one word names, like Oprah, Madonna, and Cher, or names they weren’t born with at all. “Sting” is not on his birth certificate, but Gordon Matthew Sumner is. Alecia Moore is Pink. Robert Allen Zimmerman became Bob Dylan. And Paul David Hewson is better known as Bono.

Names are important. Aren’t they?

One of the best things you can do to improve your interpersonal skills is to commit people’s names to memory. I’ve been told that I do this pretty well. Maybe so.

Here are a few of my tips for remembering people’s names.

One of the things I do when I meet someone new is to try to say their name out loud when the introductions are made. “Hi Andrew, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

And then I try to work their name into the conversation as much as I can without it sounding weird or stilted.

Repeat their name in your head several times while you’re meeting them.

Look them in the eyes and and study their face, without looking creepy.

Dale Carnegie said, “Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”

Our identity is tied to our names, for good or bad. We cringe when someone mispronounces our name or we become crestfallen when someone important forgets our name. But we swell with pride when someone important remembers our name!

So make it a priority to remember the other person’s name. And the next time you meet that new person notice the look in their eyes and the smile on their face when they hear you call them by name!

———————————

THE RETURN OF THE 0830 CLASS AND THE CONTINUATION OF THE 0645 CLASS

The 0645 will continue indefinitely on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

The 0830 Class will return to ACTIVE DUTY status on Wednesday, September 8!

I’m looking forward to seeing you 0830 Boot Campers!! Don’t forget that there is child care available at the church for this class!

——————————–

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins this Saturday, September 4 at 7 AM. We’ll meet in front of the Visitor’s Center at Shelby Farms. The Visitor’s Center is the building on the hill just above Patriot Lake and visible from Walnut Grove.

We’ll be running for 1hr and 10 min, using a modified version of Jeff Galloway’s approach to training.

If you’re not sure if you can do it, come on out and give it a try for free. No harm, no foul!

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

Boot Campers who aren’t running the half marathon, but want to get their one hour of continuous cardio are welcome to run with us at no charge!

——————————————-

LABOR DAY

We’ll have one workout on Monday morning at 7 AM at Christ Methodist.

——————————————–

PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST!

The PFT conducted on Tuesday morning was a huge success. We’ll be doing this once every other month. Next PFT will be at the end of October! More details to follow!

——————————————–

NEW PRICING FOR FAMILIES AND COUPLES

If you’re a part of a family (usually husband and wife) that does USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, a new pricing plan goes into effect in August! Ask me about it! You’ll like it!

———————————————-

AWOL

Have you been away from USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP for a while? Comfortable in Turdeville? Wanna come back? C’mon then!! I won’t bite you!

I know how it is. You miss a day or two … and then it’s been a week or two … and then it’s a month or two …

Get back on track. Come back to the Quarterdeck! Nothing good is going to happen by staying away!

——————————————-

BOOT CAMP DISCOUNTS AND FACEBOOK EXPERIMENT!

Facebook has now reached a major milestone: 500 million users! One out of every 14 people on the planet are on Facebook.

That’s the population of the US, Japan, and Germany combined! Half a BILLION people are on Facebook.

In the world of cyber-marketing, Facebook usage can’t be ignored.

So here’s our experiment.

Make a Facebook status update and get a discount!

For every status update that you make that references:
“USMC Fitness Boot Camp,”
“Sgt. Tony’s Boot Camp,”
“Tony’s Boot Camp,”
or something similar, you can take $2.50 off your reenlistment fee for each update, up to $20 off for any given month!

Your status update has to be a specific reference to USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP or to me specifically by name.

You can use the Facebook “Places” or Foursquare linked to your Facebook account to “check in” and you’ll get the same discount!

You can use YELP and write an awesome review!

Use your own wording and personality, just include the specifics.

So log on and get started today!

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 10 to 15 POUNDS BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

———————————————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website.
http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

—————————————————

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145
www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com
http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge/–

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The group I was traveling with in upstate New York wanted to go to Cooperstown. They wanted to visit The Baseball Hall of Fame.

Sigh.

Baseball Hall of Fame. Not on my bucket list.

This is gonna make some of you mad at me, but here goes. Baseball is boring. There. I said it. I’ve always thought of baseball as a game invented to give non-athletes something to do.

I played “America’s Game” as a kid and then abandoned it when I realized that I could think of at least 10 other things I’d rather be doing than standing around in center field yellin’ “swing batter batter batter swing!”

Seriously? This is a sport?

Too much spitting and scratching. Too much sitting around in the dugout. Too much standing around in the field.

And what’s up with the coaches (managers) wearing a uniform with a number on it? Really? I mean, when was the last time one of those guys called their own number and took the field?

I’ve tried to like baseball. I really have. I just can’t wrap my mind around the whole thing. I mean, it’s like 2 minutes of action stretched out over two hours.

Oddly, though, I love baseball movies. Two of my favorites are “Field of Dreams” and “The Natural.”

Anyway, there we were in Cooperstown and I was walking around The Baseball Hall of Fame. Did visiting the Hall of Fame change my attitude toward the game? Nope, not a bit. But the historian in me loved it. The history was very cool.

But as soon as I could, I excused myself from the group and the Hall and took off! There was some place else in Cooperstown, NY that interested me more than The Hall.

I walked a mile from the Baseball Hall of Fame and found the home of James Fennimore Cooper. The town is named after him. You might remember that he wrote “The Last of the Mohicans.”

Walking around his home, now a museum, was pretty cool. Being in the place where the man lived, worked, and died was really interesting, though no one else in my party felt the same. None of them joined me.

Remarkably, The Last of the Mohicans wasn’t written in that home in Cooperstown. Cooper wrote about the struggles of the American frontier of 1741 while he lived in New York City in 1826.

NEW YORK CITY?

I know, right?

Harper Lee wrote about Alabama in “To Kill a Mockingbird” while living in NYC too. New York City has been the place where tons of novels about somewhere else have been written.

So you’ll understand why, when I was in NYC a couple of years ago to run the NYC Marathon, I thought maybe I might write the great American novel from my overpriced hotel room.

But alas, the best I could do was write a few silly stories about meeting Rod Stewart and Lance Armstrong in New York on the same day. Hardly the stuff of the great American novel. Guess it requires more than a change in geography to ignite greatness!

And you may prefer the Great American Pastime to novels. And that’s perfectly acceptable!

And while I don’t care about baseball, I DO care about hot dogs and beer. I will gladly go to the ball park because those two things are there! In fact, I’ll go with you to any empty ball park and just look at the pretty green grass so long as those two things are there!

But there’s also another reason I like going to the ball park. The enthusiasm and passion of the true fan is awesome to me!

I’m drawn to people who have a passion for something. Anything! People with hobbies and interests are fascinating to me, even if I don’t share their passion. Maybe especially if I don’t. That way I’m sure to learn something new.

