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In Part 1, I discussed the importance of body armor for civilians and highlighted the fact that violence can occur anywhere, at any time. I mentioned different locations and situations, besides being at home. Taking account of the locations and situations common to you and your family’s lifestyle is a good starting point for choosing the right body armor. But for context, I need to explain the various body armor platforms and ballistic protection levels. 

The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) sets the standards and quantifies ballistic protection for body armor. For any level, the bullet must not perforate the vest and the vest must protect against blunt trauma. The levels, from lowest to highest protection, are IIA, II, IIIA, IIIA+, III, III+, and IV.  Here’s an NIJ Chart that clarifies some of these. Level IIA through IIIA are tested to protect against handguns, and III through IV against high velocity rifle rounds. 

So I spent many long hours and long days in body armor. I’d sweat, itch, and ultimately stink, as the armor vest got soaked with sweat, and laundering is difficult and time consuming. (Sweat also degrades the vest’s ballistic material.) I constantly adjusted the vest, which moved around and generally felt awkward and heavy. Many days I’d get fatigued from just having to wear my body armor all day long.

Discomfort is distracting, when you need to be highly focused, as danger could erupt suddenly. It’s ironic that equipment designed to increase your safety can impair situational awareness. But I dealt with these discomforts for many years.

Finally, after one grueling 12-hour day when a nasty rash broke out across my back and ribs, I’d had enough. Knowing of no existing solution, I resolved to invent one myself.

If you're sick and tired of peeling a sweat-soaked shirt off your body and the end of every shift, dealing with clammy skin, skin rashes, itchiness and embarrassing odor, the Maxx-Dri Vest for body armor ventilation, cooling and comfort was made for you. And if you ask the over 250,000 of your peers, they'll tell you the same thing.

“Total game changer! I’m a person who gets overheated very easily, I soak through my uniform shirt and my vest carrier is wet at the end of my shift. The Maxx-Dri 4.0 has changed my life. Now at the end of shift I’m not rushing to take my uniform off because my of being uncomfortable, now I am amazed that my shirts are dry and my vest isn’t wet at the end of a warm day.” - Juan B.

The Legacy Ballistic Riot Shield is an ultra lightweight shield which offers Level IIIA protection. In fact, it's a must-threat protection shield in that it not only offers ballistic protection, but also protection against knives, edged weapons and blunt forces such as baseball bats, rocks and bricks. 

NOTE: NIJ Level IIA can protect against 9mm Full Metal Jacketed Round Nose and .40 S&W Full Metal Jacketed ammunition, both of which are used in the majority of handguns. It can also stop similar handgun ammunition such as the 10mm Auto, .357 SIG, and even .45 ACP.

NIJ Level II armor is capable of protecting against all of the above ammunition, as well as .357 Magnum Jacketed Soft Points and 9mm Parabellum rounds fired at a higher velocity.

NIJ Level IIIA can stop all of the above ammunition, as well as 9mm Parabellum rounds fired from semi-automatic and .44 Magnum Jacketed Hollow Point rounds.

At just 9 lbs. the Legacy Police Ballistic Shield is incredibly light, easy to carry and manipulate in tactical situations. What makes it even more of a pleasure to use is it's innovative cross strap. This cross strap allows the user to suspend the shield in front of their body, freeing up both hands for required tactical or emergency situations. During testing, this feature was found to be an absolute game-changer.

With everything going on in the world today, it's no surprise that body armor sales have been going through the roof. But one kind of body armor, in particular, has been selling out more than any other body armor; Level IV plates. 

Level IV body armor plates are highly desirable based on their stopping power. However many people opt for Level 4 plates without truly knowing what ballistic threats the plates actually stop.

There is also one major drawback to Level IV body armor plates that I'll get to in a bit. But first, let's go over what level 4 body armor will stop.

Level IV is the rating put forth by The NIJ (National Institute of Justice). NIJ Body Armor Ballistic Level IV are the highest rated hard armor plates under the NIJ standards. They are designed to take one hit from an Armor Piercing 30.06 traveling at a velocity of 2880 ft/s. NOTE: This test will remain the same for the 01010.07 standard. 

As 2022 comes to a close, many of us don't know what the future holds. Between the economy, housing market, stock market and skyrocketing crime, anxiety is at an all time high. Add to that discoveries about what has really been going on at prominent social media companies like Twitter and Facebook, and we are left with not even knowing if we can trust the platforms we rely upon so heavily for communication. 

So in 2023 you have two options. You can either continue to do what you did all through 2022 (and most likely for many years prior). Or, you can commit to doing things completely different. The former will most likely result in more of the same; anxiety, fear and distrust. While the latter will more than likely result in all new situations and possibilities. This is a snippet on how to change your life in 2023.

Here's something else I realized after starting this little experiment. Delaying caffeine intake for 90 minutes after waking up is a mini challenge to start the day off. And doing so gives you a little victory or win to start off your day. And from there, it's easy to attack the rest of your day with a winning mindset.

I know this may sound trivial, but once you try it, you'll realize exactly what I'm talking about here. Just ask anyone who starts their day at 5am by going to the gym. Getting up a 5am is the first win. Going to the gym is another win. Getting a good workout in is a third win. The workout if typically followed by a healthy shake or breakfast; another win. So before 7am (when many people are still in bed) you've managed to rack up four (4) WINS for the day. And this folks, completely transforms the rest of your day. Truth be told, routines like this can transform the rest of your life. 

If you desire big changes in your life you have to start by making small changes in your daily routine. Try delaying your morning coffee by 90 minutes and see what happens. I'm highly confident that it will have the same affect on your life as it did mine.

One of the hardest things to do during the holidays is finding gifts for that special man in your life. He works hard, is a good provider and the protector of you and your family. You feel he deserves the best and you want to get him something unique that he'll truly love; not something he'll have to pretend to like. 

So, the team and I spent the last few months scouring the internet, reading blogs and speaking with real men in real life (not on social media) to discover what's important to them. Whether your man is into hunting, fishing, shooting, sports, fitness, tactical gear or all of the above...there's something on our list for him.

NOTE: The links to third party companies provided in the article below are not affiliate links of any kind. We receive no compensation from the third party companies if you use any of these links. I wanted to keep this as authentic as possible. And yes, I actually own and use everything on the list below. Enjoy!