I’m fortunate in that everyday I get to work with motivated young athletes. The one question that always comes to my mind is what drives that person to succeed? All too often I see kids who “like” a sport, or want to play at a certain “level” because of what that brings in other areas (accolades, prestige, etc.). What most people miss and what I feel is the most important ingredient in truly being successful is one thing: passion. Pursuing a goal has to be something that you not only want, but more importantly something that you truly desire. You have to have a burning passion, deep down inside you, to truly bring that out. I hear a lot of kids say they want to be division 1 athletes; the question then becomes, what are they willing to do to have that chance…will you practice on a Friday night at 10 o’clock while your friends are going out? Will you pass up fast food in place of something that may be a more healthy option? Maybe you kind of want to do those things, but in order to actually do them you must have something inside you that makes you want to do it when no one else is around and the awards aren’t there. I spend everyday in the weight room. Kids don’t get awards for lifting weights and improving daily. They get the satisfaction that what they’re doing is part of a bigger picture. Getting stronger is a means to an end for these athletes.
What’s your passion?
As I sit here and watch us get hit with this lovely snowstorm, I have a few minutes to get up a quick blog post. Just the other day my wife brought home a great piece titled “Rules for Being Human.” I have no idea who wrote them or where they got it, but I’m just passing it along because it’s one of the best short pieces I’ve read. I decided to print it out and hang it in my office so I can read it frequently. Enjoy the reading and enjoy the snow.
If you’re up here in the northeast like I am, you’re getting hammered with snow right now! Apparently the wind is just beginning and gusts are supposed to pick up too. If you’re like most people, you’re home today chillin out and relaxin with either a day off from school or possibly a day off from work. If that’s the case, great and enjoy!
I wanted to leave a quick little thought as we approach the new year; I hear from people all too many times that they are going to start something “On Monday,” or “next week,” or something kind of cliche like that. I think it’s great that you’re going to start something, and making a decision a decision to do so is the first step. However, I would rather see someone start this very moment. If you’re thinking to yourself that today just isn’t good, or this week just isn’t good, I’m here to tell you that there’s never a good time! Don’t believe me? How many times have you said the same thing over and over only to make zero progress on it? Want to start getting back in shape…was that last year you said that? Or perhaps the last 10 years?
“Successful people do what failure’s won’t.” – Tony Robbins
Remember that quote next time you want to do something better than ordinary. Normal people are just that, normal. Normal people these days are overweight and out of shape. Normal people start “next week” or “next year.” What about if you started today or tomorrow?
Being a former high school coach I’m a sucker for motivational videos, quotes, speeches and anything along those lines. Here is a great video from an interview with Will Smith. I’m sure some of you have seen it and some probably haven’t; either way, I think it’s worth 6 minutes of your time. Enjoy.
“In almost all cases, the conditions you are waiting for will be significantly different next week or next year. Don’t worry that the conditions have to be perfect. The truth is, you are going to have to take that first step! If you take it now, instead of later, you’ll be many steps closer to your dreams by this time next year.” – Don’t Sweat The Small Things Daily Calendar
I’m a big believer in taking action. It is usually the decision to act, and the first step of action that are the hardest. Much like trying to move a big boulder, you have to push really really hard for a given period of time just to get the thing to move. When you’re about out of energy from trying to move the thing you have to dig extra deep and eventually you will get the momentum so that all you have to do is keep it moving. That doesn’t mean that you can coast, it simply means that you can move the boulder much faster with the same amount of effort. If you stop pushing, eventually it will stop and you’ll have to start all over again from scratch.
If you’re looking for a little inspiration and want to see some creative imagination, watch this video of Danny MacAskill.
4 of my pet peeves – are you doing them?
