Oh, snap. It happened! The day when I watched a talk with Greg Glassman (Founder of CrossFit) and thought to myself, “C’mon, man. Really?” has finally arrived!
Check out this quick 9-second clip where a guest at one of his talks asks about the benefit of lifting shoes. Glassman basically replies with, “Why?”
The discussion I’d like to start here is:
What are your thoughts on lifting shoes? Cheating? Unneccesary? Critical? I’m very curious as to what you all have to say about this.
My answer: Love ’em and the stability they provide in the appropriate setting – Lifting heavy weights on a platform, for example (but I don’t RELY on them). For multi-domain activities (a workout with a run) or in real-life, I have no dependence on them and can move safely and efficiently without them.
Buckle Up , everyone. Many of you are already seeing how long this post is and are saying “I’m outta here.” For those of you that decide to read on… tonight is a big moment for me and for this blog. If you read through to the end, hopefully it leaves you smiling like it left me after writing it. Getting real and feeling 100% comfortable in your own skin is one of the best feelings in the world and I’m closer to that every day. Fist Pump.
Enjoy…
Do you guys know what I love? Life.
More and more each day I am realizing how much I TRULY LOVE LIFE. That doesn’t mean I love every part of my life, or that life is happy and amazing every minute of every day, but when I really sit… stop… and think, I’m pretty blown away at (and incredibly grateful for) the lives we’re privileged enough to have.
This blog is something that has brought me a lot of joy over the last 9 months or so, too, and I think it’s because I’m learning that this is an outlet to share my voice. Most people like being able to share their thoughts and this is a big way I’ve found to do that. THEREFORE, effective immediately, I am going to devote this blog to being an extension of me and my voice. No matter what.
That was a pretty big epiphany for me, today. And it feels really good.
So, here we go with the “New and Improved” Smashby’s Training Blog.
I like hip hop music quite a bit, and one of my favorite artists is “Aesop Rock.” He has a very unique rapping style, his lyrics are anything but boring and many of his beats and rhythms are one of a kind. I was listening to one of his songs tonight, and the lyrics rang even more true that usual.
The song is called “No Regrets” and talks about a girl who was a bit of a loner. That’s all fine and dandy, but there are two parts of the song’s lyrics that I love. The first passage is the chorus:
“1 2 3
That’s the speed of the seed
A B C
That’s the speed of the need
dream a little dream,
Or you can live a little dream
I’d rather live it
Cuz dreamers always chase
But never get it”
Check out that last part again. “DREAM a little dream or you can LIVE a little dream. I’d rather LIVE it, cuz dreamers always chase but never get it.” WOW. So many of us can sit back and think about things we’ve “always wanted to have/do/accomplish”. How many of us have actually taken the time to GO AFTER IT? Period. Personally… I’d rather live it.
Here’s the other part of the song I love:
“Look, I’ve never had a dream in my life
Because a dream is what you wanna do, but still haven’t pursued
I knew what I wanted and did it till it was done
So I’ve been the dream that I wanted to be since day one!”
I can’t always say this about myself, yet… but I’d absolutely love to. To look back at your life (not at the END of it… at any time) and say, “Yep, I have done exactly what I knew I wanted to, and I have no regrets” would be so peaceful. That doesn’t mean I expect life to be perfect, but there are a lot of times where I didn’t take that risk, or give myself the opportunity to grow, and I’m going to start doing that more! My prediction, it will feel pretty liberating. I’ll keep you posted on how that’s working out for me, and would absolutely love to hear if any of you do that, yourselves.
If you want to hear the song, feel free to check out the video below.
Can you think of people who try to push you around? There’s blatant “bullying” (which is generally easy to point out), and then there are those people who think they’re being “politically correct” about trying to embarrass you or take what could be yours. My advice… starting today… stop them.
Stand up for yourself (most of the time, simply opening your mouth and using your words is enough) and be proud of what you believe in. Trust me, some people go through their entire lives unchallenged because we’re almost trained in this country to take the path of least resistance. Obstruct.
This can mean saying something to that jerk in the office, to that attendant at the store or to the barbell in the gym. BELIEVE IN WHAT YOU’RE SAYING, and follow through at all costs. Don’t sit around and wait for the “path of least resistance”. Tell yourself… failure is not an option.
My best friend, Jared Steven Rector, said: “A path of least resistance leading nowhere is no path at all, but a path of lessor resistance leading to your goal may be the best path of all. It may allow yourself to discover new paths along the way… Brute force is rarely the most productive means to an end.”
