I was warned not to do anything too strenuous on the cardio level until a period of six to twelve months had passed to enable the stents in my three arteries to bond and settle in. Anyway, to cut a long story short, I took a year’s rest from the self-protection scene, built a ‘Bronsonmania’-style gym in my back garden and began working with Charlie’s Solitary Fitness plan. I took Charlie’s advice about going to the doctor to make sure that I was not going to take on anything that may be detrimental to my health challenge, as Charlie advised getting a full medical and a clear bill of health from your doctor, and to only begin the training once declared fit. However, not many of you will pay £150 for a full medical before training. I’ve recently had and paid for three of these. So my advice here is to check out your doctor’s well person’s clinic or try to get your employer to pay for your medical – this way you can get a full check-up for free.
Although I was unable to get a full clear bill of health before my training because my health situation made this impossible, I knew what was within my capabilities as I’ve used this body for 45 years, so know about any areas that I need to be careful with. So, with this all in mind, I set out with my sons to build somewhere that I could train in solitude. Something along the lines of the gym that is mentioned in this book. A very old-school, blood, sweat and guts type of place. This would be just like the old-style backyard gym that Bruce Lee set up. My gym was slightly larger than Charlie’s cell of 12 x 8ft because I also used the space for my own self-protection training. However, I sectioned off an area the same size as Charlie’s cell to give it ‘Bronsonmania’ authenticity. I’m probably the first person ever to build a ‘Bronsonmania’-themed gym just for this purpose. Not a commercial venture, not a place open to the general public, but a place of solitude that me and my children can work on our Solitary Fitness in. My aim was to fine-tune the inside of my body. I wasn’t interested in my outer appearance as I didn’t want this to change. People are used to me the way I look so I had no desire to change that; I just wanted my heart to stay good and to keep ticking over for me.
I had spent six months gradually working with various aspects of Charlie’s programme, and, to test out the effectiveness of any results, I booked a private cardio stress test at my local hospital. I also had an angiogram, a session with my heart consultant to check the parts that I couldn’t check myself. I even had a small camera inserted into my arteries via my groin so I could look at my heart working. And I was awake throughout! The medical stress test included various treadmill tests at different speeds all while I was wired up to a state-of-the-art heart-monitoring machine. For this I also had to stop taking any medication for a week prior so that the results would be accurate and run on a medication-free body. The result was a 100 per cent success. I was fit again. I had three independent stress, health and full medical tests over a two-month period. My consultant, the hospital cardio specialists and BUPU had tested me to the max and I was pleased with the results. I had gone from being a medical disaster to a medical success.
The only physical training that I did prior to these tests were various aspects and drills from Charlie’s book that I felt I personally needed.
Obviously I still did my self-protection side as well but this was more geared up to working with skill, technique, speed and effectiveness within an anaerobic time restraint which is the initial slot I need it to be effective. To put it into plain English, it needs to be effective before I begin to puff and blow. It needs to work for me using the oxygenated blood within my system without needing to take more oxygen in. So my personal fitness was a totally separate issue. I don’t have a gym membership, don’t wear expensive training trainers and have never taken steroids or any supplements. All I used was this book and followed some of the sound advice within it. I don’t want to go into my specific routines as its effectiveness and worth will vary for each individual. I also do not want people to use specific exercises just because they are the ones that worked for me as this would not be the right thing to do. To get the maximum results for your own personal needs you must first identify and accept that you have a few weak areas that need improving. Mine was my heart muscle so I devised my routines around that. Yours may be that you want stronger arms or just want to look better. I had a specific health challenge that needed my attention, yours may be health related or simply cosmetic change that you desire. Once you know what it is that you want to achieve, have accepted this and are ready to face your programme of improvement, take on board the relevant advice that Charlie has to offer in this book and take small gradual steps towards getting your body nearer to how you want it to be. If you want to be able to measure your success then don’t tell anyone that you are training in solitude. When the time is right, noticeable positive comments will come your way when you least expect them. Whether it’s your outward physical appearance or inward health issues that you are addressing, people will be able to see a difference in the way you are carrying yourself. When they ask what’s made the sudden change, you can honestly say, ‘Charlie’s book worked for me. Try it yourself!’
I want to add a few comments here on specific areas of Charlie’s training that I feel may be of help to some people.
Yoga: This was good advice which I partly took on board myself. Charlie does speak about the importance of cleansing your insides and ridding yourself of used food waste. Although I’m very into the workings of yoga, this is not part of the training that I personally used to its fullest capacity and also did not permit my children to work on some aspects of this training. Charlie made a valid point that you should seek out a yoga teacher with at least five years’ experience before taking too deep an involvement. Although I think that all areas of the yoga advice from stretching to cleansing have a lot to offer, I will fully try this out at a later date. On cleansing the body and dietary advice, I suggest you listen to and absorb Charlie’s advice.
Jogging: It’s a little-known fact that that in my prime I would jog over the local park for a minimum of an hour a day. However, after having my ankle damaged in an uninvited incident while on the door, the jogging came to an end. After a few years I was able to build up enough ankle strength and support to resume the training. Back over the park and chasing the dog around in the garden was slowly building the ankle back up again. However, one day running in the uncut grass, my foot went down a small animal-made hole that made me collapse, with the full weight of my body pushed forcefully down on my joint. This put me out of action for a long time and recovery took years. Sometimes I still get an electric-like spasm in the ankle joint and it will just give way and over I go.
So, a word of warning here. Although I firmly believe that jogging is one of the best heart and cardio workouts that you can do, and that running on grass is better for you, giving less pounding shock to your joints than hard pavement surfaces, you need to be aware of the unforeseen dangers of holes, hidden objects, etc., hidden by grass.
For long-distance work, I now use a running machine instead of road or grass running but as part of my solitary workout I used a simple ‘step’ exercise as explained in the book, which consists of a few stacked paving slabs to step up and down hundreds of times to get the heart working. Just as some people would in an organised step aerobics class.
Push-ups: You either love them or hate them. Charlie is the push-up guru so I must add something about this exercise. I personally hate them and don’t actually know anyone that likes them, Charlie being the exception. What I want to add here is a little slant on Charlie’s press-up advice. If you find it hard to go through the routine of lowering and lifting your own body weight, you are very likely to get disillusioned with your efforts and eventually it will affect you so much that you will give up doing them completely. It is a waste of effort and enthusiasm to end up back at the starting block with a feeling of defeat. My suggestion is to pick a number of push-ups that you will