WHY...

Mini Me (not so Mini, I know!) and my sweet baby Cheech

It’s the middle of the year...seriously, have you seen the calendar?!  We are about to be in our usual heat wave here in Texas, which means lots of pool parties and summertime cookouts.  Sometime during the depth of winter (what little we had of it) I’m sure most of you thought about laying pool side, fruity umbrella drink in hand, and bad ass abs glistening in the sun.  Now it’s almost July, the pool will feel like bathwater soon, and you are still chasing the abs of your dreams.  (I’m sure you haven’t forsaken the fruity drink though!!)  Somewhere along the way you may have forgotten what the goal was that you are working towards.  You may have found yourself going through the motions with no true purpose in mind, just working out because you know it’s good for you and you’re supposed to do it.  But something is missing, and it’s your WHY.  

I have no problem with aesthetic goals in fitness.  Let’s face it, we all want to look good...REAL good.  But along the way I hope all of you find a greater purpose of why you’re working out, and keep it at the forefront of your mind every time you step foot in the gym or take off for a run.  There are endless reasons why I work out.  I want to look good (Ninja good!!), I want to feel athletic, I want to be able to do crazy stuff, I want to show my clients that I do this stuff too and lead by example (nothing worse than a fat trainer).  But the two BIGGEST reasons I workout and push myself as hard as I do are pictured above.  My boys deserve a father that can keep up with them, whatever their endeavors may be.  They deserve to have a dad that is not only physically strong, but mentally strong as well.  (Did you know exercise can help your brain?)  They need to see  I am willing to get uncomfortable to accomplish goals, and they should not be afraid to do the same.  

In the middle of your 4th set of man makers, it’s not always easy to remind yourself why anyone would want to do such an awful exercise.  Most of the time your thoughts are simply “$&%# this &@#*!!” and you’re just ready to be done.  But it is in those moments when the things that drive you, the things you work so hard for, the reasons you are willing to push through, should always come to mind.  Recently Mini Me has been around to witness some of my workouts.  Every time, at some point he says “Are you ok Dad?” as I’m hunched over, gasping for air and making workout sounds (you all know what I’m talking about).  THAT is when I know I’m working as hard as I can, and I know those eyes are watching so stopping is NOT an option.  If you work out like your WHY is watching you, I have no doubt each and every one of you could accomplish anything you set out to achieve.  Don’t ever, ever forget your WHY.

The Fitness Ninja...Changing the world one pushup at a time

SPOONS!!

It’s been said before that if guns kill people, then pencils make you misspell words and spoons make people fat.  While I’m not here to argue the pros and cons of the NRA or discuss why you never see a #1 pencil, I do want to talk about a recent story of government attempting to solve a problem by blaming the product, instead of the actual user.  Mayor Bloomberg of New York City has recently proposed legislation that would ban the sale of any soda over 16oz.  Let’s take a moment to examine to fallacies of this move:

• Does not prevent person from purchasing more than one
• Does not prevent person from getting refills where permitted
• Does not include diet soda or beverages containing at least 50% milk.  So that 400 calorie, sugar-laden Starbucks Frappucino is okee dokee!!
• Does NOT solve the actual problem...people drinking soda in the first place.  

Obviously this ludicrous proposal is full of numerous loopholes that would basically amount to mildly inconveniencing people who want a 17th ounce or more.  But if the intent behind it is to limit sugary drink consumption (which it should be but I’m sure it’s just a political move of some sort), then we are not addressing the real issue at hand.  As adults, there are very few things in life that we have to question whether they are good or bad for us.  Smoking crack, bad.  Green leafy vegetables, good.  Jumping out of a moving car, bad.  Regular cardiovascular exercise, good.  Running head first into a wall, bad.  Well, I think you get the point.  If we truly want to get people to change their behavior, attempting to limit consumption will get us nowhere.  (See also:  Prohibition)  People must WANT to limit their consumption, and do it under their own accordance because they know it’s the healthy thing to do.  We all know smoking cigarettes are bad, yet people continue to smoke.  But through education the percentage of people who smoke now is substantially lower than 30 years ago.  Until we realize as a whole the dramatic impact that sugary drinks...along with the rest of the crap we shove in our mouths on a daily basis...have on our society, our economy, and our health care system, the behavior itself will never change.  It’s up to each one of us to educate ourselves and those around us to make better, healthier choices on a consistent basis.  But until then, watch out for those sheisty spoons...they could make your pants tighter!!

THE Fitness Ninja...Changing the world one pushup at a time.