The Man Plan

I made it to age 40 without a concrete plan on how to stay fit and I am a doctor. Like most American men, I had chosen a fat, sedentary lifestyle, one that universally rewards males with bellies, boobs, diabetes and erectile dysfunction. Residency and fellowship had taken their toll. With weight ballooning and fitness plummeting, I was headed down this path. Then the world turned.In February 2004, I received a call from the Army. The message was simple: Once I finished fellowship in September, I would be headed to Iraq as a field surgeon. Professionally, I was prepared. Physically, I was a marshmallow. With deployment looming, I needed to get back in shape. In 2004, Iraq was still a shooting war and doctors were expected to move out with the troops.The advance warning gave me six months to lose my ample belly. "Easy" I thought "I'll just start working out again" and promptly made every beginner's mistakes. I overestimated the caloric value of jogging and weightlifting and underestimated the impact of my eating habits. For two months, nothing budged. Despite eight years of medical education, I was failing in this basic task. Through trial and error and more error, I did get fit. In Iraq, I kept with it, lifting and running nearly every day.After serving, I returned home to the same time crunches any man faces: work, home, family. Without two hours to linger at the gym, I needed to modify my program so it was efficient but still effective. What does a good doctor do? Research! Immediately, I discovered the usual sources for fitness information were little more than anecdotes, information without foundation. Deep within the medical literature awaits a trove of bona fide research. Slowly, I began changing my program and building THE MAN PLAN.There is an obvious link of fitness and manhood. The erosion of our bodies begins the day we set aside our running shoes. Testosterone starts a steady decline; muscles evaporate as belly fat accumulates. This course is predictable but not necessarily inevitable. Every man has the genome of an athlete and survivor. With the right stimulus, he can remain fit and fertile into his 80s or beyond. The essence of THE MAN PLAN is creating the right stimulus.Most men have little more than a hint on how to stay a man. THE MAN PLAN is an educated wakeup smack that presents a medically based strategy to avoid emasculation. It opens with a concise physiologic review of the descent into frailty that occurs with aging and inactivity. The remainder of the book is a succinct reconditioning program centered on endurance and strength training. THE MAN PLAN provides the foundation and elemental information to infuse a personal program with lifelong success.THE MAN PLAN is fully supported by medical studies and personal tales of failure and finally success.Every MAN needs a PLAN.