I recently listened to a woman talk at length about wine. I don’t drink wine and it’s a subject I don’t know anything about. She didn’t talk in a “Sideways” snooty kind of way about wine. She has a great passion and interest and knowledge about vino and listening to her talk with passion and animation about it almost turned me into a connoisseur. But sadly, my pallet is entirely too pedestrian! I can’t tell the difference from a glass of pinot noir and Boone’s Farm Strawberry Hill.

(As an aside, I’m told that some fancy wines get better and improve with age. Unfortunately humans, as a species, don’t. We only get slower, slacker, flabbier, softer, wider, and feeble unless we DO something about it. You gotta DO! DO! DO! Keep moving and striving and exercising!)

I’m always amazed by the Facebook status updates that say “I’m bored to tears.” I don’t get that. I don’t understand that. (I guess they must be updating their status from a ball park! hahaha) Sounds like passionlessness to me, if that’s a word. Read a book! Write one! Draw something! Paint something. Turn on the Discovery Channel. Download some new music. Come over and clean my house.

According to history, the Ancient Greeks only asked one question when a person died. “Did they have passion?” “No sir, they were ‘bored to tears.’” FAIL!

Within walking distance from Cooper’s home is Christ Episcopal Church. Cooper died in 1851 and is buried in the churchyard. Wandering around his old home a few blocks away were people who had passion. Wandering around The Hall of Fame nearby were people who had passion. And buried there in that old cemetery was a man who lived with passion and wrote about it!

How bout you?

Got passion?

———————————

THE RETURN OF THE 0830 CLASS AND THE CONTINUATION OF THE 0645 CLASS

The 0645 will continue indefinitely on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

The 0830 Class will return to ACTIVE DUTY status on Wednesday, September 8!

I’m looking forward to seeing you 0830 Boot Campers!! Don’t forget that there is child care available at the church for this class!

——————————–

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

INFORMATIONAL MEETING THIS SATURDAY FOR EVERYONE INTERESTED IN BEING A PART OF THIS YEAR’S TRAINING PLATOON.

We’ll meet at 9 AM at Fleet Feet Sports, next to Panera Bread in the Laurelwood Shopping Center, Poplar and Grove Park. The store opens at 10, so we’ll be finished by then!

Eric Flanders, owner of Fleet Feet, will give a brief talk on shoes and proper fit. I’ll be giving a presentation on the details, philosophy, and purpose of the training. And then there’ll be time at the end for some Q&A.

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins on Saturday, September 4. This is perfect for the first time beginner half marathoner or even a half marathon veteran.

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

——————————————-

NEW PRICING FOR FAMILIES AND COUPLES

If you’re a part of a family (usually husband and wife) that does USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, a new pricing plan goes into effect in August! Ask me about it! You’ll like it!

——————————————-

AUGUST IS ANNIVERSARY MONTH!

To mark the occasion all new enlistments anytime this month will only be $90 and a One Year Tour of Duty will only be $475.

Other celebrations and such are planned and you’ll hear more soon!

——————————————-

AWOL

Have you been away from USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP for a while? Comfortable in Turdeville? Wanna come back? C’mon then!! I won’t bite you!

I know how it is. You miss a day or two … and then it’s been a week or two … and then it’s a month or two …

Get back on track. Come back to the Quarterdeck! Nothing good is going to happen by staying away!

——————————————-

BOOT CAMP DISCOUNTS AND FACEBOOK EXPERIMENT!

Facebook has now reached a major milestone: 500 million users! One out of every 14 people on the planet are on Facebook.

That’s the population of the US, Japan, and Germany combined! Half a BILLION people are on Facebook.

In the world of cyber-marketing, Facebook usage can’t be ignored.

So here’s our experiment.

Make a Facebook status update and get a discount!

For every status update that you make that references: “USMC Fitness Boot Camp,” “Sgt. Tony’s Boot Camp,” “Tony’s Boot Camp,” or something similar, you can take $2.50 off your reenlistment fee for each update, up to $20 off for any given month!

Your status update has to be a specific reference to USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP or to me specifically by name.

You can use the Facebook “Places” or Foursquare linked to your Facebook account to “check in” and you’ll get the same discount!

You can use YELP and write an awesome review!

Use your own wording and personality, just include the specifics.

So log on and get started today!

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 10 to 15 POUNDS BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

NEXT TUESDAY

At 0530 we’ll have an optional Physical Fitness Test at the U of M! Max push ups in 2 min, max sit ups in 2 min., and a timed 1 mile run/walk/crawl!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

—————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website. http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

——————-

HALF MARATHON

INFORMATIONAL MEETING THIS SATURDAY FOR EVERYONE INTERESTED IN BEING A PART OF THIS YEAR’S TRAINING PLATOON.

This is a “no strings attached” informational meeting. There’s no obligation and no pressure!

We’ll meet from 9 to 10 AM at Fleet Feet Sports, next to Panera Bread in the Laurelwood Shopping Center, Poplar and Grove Park.

—————————————————

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117 Cell Phone: 901-644-0145 www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge/–

I stood there, knowing that I was about to become famous.

But it wasn’t the kind of famous that comes from having fame or from doing something awesome. This famous was about to be acquired from doing something ignert. The King of Dunceville was about to lay the Sword of Stupidity upon my shoulders and confer upon me a knighthood. I was about to become “Sir Chokes-a-lot.”

This is what happened.

In addition to swimming on my high school swim team, I was also a diver. One of the guys in my neighborhood was a diver in college and had taken me under his wing the summer between 7th and 8th grade. That summer I went from doing “cannonballs” and “can openers” to “inward 1 ½ somersaults” and “reverse double somersaults.” I had to wear a sweatshirt to practice in cuz I landed on my back and my belly a lot.

Fast forward from that summer to the State Swimming and Diving Meet my senior year in high school and picture me in the finals of the state diving competition. In fact, as we join our story, our hero (Tony Ludlow), is actually in SECOND PLACE … with only one more dive to go! The guy in first place was untouchable. None of us were going to catch him. Second place was going to be GREAT though! My previous dives had gone really well and I’d practiced this last dive several times that morning. It was a reverse 2 1/2 somersault, degree of difficulty: 3.4.

And there I was. Standing on the board, preparing my thoughts and getting myself ready. You’ve seen this a thousand times before if you’ve watched diving on TV. Pretty standard procedure. The diver stands on the springboard for a few moments in mental preparation, beings to move forward, leaps into the air (called the hurdle), comes down in the board, the board flexes and the diver rides it into the air and performs the dive.

And there I stood, like I’d done a bazillion times before. Nothing unusual at all … until something happened … for reasons I can’t explain … I became painfully aware of everyone waiting on me to dive.

There were about five hundred people in the aquatic center that day. My girlfriend was there. My friends and family. The other teams. The other team’s friends and family. The other team’s coaches. Officials and judges.

And everyone was waiting on me. All of those people.

And all of those people were being quiet.

And all of those people were being quiet for me.

Waiting on me.

