We dont get paid...

(Note:  95% of this post is directed at some young athletes I train or have trained in an attempt to shed a light on our approach and goals.  But even though its directed at a certain base, you may find something interesting... we'll see how it goes.)

I dont get paid to be your friend or tell jokes.  I dont get paid to keep you entertained on Facebook or Twitter.  I dont get paid to let you take it easy and do it how you want to do it...

I get paid to find a way to help you (or make you) jump higher, run faster, move quicker, and work harder.  Read that again... higher, faster, quicker and harder... and to do it better than you ever thought you could.  Think about that.  You have an image in your head of what you think you can do... my thought to that is "great... and now we're going to take it further."

And thats where we're having some disconnect. 

Maybe it has to do with expectations.  Maybe you're only expected so much...
Maybe I see more.

I told some stories yesterday about my high school days and for old friends who might read this, trust me, there were no lies.  I told them how the coaches and Nack especially would try to catch me before I got the car.
"Where are you going?"  Work.  "You're going to work the rest of your life... You only have one senior year."  And off to the weight room we went... sometimes.

They wonder how I know what it looks like when they fake a sprint... Can you picture it?  You're really selling the facial expressions and body language... but something just doesnt look right.  I know what it looks like because Ive done it. 
"Bic if you dont beat (insert name), the entire team is running them again! AND if anyone lets him win, we're still running them again!"
Oh shit.

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So back to the expectations and disconnect...
Im pushing them, right?  The trainers and myself, we're really striving to get these groups to turn a corner and work at a crazy speed... a level where their moving and theyre not thinking or second guessing themselves, theyre just go go go go go, fly!  Right?  Thats what we're doing.  The butt kicks need to be harder, the high knees higher, the shuffle sfaster and lower, the frog jumps more explosive.. everything is more more more. 
And I get it... believe me, as i write that I even hear myself and i think "OMG shut him up already! I hear it nearly every room I walk into :)  and i dont care, because I dont get paid to be quiet... I get paid to be in your ear, reminding you of the scholarship on the line... reminding you of the state title or the playoffs or that starting positition... I get paid to be the rubber band on your wrist that reminds you to run, to work, to study, to behave, to be responsible, to train hard, to be a good teammate, to be a good brother or sister, a good son or daughter, its non stop, to be a great person... in the classroom, at home, on the field or court, when someones watching and when your parents are out of town.  Its non stop.  I dont get paid to stop.

I remember there were days where he was so relentless... he just didnt shut up!  He was on our ass from the locker room, to the field, to the water, to the field, to the huddle, to the line, back to the huddle, back to the line, break it again, better stance, do it again, do it again, back to the huddle, better huddle, get down, drills, faster, do it again, not fast enough, do it again... holy crap... relentless.  Thats the only word I can think of.    And it got to the point where all I wanted to do was be so perfect, he wouldnt talk anymore :)  I swear I'm laughing out loud as I write that, but its true.  I wouldve done anything just so he'd stop talking.  Becuase if he was quiet, that usually meant everything was ok... except for those times where if he was quiet, that meant an explosion was brewing and we were about to catch hell like nothing else ever has. 

But because of that "fire," that we went through, we were better people. 
He didnt get paid to win... He was paid to turn us into men.  To get us ready for life.  It was just a coincidence we all played football and he happened to coach it.  He didnt get paid to be our buddy.  He didnt get paid to tell jokes or be a pen pal.  He was to find ways to teach us things he knew we needed to learn, whether we knew it or not, accepted it or not.  I always say "Look, I know I say things that might not make sense to you today, but they will in a year or 5 or even 10." 
How do you think I know that?   Because Im also talking about myself.  Ive been through things and his "relentless voice," popped in my head and I thought "holy shit... thats what he was talking about."  Thats what he got paid to do. 

I remember there was a time where I was headed into a different career and gave up on a dream.  For a few years after hhigh school, I was still holding onto playing college football but I just didnt have the grades, the money... and looking back on it, I guess I didnt have the drive either.  So I sent him a letter and expressed some thoughts.  He wrote back "It doesnt matter what the title is of the job, be the best anyone has ever seen."   And those words helped me redierect my energy in a more positive manner.  I couldve moped around about having a crappy job, even if it was temporarly, but instead I made it my mission to blow the roof off the building with my energy, attitiude and work ethic and it showed.  I was working 2nd shift in a crappy factory, but every night, my shift put through more work than other shift.  I refused to take breaks and I ate my lunch as I worked.  All I wanted to do was work as hard as possible as long as I could.

