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Greetings!
Welcome . . .
Chewin' the Fat is a publication from
The Complete Bear designed for the bear
community. It is published on the 2nd and 4th
Tuesdays of the month.
Chewin' the Fat will offer up the best
of the bear lifestyle - casual, cool, or woofy.
Whatever it takes to complete the bear.
For the bear, his cub and their den . . .
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Bear Fitness....is that an oxymoron?
by Buzzed Beef
I don't think so and I want to talk to you about it. My
name is Mike Burton and I am proud to say that I am a
bear--a bear on a quest for fitness. I am not a certified
personal trainer. I can't create a workout regimen for
you nor can I design a diet for you to follow. I'm not a
licensed counselor. I can't offer you any advice. But
that isn't what this is about. So, am I qualified to
discuss bear fitness with you? In the weeks ahead, I'll
let you be the judge of that.
First, a little background....who am I? I am a 6 feet tall,
260 lb bear, who, finally at 34, has embraced myself
as a bear. I've fought with that identity for years. My
physicality as a bear began early, when I was just a
teenager. My mind wasn't so quick to accept it. I was
the hairy chunky boy while all my classmates were
lean and smooth. Can anyone identify? It has only
been in the past couple of years that my mind has
caught up with my body and made peace with being a
bear. I like who I am. I love being big and thick and
solid and hairy. Do I have perfectly rounded pecs?
No. Do I have a flat, rippled stomach? No. But I am a
firm believer that while my body may be far from
perfect in the eyes of the general population, I can be
as fit and as healthy as anyone out there.
And that is the quest I am on...to be the best bear--the
best human being I can be. I am striving to find an
incredible balance between physical fitness and
mental fitness. This is what I want to share with you
and talk about with you. In the months and years
ahead, I am committed to this journey. I'm going on
the ride---the lap bar is down---the thumbs-up is given.
Join me?
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A Mini? Oh, I don't think so . . .
For as long as I can remember, I have wanted a
sports car. I am a fairly large bear and while a two-
seater was out of the question, I did find a used small
convertible that seemed to fit my needs.
Except, I didn't fit!
I had enough room with the seat back to be able to
reach the steering wheel and the pedals. I was able to
shut the door comfortably. But, since baby's got back, -
I couldn't imagine sitting it the bucket seat more than
about 10 seconds. I think those bucket seats would
have been extreme for anyone.
Ultimately, it is you that needs to be comfortable in
your own skin - clothed or not. Sure you might have
some flaws, but who doesn't? I am not suggesting
you seek out a nude beach to build self esteem - but
consider the freedom. Not caring what others think.
Not worrying about covering this or hiding that. Just
being you.
I asked the used car dealer if he had any suggestions.
His only suggestion was to buy a seat from a different
model car that would fit. He made a few calls to the
new car dealers and the cost was going to be over
$1,000 for each seat.
I was getting ready to walk out when I noticed the
calendar of classic cars on his wall. It was from a
nearby auto upholstery shop. On a lark, I asked if I
could take the car over to have them see what they
could do. For $150, they said they could cut down the
extreme bucket seat cushions and give me a flatter
sitting area. The auto upholstery guy was no
lightweight either and perhaps this was one of the
reasons he was so respectful and able to meet my
needs.
They also told me that the car had been repainted and
I was able to get the used car dealer to knock the price
down enough to cover the retrofit.
The car is now fun to drive and the work was perfect. I
did have to take a trip back to the shop to adjust the
extreme wings on the seat back however. It turns out
that when the seat cushion was flattened out; I sat a
bit lower - so the lumbar support had to be adjusted to
be less extreme and in the right place (this cost less
than $100). One more trip was needed to do the same
work on the passenger side - so I could sit there when
I finally let my partner drive my dream car.
While not all cars can be made to fit all people, that
doesn't mean we can't have fun cars to drive.
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