There are a few things that I feel like I say repeatedly. As much as I like hearing myself talk, I wish I didn’t have to say them over and over, but to be honest, sometimes I feel the need. I am in the business of helping people achieve their goals. Most of the time it’s athletically, but it often entails multiple elements all at once: speed, strength, size, flexibility, etc. More often than not, it’s what people aren’t doing that is their reason for failure. Here are my 4 pet peeves as a starting point for achieving any physical/athletic goal(s).
1) Curls, bro. If you think you’re going to get big arms from doing 15 different variations of curls, you’re wrong. All the protein, NO xplode, and mirrors won’t even help you get there if you don’t have a foundation. What’s a foundation? Strength in all basic human movements (upper and lower body) so that you’re body will accept the “extra” arm work to help them get bigger. Once you have some basic strength you can add your curls back in and watch the arms grow even more. And before you ask me if squats will help your arms grow the answer is “yes!”
2) Basic Movements – I know everyone these days is extra special, but the body is still the body and some of the demands and functions on it are the same no matter what you’re walk of life. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for huge arms, or trying to make an Olympic team, get proficient and strong at these movements and everything else will fall into place: squats (all variations, single and double leg), deadlifts (all variations, single and double leg), push-ups, pull-ups, rowing, total body (jumping, olympic lifting movements), and core (as a stabilizer and transmitter for the rest of the body).
3) Crunches – I know the burn is great, and you feel like someone could do laundry on your stomach after about 500 of them, but the truth is there is a lot of research that they put the spine at risk (of disc injuries, among other things), and don’t burn the fat off your mid-section. Sorry folks, spot reduction isn’t true (no matter what Tide may tell you), rather getting a six pack and stabilizing your core has a lot more to do with nutrition and having your core stabilize my above listed movements (in addition to planking variations and other “core” exercises which train your trunk to be still while your limbs move). I know, I’m boring, no fun, and you don’t care about your back because you’re going to die young anyway…(“right now I just want to be jacked!”). Here’s the deal: stabilize with your core (planks) instead of move with it (crunching varitions or flexing of the spine) and eat less; fewer carbs, more protein, more water, and more conditioning.
4) Consistency – I know you’ve been working out for a couple months (or a couple weeks) and now the basics are “boring,” but the bottom line is this: you didn’t master anything in a couple months or a couple weeks. Think you learned how to play hockey in two weeks? Nope. What about run? Nope, not a chance. It took years before you could even learn to function enough to walk. Somehow though, we think that after a few weeks we’ve mastered human movement and are ready for bigger and better exercises. Ok. When you’ve mastered the movements, come talk to me and we’ll figure out where you are. Train (not workout) for a year and then I’ll tell you that you have some foundation to start to build upon. I don’t care if your sport is bowling and you want to perfect your spin for the 7-10 split. Be consistent. Practice your weight room movements consistently week in and week out and watch your body explode into a great piece of athleticism and function.
If you follow my above advice I promise you make TONS of progress. I know, it takes time, sometimes you don’t want to do it, but I’m telling you that those 4 things will do more for you than any infomercial on TV promising you a six pack in 2 weeks.
“Successful people do what failures won’t.” – Tony Robbins
I have done a lot of thinking lately in and out of the weight room. I’ve seen some kids that I’ve trained for a while “fall off,” while I’ve seen some others start out from scratch. I’ve also seen the same types of things take place on the basketball court on the soccer field many times before. What is it that I’m talking about?
Working on the “things” that you’re not good at. It’s that simple. Lately, I’ve been thinking that everything can be summed up in one line: “If you want to do it, you probably shouldn’t. If you don’t want to do it, you probably should.” What a great piece of advise if I do say so myself.
I think this simple phrase can help anyone in nearly any walk of life, myself included! I hate doing my billing, but you know what, I really should do it. First, it’s what allows me to do what I do (I need to get paid or I won’t have a house to live in); second, I fall behind sometimes because I would much rather read research or train athletes than sit at a computer and figure out how much someone owes me.
