Despite the changing world, General Physical Preparedness is still required.
“Back in the day, outdoor play/life GPP’d our kids for sport.
Xbox, Netflix, strawberry vape juice, & footwork drills don’t have the same effect.
You can do all the specific skill work in the world, but without a rock solid general base, you’re kick harding rocks, bro.”
-Ray Zingler on Twitter
It’s the summer of 2004, I was going into the 8th grade.
I remember a typical day was waking up early, having a huge hearty breakfast and then getting a jump on the lawns I had to mow.
I started early not only because I knew I wanted to finish early, but I also wanted to beat the Georgia heat.
After finishing up my lawns around noon, I’d go to the pool with my friends, swim all day and then come home around 5pm to train with my dad in the basement.
We’d train like hell and I remember arguing with him about everything because I knew it all. Thank God I actually listened to him.
After training, I’d typically eat dinner and then get on my bike and ride with my friends until dark.
At dark it was time for manhunt or any of the other outdoor games we played until our parents yelled for us to come inside, usually after 10pm.
Then, I woke up the next day and repeated the process.
This went on for, umm, every single day of the summer throughout my entire childhood.
Sure, somedays were different than others, but some resemblance of what was outlined above was the norm.
Was I great athlete because of this? I wasn’t.
However, I can assure you I was most certainly a generally physically prepared athlete and because of my general physical preparedness (for sport and life) largely thanks to my parents, I was able to give myself the best chance to be the best I could be.
Yes, I made mistakes. Yes, I slipped up. Yes, I could have done “that” better, but without my base of GPP I wouldn’t have even had the chance to make an impact athletically.
I understand the world has changed and times are different. I get it.
But despite the changing world, physiologically speaking, our bodies still require a base of preparation to support specific tasks.
What this means is that you can “want” to be the best athlete and you can “do” all the skill specific work you want, but without the required general base, you literally can’t unlock your true potential. It’s physiologically impossible.
Build and enhance your base. It’s the only way.