And there I stood.

No one was whispering. No one was standing up. No one was moving at all. I could feel everyone leaning forward, holding their collective breath waiting for me.

This crowd of people had been background noise and scenery and of no consequence to me during the whole meet. I never even paid them any attention. But now … all of a sudden … for reasons I can’t explain … there they were! And they were all I could think about.

Eventually you have to do something. You just can’t stand on the diving board forever, looking like a big goober.

I thought that maybe once my feet started moving forward everything would just fall into place.

It didn’t.

But I continued moving toward anyway. I jumped up into the air — as seen on tv — came down on the end of the board, just like they do on tv … and instead of taking off into the air and performing the dive … I froze on the end of the board. I mean I literally FROZE!

“Boinngggggggggggggggggggg,” went the diving board and it bounced up and down with me on the end of it.

And there I was. Standing on the end of the board. Riding it up and down … NOT DIVING.

You could hear the collective sound of everyone in that place gasp. They sucked the air out of the building. They all made that “OHHHH!!!” sound that isn’t an exhale, but an inhale. And then that was followed by the “ohhhhhhh no” sound that was an exhale.

I heard the head judge say into the microphone, “BALK!”

“Balk”??? This ain’t no baseball game! But that’s what it’s called when a diver fails to “take off!”

What happens next? According to the rules, the diver can back up, regroup, and dive over. The thing is, he will only be awarded HALF the points he’d have gotten. So a dive that would’ve scored 50, would only be awarded 25 points.

Just like that, second place was gone.

I backed up, regrouped, and took my spot on the board again. Waited for the judge to indicate that they were ready for me to dive. Got the signal. And …

I froze.

I was 17 years old and having the worst day of my life. I could literally FEEL the people leaning in and waiting for me to dive.
I thought maybe THIS time it would work. I’ll just start my approach … go into the hurdle … come down on the board and it’ll happen. It’ll be magic!

It was a disaster.

The exact same thing happened. With me planted on the end of the board like a 5 year old afraid to jump. Again, the collective and horrified inhale and exhale of the crowd.

“Scratch dive,” the judge announced.

Then came the walk of shame. I had to walk to the other end of the board and climb down the ladder. Once I got down the ladder I had to walk the entire length of the stands where everyone was looking at me.

The place was quiet like a funeral home, not a library. I was looking down at my feet the whole time, not wanting to make eye contact with anyone. I was walking toward my team’s bench and glanced up just enough to see my coach having a melt down. His face was bright red and his teeth were clinched. He threw me a towel. Actually I think he threw the towel AT me. I caught it, put it over my head, and just kept walking … past the bench … all the way into the locker room. Where I sat for the rest of my life. Or so it seemed.

The small headline in the sports page the next day said “Local Diver Comes in Ninth in State Meet.” (Do you know that they actually HAVE a ribbon for 9th place!)

I had no focus on the board that day. I became distracted. I thought of everything else but what was important. If I had blocked out everything else and concentrated on the main thing, I’d have taken home a trophy and a title instead of that little pathetic 9th place ribbon. If I had put my energies into the dive instead of the distraction, the headline would have read differently.

I’ve learned since then how not to choke. How do you stand up in front of the world and perform? How do you walk into a situation with the potential for embarrassment and humiliation and not choke and stumble? How do you nail that interview, that speech, that presentation, that meeting with the boss, that blind date?

In a word, breathe. Get control over your breathing because you’ve probably started breathing shallow. When you’re tense you breathe shallow and your whole body gets tense. And the more tense you get the more tense you get. Concentrate on your breathing. Slow your breathing down and breathe deeply. Relax. Breathe deeply. Focus. Breathe deeply. Smile (hard to be tense with a smile on your face). Breathe deeply.

Choke prevention.

You’re welcome!

———————————

COLLIERVILLE LOCATION OF USMC FITNESS BOOT CAMP MOVES

The Collierville Battalion of USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP has officially moved to the Cordova/Arlington area!

Sgt. Les Bonnett and the Cordova-Arlington Battalion are training at 0515 (15 min earlier than our East Memphis location) at the Woodland Hills Church of Christ at 10011 Woodland Hills Drive, Cordova, TN 38018

CALL SGT. LES for more information at 901-592-7097

——————————–

THE RETURN OF THE 0830 CLASS

The 0830 Class will return to ACTIVE DUTY status on Wednesday, September 8!

I’m looking forward to seeing you 0830 Boot Campers!! Don’t forget that there is child care available at the church for this class!

——————————–

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

It’s getting close.

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins on Saturday, September 4. This is perfect for the first time beginner half marathoner or even the half marathon veteran.

Can you do this?

If by August 31st you can run 3 miles without stopping in under 35 min, you’ll be ready to begin training. This assumes that you’re doing an hour of continuous cardio on the weekends.

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

——————————————-

NEW PRICING FOR FAMILIES AND COUPLES

If you’re a part of a family (usually husband and wife) that does USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, a new pricing plan goes into effect in August! Ask me about it! You’ll like it!

——————————————-

AUGUST IS ANNIVERSARY MONTH!

To mark the occasion all new enlistments next month will only be $90 and a One Year Tour of Duty will only be $475.

Other celebrations and such are planned and you’ll hear more soon!

——————————————-

MT. FUJI WORKOUT AT 0530 ON TUESDAY, AUGUST 24 AT THE U OF M!

——————————————-

AWOL

Have you been away from USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP for a while? Comfortable in Turdeville? Wanna come back? C’mon then!! I won’t bite you! (see above!)

I know how it is. You miss a day or two … and then it’s been a week or two … and then it’s a month or two …

Get back on track. Come back to the Quarterdeck!

——————————————-

BOOT CAMP DISCOUNTS AND FACEBOOK EXPERIMENT!

Facebook has now reached a major milestone: 500 million users! One out of every 14 people on the planet are on Facebook.

That’s the population of the US, Japan, and Germany combined! Half a BILLION people are on Facebook.

In the world of cyber-marketing, Facebook usage can’t be ignored.

So here’s our experiment.

Make a Facebook status update and get a discount!

For every status update that you make that references:
“USMC Fitness Boot Camp,”
“Sgt. Tony’s Boot Camp,”
“Tony’s Boot Camp,”
or something similar, you can take $2.50 off your reenlistment fee for each update, up to $20 off for any given month!

Your status update has to be a specific reference to USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP or to me specifically by name.

You can use Foursquare linked to your Facebook account to “check in” and you’ll get the same discount!

You can use YELP and write an awesome review!

Use your own wording and personality, just include the specifics.

So log on and get started today!

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 15 TO 20 POUNDS BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

———————————————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website.
http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

——————-

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145
www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com
http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge/–

I needed a job.

I had bills to pay.

So I updated my resume to reflect my most recent work history and newly acquired skill sets. I made a dozen copies of it and put them in a manila folder and then put the folder in my briefcase.

