Sunday Story…The Transcendent Rep

When we are training there is a moment where everything changes. This moment is where your growth becomes apparent, where your evolution into something new happens. In some circles we call this the “Transcendent Rep”. After that moment nothing will ever be the same. You are different and the world will recognize it. The question is…How will you find the transcendent rep? How will you get there consistently?

I offer to you these 6 simple steps (simple not easy) on your path to that transcendent rep (hint: it won’t be the first rep you do!)

1. Train for health…not for ego and not for show. There is a ton of info out there on how to train but not a lot of it is there for how to train for health. It is easy to damage your health and body if you let your ego get in the way.

2. Train for Mastery…if it is worthwhile it will take years, decades to get good at it. It is going to take patience Mastery is about the discipline and commitment to your training. Mastery is all about consistency and taking the long road. It is a process and an unattainable goal that will teach you about life and patience.

3. Train for growth…It isn’t about what you do but how you grow. And growth is a process measured in inches and moments. Growth is sometimes unseen at the time. As I have heard it said…inch by inch it’s a cinch, by the yard it’s hard.

4. Train for Movement…Humans are the most complex movers on the planet. If your training isn’t making you move better and expanding your capacity you might think about going in a different direction.

5. Train for the Brain…Training and movement should challenge your thinking, your belief systems, and your directions. It should not be static but dynamic. Changing your beliefs and direction to reflect a more integrated and authentic self is good and necessary. If your training isn’t challenging your brain seek out new directions, teachers, coaches, and modalities.

6. Train for Evolution…be courageous and step out of who you think you are to become who you should be. Don’t be led by fear, expand your abilities, capacities, and boundaries.

These 6 steps don’t get applied just in the gym, box, or training hall. They get applied to life every day. Whatever you are doing you should be using these steps as your guideposts for success.

2016 is just around the corner. Whatever you decide to set up as your resolution this year these steps will insure your success.

Remember…Full Effort is Full Victory.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
www.united4change.us




When we are training there is a moment where everything changes. This moment is where your growth becomes apparent, where your evolution into something new happens. In some circles we call this the “Transcendent Rep”. After that moment nothing will ever be the same. You are different and the world will recognize it. The question is…How will you find the transcendent rep? How will you get there consistently?

I offer to you these 6 simple steps (simple not easy) on your path to that transcendent rep (hint: it won’t be the first rep you do!)

1. Train for health…not for ego and not for show. There is a ton of info out there on how to train but not a lot of it is there for how to train for health. It is easy to damage your health and body if you let your ego get in the way.
2. Train for Mastery…if it is worthwhile it will take years, decades to get good at it. It is going to take patience Mastery is about the discipline and commitment to your training. Mastery is all about consistency and taking the long road. It is a process and an unattainable goal that will teach you about life and patience.
3. Train for growth…It isn’t about what you do but how you grow. And growth is a process measured in inches and moments. Growth is sometimes unseen at the time. As I have heard it said…inch by inch it’s a cinch, by the yard it’s hard.
4. Train for Movement…Humans are the most complex movers on the planet. If your training isn’t making you move better and expanding your capacity you might think about going in a different direction.
5. Train for the Brain…Training and movement should challenge your thinking, your belief systems, and your directions. It should not be static but dynamic. Changing your beliefs and direction to reflect a more integrated and authentic self is good and necessary. If your training isn’t challenging your brain seek out new directions, teachers, coaches, and modalities.
6. Train for Evolution…be courageous and step out of who you think you are to become who you should be. Don’t be led by fear, expand your abilities, capacities, and boundaries.
These 6 steps don’t get applied just in the gym, box, or training hall. They get applied to life every day. Whatever you are doing you should be using these steps as your guideposts for success.

2016 is just around the corner. Whatever you decide to set up as your resolution this year these steps will insure your success. Remember…Full Effort is Full Victory.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
www.united4change.us

Sunday Story…It is Time

Every major religion or philosophical school of thought carries one similar tenet: Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you. We call this the golden rule. It is a simple maxim and a very useful guide for my behavior with other people.

