I Refuse

           I've been in fitness for more than 15 years and learned many things in that time. My journey has made me bleed, sweat, hurt, recover, learn valuable lessons and triumph over those that said I couldn't do it. One of the things that made me develop into the athlete I've become today is my ability to rebel and utilize my full potential by finding the very best that interests me and my goals and refuse to work with what doesn't. Here are a few things in the fitness industry that I refuse to do…

I refuse to isolate my muscles when I can use my full body towards a specific exercise.

I refuse to do the workouts the magazines sell when there are better options to optimize my creativity.

I refuse to listen to those who don’t have a damn clue to what they’re talking about and find the people who are the real deal and take bits and pieces to create my own style from them.

I refuse to be told what works and what doesn't when I can discover it for myself and not for the sake of anyone else.

I refuse to hear those who never exercised a day in their life yet they try to advise me on it.

I refuse to give up exercising every single day because someone told me I had to workout no more than 3-4x a week. I listen to my body and work with my intuition tells me to do and my recovery is my problem and I’ll come back stronger than ever.

I refuse to read about the latest gadget that promises 6 pack abs or stronger arms or whatever is advertised because the only way to get real results is to put in real effort and make the best out of your training.

I refuse to see exercise as a punishment because I see it as a blessing, something worth while and something that is interesting and fun. If it doesn't put you in a state where you feel invigorated and give you a challenge you want to conquer then it won’t work for you.

I refuse to listen to those who doubt me, are jealous and give me crap about what I love to do. They don’t have my body, they don’t see my journey the way I do and they don’t push the way I do so what gives them the right to have any say.

I refuse to be beaten down. I’m constantly growing and finding what works best for me and what I want to accomplish. I will conquer my challenges on my own terms. It’s not the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog.

      Creativity is very important in every aspect of life, adapting to certain places, finding the best exercises that will help you reach your potential and utilizing your mind to its full potential. There are those who refuse to lead their own journey and instead just blindly follow some quack with a piece of paper on their name. You learn certain things and the right people will give you powerful tips but they can’t do the work for you, you have to put in the effort in order to be successful.

      The positive side to rebelling is learning who you really are as a person and the people that care the most and want to see you succeed. How do you do that? You observe, take notes mentally or on paper. Be creative, find what drives you and gives you a positive outlook on life. Find a way to express yourself and have fun and be around those that give you something to look forward to or help you. There are so many stuck up and stiff people in this world that hide in their own world and refuse to let anyone in that doesn't agree with them. If that works for them great but at the same time I love those that have given me the drive to use the best of my potential. I want to see those who have drive put effort into showing who they are and believe in themselves and be true to who they are and help others find their spot in this world. 

Growing From Within

          Our past is a beginning but it’s not the end. The experiences we face as children into adulthood is massive but the simple way to make it is; we are born, we begin to walk and talk at a certain age, we play, we go to school, graduate, go to college, get a job, get married, have kids, grow old and die. Whatever happens in between all of those is only experienced by us. What a crock. We’re all different and these don’t happen for everyone. We learn from our past experiences to bring us what can make us successful in our future, not everybody makes that jump or knows how to take the opportunity. Don’t let your past define who you are, let your past be history and develop your future tomorrow while staying in the present because it’s a gift you're still here.

            Every one of us has a purpose in life. Some of us find what we want to do, others have a purpose of not working at all and even some feel there is no choice but to sacrifice your purpose in life for something else. We all have dreams as kids of what we want to do. We imagine making building, carving things with our bare hands, some of us wanted to be a sports star, others a cop or fireman. The majority never make that dream a reality because to them it’s just a phase and then we move on with life. I believe if you truly went after what you wanted to be that had a major impact and it gave you happiness, love, prosperity and a future that had you pay the bills and give your children a future, you would be one crazy son of a bitch to make it happen. Develop your sense of purpose by finding what drives you, makes sense to you and makes you happy.

            Going through triumphs and failures is a natural part of our existence, where there’s triumph in one area, there’s failure in another there’s no debating that. Some look at failure as a sign of weakness but in truth, failure is another lesson we learn to find what we can accomplish and overcome. Triumph is not always being a hero but something you wanted to overcome over a period of time where you achieve goals and make something of yourself and trampled over things you thought were impossible at one point. Failure is just another test where if you fall, you learn to pick yourself back up and come back stronger than ever. Strength comes from the heart and how you use your mind, it’s not always muscle or as Yoda would say “Not this crude matter” it’s about the strength you have to keep driving and making yourself a better person even in the mist of failure.

            Not everything comes from a DVD, CD, seminar, book, or a retreat for that matter. Everything comes from self-discovery, having influences that help keep that drive but it’s really what you find within yourself that makes all the difference. Sure something you watch or read or listen to can be an influence but you made that choice because some how you wanted to. How you live your life is your choice. Make that connection to discover what makes you who you are and don’t let anyone tell you different.

            Certain people in your life will want you to fail because they want you to suffer like they have. They will try to break you, tear you down and will say things like “you should do this instead”, “It’s a hobby, not a career”, “you can’t do that it’s impossible”, “I don’t think you’re cut out for this.” Don’t look at those things as a sign to doubt yourself, what do they know, they don’t have your ambitions or imagination or even the guts to challenge your goals, that’s your job. At the heart of your potential it all boils down to what you believe and what you want to happen. We all have great potential for great things, we’re not born with a college degree or just happen to be natural at something. We never start out great; it’s the effort we put in that will make us great.

            Learn to discover who you are from within. Never give up on yourself and find your true calling. I believe in you but don’t take m word for it, the only person you should believe in, is you.