Mike McKinney

I don’t consider myself an athlete, but serving over 45 years as a first responder, it was always a priority to stay in shape. You don’t see too many out of shape hero’s making a dynamic tactical entry to arrest a suspect, climb inside an overturned vehicle to assess a trauma patient, or haul a roll of fire hose and rescue equipment up a stairwell! I had my share of cuts, bruises, and muscle strains, but being young, you suck it up and power through. 

After retirement, I learned that my heart and head were out of shape. I needed a way to motivate me to be heart healthy, so I reinvented my lifelong love affair with everything outdoors and started hiking and canoeing, and became a gym rat. Coupling modern drug technology, dietary changes, and a great cardiologist, I am now pretty heart healthy.

POWER THROUGH
FIRST RESPONDER
DYNAMIC TACTICAL ENTRY
Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)
Co Director of the 52 Hike Challenge North Carolina Chapter
INCREDIBLE FRIENDS

FIRST RESPONDER

FIRST RESPONDER

But my head was another story. Many first responders shortly after retirement, discover that those close friends, the camaraderie, and that adrenaline fix were gone. Many chose to indulge in dangerous habits and then suicide for relief. I firmly believe that retired first responders have to find a way to be relevant, set some objectives and goals, and vow to success and avoid failure. And exercise, push yourself, but at the same time realize your body needs more time to recover.

To stay relevant, I took some EMS Basic Life Support training, joined a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), and attended Citizens Police and Fire Academies. But my biggest step to be relevant is I started doing hiking challenges with 52 Hike Challenge! A global organization that professes if you hike one mile outside every week for a year, you will be physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually more healthy. I jumped in with a pro active aggressiveness and did it ever work. I now serve as the Co Director of the 52 Hike Challenge North Carolina Chapter. I now carry the flag planning hikes, recruiting participants, securing partnerships, and making so many new friends! 

Objectives, goals, exercise and staying relevant is my winning formula, and led me to   my new friends at Zombiesportco. Great all natural products and great owners who have supported my hiking ventures, including those with Zoey.

If you hike one mile outside every week for a year, you will be physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually more healthy.