After that I polished my shoes, put on a nice pair of trousers, a starched dress shirt and neck tie, and hit the street.

I spent the whole day going from one place of business to the next applying for a job. I handed out almost all of my resumes and talked to HR managers, business managers, and business owners alike. It was exhausting. I got a lot of rejections and lots of kind “sorry, but we don’t have anything for you” responses. But even still, most everyone was very nice to me.

I was pretty discouraged by the end of the day but, as would often happen, by late that afternoon and down to my last resume, I asked the last business owner I spoke with if he had any openings in his company.

“Here’s my resume,” I said, handing him my last copy.

“Your resume?” he asked with a curious smile, surprised that a 12 year old boy had a resume.

No, my resume wasn’t written in cuneiform on stone tablets! But it was handmade and handwritten on notebook paper. There weren’t any copy machines in those days and no typewriter in my house, so I’d meticulously and painstakingly handwritten 12 copies of my resume, as if I were a medieval monk pouring over an ancient manuscript, trying not to make any mistakes. But I made plenty of mistakes writing in ink and had a pile of wadded up papers next to my desk that had misspellings in them. Those rejects didn’t make it into the folder.

Armed with my brother’s briefcase in hand, I’d taken off, walking up and down Garrison Avenue (main street) in my hometown of Fort Smith, Arkansas, looking for an after-school job.

“Yes, sir!” I said, proud that I had a resume, just like grown folk had.

“Well, what can you do?” Herb Price asked me, while looking over my vast education and extensive work history! Hahaha

Actually by this time I’d worked at the Boy’s Club for a year, sweeping the gym floor and keeping things organized and tidy in the equipment checkout room. My resume said that I had been the “Equipment Room Manager.” I’d also worked for two years at the local Pizza Hut, washing dishes at first and then waiting tables. No lie! At 12 I had three years of work history already. Admittedly, my education was still a little weak, though I was a recent graduate of Albert Pike Elementary School.

I worked for Herb Price for the next three years before moving on to a little better job, but never losing touch with him. He and I remained very close friends for the rest of his life. Herb had two daughters and I’d become the son he never had. Over the years, and long after I’d left my hometown for good and had my own family, I could always expect a phone call from him every couple of months, even when I lived in Japan! What a great guy he was. I was still living in Japan when he passed away.

I know what it’s like to look for work and not able to find a good job. I’ve been blessed to have contacts in Memphis that I am all too happy to use to help you find a new opportunity. I’m not an employment agency, but as I said last week, I’ve helped several Boot Campers find new jobs.

But what happens if you’ve been looking for a job and nothing seems to be out there?

Well, you keep on keeping on. There’s more to it than that, of course. But staying at the task is essential. Improving yourself and your interviewing skills are too.

You also DO NOT GET TO QUIT COMING TO BOOT CAMP!

If you lose your job, or your spouse loses theirs, you are REQUIRED to keep doing USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP and at no charge! And NO, I will NOT feel taken advantage of! And I will NOT take “no” for an answer. I will feel pretty badly if you stay away though.

OK, I can’t REQUIRE you to keep coming. But I want to strongly, strongly, STRONGLY urge you to keep coming!!! And once you get a job, you can just start paying from that point forward. You do NOT pay for the past months while you were looking.

Joining me on The Quarterdeck and exercising while you look for work will help to make you a better job seeker! You’ll stay energetic and hanging out with me will keep you positive! You’ll keep your weight down. You’ll feel better about yourself. And you’ll be able to present yourself better in an interview, putting your best foot forward. Plus, you never know who’ll be on The Quarterdeck that day. Maybe someone you can network with! I love connecting good folk with good folk!

If it was your spouse who lost their job and money gets tight, you keep coming! You’ll be a better support for them if you yourself are positive and energized! Same deal applies; free boot camp while your spouse looks for a job.

If you have a job opening in your office or business let me know. If you’re looking for a new job, let me know what you’re looking for. Try and be as specific as possible.

Why is hiring a member of USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP a good idea? You’ll get an employee who isn’t afraid of hard work. You’ll get someone who’s disciplined and motivated to improve and succeed!

Help me, help you! Sorry “Jerry Maguire” fans!

Have a GREAT Wednesday everyone and good luck to those who’re hitting the streets today looking for a new job!

———————————

A LETTER FROM 0530 BOOT CAMPER ROBERT HUNT

“Tony,

I want to say Thank You (I mean that sincerely) for the past year.

I came to USMC Boot Camp on July 31, 2009. I had been away on a weekend trip with another family and we talked about this ‘boot camp thing’ and it seemed interesting. I was at a point that I knew I had to do something. At 52 I was not getting younger but did want to get older.

My weight was at the highest point it had ever been, about 210 lbs.

That said I wandered into boot camp on a Friday (it happened to be a Baghdad workout….what was that I wondered). I worked out that day next to David and he made a joke about how sore he was the next day. Not having worked out in years I thought I might be sore also…..Had I not started on a Friday, I might not have come back to boot camp because on Saturday I could not move. I have never been so sore….wow! Sunday was a little better, but not much. By Monday I decided to give it a try again and ended up joining that week….for a month, then for 3 and finally for a year. So here’s how some of the number have gone:

When I started boot camp:

age 52
weight 210
cholesterol: between 220 and 240
waist….we just wont go there (man has it been expensive to get rid of those clothes…but well worth it)
number of push-ups I could do … hardly any
running: none

One year later:

age 53 +1 (hey it is good for some numbers to go up)
weight: 175 (down 35 lbs)
cholesterol: between 180 and 220
waist: about 3 inches smaller
number of push-ups……well I can do more but I need to get better…hey, you gotta have goals
running: over the past year I have run approx 350 miles, done several 5Ks and my first 1/2 marathon.

Now, all of this was not just because I show up for boot camp. I actually try to do all the exercises, I listened…I have increased my weights over time, I eat less and snack in between the smaller meals.

I love the ‘community’ and the whole premise of USMC Fitness Boot Camp. It has absolutely changed my life for the better … for that and everything else when I tell you THANK YOU, I mean it sincerely! See you on the quarter deck!

Robert”

—————————

COLLIERVILLE LOCATION OF USMC FITNESS BOOT CAMP MOVES

The Collierville Battalion of USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP has officially moved to the Cordova/Arlington area!

Sgt. Les Bonnett and the Cordova-Arlington Battalion are training at 0515 (15 min earlier than our East Memphis location) at the Woodland Hills Church of Christ at 10011 Woodland Hills Drive, Cordova, TN 38018

CALL SGT. LES for more information at 901-592-7097

——————————–

THE RETURN OF THE 0830 CLASS

The 0830 Class will return to ACTIVE DUTY status on Wednesday, September 8!

I’m looking forward to seeing you 0830 Boot Campers!! Don’t forget that there is child care available at the church for this class!

——————————–

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

It’s getting close.

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins on Saturday, September 4. This is perfect for the first time beginner half marathoner or even a half marathon veteran.