Thats what guys like us get paid to do... find ways to help you become better than anything you even thought possible.  Think about that again... you have an image and I say "great, and lets do more."  Why not?  Fast is fast now, lets get faster on that next sprint.  Strong is strong, lets get stronger.  Lets study harder, lets get straight A's, lets focus harder, lets shoot for perfection... why not?  How can you argue that?

Maybe you need to think about your expectations for yourself and why mine are so high for you.

Do you know how many people have said "F you," to me during a workout?  Far too many to count. No lie.  Or "I hate you."  Probably 75% of the people Ive ever trained have at some point expressed a strong desire to hurt me :) and I smile.  Its the nature of the beast... Im asking you to do things to yourself, that are uncomfortable and eventually painful.  Training and working out hurts... it does.   Being so out of breath your lungs burn, your heart is beating so hard you feel it in your throat, you have sweat burning your eyes, your legs are rubber, you want to rip your shoulders off to stop the pain... it hurts.  But that fire is needed and you have to go through it to change your body.  So I do have pretty thick skin under the circumstances because I know the pain well... I've mumbled my share of "F you's" under my breath too. 

Thats why i love planks so much... its you and your breath and your thoughts.  What are going to do?  Let yourself fall?  Let your mind talk your body into quitting?  You know it doesnt need to drop... but your mind is whispering "c'mon, drop a knee real quick, just a quick break..." but you really dont need to.  Thats the head game we play with ourselves... just a quick break, no ones looking....
or fight the self doubt and fight throught he burn, even enjoy that pain. 

Some trainers say "block it out!  Go to a happy place!" 
Me... no, no... enjoy the pain. Sit in the pain... we go through enough mind numbing moments in our lives... that pain and all the awreness going on, your breath, is a beautiful reminder that we're alive.

Do what you came to do and do it better than anyone ever has before.  Be remembered. 

(Btw Coach... If I wasnt clear above, you know how youve inspired me since the day we met.  Jeez, probably 20 years ago.  Sometimes I get going with these teams and at the end I stop and think "Where the heck did that come from?" and its usually a version of something youve said.  I can only hope these young guys/gals use a peice of what Ive said the way I (and Im sure 1000 other guys) have used things youve said.  Thanks again for everything.)

not a huge deal...

I think I need to find a way to spit this out one time and try not to again. Not because I can’t or wont, but because I’m very not an “I” person and the whole “I” is very ironic considering what I’m about to get into… not to mention I’ve written “I” 9 times already!

 

This is not a religious post nor is it something that will push me towards getting preachy and pounding my chest about. It’s a post to define how and why I plan to take a step back and redirect my energy and focus. Nothing will change with Blue Chip. Training and yoga will continue and probably get better, but my approach may change, I guess I actually don’t know.

 

For a long, long time I’ve slowly gravitated towards eastern cultures and their philosophies. Like a magnet, I feel it’s pulled me into the atmosphere. In some ways very obvious (yoga) and in some ways, very subtle (how I’ve interpreted song lyrics comes to mind).

 

I remember when I was a kid, my grandmother had a golden Buddha statue on her dresser. She called it Uncle Charlie and said it gave her good luck. I was 15 or 16 when she passed, so she probably told me that when I was 10-12, so I never had the opportunity to ask her anything “real,” about it and I often wonder if she was into the philosophies as well. I do remember her often consoling me when I was upset and was the first person to tell me to “smile when it hurts.” Maybe I picked up some things from her and didn’t realize it. I wish I knew where the Buddha statue disappeared to…

 

To keep this short, I’m going to dedicating myself to Buddhism. It’s always felt like “home,” and I’m very comfortable in everything it teaches and guides.