I am ashamed. I am ashamed by our inhumanity to man. I am ashamed that we have taken to separating ourselves from our brothers and sisters based on religion or belief or geography or language or color. I am ashamed we can’t find the commonalities in our human experience instead of the differences. I am ashamed that we need to inflict harm and death upon our fellows to point out those differences. At this moment I am ashamed to be human.

Imagine waking up and having your world transformed into this:

These pictures are before and after of the carnage in Syria. The market I will go to this afternoon does not look like this. My home is intact. The kitchen I will cook my holiday meals in is a happy cheerful place. My life is not in danger because the country I live is has unraveled over the last 5 years. I am very fortunate. But if I was not so fortunate I would be moving heaven and earth to get my family to safety.

Hundreds of thousands of people are moving around this earth today trying to get to safety, trying to escape death and destruction. This is a tragedy of epic proportion. When I hear rhetoric of isolation and fear and paranoia I feel ashamed to be part of the same human genome that promotes the “golden rule.”

My brother-friend Youssef Kubis is Syrian. We spoke of the civil war in Syria 4 years ago before the rise of Daesh (Isis). It was horrible then. It is worse today. He recently lost his brother and nephew to a missile strike shot by the Syrian government. The politics of this government staying in power is beyond the scope of this essay except to say that 5 years of civil war after 50 years of an oppressive dictator-ship speaks volumes.

In a few weeks Youssef is going to Lesvos, Greece with 2 or 3 friends to help with the refugees that are pouring into that small island which is being devastated trying to handle a huge influx of people fleeing war and destruction. He and his friends are flying on their own money and spending their own money to stay there and help. I am sorry I can’t join him. I can support his efforts to help feed, clothe, and heal these fellow humans by donating money.

If you can join me in supporting his efforts go here:
www.united4change.us
If you can’t support Youssef with a monetary donation to ease some human suffering send prayers and intentions and thoughts to all of the people in the world who are displaced at this time. I will dedicate my dance this afternoon to that purpose.

We really need to stop killing each other for not all being the same. It is stupid.

I leave you with this:
My religion is simple, It is kindness.

John Mariotti
www.united4change.us
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

Sunday Story…Fun Work

So now that you all know about my “fun challenged” life. Here is an extension on that admission…
We all have work we do. Sometimes we do it in an office with a boss holding a clock over us demanding our full attention to his needs and wants. Sometimes we have imposed deadlines that lord over us. Sometimes we have the work we have set before us by our own volition. Sometimes we have the onerous task of self improvement…diet, exercise, positive thinking, or just being better.

When your work becomes this plodding, cantankerous, crabby dictator you are not having any fun. You are taking your work personally. You are taking your work on as a chore. Your work becomes something to get done, something to be done with.

You need to be serious about your work. Your work is important. Your work needs to get done and the world needs to see it. But it needn’t weigh you down; it should not be an albatross around your neck. It doesn’t have to be a sour dour task. You are you own worst taskmaster. You push through, past the fun, past the seriousness and deep into an unpleasant melancholy of achievement. And where is the fun in that?

Look, do your work. But let’s not take it so personally. Let’s approach it with that same intent and attitude we approach our fun…a thing to do that will have no pre-conceived outcome. What would happen if you took your next project and threw out the outcome and just did it for the joy of doing it. What if you showed up in the office tomorrow and just did the job like a game of flying disc? Run, jump, catch, toss…repeat with a smile? At the end of the day you will be happier and I bet you will get even more accomplished. You can take it seriously…you can put excellence on the line…you can perform with aplomb and accuracy…and you can have fun.

Don’t take it personally, take it seriously.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Fun Challenged

I am fun challenged. I am sure there are a number of you who are harboring the same embarrassing little secret. We know how to play, at least intellectually. It’s pretty simple…just go out and do something that gives you a sense of joy and does not have as its end a specific goal or result.

Lots of things can show up as fun or play. What I am talking about is the intent you approach what you are doing. If you are intent on the result it is going to be hard to show up as fun or play. If the reason you start the activity is to finish it then it may not be fun. If your idea of fun is to beat your playmate into submission you may need a fun intervention.

