Taking A Chance at Personal Greatness

Many years ago there was a movie, "Rocky", it was about a nobody amateur boxer being offered, a once in a life time, shot at the title. Rocky had a shot, with some time to train and get ready. The movie is about how he trained and prepared for his shot. Now most of us will never have the champion of the world, in any sport, come knocking at the door and offer us a chance at their title. What if we decided that we would train as though offered our own chance. We could be the star of our own reality show. How awesome would it be to pull out all the stops to find out how good we could be.

What could motivate us to make the changes we have always wanted in our athlete career. What is desired speed, strength, endurance, a defined muscular body? Think about it. For many of us it's training for our first race or our next marathon. Maybe it's a desire to reach a new level of performance or qualify for Boston. Achieve the time standard for the Olympic trials. We must first be brave to enough make the decision to take a shot.

Once we decide what our goal will be, focus on what it will take. See the new goal and visualize the desired result, a goal must be seen to be accomplished The dream may involve losing weight, strengthening certain muscles, getting in more quality miles and most of all learning more about how to do all these steps. Intensity is the name of the path to victory so turn up the heat.

Is it possible? Of course it is. We can always get better and we don't know how far we can go, till we begin the journey. Take a shot at personal greatness or just dream, the time will pass either way.

It's not just a step, it's a start.

Dave

Full Measure

What would our own lives be like if we went that one step further in every thing we did. What if we gave everything full measure. Giving full measure, what a novel idea, could that be the key to success in everything. Giving full measure in business means going further than your competition. It's the edge, the secret ingredient, the ace in the hole, whatever you want to call having the advantage, giving full measure is how to get it.

In weight loss it's going all the way, eating right, not cheating, drinking the water and doing the exercise. In sports it's training hard and regularly. I read once that when the San Francisco 49ers showed up for practice that Jerry Rice and Joe Montana were already there working on the passing game. They were both record breaking Hall of Fame Players. They gave just a little bit more than everyone else and it showed in their performance. Maybe it all boils down to having enough faith in ourselves that we have decided we are worth the effort.

Even giving full measure isn't going to take us where we want to go unless we also make a commitment that we are going to give full effort, every time. No cheating, but keeping it up, staying faithful to our dreams. If we make a commitment then giving full measure means making the effort all the time, not just when it's convenient.

It's not just a step, it's a start.

Dave

Peace Love and the Pursuit of Abs.

Most who exercise regularly look at having definition in their stomach muscles as a milestone on the road to being fit. However, achieving that tummy like a fitness model takes a lot of work. There are many factors involved in having that flat stomach, some of which we have no control over, like the body type we inherited. But all of us do have the ability to have a trimmer waistline. This time of year with all the holiday dinners is not the best time to pursue a trim waist. But the fewer inches we add to our waist now, the easier it will be to lose them after the holidays are over.

To start with a flat tummy is a result of reducing our total overall body fat percentage. We can't just take off fat in the places desired. it's an all over thing and unfortunately the body likes to store it's fat reserves around our middle. We can do sit ups or crunches till we are exhausted, but until we lower that overall body fat percentage, our abdominal muscles will still he covered in a layer of stored fat. Once we have allowed ourself to get heavy around the waist, it's doubly hard to ever have abdominal definition.

Once the fat cells are produced, our bodies will not destroy them. They will allow us to empty those storage cells of their stored fat but the cells will remain, ready for refilling, when needed. So if in the past, we went through a weight gain, we will have those fat cells for forever. We can have a trim waist but those layers of empty fat cells will hide our abdominal muscle definition, even when they are strong from regular exercise. It can be disheartening to work our abdominals regularly and not get to see definition but we do pay for our past habits. A trim waist and strong core should be our goal rather than the definition, when and if that does come it's a plus but don't stress if it doesn't happen.

Another issue a lot of us face is our body type. Some body types put on weight easier, others put on muscle easier. We are who we are though and we can't change body types. We can however make the most of what we have. Some people will have a harder time of it than others. After accepting who we are and the body we have to work with then it will be easier to make desired changes in fitness and strength.

The best plan is to work on the big three; getting weight down to a healthy level, cutting out the unhealthy habits and finally regular motion exercise. Doing these will make us healthy and strong, whether we have defined abdominals or not.