 

I know my hang ups will be in the business world and with “competition,” that’s really my only concern, but its also where my Russell Simmons and Deepak Chopra books have been very helpful and I know as long as I continue to find ways to give and serve, I will be ok. To be honest, I really don’t feel competition and I don’t mean that in a cocky way. I mean that as in “we’re all here to deliver as much good as possible and there are a million people out there, so there’s no reason to compete.” I hope that makes sense.

 

Honestly, even just writing these very brief paragraphs… I feel lighter. I feel like I was keeping a secret and kind of odd. Aaaaahhhhhh… big smile and looking fwd to sharing my experiences.

Power Plus

I have to admit, I've kind of had a difficult time describing the new class... and thats not really a good thing.

The main reason is because I dont want to say "This class is better than the yoga options," because its not. But its also not a better/worse thing, its just different.

Actually, its been a long time since I've written in general about yoga and there is now a lot of new people around that may not have read the older blogs where I wrote about yoga every other day... actually, I'm pretty sure my mom was the only person reading then.

I feel yoga is the perfect "training." Top to bottom, for every reason you can google. I really cant fully explain how much yoga (Cleveland Yoga in particular) has done for me and that was truly to drive behind finding an avenue to bring it the building its in now. Even the location has great meaning for me, as much as its a pain in the ass at times, but trust me, thats being worked on as well (not changing locations but improving the sign situation, lighting and so forth). So believe that yoga isnt here so that I can say Blue Chip has another "service," to offer, its here because I think its amazing and as many people need to experience it as possible.

So then when I spoke with Sara and she decided to take a break to prepare for her baby, I felt this was a good time to shake up the schedule a bit and add an "x" factor class. Something that didnt completely scare off "yogi's," but something different enough to make you say "yes, I want that too." From the beginning of my yoga journey, I've tinkered with combination movements that I felt could cross over from yoga to the weight room and back again and to be honest, we're two classes in and we havent touched one yet. And as much as I think yoga is perfect, I also feel that there is no final answer to training. I think those who only hit weights, need to run and do yoga. I think runners need to lift and do yoga. I think yogi's need to lift and run. So for me, we have to do it all and continue to grow and evolve.

I'll never forget how my hips killed me at my first class and that really opened my eyes to what I was missing. Tonight, we went through quite a few push ups and squats, and even though some people may not have been overly thrilled with it, they may also know "Yeah, I need this too." So this class is that answer. Its the crossover class that takes yoga to the weights and weights to yoga. Its not a bootcamp by any means. We will still warm up w a nice yoga flow and get some heat going (yes, the room is still heated. I'll explain below) and then at some point, we will transition into a training style. I'm very confident in the results this will produce and how this will help you take your yoga practice even further. I posted tonight "looking forward to how we're feeling after a few weeks of this training," and I really, really am. I think you will literally see changes in your arms, legs, abs, shoulders... anything.

Why is still heated? Why not? :) I LOVE training outside in the summer, and I mean 90+ degree heat, so these will still be cranking hard. The goal of these classes is to push it pretty hard and challenge yourself in a little bit of a different way. A little more of a "training," mindset. Again, we'll still get into some flows, we'll still be touching some balancing poses, core and occasional inversions and of course Savasana (everyones favorite part:) but we'll also be squatting, lunging, pressing, pulling, twisting, etc.

Class is every Monday from 6-6:50, same pricing as the other classes and its included with all other packages.

K, I hope this clears it up a little. And please feel free to get a hold of me any time with any questions regarding this class or any other or to talk about your own training or anything else. Truly, my phone and e-mail is always on and I'll do my best to reply asap with whatever you need.

Take care and see you soon,

J

I dont care...

...about your 6 packs, your defined muscles, your huge muscles, your whatever muscles.

Well.... that’s not exactly true. It is but it isn’t.

We have a vision and that vision is our motivation, whatever it may be. Some say "I want a 6 pack," some say "I want toned arms," or whatever it is, you can even fill in your own as your reading (It doesn't even have to be fitness related.)  

And as you tell me those things, I say "Ok, we can do that, we can do that, and we can definitely do that... we can make all that happen. Here’s what we need to do," then we get into the plan. The nutrition, the cardio, the homework. We text and e-mail. You read my Facebook posts and "like," them and they motivate you and we're on our way.  