Play is more cooperative and less competitive. The end result of play is fun. The end result of work is the accomplishment of a task. As children we played a lot. As adults we don’t play so much. Think back to your days as a young person. In my youth we played a lot, creating games, making up new and unusual variations based on equipment (or lack of) and personnel. We stopped playing when it was time to eat or got too dark to see.

We didn’t need a start time or a reservation to play. If someone extra showed up we made room. We just made it work since the outcome was only to play. The outcome wasn’t dependent on anything other than fun. If no one had fun it was not a good day. But, honestly, how often did that ever happen? In my memory it never happened. Our intention was simple…play.

What do you do to play in your world? How are you approaching your “game time”? Do you come at it from the attitude of accomplishment or one of cooperation and fun? When was the last time you just played for the sake of playing?

Let’s go out and play!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Better Now

I want to be better. I want you to be better. I want you to want me to be better.

There it is in its entirety. There ain’t no more. I want you to be better tomorrow. I want to be better 5 minutes from now. I want you to be better for reading this thing I write every week. I want you to want me to write something that will make you think, say, or be better.

I want all of us to stop embracing mediocrity. I want all of us to want better politicians, journalists, restaurants, coffee joints, hamburgers. I don’t care what side of the stripe you sit on the road…I want you to demand more honesty, more clarity, more truth, more excellence…everywhere, all the time. Not once in a while, not when it is convenient, and certainly not just when it serves your purpose.

Excellence is something we do daily, in everything we do. Excellence is a habit not a happenchance. Demand it and stop allowing mediocrity to pervade our daily life. Do I really need to have the same homogenous stuff as the other 100 million people here? Do we all need to eat at the same restaurants, shop at the same store, or drive the same car. Am I so insecure that I can only find validation when my “like quotient” hits a certain number?

You are special, you are unique. Your experiences and the meanings you have assigned to them are yours. You are not mediocre unless you choose to be. You can choose to be better. You can choose excellence. You can choose the path of individual effort and merit. I want you to be better. I want you to stop swimming in the mud puddle of public mimicry. Average is number best relegated to a math book and not an adjective assigned to you…a unique and special human.

Be better. Demand better from the world around you. Demand better from your friends, family, politicians, role models, sports heroes, celebrities, your world. Define better as integrity in word and deed. Define better as excellence of thought and intent. Define better as a constant and never-ending pursuit of improvement.

Be better. Expect better. Stop settling for something less than excellence.

Better now?

John Mariotti

www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Don’t do it

CrossFit that is. It’s dangerous. No it is worse than dangerous. It is subversive. That’s right, I am uncovering the deep dark secret of CrossFit…it is the worst possible thing you could do. Just say No!

If CrossFit was only dangerous you could slow down and chip off some intensity and reduce the danger to your physical being. Lots of people will tell you CrossFit is dangerous…you might get hurt…you might do things that you didn’t know you could do…you might ask your body to perform in way it never has before. All of those things could be dangerous, could lead to an injury, and could bring out your inner athlete, previously unknown or comatose.

So what. Any exercise program might do that. You could get hit by a car on your morning walk (like my 98 year old great grandfather); you could pull a muscle playing tennis or end up with golfer’s elbow. You can’t live in a bubble and danger lurks around many corners.

Changing your fitness isn’t hard, especially if you are starting from zero. CrossFit is, on the other hand, subversive. You will start believing differently. You will start to shift your belief system. You may decide to dress differently. You may decide some things are more important and others less so.

CrossFit will subvert the power common culture exerts over you. Eating real food will eliminate the power big pharma and big food marketers have over you. The opinions of other people will matter less and your opinion of yourself will grow. Suddenly the things you thought were important (the number on the scale) will start to look stupid and other things (how your clothes fit) will make more sense.

CrossFit will subvert the power of the sheeple over you. You will need to break out from the herd, stand up and be counted as an individual. Let your own flag fly, not the one that looks like all the rest. How is this possible…after all CrossFit is just an exercise program, like P-90X or Zumba or Pilates, right?