So, if you haven’t already re-read the above phrase, I want you to do so right now. After you read it, I want you to think about what it is you want to do: bench? jog? abs? play video games? eat mc’d's? Whatever it is you want to do, pick that exact opposite and do that instead. Yup, that’s right, do what you don’t want to do. Oh boo hoo, I know you’re not used to that, and that’s exactly why you’re stuck where you are. Bench press won’t go up because you’re doing it 3x week? Try doing rows 3x per week instead. Want to jog? Try doing some sprints for a change, or perhaps lift some weights…after all, if you really want that six pack, muscle is a necessity. Want to skip stretching at the end of your workout? Mmmm, not a great idea, the flexibility gods will catch up with you and cast a bolt of lightning at you when you least expect it!
I know this isn’t the advise you were looking for, but to be honest it’s the advise that you need. Take this advise and apply it anywhere in life: work, play, food, etc and give it all you have for 3-6 weeks and then come back to me and tell me that you haven’t made progress in whatever your previous area was.
I love to read. Back when I was in high school I wouldn’t have wanted to say that, nor would I have actually had to worry about saying that (I hated reading with a passion). Somewhere around the end of college when I started to get bored with Tiger Woods golf on PS2, and one of my roommates somehow found a glitch in ESPN basketball (for PS2) I started reading.* It started out with performance training books and books about basketball simply to become a better high school coach. Now, being older, wiser, and quite possibly better looking, I have come to realization that reading is good for the mind, body, and soul. Over the past week or so I’ve been reading “Goals” by Brian Tracy. If you aren’t familiar with it, or haven’t read it yet, I highly recommend it as it’s become one of my favorite books of all time.
In the middle of the book Brian talks about the 3 keys to peak performance: commitment, completion, and closure. Commitment: make a clear commitment to making something happen and then don’t budge. Completion: there is a big difference between 95% done and 100% done. Push through until it is complete. Closure: close the loop on the task at hand so there are no incomplete issues or tasks. This will save a lot of emotional and physical stress.
If you haven’t checked out the book, go to your local bookstore or simply amazon.com and check it out. It’s a book that’s more than worth the price on the back cover. You will get an immense amount of information about life in general no matter if you’re an athlete, a parent, coach, or trainer.
*As a little side note: the glitch in the game was Eric Piatkowksi (Ever heard of him? I didn’t think so.) , whom for some reason in ESPN basketball had the ability to drop 60 points on me, despite never seeing more than 3 minutes of action in a real NBA game…was it my roommates skill, or simply a glitch in the game? Glitch.
This past weekend my wife and I decided to take a Saturday drive up to North Conway, New Hampshire. It was a nice day, it was warm (for this area of the country), and we figured it would be a good chance to get away for a day trip. During this all day extravaganza a few things came up that stood out to me: 1) coffee is great 2) most people have no butt, and 3) the sizes of clothes are progressively going up with society’s weight!
When you people watch in a place like North Conway, you see a little bit of everything from the very well off to the not so fortunate. One common factor which most of those people have is what Mike Boyle likes to refer to as “Addanasstomy.” People simply have no butt definition or muscle. It’s sad, but true. None of these poor people will ever be seen in a Calvin Klein ad.
As most guys out there know, when you go shopping with your wife for “nothing” you end up finding another blue shirt that somehow is a different shade of blue than the same blue shirt she already has at home. Now, I may be color blind, but let’s be honest here- are there really that many shades of blue? Not to mention that you somehow end up looking at pants; this is an altogether new challenge. My wife is petite, and to be honest, she can’t find pants that fit. As she continues to stay lean and fit, the rest of the population appears to be going the opposite way. Consequently, all of the smallest pants are typically too big. But rather than make more sizes for women, they’ve simply made the same size pant bigger than they used to be…tricky. What does this mean for me as a guy and a husband? No matter what the price tag says, if the pants fit her, we’re buying them! Consequently, we end up looking at pants a lot, rarely buying, but still spending a good chunk of money…where is the Wrangler women’s line when you need them?
