By Larry Rodriguez<\/a><\/p>\n H<\/span>uman beings are naturally lazy. Like most species in the animal kingdom, we look for easier ways to do anything. At the very least, we try to exert minimal effort to achieve desirable results. If we look at wild predators, we\u2019ll see that they don\u2019t work more than necessary to get food. Easier prey usually come first, leaving the hard ones as a last resort. After all, predators also need to conserve energy for defense.<\/p>\n Like these wild animals, we seek comfort following any strenuous activity, mental or physical. As rational beings, we can easily justify and rationalize going into moments of pleasurable respite when not really needed.<\/p>\n For those of us who listened to our parents when they said, \u201cwork hard now so that you can feel the breeze later,\u201d we try to get a good education, which will hopefully lead to a good-paying job with benefits and a chance to save for retirement. Or, we join the military or law enforcement and serve our country honorably. Or, we decide to open a small business and labor intensely for years until we can finally settle into a life of, ahh \u2026 comfort.<\/p>\n But real life throws plenty of wrenches at us. Things don\u2019t always work out. And that includes the \u201cburden\u201d of legally carrying a gun. There is nothing comfortable about carrying a gun. You just get used to it. You find comfort in the fact that you can protect yourself and your loved ones at the expense of putting up with some physical discomfort.<\/p>\n Mentally, you can\u2019t completely relax when you have a gun on you, as you must always remain alert \u2014 even when you don\u2019t feel like it. Does that sound comfortable to you? Eventually, this can take a toll on anyone who carries a gun for any length of time. It causes fatigue, which prompts us to look for ways to ease that fatigue. And hence, the never-ending search for a good holster begins.<\/p>\n Due to the very nature that it can\u2019t be left unattended, a gun requires your constant attention, whether on your person or not, and you must come to grips with the fact that when you carry a gun you are personally bonded to it. Bad things can happen otherwise.<\/p>\n When I was stationed in Bolivia during my career as a federal agent, a Bolivian National police officer assigned to our task force was shot dead by a carjacker on a Sunday afternoon. According to eyewitness accounts, the officer was pulling into the gate of an offsite office when he saw a carjacking in progress in the house next door. The officer, driven by a strong sense of duty, partially opened his car door and announced \u201cPolic\u00eda!\u201d But then, tragically, he immediately realized he was not carrying his gun on his person \u2014 instead, it rested inside a fanny pack<\/a> in the back seat.<\/p>\n By the time the officer turned towards the back seat to retrieve his gun, the bad guy had closed the distance to the officer\u2019s car and brutally shot the officer through the driver-side window. The carjacker fled the scene. Incidentally, I was competing in an IPSC match that day with my partner and other friends, when we got the call. My partner and I went to the hospital, where the officer died on the operating table.<\/p>\n This incident had a way of occasionally creeping back into my memory in the years following. I remembered that many countries don\u2019t offer the wide variety of compact options that we have here in the United States that make it much easier to carry.<\/p>\n You don\u2019t see compacts like the Hellcat or the Hellcat Pro, which would make it a little easier to carry a gun on your person. Police agencies abroad do not always have access to good quality, yet affordable, holsters and belts for their personnel. But most notably, the guns that were normally available to them back in 2005 when this happened were all-steel, full-size guns in a wide assortment of double-action as well as single-action designs. These guns can be tough to carry concealed compared to something like the Hellcat.<\/p>\n So, how can we deal with these issues? First, understand that there is a time and place for everything, including fanny packs \u2014 just resist the temptation to part ways with it. Or find another mode of carrying on your person that you can tolerate.<\/p>\n The size and caliber of your gun is a very personal choice. I still carry a full-size gun today and have found that maintaining a certain degree of physical fitness goes a long way to carrying it effectively. Whatever you carry, though, make sure you can handle the physical rigors of carrying it every day. Basically, get off the couch and work out!<\/p>\n With a little motivation and willpower, any regular exercise program that works your core, back, hands, arms, legs and glutes will help build a solid base to support most any handgun you may wish to carry, provided you use a good holster and belt. In all the years of physical training and attending diverse seminars, I have found a simple fitness tool that gives me everything I need to remain effective with a firearm: the kettlebell.<\/p>\nTragic Reality<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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\n<\/picture>Tools of the Trade<\/h2>\n
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\n<\/picture>Stepping Up<\/h2>\n
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