Sure. That’s all it is. Go right ahead and keep thinking that way. Go ahead and give it a try. I won’t tell you the dark dirty subversive secret. I won’t pull the curtain back. Until it’s too late, that is. Until the subversion can’t be turned back or turned off. Individual freedom is intoxicating and addictive.

When you walked in you wanted to work out, sweat a little, smile a lot, shed some calories and have fun. When you walked out you were filled with a sense of accomplishment, knowledge that you are better than you knew, stronger in your mind and spirit than you thought possible. If that isn’t subversive, what is?

Come upset the apple cart of the status quo with me!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…See Me

There are some other parts inside me that need to be fed. I’m not talking about my need for food. I am talking about feeding my other needs. I am a seething unending chasm of needs, so are you. The trick is to feed your needs in ways that are life enhancing instead of hurtful and harmful to our lives and relationships.

This is going to take some honest appraisal of what the need really is. What you think it is on the surface is rarely what it is deep down and the way you think you should meet it is rarely going to meet that deep down yearning. Needs are universal…you and I have the same needs…maybe not in the same hierarchy but everyone on the planet has them in some way shape or form.

Here is a concrete example: the Sunday Story. That’s right the piece you are reading now and I have been writing almost every week for over 5 years is one of the ways I meet some very deep seated needs. On the surface, you might think I write in order to meet the need to provide content for my web site or blog. That is true. Or I am meeting my need to write. But these are not universal needs.

You might say these stories meet my need to express my self creatively. Creation is a universal need. Every human needs to be creative to some degree. Procreation is something we are all driven to do. It is a biological imperative. But when I drill down a little deeper it isn’t just my need to express creativity.

The truth of the matter is I write the Sunday Story so you may “see” me. And when I say “see” I mean the deeper dark parts of who I really am. The parts I would prefer to keep hidden under the rocks. The parts I don’t always like to admit are there. The parts of myself that are a little scared, or mean, or not so likeable. Some weeks are harder to tear off the façade than others. Some weeks I just can’t do it. I write anyway. I write so I can feed this need, so it doesn’t eat me alive. I write so I don’t tear off all my clothes in the public square metaphorically speaking. This outlet affords me a way to feed my need to be seen.

There you have it. The question to you is simple: Are you feeding your real needs? Those deep down needs you don’t like to look at? And what are you doing to keep those little monsters fed in a life enhancing way? Because if you don’t they are going to get fed in some inopportune moments and ways.

Feed the need.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Stupid is

As stupid does. What I mean by that is that stupid is related to doing not being. All too often we label people (being) as stupid. This is an insult to their being. What we should be doing is labeling behavior (doing) as stupid.

We all have done stupid things. Stupidity knows no bounds. It does behoove us to define some of the common ways we do stupid stuff:
Bad analysis is stupid. It is clear that based on the information you made a bad decision.

Willful ignorance is stupid. You chose to ignore information that was readily available should you have chosen to seek it out.

Distraction is stupid. We didn’t pay attention because there were other things pulling our attention away and we made an unfocused decision.

Self destruction is stupid. We don’t choose ourselves as worthy of good decisions and thus do things that harm ourselves physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually.

I am sure we could break out several more definitions if we wanted to. Fear comes to mind. Fear is stupid because it isn’t real or reasonable. Any way I know I have been guilty of all of these forms of stupidity. And I am sure if you looked inside you might find you have also committed some stupidity in public as well.

None of this means my being is stupid. Far from it. It just means I have done some stupid things. The idea is to recognize stupid actions and fix them. Or at least not keep going down the same stupid road. Stupidity is fixable.

When stupid happens (and it is going to happen) figure out why or what was at the root of the stupidity. What did you miss? What was the blind spot? What can you do to eliminate the blind spot and what information sources can you dig up to stop stupidity in its tracks?

Stupidity can be slowed. Stupidity can be stopped. Stupidity does not have to happen over and over and over again. You need to be aware and vigilant but you can cure stupidity just as we cured childhood diseases…inoculate, be smart and be aware.

Stupidity…it isn’t a death sentence.