But to me, it’s not about 6 packs. Its about your health. Very few people say, "I want to be healthier," or "I want to live a very long time." I know you want it, its not that you ignore that part. It’s just that I see it differently. That’s why I tell you to buy a pair of running shoes. That’s why I try to teach you what to do and how to do it without me. (Reading between the lines there?)

I know certain people read this now and I hope they know I don’t write this stuff while pounding my chest like I'm some amazing leader of training. Far from it. I'm very open with the people I work with and they know we share similar hurdles and I'm on the path with them. Most know, I recently (over the winter) hired a trainer for myself. Jay Ashman writes my programs and it’s been great. For one, it’s so refreshing to not have to think about what I want to do to myself in the weight room. I see the paper and just go. Secondly, I like being held accountable. Its motivating that he writes it. I don’t want to suck! I want to be an example of his programming the same way I reference "Be the Brand," when talking about Blue Chip. Plus all the new ideas, new routines and its forced me out of my comfort zones and pushed me into new areas of training that I never would’ve bothered with. So again, I'm on the path. There's really no difference in me working with Jay and me going to take a yoga class... I’m looking for great ways to train my body.

But back to the health thing... I was recently at a function for my daughter and a woman got up to speak and she was probably 80-100lbs overweight.

I'm struggling in front of the lap top right now, because I really can’t express how I felt... I wanted to talk to her after... I wanted to give her my card and pay for a membership and train her for free. But I can’t just do that. People would think I was an asshole and who knows how she would take that... and I don’t mean it in any way other than, let me help you. I'll do it for free...    

That’s what I mean when I say "I don't care about your 6 packs." I want you to live. Your family and friends want you to live a very long time!

I was on Facebook (which is a great place to read dumb things) and someone said something about "fat and lazy," and I don’t see it that way. For me, it’s always been about self love. If you love yourself and love the people around you, you'll care to stay here and stay healthy and be there for people. If you don’t, you won’t. It’s not laziness, its awareness. It’s being mindful of all decisions. Its knowing McDonald s is slow suicide. Its self love. If you love yourself, you’ll care to put the work in, to be healthy to stay.

I bought a shirt not too long ago that reads "Vote," with the Om symbol on the front.  It got my attention the way that word does every time I think of it or read it or hear it.  You "vote," every second of every day, not just ever few Novembers.  You vote with how you eat, you vote with what you read and what you watch.  You vote with where you work, the car you drive, who you hang with, what types of companies you support and how you spend your time.  So how are you voting?  Are you voting to live to see 80?  Or are you voting for a heart attack at 50?  Think that's harsh?  Think that's intense?  Its reality.  If you had McDonald's today, you voted.  If you fed your kids McDonald's,  you voted!  If you skipped a run, you voted.  If you rocked that BootCamp tonight, you definitely voted.
How you spend your time and everything that surrounds you is a vote.

A fantastic level of health and wellness is the goal and along that path we say "I want a 6 pack," as our shiny medal to collect along the way.  

Whats on your calendar for 2013?  If you have nothing and need a partner, let me know.  Ill sign up for anything right now.

Be the Brand

I've been so out of balance lately, as I sat down to start writing this, I couldnt remember if I had already written it or not. That thought "Be the brand," has gone through my head so many times in the last few months, I feel like I'm seeing and hearing it everywhere. If you've seen me, it probably wasnt standing still, which is why I feel so "out of balance." I havent been to yoga in over a month, and one busy season has turned into another busy season.

Not complaining about being busy... but sometimes we need to stop and breathe.

However, in all my rushing around, I've found a love for audio books which is great because I'm not a very quick reader anyway. So now I'm able to "read," a book in about 2 days driving time vs my usual 4 weeks of reading time. Recently downloaded Eric Thomas' mixtape "The Blue Print For Success." A really great mixtape format of some of his speeches and interviews. In it he tells a story about his son forgetting to pick up his little sister from school, when that was his only direction and chore while his father was out of town. He made the mistake twice. So Eric says he sat him down and said "While I'm gone, you need to make decisions and behave as if I'm here." Be The Brand. \I think he must've been speaking to a corporation because he followed the story with more business type analogies about how to behave on the road and how to carry yourself in social type business meetings.

