“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
–Mark Twain
Before I get into this post, let me state one thing:
I do not intend to offend anyone (although it will happen). This post should serve to inspire, to act as a sort of awakening. If you are offended by this post, or feel as though you are left out, then please re-read and get inspired to go do!
There are those of us that train, and we train hard. I am not talking about working out every now and again, but instead I speak of the ones that are in the gym 5-6 days a week for hours at a time, working toward something awesome. Now some see this as an issue, as a sort of obsession. The problem I have with this is that this work ethic–this desire to be something better–does not just stay in the gym, it follows us through our daily lives and everything we do.
WE ARE A DIFFERENT BREED
We thrive on the un-achievable
This word does not exist in our vocabulary. They tell us we cannot do something and we aim to prove them wrong. Our fuel comes from the mere thought that they think a person cannot achieve this goal, so we do it and we make it look easy.
We are not afraid of the “what-ifs”
We might get hurt along the way, we might be so tired that normal tasks become daunting, and there might be days that we are just plain beat, but this does not deter us from the final goal. We hear all the time “Don’t you know that you could get hurt”, “Just think what it will be like when you are old”, “If you didn’t do that, you wouldn’t hurt all the time”. Let me let you in on a little secret: You could step of the curb tomorrow and get hit by a car, and that would probably hurt, but does this mean that you walk around in padded armor gearing up for that fateful day? As humans, when we get old, we will all hurt. As soon as you’re born, you’re dying, so you might as well make the most of it. We would like to think that when we are old and we hurt, we can look back and say it is because we put 2x our body weight over our head, or because we could squat the world, not because “time just makes us that way” or because of our poor life choices. Yes, it is true, we do tend to hurt all the time, but what in life is both easy and worth doing? If you find it, please let us know. Things worth doing take time, sacrifice, and every last ounce of strength you have and can give. Look at any successful person and read their story, let me know if you find one that had an easy time getting to the top…
We are obsessed
Or at least this is what they tell us. They tell us we put to much pressure on ourselves, that we become negative toward others. Let me ask you something: Do you not have to be a little on the “obsessed” side to achieve the level of success that we dream of? Do you not have to eat, sleep, and dream of that moment when you finally make it, to truly make it? Think for a moment of something you love, truly love, and ask yourself is there not anything you wouldn’t give to protect that person, goal, aspiration, or dream. This is how we feel, this is what we feel, and this is the path we choose to walk.
The best part, it is not nature that provides this
This feeling is not bestowed at birth, it is acquired through countless hours of work. It is fueled by the sheer level of determination that we have come to possess. In the words of Mattie Rodgers (if you don’t know who she is, look her up) it is “Earned not given”. When we get into the gym, no race, religion, gender, sexual preference, or financial situation matters, the only thing that makes a difference is whether or not you possess what it takes to train day in and out and work toward realizing your dream.
So if this offends you, makes you feel left out, or makes you second guess your actions or choices, you really only have two options:
- Peer at those of us high on the mountain from the valley below or…
- Take the steps we took, climb those stairs, and claw your way up the mountain to join us on our journey to the top
On a somewhat lighter note, since it is the middle of the week and most people that read this blog have been grinding away, here is a little flow by our very own mobility coach for those tight lower backs!
This flow consists of:
And if you’re interested in testing it out with instruction, stop by our class on Monday nights at 7:15!
Also, thank you to all of our taste-testers at our #PHPpickourblend coffee tasting this paste Saturday. We have narrowed it down to blend C (this will only make sense if you were there) and hope to have a limited first release of around 25lbs (the good things in life don’t come mass produced). I will keep all informed as to when we have the final product and then we will release it out to you all!!
PURE HEALTH PERFORMANCE 