John Mariotti

www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Sorry

Doesn’t cut it. I teach children just saying “Sorry” is not good enough. Yes, you need to apologize, to say you are sorry. But you also need to acknowledge what you did, what happened. Then you need to take responsibility for what happened and take steps to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

But to move forward whether to begin anew or to build something new requires another step. This step may not only be the hardest but it is the most misunderstood. That step is Forgiveness.

This is misunderstood because we think Forgiveness has something to do with the other person. I don’t need you to forgive me. You really can’t, you know, just like you can’t make me mad. Being mad is a choice I make, a feeling I am having about your behavior or words. Forgiveness is similar…there is no bucket of forgiveness you can pour upon my head. You can’t make me feel forgiven.

The only person who can forgive me is me. The only person forgiveness works for is me. Even if I say, I forgive you your trespasses, what I am really saying is that your trespasses are no longer part of my issue. And if I am the trespasser I need to forgive myself those transgressions. Failure to do so will result in my repeating those things until I learn the lessons contained in those actions.

The mistake many of us make is waiting for the other person to somehow forgive us. If I say I forgive you, what happens? Do the skies open and trumpets blare? I think not. If you forgive me, how does that change anything about me? The answers are obvious and self evident. I must forgive myself first and foremost. In order to effect real change in myself, in order to effect my actions, my words, in order to move forward in my life, I must first forgive myself.

I must forgive myself for taking wrong action, or wrong speech, or wrong thought. I must forgive myself for harming you. I must forgive myself for the desire that led to my wrongs. I must forgive myself.

I can stop being mad at you. I can stop feeling hurt by your words or actions. I can stop feeling that you somehow owe me something. And what I really need to do is forgive myself for feeling that way, for thinking those thoughts, for wanting something that isn’t yours to give.

First forgive yourself. Then forge ahead and find a fundamentally new position. You will be glad you did.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Big Why

It happens to all of us. We hit a bump in the road. Things don’t go quite as planned and all of a sudden the train is off the track. Then the negative self talk begins. We beat ourselves up more and do more damage than any opponent could.

At that moment we have choices. We can choose to spiral downward; beating ourselves into a bloody pulp leaving our self esteem in a bloody bucket in the corner. We can choose throw out a life line and call a friend who we hope will pull us out of our tail spin. We can fight back with positive thoughts and affirmations in the hope that positivity will trump negativity.

As you can tell most of those choices don’t hold much allure for me. What do I do to get the train back on the track? How do I re-inspire myself to get up and keep going?

The first thing I do is focus on My Why. Why am I doing what I am doing? What was the original reason to pursue the path I fell off? What was it about doing that thing, the efforting, and trying that drove me to it in the first place? Your Why is your lifeline. If you know your Why, if you believe in your Why you can tolerate any How.

I used to kid and say I wanted to go the Reebok CrossFit Games to wear the cool pants like all the cool kids. That is not a very strong why in the face of puke inducing training volumes, constant nagging injury, and a very solitary existence. When I wanted to quit a work out, when I wondered if it was all worth it I returned to my Why: I Teach Focus and Inspire Transformation. That’s my Why. Being Focused and Transformative, even if I didn’t get to the Games, my Why would not let me quit, would not let me continue the beat down. All I had to do was stop being that and I could stop the pain. I was not and am not willing to stop Being my Why.

Why are you doing what you are doing? In any facet of your life you should have a Why. Your Big Why informs your life. Your Big Why forces the nattering nabobs of negativity into hiding. Your Big Why gets you up in the morning, picks you up after a disastrous experience, and provides the joy in the journey.

Find your Big Why. It isn’t easy. It will take some serious gut-check introspection. It will be worth it. And it will make it so much easier to get up when you get knocked down.

Looking for Why? Call or write me. We can find it together.

John Mariotti

775-338-2412
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Your Abs and You

That firm flat midsection…we all want one. It is one of the obvious indicators of health and fitness. When we see a big pot belly we make immediate judgments about the overall health of that person. Even on someone who may be an athlete like a power lifter or an offensive lineman in the NFL. I am not saying you need a 6-pack. We have discussed that before…see the blog post: http://sunday-stories.blogspot.com/2015/08/sunday-storyyour-6-pack.html But, honestly, none of us want a “dunlap” (as in your belly done-lapped over your belt) midsection.