So "Be The Brand," has been a point I've been hammering home to myself for a long, long time with this Blue Chip vision. And in hearing Eric, it stuck even harder. I feel it carries similar feel as when I've used the word "intent," when heading into a workout or session, and now it carries into the work place and all over life.

To me, they're both about pride and self worth. If you work a job that you dont care about... does that say something about how you see yourself? I think it does. Because if you dont care, how much are you going to care to go above and beyond for the company? Yes, you care to keep your job, but just keeping the job shouldnt be good enough. Eric said something like "walk into work everyday and say 'my work is going to change this company for the better on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and then I can take a break on Saturday," and I truly feel that in many situations. I truly work with the intent of making any and every situation, job, opportunity better and to be remembered. If I'm in a situation where maybe they dont care... I struggle. Then I feel like an alien and its time to go find more suitable "home."

Now I look at the Blue Chip landscape... and no doubt it is home. And by "home," I mean where I choose Blue Chip trains, who it trains and trains with.

However, there are some who need to figure out what their "intent," is and whether or not they want to "Be The Brand."

I've always been very open with those who train with me to let them know how appreciated they are for the work they put in every single time. I ran a Boot this evening and while they took off on a circuit, I thought "This is amazing... how driven they are... how hard they push... how bad they want hard work," and it motivates me to never let them down. There's an expectation now. A BootCamp is on the schedule and everyone knows, "It's going to be intense and unique and memorable." If it wasnt, I wouldnt be delivering the brand.

So from Boots, to the Yoga room, from Mentor to Downtown to wherever we are and in your own life and work place and home and everything you touch... Be The Brand at all times, BE YOUR OWN BRAND and come with an intent to deliver something great every single time, every place you go, to everyone you meet.

Survive or Thrive?

I(Written Aug 24, 2009)

According to Merriam-Webster.com
thrive

1 : to grow vigorously : flourish
2 : to gain in wealth or possessions : prosper
3 : to progress toward or realize a goal despite or because of circumstances —often used with on<thrives on conflict>

My old football coach used the expression "survive or thrive," and it has always stuck in my head.

I was our running this afternoon behind Squires Castle. There are three ways to the top, two somewhat gradual, one that is far from gradual, I ran the odd ball. My goal heading in was four laps as fast as possible, up the steep section and down the gradual hill.

I started off working my way from the far parking lot, getting a mini warm-up. Just getting loose from squatting the day before and getting mentally prepared for the challenge. I got to the back of the castle, set my play-list in my ipod and took off... sort of. The "take off: probably lasted 20 seconds tops! That thing is A) crazy with tree roots and B) waaay more steep than you think. As you start off, there is a mini hill right away loaded with roots, which isn't that bad but you definitely have to watch your step. Then you veer right and head down a few feet than up probably another 20 feet or so... and now the lungs start to shrink up a bit. Maybe another 20 yards of running and I had to stop.... literally barely breathing and quads getting a bit numb.

I looked up to see how much further... and that was the hardest part. The most intimidating section of the whole hill. If its damp, you absolutely need to have tree roots near by to grab or your going down. I gave myself a minute rest, than slowly trotted to the top, totally winded again. Once I got there, getting down was pretty easy.... but that was lap #1..

The next lap was pretty much the same. I started so-so, took a 30 second break, once at the half way point and once at the top and coasted back down.

Half way through, my more motivational music started to play more frequently and I started thinking... "I'm half-assing this! I'm literally just trying to get through... just trying to not die... just going through the motions." And that's when that voice came in my head, "Are you hear to just survive? Or are you to THRIVE?" And that was all I needed to finish one of the best solo experiences I've had in a long time. Pearl Jam's "Alive," was on my player and I tore up that hill like never before. Straight up, no break, no pause, no hesitation for footing, just gone. Sure, I thought I was going to die at the top... literally, I couldn't breathe and I was gasping for air.  But I kept walking, quads on fire, just focusing on regaining my breathe. Got it back probably 30-45 seconds later and I was off for the last lap.

