Skates Like a HUMMER: Converting to Quadlines

Q.

 Hello, SSG Ken and Stephanie Weichert!

Thanks for what you two do! I get GX magazine delivered to my house and I try your workouts every week. They are awesome! I have lost 20 pounds in 10 weeks and I increased my APFT score by 24 points. Keep the tips coming!

With the weather getting better, what are some creative exercise programs to do outside?

HOOAH!

SGT Tina L., Indiana Army National Guard

A.

 Hello, SGT!

Thanks for the compliments! Keep up the great work. Your results are outstanding!

Stephanie recently tried an outside exercise program that she has not attempted in several years and loved it! A week later, she got me on it. It was great! I worked muscles that I have not worked in a long time. I suggest that you do the same! Let me know what you think.

Best Regards,
SSG Ken Weichert

From Stephanie’s Journal:

Much to the delight of all little girls during the mid-eighties, Baby Skates made her entrance into the world. When turned on, this plastic doll clumsily teetered to and fro on her little skates, magically inching forward and occasionally tottering over. Now, with that vision in mind, you might be able to imagine a 5’10” fully grown woman who at one time played with that doll, somewhat mirroring that image while skating.

Today was my first foray into ‘Skatesville’. I gripped my neighbor’s old broken down green Ford truck as I carefully stepped my way down our shared sloped driveway. The striking realization of its exact slope was not apparent until I laced up my brand new Quadline skates with their ginormous 100mm wheels and began to maneuver my way down the driveway to the street. Baby Skates at this juncture had me beat, as at least she was able to use her bodyweight to move forward.

Stephanie laces up her Quadlines.

Photo by Chris Kissling

Body weight, who needs body weight? Gravity had a vicious grip on me and was coaxing me into this new relationship with the pavement, faster than I was apparently ready to move. However, move I did, step-by-step, right down the driveway, using my neighbor’s truck as a crutch. After running out of truck to grip, I allowed myself to be fully immersed in this new relationship with the Quadlines and the pavement.

Twenty minutes later I had figured out how to somewhat utilize the rubber stopper located at the front of my glowing white skates. Like the bored coffee shop employee, they decide to work when things are going slow. Thirty minutes later, and quite popular with the 5-10 year old crowd, I was continuing through the neighborhood. I began to realize skating requires quite a bit of kinetic energy from my gluteus minimus and maximus (you know, the backside, the bum). I realized “core work” on skates has quite a different connotation to it than does static gym exercise. I was pleased that my pads did not make friends with the pavement.

Forty minutes later, I was on the last slope home. I didn’t realize that Mt. Everest was only steps outside my front door and that my condo rested in the valley of two mountains. I was cruising at speeds illegal in residential areas, arms flailing, trying to recall a skiing maneuver, the snowplow, in an effort to reduce my speed from mach two to mach one, while staying in one piece. I was in temporary horror at the speeds at which I had found myself traveling. Luckily, I was still standing when I arrived at the foot of Mt Everest, a football field later.

As I sat down to remove the skates that evening, I thanked God my Creator that I had made it in one bloodless piece. I looked forward to day two.

Hello, again, SGT!

The skates that I used are called Skorpions. I got them from Skates.com, and I highly recommend them. They are fast and efficient, and their customer service is great!

The Skorpions fastened directly around my military boots. They worked well, even with my size 12-wide boots. The difference is that I had to immediately get used to the wide wheel frames. My first time up, I found myself rubbing the inside wheels together. However, after a few minutes, I was trying old tricks. Best of all, I was spending quality time with my wife!

We made a full day of it on our next skating experience, adding some exercises in the park to strengthen our core and upper body muscles in the process. After skating until we wanted a break, we pulled over to a grassy area and performed abdominal exercises and push-ups. After we had enough of the core and upper bodywork, we carefully stood up and rolled forward for another skating run.

After a few hours of that, we plopped down on the grass and pulled a couple of sandwiches out of our small backpacks and enjoyed the warm sun and serene moment. I suggest you do the same!

Have fun!
SSG Ken Weichert

Ken Weichert (a.k.a. “SGT Ken”) is a Six-time Soldier of the Year, Master Fitness Trainer and veteran of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Desert Storm. Ken and his wife Stephanie, a Certified Personal Trainer, founded START Fitness, a group exercise and hiking business that delivers military-style workouts to Soldiers and civilians since 1998. Ken and Stephanie have led thousands of Soldiers to better health through Operation Fit to Fight, a tactical fitness instructor training program designed to prepare Soldiers for Basic Combat Training, deployments, leadership schools and post-deployment reintegration. Operation Fit to Fight creates tactical athletes who lead by example and are ready to perform necessary duties in response to natural disasters or in defense of our country! Ken and Stephanie currently produce health and fitness programs for GX magazine, and for the National Guard website.