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See you in the gym!

-Coach Ted

Last week we talked about becoming a mountain climber. Not someone who climbs one mountain – but someone who becomes a climber of mountains.

To summarize – when you have decided where you want to go with your health and wellness, goals are great to set and achieve but they are nothing more than milestones along the way.

Celebrate them, grow from them, but the mission of becoming doesn’t change – it only expands.

I see “drivers” for change in people’s lives every day.

“Drivers” are the “thing” that motivates someone to change direction in their life. Driving them to get off the couch or that destructive lifestyle path and make a healthy or positive change.

Drivers can include (but are not limited to) divorce, break ups, job loss, relocation, inspiration, “keeping up with the Joneses”, new friends, marriage, kids, – any number of things can drive someone to make a change in their life. They are unique and personal to that person.

Drivers are great as a reason to begin, but – like a flame, they can burn out rather quickly.

That initial driver pushes you to work hard, and it feels good. You’re driven by purpose – this is what you’ve been missing!

A few weeks in and you see some results in the mirror. 

Hell yeah.

Here’s where people get funny though…

Here is where the path can split. Some go left, some go right…

Those who go left on the path feel fired up! Fueled by adrenaline and this new change they feel like they are able to do anything. They prematurely abandon the current work and begin to hop to all sorts of programs. Try a little here, a little there – anything to keep that flame burning!

But before long confusion and frustration set in when the “gain” they had disappeared. What the hell happened?

I liken this to growing a plant. Let’s say – an oak. 

An oak takes a long time. The seed is planted and they begin to do the work of growing the oak. Water, sun, attention, and before you know it – a seedling sprouts! 

And the first thing they do is: over do it – they prune it. To the root. They may not have “killed” it, but they have certainly hampered it’s growth.

Sounds kinda dumb right? That’s because it is.

Then there are those who take a right on the path  The ones on a mission – they buckle down. They see that in a short period of time there were gains. There was progress toward their goal and their ultimate mission.

They planted an oak as well but when the seedling sprouted they work to enhance the growth process. 

They keep the routine of water, sun and attention, but they add better nutrients to the soil, perhaps a cleaner water source, they mind the environment that the oak is growing in and eliminate threats to the oaks progress.

Before long the oak is standing tall on its own. The basic routine is still intact – water, sun and attention. However – this oak is stronger than the other oaks in the area due to enhanced attention to outside stimulus like nutrients, clean water and a tended surrounding environment during its growth.

Oaks don’t grow overnight. Neither will the success of your mission.

The explosive flame of your initial driver is going to die down. It had its place in time – it sparked the fire that drives the passion of your mission. 

And for the successful – The path to their mission becomes their true motivation. The basics are the foundations that are never abandoned – they are enhanced and tended to in an effort to create the best versions of themselves.

Surround yourself with people on the same mission as you. Focus on the details of what you are consuming and work daily to enhance the things in your life that are working. Before you know it you will be a stronger, healthier person – driven by purpose.

I’m pulling for you,

Coach Ted

Conversation: /noun/ a talk, especially an informal one, between two or more people, in which news and ideas are exchanged.

More often than not I have this conversation with a potential member here at Iron Legion:

Me:

“Tell me a little about yourself, how your week goes.”

Potential Member:

“Hmm, I only sleep 3 hours a night. I eat at gas stations / vending machines / cafeterias because I’m always on the run. I poop every couple days and I’m seriously over stressed. Do you have a workout here that I can lose these extra 50lbs?”

Me:

“Well, we have a few other things in your life that we should sort out first.” 

Potential Member:

Visually uncomfortable.

“I thought all I had to do was workout…”

What we have to offer here at Iron Legion can be tough to understand from the outside looking in. You’ve got to see it – feel it, experience it. 

A phone call or email doesn’t capture it. I struggle explaining it over the phone and I love it here! 

I genuinely love sitting down with people and hearing their story. It’s one of the best parts of this business. Hearing about how someone’s life has been going up to this point and how they’ve finally decided to risk it and come through my doors – my black tinted doors with a wolf head and flames on them, is always best done in a face to face scenario. 

Every story is different. And every story is told with more than words. The best stories come from folks who have just had enough. These stories come from folks that know they are capable of more. 

They know there is a way out and they are willing to work hard for it, but they just need a little help. A little guidance and creativity as well as an understanding of where they are coming from and what they really need.