Rounded the corner, changed to "Porch," and repeated the same lap! Looking back on it once it was over, it was one of those moments where all thoughts are gone, the only thing in my head was "GO, GO, GO!" and celebrate at the top... and now lets do it again just because I can.

It was an awesome challenge for me because I'm not a cardio guy. It's tough for me to go out and run anything more than 5 miles or so, partially because it's boring to me and partially because I've never focused on becoming good at it. So this challenge was a combination that I could get into. I knew it would be awesome for my lungs, awesome for leg power, awesome to be doing outdoors, and an awesome mental challenge to not quit and not just do it to "survive." Try to keep that in mind the next time your working out, or running, or swimming or biking or anything... it could probably translate over into anything in life. Office work, school work, meetings, coaching... are you just doing whatever you're doing to just "get through it," or are you attacking it and improving it? I'm real corny with quotes and one-liners and I'm going to print out merriam-websters definition of thrive. To grow vigorously, to progress toward a goal despite the circumstances... despite the circumstances... I like that.

ALIVE

I love quotes. I use them all the time, I try to come up with my own, I read them on t-shirts and bumper stickers... if I'm somewhere and someone says something awesome, I try to write it down so I can remember it and pass it along. I was attending a clinic at Penn State probably 5-6 years ago, and I was sitting in on Larry Johnson, Sr.'s portion of the event. (If you're a football coach and you're looking for a clinic to attend, go to Penn State. Trust me. Larry Johnson is worth the drive and is the main reason I go. Every year, he saves the last 10 minutes or so to share some stories and add something inspirational and motivational to the day. The first time I was there, I was "wow'd" by everything and he was the absolute highlight.) Anyway, he's going through his defensive line drills and coaching points and he's starting to wrap up so he turns off his overhead projector and begins walking back and forth across the stage, sharing a story about a conversation he had with some other high school coaches and a couple of their players. Repeated how the coaches missed their high school days so much and how it was the best time in their life and the "good ole days," (a phrase I now despise) and how they try to teach their kids to cherish the moments because they'll never return and it'll never get better... ... and Coach Johnson just stood there staring at the crowd and I immediately had that crazy, old feeling running through me because I knew what was coming and it actually reminded me of the way my old coach used to talk to me.
He said "NEVER GET BETTER THAN THIS??? THEY TEACH THEIR KIDS THAT THEY HIGHLIGHT IN HIGH SCHOOL?!?!?" From here he went on a 10 minute verbal rampage, like a preacher at his most passionate, lecturing the rights and wrongs of never looking back and highlighting every single day and being opportunistic and I remember having goose bumps and literally fighting back some tears (and even right now, thinking about it, takes me right back there.) That day, that man and that speech changed me forever. Without a doubt in my mind.

Highlight every single day.

Opportunistic... I love that word. I have nights where I can't sleep because there is something I didn't get a chance to finish. I used to play video games and now I think about it and think "there has to be something better I could be doing." I had a season where I coached defensive backs (and a few coaching linebackers and calling plays) and I used to preach "be opportunistic," daily. "When that ball goes up, IT'S YOURS! Go get it!" How every single play is an opportunity to make something positive happen. HHHMMM... think that translates into real life?

Every single day, every single work day, training day, days with friends and family... or just moments!   It could be just the final seconds of your day... you could change someone elses!  It doesn't have to be a full day at all. A moment at the grocery store where you see someone who may need a hand or to just be friendly to someone you don't even know! Sound corny? Good. Because really, the days and moments aren't all about you! 
It's about us! 

They're about the finger prints and footsteps you leave... yeah, its reeeeaaaallll cheesy.  Good.  
 And it's not about being noticed or recognized either. Its about making a positive impact to IMPROVE. Improve lives, improve your life, improve your surroundings, improve the workplace, improve your home, improve your relationship, and improve the lives of the people you care about most.  If you work to improve and progress and love every single day... you will change. You will change your life and you will change your friends and co-workers.  You will change your entire world.  Your own mindset will be so blinded by your visions, nothing else will matter.  Be mindful and engaged in every moment.  I dont care what anyone says, if you work to improve this world and love... anything you ever do will be special.  I promise you.   And all that love will return back to you 10x over and you will be the luckiest, happiest person and you will then be ALIVE.
One life... live it.