That flat firm midline gets built in the kitchen, folks. Sure your work out is necessary, especially for the firm part. But the food you put in the system is the main contributor to how much fat you are storing and where you are storing it. We all have genetic predispositions to storing fat in one place more than others. But sooner or later it is going to hit your middle and that is bad.

I am not going to tell you what to eat. I have an opinion and you are welcome to it but the fact is your body is going to respond to certain foods differently than my body. Dairy and I don’t get along well but dairy may be very good for you. You need to figure out what works for your body and what doesn’t. Do a whole 30 elimination diet and get clear what foods work best for you. It probably isn’t Cheetos and Beer by the way.

That being said, there are certain dietary principles you should know, understand and employ every day and throughout your dietary life. These principles are chemical and physiological responses to the type of food you are eating. This is a “call and response” effect. If you put this in your body (call) it is going to do this (response).

Here are 5 Physiological Responses:
1. Carbohydrates and sugar raise your blood sugar.
2. High fructose corn syrup is metabolized by the liver as Fat.
3. Excess carbs and sugar that aren’t used immediately are stored as fat.
4. Insulin is a lipogenic hormone, so it causes you to store fat.
5. Protein and dietary fat have no significant impact on raising blood sugar.
We all will have different responses to various foods but these 5 responses are true for every human body.

Armed with these facts you can now make choices of what you are going to put in your body. Eat enough to support activity but NOT store fat! If eating dietary fat doesn’t raise blood sugar just eating fat won’t make you fat. Eating too much fat will make you fat.

We often say…”exercise won’t necessarily make you bulky but cupcakes will make you squishy” Lay off the cupcakes especially the ones with high fructose corn syrup!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Once upon a time

Is how fairy tales start. Once upon a time signals to each of us that a story is about to be told. We know that after that start everything follows will be a story of some sort…might be a fable, or complete fiction or a learning parable but it will be a story. It is what we expect; it is what we know will happen.

My life is made up of stories. The stories I tell myself about my life. The stories I tell myself about what happened and who I am/was in that story. This is not a problem and seems to be part of the universal human condition. Man is a meaning making machine. We make meaning out of everything. My spouse left me…it means I wasn’t good enough. My spouse left me it means I was too good for them. My spouse left me it means no one will ever love me again. We make the things in our life mean things.

Try this on: Once upon a time my spouse left me. Everything that comes after that is a fairy tale. It might completely untrue. It might be partially true or it might be mostly true. But whatever I say after once upon a time is a story.

What if you changed the fairy tale? What if it went like this…Once upon a time my spouse left me and it was painful and it hurt but I learned how to be in a relationship and how not to be in a relationship and when I get into another relationship I will be more able to be who I want to be in relationship. Isn’t that a whole lot better than I got left, she done me wrong, I am unlovable and I won’t ever be in a relationship again?

This is true for all the stories you are telling yourself about your life. Whether it is career, relationship, money, parenting, or love; the stories you are telling yourself should empower you. Those stories should raise you up. Even when you were wrong about something…you can tell yourself how lucky you were to have learned that lesson.

You can’t change what happened. You can change the story you tell yourself about it. You can change the narration of your fairy tale to make you out to be the hero and not the villain. No one really likes the villain, not really.

Once upon a time…if you are going to tell yourself a story it may as well be one that has you looking good!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Bad Day in Black Rock

Bad days happen. We have all had them. They are part of life. If somehow you have managed to live a life of wine and roses with no hangovers or thorns you are supremely fortunate. Most of us didn’t get that lottery ticket. We got the one that has life throwing us curveballs, screwballs, and the pitch that hits you right upside the head. It is part of life. It is part of the growth curve we all experience.

Knowing you are going to have a bad day allows you prepare for it and be ready to face it with the right attitude. Here are 3 basic understandings:
1. Stuff is going to happen. Bad stuff…oh well.
2. You get to decide the story you are going to tell yourself about the stuff that happened.
3. You get to do something about the stuff.