That’s what we do here. We get to know you – your story, your goals, your ambition. You – in turn, get to know what we can do for you before we ever even begin.

That’s what a great face to face conversation with someone positioned to help can do for you.

Whatever you are dealing with – that voice inside your head is telling you that it’s time to get your life back. That it’s finally time to prioritize you, your health and your body. That voice is right. You owe it to yourself to get on a path. 

My truck is parked out front of Iron Legion every day. I invite you to push open those black tinted Iron Legion doors and come on in – ask for me, and let’s talk. 

I’m pulling for you,

Coach Ted 

No price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself – Nietzsche

Let’s be honest. Time and money – we just seem to never have enough of. They are deciding factors on any decision we make. 

But what we do with our TIME – this has a direct effect on our money and ultimately our well being. 

I get it. I truly do.

I own and operate my own business, and I am a father to four awesome kids. I am very aware that my wife and I are their primary role models. We are responsible for setting their moral compass through our own actions.

As a parent – your kids should *always* look to you, their parents, for guidance first. Make no mistake – they watch and learn. 

My wife and I value physical and mental training in our home. We take care to eat responsibly and find respecting our bodies goes a long way towards how we feel towards others. We guide our kids down this road – however rocky it can be at times.

My son trains Jiu Jitsu – and has been for a couple years now. I’ve jumped in with him – I’m just not the type of Father that can sit on the sidelines. I want these skills for my son.

He’s better than me. A lot better. And I couldn’t be prouder. I have been there – on the mats with him while he has learned and struggled with learning a martial skill that will someday give him the advantage in a situation I may not be there for.

He also trains a little harder in my gym now too – he still lets his mind wander (a lot), but he wants to take down the bigger kids. I know it’s up to me to lead him, support him and remind him. 

Through my actions – not sitting on the sidelines.

He’s always watching – even if I don’t remember…

I walked into a training session with him a few weeks ago very distracted. Exhausted from my own weightlifting training and the always exciting lifestyle of being a gym owner myself, I was – just out of it.

I couldn’t focus on a move with my partner. Footwork was trash, head on the wrong side – just everything off.

My coach had enough. “Dreaver – 10 push ups, get your head out of your ass.”

I didn’t question it. I deserved it. I dropped to the floor for my penalty push ups. Breathed through them rhythmically, got my mind right in that brief 10 reps – and reminded myself how important it was to be there, in that moment.

Now, I can’t say I got off the floor as a superstar, but I started moving better. I reengaged with my training and had a good session.

My son – he gave me shit immediately when we got in the truck. “You got yelled at and had to do push ups. Haha – My partner and I laughed when we heard the coach yell at you to get your head out of your ass”.

Now, I’m a 45 year old man that’s had – a unique life. I’ve built and created everything I have myself. I find great honor in this. In no other scenario would I allow anyone an opportunity to berate me in front of my son.

And this – this is where the lesson lies reader.

I looked at my son, sweat still dripping off my face, smiled and laughed too. “Yeah, I bet that was pretty funny. But man, I just couldn’t focus and I really kind of needed that.”

To which he replied – “I was having a hard time focusing today too. I would have had to do push ups too if he would have seen us in the beginning of class”.

I explained that we do the push ups because we value the training. The training we are receiving is something we both want and the skills can be applied in so many facets of our day to day life. 

We have to be there – in that moment, during our training. We cannot let outside distraction clutter up and waste our valuable training time.

A good coach can see this. A good mentor can break you out of the funk and get you back in the game. Sometimes they need to shake you out of it with some push ups…

I see great value in my son learning a martial art. BUT in turn – my son has to learn that I see value in placing respect in my coaches time and being in the moment – for the entirety of the moment. 

If this was something we didn’t care about – why would we be here?

Time is valuable. You’ve created an image for yourself and others in your mind. It requires change and a break from routine. The journey can be long, it can be rigorous and challenging – but change is a process that starts with learning the way.

Your training in that change is everything. Value your training sessions – these windows of time are steps on the journey to who you want to become. 

Break the norm this time around. Find a coached program with coaches that can get you where you want to go. 

My gym in Downtown Ocala, Florida has programs throughout the day that are professionally coached. Beginners to advanced athletes here all find value in our coached sessions – and they get better every day because of it.

However you go about it – just remember to value your training time. Be in that moment and soak up everything you can!

We are pulling for you!

Yours in Strength and Confidence,

-Coach Ted

#strengthoverfear #forgingbetterhumans