Let's get down to brass tacks

Success isn't the big trophy, or finishing where you wanted/expected to.

Success is doing the work, day in, day out, as you need to...

...and getting to the starting line healthy.

Rest when your body tells you it REALLY needs it.

Many days it's not our body that's tired, it's our mind that's been exhausted through all the decisions and focus we needed to make all day. That's a big part of why my athletes get the green light to cut a workout, should their body not feel well after the first 15 minutes of the workout.
97% of the time, it's not the body that's fatigued, it's the mind. Give it a kick-start, and it's good to go.

You see, life really IS a marathon, not a track meet. Actually, it's more like a Decathlon. Cuz you get to do all kinds of crazy crap, and have to do it while moving from action item to action item.

It's not about grinding yourself to a pulp EVERY workout, EVERY day. 

HTFU?
More like "grab your coat, a good book and some snacks, put them in a bag in your trunk so that you're prepared for that trip to the ER or Urgent care when you blow out a (select one) Tendon/Muscle/Joint/Mental Burnout. 

Do I condone pushing through the pain (IF it's the RIGHT kind of 'burn' or 'discomfort') to my athletes? YOU BETCHA!!!

Local, State, and National Champions aren't built around "fluffy" workouts, nor by listening to anyone and everyone else around them, telling them how great they are.

The difference between a National/World Caliber Athlete and everyone else, is from the neck up, and how they think of themselves, and don't believe the hype. (yes, yes, they are also physiologically gifted in many cases).

When I was coaching high school Varsity and JV basketball, I would hold open tryouts EVERY year. You wanted a spot on my team? SHOW ME that you deserve to be there. 

Show me your hustle, your heart, your desire to work hard and be there. SHOW ME YOU'RE A TEAM PLAYER AND SUPPORT THOSE AROUND YOU WHEN THEY SUCCEED AND FAIL.

You were on the team last year? Ok, you showed me what you got last year. Show me what you have now. SHOW ME THAT YOU'VE GROWN AND LEARNED.

My second year coaching the team, I had a VERY talented player show up for the tryouts his Senior year. The year before, under my tutelage, and private sessions working with me 1 on 1, he grew immensely as a player, and I will say, had the beginnings of what it took to play Division 2, MAYBE Division 1 ball, IF he kept the same "hard work, eat right, train properly, know my strength & weaknesses" attitude, and didnt believe all his "new friends" who were telling him how great he was after the season.

He bought the hype. 

He believed those around him that said he was SO GREAT.

He didn't believe me the month before tryouts when I told him his ball handling was weak, and his jumper had ill-timing. He didn't believe his trainer who told him he came back weaker...

...Great, you did a killer training session. You put out 350w for a 30 minute Lactate Threshold effort. You workout 7 days a week. You're always going "hardcore"........Everyone looks at you because you are ALWAYS working so hard. They compliment you on it. They want to workout like you do...

That player I was talking about, didn't make the cut. 

He believed the hype.

Do you?

What do you NEED for 2014?

It's not about Resolving (see Resolutions).

Let's break it down:
Resolutions= re-solutions.

Re-Solving.

Why should you RE-Solve, SOLVE AGAIN, the things you tried last year?

Forget that.

GET IT DONE.

Don't set Resolutions. Set Solid, Attainable, Realistic Goals.

Should they push your limits? Absolutely.
Should they be hard? You Betcha.
Should they seem insurmountable? Absolutely not.

You want to have the best year yet in 2014?
Set Daily, weekly, and monthly goals.

Make sure every day you do something that gets you to your weekly and monthly goals. Be it getting your training in, or making sure you get enough rest and recovery, make sure to hit those daily goals….which lead to achieving weekly goals, which leads to attaining monthly goals, which allows you to experience success, and solid decision making.

You see, Decision making, is like muscles: you need to train the neurons to get the job done right.

That's right, when you DECIDE (Latin routes of Decidere, De+caedere, meaning "To cut off"), you're actually training the nervous system.

Exercise your decision making muscles every day, and pretty soon, you'll stop putting off the "Big" decisions, and just knock 'em out.

Trust your gut. Trust your instinct.

If you were driving down the road, and a deer ran out in front of your car, would you first weight your options, think about which was the best option at this time…or would you slam on the brakes?

That's what I thought.

Don't be afraid, Trust your instincts.

Take 10 minutes a day, and get it done.

It's as easy as 1, 2, DECIDE.

Life's too short to live in regret.

Know Thyself, and to Thyself be true

It's that time of year again: 
The time that the Polar Bear Clubs hit the local frozen waters, that Road Cyclists start to actually THINK about next Road season, that Starbucks begins to wean us off of the famous "PSL", That Runners start ramping up for Boston, and that we all begin to look to that new date 1-1-20?? with reflection of the year past, and thoughts of how we can improve ourselves and our lives.

So let me ask you, What the hell happened to you since last year?!?!?!

I mean, you had resolutions, didn't you? So did you accomplish them? Excel past them? Set the bar too high and/or set a long term goal with no little goals to help you know you're on the way?

I offer you this: For 2014, instead of "Resolving" to do "X" or be "Y", why don't you take the first 30 days, to get to know yourself better?

Seriously, don't you agree that rather than make a statement that you'll feel the gusto to get behind for the first 30 days, and then falter after, just making you feel worse and worse, until come July 4th you forget all about it, why not take the first month to get to know yourself?

Here's the challenge, and what you'll need:
1 pen
1 "Hello Kitty" or "Batman" locking diary/notebook
15 minutes a day 

Make these 15 minutes the SAME every day. So if you have 15 minutes of bliss in the morning with your cup of coffee, use that, if not, 15 minutes before bed (after you shower), so that it's an EASY routine to fall into!

in those 15 minutes, you need to write the following:
-3 DIFFERENT things that you are grateful/ happy for (NOT 1 thing can be repeated in these 30 days!)
-3 things about you, your dreams, and your desires. Don't hold back, BUT, start SMALL!

Feel free to share some of those things in the comments below.

Isn't it time to know yourself?

Photo from Makeameme.org