Can you do this?

If by August 31st you can run 3 miles without stopping in under 35 min, you’ll be ready to begin training. This assumes that you’re doing an hour of continuous cardio on the weekends.

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

——————————————-

HEAT INDEX

Anytime the heat index is 100 or above the class will go inside. If the conditions warrant it, the evening class may also be found on the courtyard inside the day school area. So if we’re not on the playground we’ll be there.

And speaking of the evening class, Tues/Thurs are at St. Agnes school track for cardio workouts on the track … at your own pace!

——————————————-

NEW PRICING FOR FAMILIES AND COUPLES

If you’re a part of a family (usually husband and wife) that does USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, a new pricing plan goes into effect in August! Ask me about it! You’ll like it!

——————————————-

AUGUST IS ANNIVERSARY MONTH!

To mark the occasion all new enlistments next month will only be $90 and a One Year Tour of Duty will only be $475.

Other celebrations and such are planned and you’ll hear more soon!

——————————————-

AWOL

Have you been away from USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP for a while? Comfortable in Turdeville? Wanna come back? C’mon then!! I won’t bite you! (see above!)

I know how it is. You miss a day or two … and then it’s been a week or two … and then it’s a month or two …

Get back on track. Come back to the Quarterdeck!

——————————————-

BOOT CAMP DISCOUNTS AND FACEBOOK EXPERIMENT!

Facebook has now reached a major milestone: 500 million users! One out of every 14 people on the planet are on Facebook.

That’s the population of the US, Japan, and Germany combined! Half a BILLION people are on Facebook.

In the world of cyber-marketing, Facebook usage can’t be ignored.

So here’s our experiment.

Make a Facebook status update and get a discount!

For every status update that you make that references:
“USMC Fitness Boot Camp,”
“Sgt. Tony’s Boot Camp,”
“Tony’s Boot Camp,”
or something similar, you can take $2.50 off your reenlistment fee for each update, up to $20 off for any given month!

Your status update has to be a specific reference to USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP or to me specifically by name.

You can use Foursquare linked to your Facebook account to “check in” and you’ll get the same discount!

You can use YELP and write an awesome review!

Use your own wording and personality, just include the specifics.

So log on and get started today!

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 10 to 15 POUNDS BY THE END OF AUGUST?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

Mt. Fuji next Tuesday, August 17 at the U of M at 0530!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

———————————————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website.
http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

——————-

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145
www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com
http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge/–

With the heat index at 116 … the track workout tonight (Thursday, August 5) at St. Agnes is … again … sadly … canceled. Sorry ’bout it, again.

Monday, August 2, 1999 – USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP began.

What started as a little exercise gig for me to do before going on to my day job of teaching high school history and coaching took on a life of it’s own.

During one of my two week summer studies at the University of Notre Dame during the summer of 1999, I got the idea for what evolved into USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP.

Several factors played a role in the process of establishing the program. One of the most important was my friend Mark’s insistence that people would want to be abused by me and would pay for the privilege! Really, Mark?

So I sat down in my dorm room at Notre Dame and sketched out the idea and started kicking around possible names for the program. By the time I got back to Memphis I had a plan.

I continued to teach school and coach and do Boot Camp for the next three years. But three years after launching, the program had grown and I was faced with a dilemma. Do I take a break from teaching and give this a shot full time, or just keep on doing what I’m doing?

I decided to take a break from teaching and see what would happen. It was one of the scariest decisions I’ve ever made. I’d never been self-employed. It truly was a leap of faith.

Monday we celebrated our 11th year and literally thousands have been on my Quarterdeck over the past eleven years! I’m one of the luckiest guys in the world because, more than likely, you’re reading this because you’ve been one of those! And to you I say thank you!

If you’re still on The Quarterdeck and doing Boot Camp with me, I can’t begin to thank you enough. It’s because of you that I have my dream job! Because of you I’ve been able to provide for my family. Because of you I’ve been able to send my kids to college. It’s because of you that I am one of the luckiest guys in the world! It’s because of you that I’m so blessed and so privileged to do something that I dearly love. I am grateful for you every single day!

Thank you all so very very much.

I never set out to establish an exercise class or a fitness program. I set out to establish a community. I wanted it to be something like my life in the Marine Corps. I wanted the physical challenge of the program to have a team feel and for there to be a sense of camaraderie and belonging.

I’ve been written up in every major print medium in Memphis and been featured on all of the local television stations. I was on the TLC television show, “Honey, We’re Killing the Kids.” And a piece about USMC Fitness Boot Camp was part of a FOX Network show a few years ago. And I’ve even been featured in the Wall Street Journal.

Years ago one of you said, “Tony, you’re like a minister and the Quarterdeck is your church!” And to some extent that’s kind of how I’ve approached it. I’ve tried to plug into your lives in ways that were beyond an exercise class.

To me, you’re like family.

As a result, I’ve attended the school plays of boot camper’s children. I’ve gone to your children’s football games, tennis matches, lacrosse matches, basketball games, soccer games, t-ball games, car washes, cross country meets, concerts, and talent shows. And I’ve enjoyed myself more than I can tell you!

I’ve attended your birthday parties, your golf tournaments, tennis tournaments, art shows, craft fairs, charity events, and auctions. And I’ve contributed hundreds of boot camp gift certificates to your causes. I’ve bought stuff at your charity yard sales and tons of fundraiser candy, cookie dough, and goodies. And I’ve probably bought more Girl Scout Cookies than I care to admit!

I’ve helped a dozen of you find jobs and helped a bunch of you find a plumber, electrician, physician, dentist, eye doctor, roofer, painter, and on and on that list goes! And I’ve diagnosed hundreds of injuries and ailments. Some of which I helped cause! hahaha

I’ve been honored to attend the weddings of boot camper’s children and the weddings of a few of you boot campers who’ve gotten married. I even married a boot camper myself!

I’ve visited you in the hospital when babies were born and when you or your family members have gotten sick. I’ve sat in the ICU waiting room with you hoping for good news.

I’ve also attended the funerals of your parents and relatives. And it’s been my sad honor to attend the funerals of two of the finest boot campers and friends that I’ve ever had, Jim Steiner and Henry’s brother Ken Kenworthy.

It’s been my great joy to laugh with you when you were laughing during some of your happiest moments. And it’s been my solemn duty to be with you when your life was turned upside down by tragedy and sadness.

I don’t just love exercise and fitness. I love people. You matter to me more than I can explain. I learn your names and try not to forget them because you’re important to me. Your life beyond the Quarterdeck matters to me. That’s why I ask you questions.

And you tell me things. You open up your life to me and let me in. For some, I’m the closest thing to a priest or minister you have and you confide in me in ways that are very similar to the relationship people have with their minister. I’ve been asked why people open up to me and tell me things and the only answer I can think of is that it’s because people know that I care about them and that I can be trusted.

