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Reflections from Peter Yates

January 4, 2012

Peter shoulders his log bar for a stroll around his yard. This exercise supplements his ordinary training by building strength and endurance in a unique way. Photograph taken by and courtesy of Kim Rosado.

I received an interesting email yesterday from Peter Yates, one I think adds insight to previous discussions on this blog. With his permission, I have posted it below for all readers of MOI to enjoy and prosper from. Thanks Peter for this superb contribution.

Email from Peter

Hi Rob,

I certainly have enjoyed your recent stories about Abraham Lincoln. It is so very true that strength of character is more important than physical strength.

I could also relate to the “A Lesson in Strength” post due to my own background. I left school after just turning fifteen. My first job was at a clay-sewer pipe works. One of my tasks there was to load sewer pipes that had just been fired in a kiln onto a special type of barrow. I then wheeled the loaded barrow to a yard and stacked the pipes to make them ready for pick up.

Here’s another way Peter pushes the horizons of his strength-building program – by pushing a loaded wheelbarrow. Photograph taken by and courtesy of Kim Rosado.

Another job I had was loading trucks with building materials so that they could be hauled away to construction sites. It was hard work, and I was expected to keep up with everyone else. Even after three years of physical training, this non-stop work was a real challenge. And, it strengthened my body in unique ways.

Following my job loading trucks, I began working in the roofing trade with my mentor, Maurice Ainsworth. For a good portion of each working day we would run up ladders with tiles supported on our shoulder with an average weight of 70 pounds per load. We would use another ladder to slide down back to ground so that no one would be kept waiting. This kept the pace going quite fast.

Maurice only paid us for the work we did, so we worked fast and hard. He would make our daily work into a type of training where we would try to beat our time in loading up a roof. We also often had to mix cement by hand. In addition, to save time, bags of cement were always moved by carrying two bags at a time across our shoulders. Total carrying load was 224 pounds!

I know this kind of work gave me a rugged kind of strength and endurance I probably could not have obtained in any other way. One thing I did observe, however, is although other workers would develop a similar type of strength, most of them had little interest in overall health, and they drank and smoked. And, as a result of their bad habits, as these non-health-minded folks have aged, their strength has declined quite a bit.

When I worked as a roofer, I was not very big – my weight was around 135 pounds. However, the big Irish navies were always surprised when they saw the things I could lift and move on my shoulders, such as double cement bags and huge planks of wood.

Even though I no longer work construction, I still like to load up a wheelbarrow and push it, or shoulder my log bar for a stroll around the yard. Doing so builds a special kind of strength endurance.

As a final note, it was great to see the “Pushing to the Front Series” and the included bonus in a single article. I have had this book for a few months now, and I dip into it a few times a week at random and always come up with a gem. I have been a student of philosophy most of my life, and my main focus has been on east Asian philosophies, such as Zen and Taoism. To me, philosophy has to have a practical application to be useful. “Pushing to the Front” has earned a special place on my bookshelf, as it fulfills my requirements. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

Regards,
Peter