https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/patrick-mabe-tactical-games-073
Patrick Mabe (@mr.patrick.mabe) of Core Nutritionals, Merica Labz, and Merica Energy joins the PricePlow Podcast to discuss his competition in the Tactical Games, fatherhood, and living the Crush It Lifestyle at Core Nutritionals in North Carolina!
This was a great follow-up to The Boss Status Episode 8, where Patrick and Doug Miller interviewed Mike and Ben – now the tables are turned and we get to hear Patrick’s backstory and new path.
Will Patrick be able to bridge the gap between sports supplements, tactical competitions, and the shooting world? With these brands, we’re hopeful. Get ready to learn some great new stuff in this episode:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:15:20 — 64.2MB)
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Show Notes: Getting Tactical with Patrick Mabe
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0:00 – Introduction
Patrick has recently renamed his Instagram to @Mr.Patrick.Mabe, and is no longer “Mr. Meaty Thighs”. This marked a great evolution in him, as he begins looking to his legacy and fatherhood.
Ben and Patrick met when out shooting with the crew at Suppz in Wisconsin.
Patrick shouts out to all of our community in the PricePlow Discord.
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4:45 – Patrick’s Entrance to Supplements
Patrick played high school football, then went to James Madison University where he began lifting weights since he was no longer playing competitive sports. He was introduced to Layne Norton, and got in through the natural bodybuilding world.
Crush it! This was taken after Episode 8 of The Boss Status
Bodybuilding became his passion, and he wanted to make a career out of it.
He began working as a personal trainer, competed, got his pro card, and in 2014 he sent his resume to Doug Miller (episode #050) and started working at The Nutrition Corners in Arlington.
Come 2017, Doug invited Patrick to come on full-time, and he jumped into the Core Nutritionals sales role.
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7:45 – Mike’s Opinion: “Patrick is the face of ‘Merica Labz”
Check @MericaLabz on Instagram and you’ll see Brad PittViper, Patrick’s ‘Merica-themed alter-ego. But it’s not really that much of an act, as we learn Patrick’s a southern boy at heart anyway.
Patrick’s trying to bridge the “Crush It Lifestyle” to more than just the bodybuilding community, though. It’s not just about Merica.
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12:30 – The Merica Labz launch and Core’s Innovation
Patrick talks about the Merica Labz inception in 2016 during the hysterical election season, and how it was then launched in 2017. Mike notes that Patriot’s Whey was the first product to seriously go overboard with the inclusions.
Patrick then notes that they’ve actually had a lot of innovation that they don’t necessarily get credit for, often because they don’t talk about it.
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15:00 – Fatherhood and Going for Seven Kids and a Farm
Patrick’s been doing some incredible stuff, even with a 3-month old at home. He talks about being a part of his son’s day every day. He’s loving the duty and it’s lit a new passion in him, wanting to drive positive masculinity.
Mike then goes on a bit of a rant talking about going for 7 kids, especially if you want to homestead, grow your own food, and truly be connected to it.
One proud mama and papa!
Patrick agrees and explains how he’s planning on his family moving towards that life.
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23:30 – The Return to Nature
Ben discusses getting out in nature, getting back to hunting, and getting your hands dirty.
People have gotten so far from nature that we need to beg people to actually get in the sunshine. Men are waking up to this though, and that’s a great thing.
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27:30 – Men hanging with Men, is alcohol required?
In 2020, Patrick started doing Zoom calls with his friends, and they began trading book recommendations. In the neighborhood now, they’re having whiskey tasting parties.
Patrick then discusses that he’s abstaining from alcohol through the year – and everyone’s been very supportive and he still attends the men’s group, even if they’re drinking a bit.
Ben brings up how the Core team likes cigars, and that at conventions, they’re the kind of crew that gets up early to train, not stays up late to party. That’s where Team PricePlow has gravitated lately too.
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39:00 – The Tactical Games
Patrick plugs the Tactical Games at TheTacticalGames.com, and gives a nice breakdown about the competition. It’s a shooting competition mixed with fitness – lots of functional fitness interchanged with shooting. Patrick came in 13th out of 26 or so — he needs to work on his accuracy.
But first the backstory. Patrick competed in bodybuilding in 2019, had three shows, did incredibly well – but just doesn’t think he has the genetic body for a first place finish. This is why he was okay leaving bodybuilding. He won some money as a pro, came in 5th in the World Championship, but also hurt his elbows.
It was time to find something new as he rehabbed his elbows. He started running more, then had some classes at the local shooting range and got “trigger fever”. He eventually found The Tactical Games through social media, and jumped in.
Patrick’s attitude on jumping in with no fear:
“I’m gonna suck, and I’m gonna love it”
Patrick’s goal is to bridge the gap between supplements and the shooting world — more on this later. But in order to do that, they can’t just show up as a brand (we see this in failed gaming supplements all the time). You need to be all in – and Patrick’s jumped in 100%.
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46:00 – How the Tactical Games Work
Patrick Mabe at the Tactical Games
We get into some specifics of the Tactical Games competitions, talking about the procedures, demographics / ages / classes, rules, common gotchas, safety, briefings, who’s in charge, scoring, etc.
Patrick clearly loves it – this entire section is fascinating and exciting. He’s now thinking about getting into additional shooting competitions while continuing his high fitness levels for future Tactical Games.
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57:15 – Patrick’s Kit
Patrick tells us all about his kit, what’s working, what he’s fixed, what broke, and what he’s going to continue to work with without breaking his budget.
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1:04:00 – How to train for the Tactical Games?
Patrick’s changed up a lot of his routine to focus on conditioning for these events – he can still do a ton of it at Crush It Coliseum, but also has to do tons of dry-firing and hit the range (40 minute drive from his home).
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1:06:00 – Bridging the Gap Between Supplements and the Shooting World – Can it be done?
Ben notes that there’s too many generic / corporate energy drinks on the shooting channels out there. How do we get more BOOM Energy into their hands?!
Merica Energy Red White and BOOM cans have been given a proper restoration, and they’re better than ever!
Patrick explains what he’s doing to approach the industry using CORE Nutritionals and Merica Energy. Energy drinks are huge in the overall shooting world, so the fit is there. But with respect to the Tactical Games, though, there’s far more emphasis on fitness, and that’s where the CORE Nutritionals supplements can make a splash.
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1:12:00 – More Tactical Games Stories and Signing Off
Patrick tells a great story about a New Jersey competitor at the Tactical Games who… had some “limitations” imposed upon him, and how that man had to work around them.
We will definitely have updates from Patrick over the next year or two after more competition – we didn’t even get into his books! Follow him at @Mr.Patrick.Mabe to see what he’s been reading!
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