The Quarterdeck is made up of all kinds of interesting and wonderful people. You are a rainbow of many awesome colors. Most of the time people join the program hoping that I’ll be able to help them change their lives. But when someone new joins I always ask myself, “I wonder how this person is going to change MY life?” And everyone of you have changed it. If you’ve ever been a part of the program, you’ve changed my life in ways you probably never imagined.

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP is more than an exercise class. It’s been called an “early morning exercise cult” (hahaha). But I’d like to think of it as something much more vibrant and living. It’s a community.

It’s been eleven awesome years and I am eternally grateful to you all! Thank you so very much for being a part of my life and for allowing me to be a part of yours!

———————————

COLLIERVILLE LOCATION OF USMC FITNESS BOOT CAMP MOVES

The Collierville Battalion of USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP has officially moved to the Cordova/Arlington area!

Sgt. Les Bonnett and the Cordova-Arlington Battalion are training at 0515 (15 min earlier than our East Memphis location) at the Woodland Hills Church of Christ at 10011 Woodland Hills Drive, Cordova, TN 38018

CALL SGT. LES for more information at 901-592-7097

——————————–

SELF DEFENSE

The classes have been postponed. The main group for whom I agreed to do the class for have run into unforeseen scheduling problems. I’ll reschedule and let you know ASAP!

So sorry for any inconvenience.

——————————–

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

It’s getting close.

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins on Saturday, September 4. This is perfect for the first time beginner half marathoner or even a half marathon veteran.

Can you do this?

If by August 31st you can run 3 miles without stopping in under 35 min, you’ll be ready to begin training. This assumes that you’re doing an hour of continuous cardio on the weekends. There’s 6 weeks to get ready! Not sure? Let’s talk.

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

——————————————-

HEAT INDEX

Anytime the heat index is 100 or above the class will go inside. If the conditions warrant it, the evening class may also be found on the courtyard inside the day school area. So if we’re not on the playground we’ll be there.

And speaking of the evening class, Tues/Thurs are at St. Agnes school track for cardio workouts on the track … at your own pace!

——————————————-

NEW PRICING FOR FAMILIES AND COUPLES

If you’re a part of a family (usually husband and wife) that does USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, a new pricing plan goes into effect in August! Ask me about it! You’ll like it!

——————————————-

AUGUST IS ANNIVERSARY MONTH!

To mark the occasion all new enlistments next month will only be $90 and a One Year Tour of Duty will only be $475.

Other celebrations and such are planned and you’ll hear more soon!

——————————————-

AWOL

Have you been away from USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP for a while? Comfortable in Turdeville? Wanna come back? C’mon then!! I won’t bite you! (see above!)

I know how it is. You miss a day or two … and then it’s been a week or two … and then it’s a month or two …

Get back on track. Come back to the Quarterdeck!

——————————————-

BOOT CAMP DISCOUNTS AND FACEBOOK EXPERIMENT!

Facebook has now reached a major milestone: 500 million users! One out of every 14 people on the planet are on Facebook.

That’s the population of the US, Japan, and Germany combined! Half a BILLION people are on Facebook.

In the world of cyber-marketing, Facebook usage can’t be ignored.

So here’s our experiment.

Make a Facebook status update and get a discount!

For every status update that you make that references:
“USMC Fitness Boot Camp,”
“Sgt. Tony’s Boot Camp,”
“Tony’s Boot Camp,”
or something similar, you can take $2.50 off your reenlistment fee for each update, up to $20 off for any given month!

Your status update has to be a specific reference to USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP or to me specifically by name.

You can use Foursquare linked to your Facebook account to “check in” and you’ll get the same discount!

You can use YELP and write an awesome review!

Use your own wording and personality, just include the specifics.

So log on and get started today!

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 10 to 15 POUNDS BY THE END OF AUGUST?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

———————————————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website.
http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

——————-

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145
www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com
http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge

The heat index is at 115 this afternoon so the track workout (Tues. Aug 3) at 5:45 is canceled. We’ll shoot for Thursday!

My favorite Esquire magazine feature is called “What I’ve Learned.”

It’s not written by a magazine staffer. it’s written by famous non-staffers. Guys like Dennis Hopper, Robert De Nero, Jeff Bezos, Rodney Dangerfield, John McCain, and Evel Knievel have contributed.

Sunday was my birthday and I thought maybe Esquire would ask me to write for that feature. But so far the phone hasn’t been ringing.

But since I’m sure that they will, I’m going to give you my rough draft.

“What I’ve Learned, “ by Tony Ludlow

Best advice my mother ever gave me: “Son, you can do anything or be anything you want … if you put your mind to it.”

Worst advice my mother ever gave me: Everything she told me about girls was wrong, wrong, wrong. Sorry mom, but “be nice, be sweet, be complimentary, give them lots of gifts” was a little flawed. Besides, bein’ sweet feels icky.

My grandfather told me that it was unnecessary to tell others “how smart you are, how much money you have, or what you’ve accomplished in life.” They’ll know without you telling them.

What he told me about being smart: the person who speaks last, or not at all, is the smartest person in the room. Never quit learning. Knowledge is power.

What he told me about money: the love of it is evil. Opulence and extravagance are sins. Live below your means. Pay off your credit card bill at the end of the month. Always stop at a charity car wash and give them more than they charge. Be a good tipper.

If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

What he told me about accomplishments: accumulate them for your own benefit because no one is going to be that interested in hearing about them.

Most profound thing I was told at 18: “Your country has provided you with 18 years of freedom, opportunity, security, and happiness … now it’s time to give something back. Join the Marine Corps or the Peace Corps, but find a way to serve your country and your fellow man.”

What the Marine Corps taught me: the meaning of self discipline, perseverance, courage, pride, leadership, honor, and the power of humor. My academic vitae will not be on my headstone, but “Marine” will.

For my sons and the players I coached I composed a list of 50 Things Gentleman Should Be. Here are 10 of them.

1. A Gentleman stands up to greet a woman, an older person, or a superior. When in doubt, get to your feet.
2. A Gentleman dresses appropriately for the occasion. When in doubt, dress up.
3. A Gentleman reads books. He knows that the written word feeds his mind, gives him pleasure, and helps to make him a more interesting man.
4. A Gentleman places great value on honor and loyalty.
5. A Gentleman’s handshake is as good as his word and his word is as good as a signed contract.
6. A Gentleman is confident without being arrogant.
7. A Gentleman can say “I’m sorry, I was wrong” and mean it.
8. A Gentleman knows the names of those who serve them – the janitor, the clerk, the salesperson – and treats them respectfully and without condescension.
9. A Gentleman doesn’t stare, leer, or gawk at an attractive woman.
10. A Gentleman doesn’t scratch, yawn, spit, or make “body noises” in public.

Women who are confident and clever are the most attractive women I know! And if they like to smile and if they have a great laugh … that’s the best!

I don’t trust extremes.

I don’t trust people with agendas.

I don’t trust people who don’t have very many friends, especially very many long term friends.