It's not just a step, it's a start.

Dave

Happy Like a Boss

Remember this pearl of wisdom: "We have only one life, there is no dress rehearsal”. One of my favorites is, "I'm glad to get up in the morning for work because it means I have a job". Many people are not happy with their life, that is a tragedy because we do truly have only one go at it. It would be nice if we had a remote control for our lives so we could change the channel if we didn't like what was on. Or fast forward through the rough times but rewind and replay the good stuff. There is no remote control for life, like with the old style TVs we have to get up to change what we don't like. Hum, get up and do something if we desire change, what a novel concept.

Feeling in control, is where a lot of people fall off the happy wagon, they just don't feel empowered to make life adjustments. Feeling instead that life is pushing them along, they are just hanging on. Life is indeed a journey and we can choose the path. A good first step is turning dreams or desires into goals. We gain control by making goals, then forming good solid plans to achieve them. Decide on a direction, then like a boss, make it happen.

It's not just a step, it's a start.

Dave

Going the Distance

There are few feelings more powerful than standing in the corral just before the start of a long race and knowing our place there is earned. The long hours, endless miles, the sweat and discomfort, all dues paid in full. The miles ahead may seem impossibly long but we will accept only one result, going the distance. No feeling is more powerful is crossing the finish line. Some cross in tears, others with scream of victory, regardless it’s a moment to remember always.

The sprinter and the middle distance athlete face a different but also similar choice. The decision not just to go the distance but to challenge the edge, to skate a wickedly fine line between high performance and injury. The finish line for both is just as sweet especially when they cross with nothing left but the love. Riding that wave of emotion that comes from giving full measure.

Whether it’s challenging the 100m, facing down an ultra or any distance in between, the athlete soon learns it’s the effort rather than the glory that is the reward. Testing personal limits, reaching them, then breaking through are how we discover who we are. Athletes are no better than others, just more at peace.

It’s not just a step, it’s a start.

Dave

Breaking Barriers

There was a classic rock band from my generation, The Doors. A set of lyrics from one of their songs goes like this, "Break on through to the other side". As athletes, we can surely relate to that. Training is, in reality, a series of barriers that we must break through to get to the next level.

To accomplish a break through, we need to first want it, then see it, finally, earn it. No one can give us improvement. It can be earned by leaving our known and daring to explore our perceived limits. When our desire becomes a vision and then a plan, we can get better. But we must to be willing to do what it takes, training harder. Continuing to train as usual will take us to a door but not through it.

We make a decision to journey toward health and fitness. With it often comes the unending quest, of the athlete, to be stronger, faster, better. We begin as slow plodders, our known, but we see the 'good athletes' moving effortlessly and leaving us in their dust, that is an unknown that seems pure magic. We see what is possible and desire it. Achieving that level of performance requires so much more than desire. Improvement comes when you go as hard as you can go and then just a little more. Each time you go past your normal effort, you increase what is normal. What is hard now will become easier, because each time you go further or faster you will become stronger.

The keys to breaking those barriers, to getting better, comes from the heart. You have to love the sport and want to push your limits. Improvement is won with sweat and your willingness to endure. The barriers fall after you pass your comfort level, not before. Go harder on your hard days. You may just find that there is more to you than you ever imagined. Train hard but train smart, and on your rest days, know that you are building the strength that you earned by pushing your limits.

Training is one of the purest forms of magic. Our bodies are such a wonderful design. We can transform our body and shape it. There is always another door awaiting those with the courage to "Break on through, to the other side".

It's not just a step, it's a start.

Dave

Back to the Beginning Again

One of the things that a recreational athlete has to learn to deal with is that there will be many times they must start back at the beginning with their training. Injuries, life gets in the way, work, children, the list is virtually endless. Learning not only how to cope but how to stay motivated can be difficult. A method that has worked well for me over the years is to remember the wonderful feelings of accomplishment that come with a new personal best. Not an all time personal best but one for the current restart that I'm going through. If we spend our training in mourning for the old times instead of seeking the new it will be hard to feel the love. The road can be our nurturing friend or it can be a cruel task master, fortunately it's our choice which road awaits.

It's not just a step, it's a start.

Dave