I am not advocating aggressive action against nay-sayers and bullies. What I am trying to introduce into the minds of people who have been taking the “back seat” for too long, is to feel confident voicing your opinion to people who otherwise would have never heard it.
Obstructing does not mean breaking rules or crossing lines. It means being a confident person who knows what he or she wants, and not being ashamed or too shy to go after it. Try this just one time… it’s pretty liberating.
Here’s to being a more confident person than you were yesterday! You CAN do it. You ARE worth it.
(Also, for the sake of this video, teach your kids how to talk. That will also help.)
My good friend (and Executive Director of the Wren’s Nest House Museum in southwest Atlanta, Georgia), Lain Shakespeare, showed me a blog today that he really likes to follow. Less than 10 minutes into reading it, I already came across some wonderful material. The post I’m going to share with you today is entitled “Dancing faster than ever, but why?”, and is written by Blog master, Seth Godin (Check out his blog sometime, it’s awesome).
I am really posting this for the last 3 or 4 phrases he says. Most of us could probably replace his example (of someone who is not conforming to the “norm”, or what people “think” he or she should do) with one that is closer to home, but the message remains the same:
There will always be someone telling you that you’re not hip enough, famous enough, edgy enough or whatever enough. That’s their agenda. What’s yours? Shun the non-believers.
Take a stand for what you believe in, and pursue it shamelessly. If you know in your heart that something is important to you, why would you not give it 110% of your being… every single day.
Legendary Coach Vince Lombardi once said: “It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.”
If you believe in a cause, you’ll get back up stronger every single time. Pick one thing in your life that you’ve been putting off because of fear and change it. Today.
I’m interested to hear what you chose, and how it’s changing. Let me know.
I saw a picture online this week that made me laugh out loud. Literally. Not just type “lol” or “haha” (which I do a lot) and keep a straight face. I was laughing so hard because this image tends to be true for almost all of us. Not necessarily to this extent, but still true.
It made me think, though… it’s rare people will post on Facebook things that make them seem less cool (whatever that means). But there is a huge difference to me between only posting fun things that happen to you, and blatantly lying about who you are to make yourself seem (or feel) like a more worthwhile person.
I think it happens a lot, and it’s a really sad truth about our society today. The older I get (yep, I just dropped that line), the more I’m realizing that the most important thing in this world is being happy with who YOU are, and embracing it.
Do you have a quirky laugh (snorters, I’m talking to you here)? Can you make yourself laugh until you cry while the other people who just heard your joke stare blankly? Does your left pinky bend off to the side in a weird angle? Do you really like dipping french fries in your Wendy’s Frosty? GOOD!!! Embrace it! Be proud of who you are. ALL the time!
“Those who matter don’t mind, and those who mind don’t matter.”
Try to minimize the gap between these two images 🙂
(The original picture can be found here, along with their commentary on the post entitled “Lying to your Friends”. Funny stuff.)
*****UPDATE*****
Let’s show a real-life example of what I’m talking about. CrossFit Lakewood member Greg Walker is pretty much the man. He has a few choices with his Facebook posting, though.
He can only post pictures that make him look like a bad-ass (pardon my french) like this:
"I am all that is man." ~ Greg Walker
OR, he can post pictures like these, where he looks… a little bit less “cool” (in the traditional sense of the word).
Silly #1
Silly #2
Thankfully, Greg is the kind of person who would do both. Again, that’s why he’s the man.
Over the last two weeks, here are some of the things I’ve heard from members of our CrossFit Lakewood family:
I’ve lost over 30 pounds by simply improving my diet and CrossFitting 4-5 times per week
(I’ve heard that from MORE THAN ONE person, too! THIRTY pounds!)
I am more effective at my job, and feel more comfortable knowing that if I need to save a coworker of mine, or save my own life, that I am better prepared do it
(From someone who works as a firefighter! Talk about real-life application!)
It used to require 4 assistance bands to do a single pull-up, now I’m down to only one!
(That’s in only a few months, too! Unassisted Pull-ups are sooo close!)
Through training at CrossFit Lakewood, I am more optimistic in every area of my life. That positivity has helped make everyone around me happier, too.
(In no particular order, a healthy body and a healthy mind, hand in hand, are a POWERFUL combo!)
I am BEYOND inspired by all of you. Every single day I see at least one thing that happens in our gym that shows me just how incredible you guys all are. There is no other point of this post than to say thank you.
Thank you for letting me share in the transformations that you are all creating in your bodies, in your minds and in your lives.
Smashby's Training Blog 