I don’t trust people whose friends all come from one pool and one color.

I don’t trust people who don’t like dogs and I don’t trust the people who aren’t liked by dogs.

There is no accounting for taste (“WHAT does she see in THAT guy?”).

Attraction is not a choice.

The true measure of a man has nothing to do with numbers or possessions.

Everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt, a second opportunity, and a chance to be forgiven.

I’ve learned the difference between style and substance.

I’ve learned to define “enough.”

When I meet someone new, I fully expect to like them.

I’ve learned that the attitude someone has, the way they process the world around them, the spirit that they use to engage life, and the energy they exude everyday are more important than looks, money, beauty, or education. A good attitude will compensate for a lack in those four things. An abundance of any of those things will never compensate for a foul or negative spirit.

Knowing who you are is the most important knowledge you’ll acquire. I am not my khakis, my bank account, my car, my house, my status, my age, my job, or my family name. It took me a long time to figure that out.

Everyone has these three things in limited supply and they must be respected and treated with care: time, energy, and money. I won’t waste yours.

I’ve made many mistakes and I have many regrets … but not even God can change the past, so move on as best as you can … and purpose to do better. Find out what the right thing is to do, and then do that.

Try and do better tomorrow.

Play nice.

———————————

COLLIERVILLE LOCATION OF USMC FITNESS BOOT CAMP MOVES

Starting this Monday the Collierville Battalion of USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP will officially move to the Cordova/Arlington area!

Sgt. Les Bonnett and the Cordova-Arlington Battalion will be training at 0515 (15 min earlier than our East Memphis location) at the Woodland Hills Church of Christ at 10011 Woodland Hills Drive, Cordova, TN 38018

CALL SGT. LES for more information at 901-592-7097.

——————————–

SELF DEFENSE

The classes have been postponed. The main group for whom I agreed to do the class have run into unforeseen scheduling problems. I’ll reschedule and let you know ASAP!

So sorry for any inconvenience.

——————————–

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

It’s getting close.

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins on Saturday, September 4. This is perfect for the first time beginner half marathoner or even a half marathon veteran.

Can you do this?

If by August 31st you can run 3 miles without stopping in under 35 min, you’ll be ready to begin training. This assumes that you’re doing an hour of continuous cardio on the weekends. There’s 5 weeks to get ready! Not sure? Let’s talk.

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

——————————————-

HEAT INDEX

Beginning today, anytime the heat index is 100 or above the class will go inside.

If the conditions warrant it, the evening class may also be found on the courtyard inside the day school area. So if we’re not on the playground we’ll be there.

And speaking of the evening class, Tues/Thurs are at St. Agnes school track for cardio workouts on the track … at your own pace!

——————————————-

NEW PRICING FOR FAMILIES AND COUPLES

If you’re part of a family (usually husband and wife) that does USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP together, a new pricing plan goes into effect in August! Ask me about it! You’ll like it!

——————————————-

AUGUST IS ANNIVERSARY MONTH!

Next week we celebrate 11 years of USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP!!!

To mark the occasion all new enlistments next month will only be $90 and a One Year Tour of Duty will only be $475.

Other celebrations and such are planned and you’ll hear more soon!

——————————————-

AWOL

Have you been away from USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP for a while? Comfortable in Turdeville? Wanna come back? C’mon then!! I won’t bite you! I promise!

I know how it is. You miss a day or two … and then it’s been a week or two … and then it’s a month or two …

Get back on track. Come back to the Quarterdeck!

——————————————-

BOOT CAMP DISCOUNTS AND FACEBOOK EXPERIMENT!

Facebook has now reached a major milestone: 500 million users!

That’s the population of the US, Japan, and Germany combined! Half a BILLION people are on Facebook.

In the world of cyber-marketing, Facebook usage can’t be ignored.

So here’s our experiment.

Make a Facebook status update and get a discount!

For every status update that you make that references:
“USMC Fitness Boot Camp,”
“Sgt. Tony’s Boot Camp,”
“Tony’s Boot Camp,”
or something similar, you can take $2.50 off your reenlistment fee for each update, up to $20 off for any given month!

Your status update has to be a specific reference to USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP or to me specifically by name.

You can also use Foursquare linked to your Facebook account to “check in” and you’ll get the same discount!

Use your own wording and personality, just include the specifics.

So log on and get started today!

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 10 to 15 POUNDS BY THE END OF AUGUST?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

———————————————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website.
http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

——————-

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145
www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com
http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge/

I was eight years old when I joined the judo club.

Pee wee football and basketball were over and little league baseball practice hadn’t started yet. So judo looked like something fun to do until baseball season started. The club’s Sensei (teacher) was a police officer and a 3rd degree black belt. With about 80 members in the club, the four of us eight year olds were the youngest.

What started as something for me to do before baseball season started, became a life long interest.

I learned as a young boy that the world headquarters for judo was in Tokyo, Japan at a place called The Kodokan. I bought a book about The Kodokan that was full of interesting stories, history, and pictures. I dreamed that one day I’d go there.

But how does a little eight year old boy in Fort Smith, Arkansas go to such a place, I wondered.

But that dream came true for me in 1989 when I stepped into The Kodokan, a 10 story building in downtown Tokyo, twenty four years after I’d first learned of it. It was like a cathedral to me, holy and different from any other place in the world.

The first two floors were offices spaces and administration. The next two floors were locker rooms. The rest of the floors were dojo’s, or training areas. Think of each floor as three gyms wide and twice as long. The dojos were covered in mat type material for training.

New people to the Kodokan had to begin training on the 5th floor no matter what your rank was. You literally had to work your way up to the coveted and mysterious 10th floor where the true masters of judo trained and taught. You had to be invited to go up from one floor to the next. Some, I learned, had been training there for years and had not made it to the 10th floor.

I worked like an indentured slave for months to get the invitation to go up to the next floor. Even though I was already a black belt, it meant nothing. I had to prove myself. It was hard and I paid my dues, but finally, after killing myself on the lower floors for over a year, I was finally invited to the 10th floor.

I can’t begin to tell you what it felt like to open the doors and walk into the holy of judo holies. After stepping onto the mat, I turned toward a giant picture of Dr. Jigoro Kano, the founder of judo, and bowed, as is the custom there.

If Japan has a unique history, culture, and tradition, then The Kodokan has it even more so. And learning those traditions and customs was part of the overall training.

All newbies to the 10th floor enter and stand near the edge of the mat, like girls at a dance, hoping to get asked to spar or practice. There were literally hundreds of jodoka (people practicing judo) on the floor. But after standing near the edge for 3 hours that first time, I never got asked even once to spar.

This went on for a month.

Finally one of the chief instructors was curious enough about this foreigner to ask me to spar. Of the hundreds there that night, I was the only non-Japanese and all eyes seemed to be on me. I was more than slightly nervous.

I shouldn’t have been.

I got my ass kicked quicker than a hummingbird heartbeat. Within nano seconds I was flying through the air almost with no knowledge of the forces and physics that had gotten me airborne.

In America when you throw your opponent it’s customary to help them up. Not at The Kodokan. There the victor struts off and sort of does a circling move around his victim, completely ignoring him at a distance. This was said to allow the defeated to save face. I didn’t feel that my face had gotten saved. I felt humiliated and was determined to do better.

I didn’t. It only got worse.

I became famous among the chief instructors for being agreeable to have my ass handed to me on a regular basis.

This got old fast.

Unfortunately my black belt might as well have been pink. I had stepped into a completely different world where skill was executed with a quick precision that I couldn’t even see, much less defend against.

I had been practicing judo for most of my life but I might as well have been that 8 year old boy all over again.

The good thing about being the favorite foreigner who was agreeable to having his ass kicked was that I got asked to spar. A lot. And in the process I learned a lot. And one night, I didn’t get my ass kicked. I didn’t win … but I didn’t lose either.

For the next several weeks it was a mixture of losing and not losing, but not winning either.

And then it happened. One night, with the 10th floor filled and me sparing with Oguchi Sensei, a lieutenant on the Tokyo Police Department and someone who’d regularly beaten me, I got my first victory! I sent him flying through the air and when he landed on his back, it was as if a pebble had been dropped into a pond.

Judoka nearest us stopped and looked at me. Some older instructors stopped and looked at me. And they bowed. The older instructors nodded their heads in approval. And the circle of people looking my way seemed to increase like the rings in a pond as people learned that Tony-san had won!

Never be afraid to look unenlightened on your journey toward enlightenment, I was told. If you’re afraid to look stupid, there are few things you will ever master. If you are afraid to say, “I don’t know,” there are few things that you will ever learn. If you are afraid to get out of your comfort zone, there are few things that will ever color your world anew. You will have a future of multiplied mediocre days. You will settle, sure that taking a chance will only lead to failure or defeat.

When Oguchi Sensei got to his feet after I threw him, and he saw all of the bowing and nodding … he walked toward me with no expression on his face. I had no idea what was about to happen, what he was going to do or say. And everyone seemed to be watching along with me to see how he would react.

He stopped an arms length in front of me. Looked me in the eyes … and bowed. And as he bowed he smiled and said in a low voice, “Yatto, yokkudekimashita ototo-kun!”

And I bowed back with tears in my eyes and people started to applaud and smile. And then I did something very American. I hugged him! I couldn’t help myself. It was one of the most touching moments in my life. And then I started to smile too and feel slightly embarrassed for hugging on the 10th floor of The Kodokan!

What did he say to me?

“At last! You did so well … my little brother!”

Never be afraid to look unenlightened on your journey toward enlightenment.

———————————

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

It’s getting close.

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins on Saturday, September 4. This is perfect for the first time beginner half marathoner or even a half marathon veteran.

Can you do this?

If by August 31st you can run 3 miles without stopping in under 35 min, you’ll be ready to begin training. This assumes that you’re doing an hour of continuous cardio on the weekends. There’s 6 weeks to get ready! Not sure? Let’s talk.

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

——————————————-

AWOL

Have you been away from USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP for a while? Comfortable in Turdeville? Wanna come back? C’mon then!! I won’t bite you! (see above!)

I know how it is. You miss a day or two … and then it’s been a week or two … and then it’s a month or two …

Get back on track. Come back to The Quarterdeck!

——————————————-

BOOT CAMP DISCOUNTS AND FACEBOOK EXPERIMENT!

Facebook has now reached a major milestone: 500 million users!

That’s the population of the US, Japan, and Germany combined! Half a BILLION people are on Facebook.

In the world of cyber-marketing, Facebook usage can’t be ignored.

So here’s our experiment.

Make a Facebook status update and get a discount!

For every status update that you make that references:
“USMC Fitness Boot Camp,”
“Sgt. Tony’s Boot Camp,”
“Tony’s Boot Camp,”
or something similar, you can take $2.50 off your reenlistment fee for each update, up to $20 off for any given month!

Your status update has to be a specific reference to USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP or to me specifically by name.

You can also use Foursquare linked to your Facebook account to “check in” and you’ll get the same discount!

Use your own wording and personality, just include the specifics.

So log-on and get started today!

——————————

SELF DEFENSE

I’ve been asked to teach a self defense class on Saturday morning July 31 and Saturday morning August 7.

This is one class offered twice.

The class is open to anyone, but class size will be limited, so contact me to reserve a place in the class. Let me know date is best for you. Cost is $35 per person or 2 for 50.

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 5 to 10 POUNDS BY THE END OF JULY?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

———————————————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website.
http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

——————-

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145
www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com
http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge/———————————

SGT. TONY’S HALF MARATHON TRAINING!

It’s getting close.

Training for the St. Jude Half Marathon begins on Saturday, September 4. This is perfect for the first time beginner half marathoner or even a half marathon veteran.

Can you do this?

If by August 31st you can run 3 miles without stopping in under 35 min, you’ll be ready to begin training. This assumes that you’re doing an hour of continuous cardio on the weekends. There’s 6 weeks to get ready! Not sure? Let’s talk.

Training is open to all. Cost for the three month training is $75 for members of USMC Fitness Boot Camp and $120 for non-boot campers.

——————————————-

SELF DEFENSE

I’ve been asked to teach a self defense class on Saturday morning July 31 and Saturday morning August 7.

This is one class offered twice.

The class is open to anyone, but class size will be limited, so contact me to reserve a place in the class. Let me know date is best for you. Cost is $35 per person or 2 for 50.

—————————————–

WANT TO LOSE 5 to 10 POUNDS BY THE END OF JULY?

Take Shape For Life is the BEST weight loss program I know of. If you’d like to lose weight talk to me. This is the program I used to lose the almost 30 pounds I gained after knee surgery. Let me help you!

You can also go to www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/

——————————————-

BOGA tomorrow at CUMC @ 0530. BOGA is one half hard core boot camp fitness and one half power yoga … BO-GA!

——————————————-

TUESDAY & THURSDAY EVENING CLASS

The Tuesday and Thursday evening classes meet at St. Agnes’ track. These are cardio (walking/jogging/running) workouts and they begin at 5:45 PM.

St. Agnes is at the corner of Walnut Grove and Mendenhall.

Should the St. Agnes track be occupied or the field being used, making the track unavailable to us, we’ll go to St. Mary’s track, at Walnut Grove and Perkins.

———————————————-

CALENDAR

A calendar has been added to the official USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP website.
http://www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/calendar.html

For you visual learners, you’ll find this an easy way to glance at the week or month and see where the workouts will be, if there’s a venue change.

——————-

What would you do if money were not an issue, fear were not a factor, and failure were not an option?

To your optimum health and fitness!

SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow

USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145
www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com
http://www.combatchallenge.tsfl.com/esuite/home/combatchallenge/