Being prepared to handle these 3 understandings is going to take mental strength. You will need to exercise your mental toughness muscle. Here are the 4 exercises to get that muscle up and functional:
1. Expect stuff to happen Expect your 5 year plan to take 7 years, expect to go on lots of first dates because the girl of your dreams may not be around the corner, expect obstacles. Once we expect these sorts of challenges and disruptions they won’t come as a huge surprise. And when they aren’t a surprise they are easier to handle.
2. The stuff is not the new paradigm. You got fired; it doesn’t mean you will never work again. Your lover left you and broke your heart; it doesn’t mean you won’t love again. Change signals new opportunities arising.
3. Don’t beat yourself up. Just like the stuff is not a new paradigm, the stuff that happens does not make you a bad person, unlovable, stupid, or not worthy. Stuff happens. Refrain from making it a personal narrative.
4. Get into action. Do something. You can try almost anything. Action is always better than inaction. Inaction will find you wallowing in self-pity and stinking thinking.

Bad days come when we least expect them. They can appear overwhelming and insurmountable. You can put them where they belong by recognizing that they are impermanent and that they can be put in their place using the 4 strategies we just covered:
It happens.
It is not permanent
It isn’t about the real you.
Get into action.

This will strengthen your mental toughness…your resiliency…your ability to control your attitude in the face of adversity.

Lean on your past experiences and formulate a plan.

Success isn’t permanent and Failure isn’t fatal.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Reluctant Caterpillar

We can all understand not wanting to break out of our cocoon and become the butterfly. After all, our cocoon is safe and warm and even though we are this weird grey mush we don’t have to unfurl our wings and fly. Lots of cocoons never open. Lots of butterflies never enter the world. And that’s Ok I suppose. You do not have to become the butterfly you were meant to be.

In the natural world the caterpillar becomes the cocoon and then, in many cases, becomes the butterfly. It is a natural progression. It is going to happen. At no point does the caterpillar get to say, “I think I’m done now. I am going to stay right where I am. I have reached my full potential as a caterpillar and being a butterfly looks just too hard and exceeds my capabilities. So I will just sit back and be a caterpillar.”

We humans are the only living thing I know of that that can choose to not grow to its potential. Does the tree choose to stop growing? No! It may be stunted due to other issues but the tree will always grow as tall as it can, sprout as many leaves as it can, and bear as much fruit as it can. The caterpillar will always grow into a butterfly…that is its nature. This is the way of the world.

Sadly this is not the way of most people. We put limits on our growth. We decide not to grow into our full potential. We play small. We are afraid of being as powerful, as big, or as important as we were meant to be. We decide to not grow into butterflies, as matter of fact we decide not to even move into our cocoons. We are reluctant caterpillars.

The way of my people is to live up to and surpass our potential. The way of my people is to find their purpose and fulfill it. The way of my people is the path of constant and never ending introspection and growth. The way of my people is to face the scary stuff and move into the cocoon so we can be we were meant to be. The way of my people is to strive for more consciousness, more awareness, more knowledge, more growth and more of being us.

You can easily join us. Stop playing small. Start playing for it all. Stop stunting your growth. Start growing as tall as you can. Stop admitting to arbitrary limits that put a cap on your potential as a human. Start producing as much as you can. Stop settling for mediocrity. Start accepting excellence.

Join the tribe!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Hello, Good Bye

Say Hello to the person you could’ve been. Say Good Bye to the person you are.

Think about it…How would you feel, if, upon your deathbed, if someone sat down, clasped your hand and waited for you to open your tired, dying eyes? When you look up you see a face that looks vaguely familiar. You feel a presence you recognize deep in the recesses of your being. But you can’t quite place it. The person is you but not you. This is the person you could have become.

This is the person who took full responsibility for their life.
This is the person who was willing to take everything personally.
This is the person who realized every dream.
This is the person who took the chance, made the effort to write every book, sing every song, paint every picture, build every castle, and create every beauty they were supposed to.
This is the person who lived the way you always knew you could but didn’t.
This is the person who loved as deeply and as often as humanely possible.
This is the person who did every kindness and never missed an opportunity to smile.
This is the person who lived life full out, took every chance, and did all the things you said “someday” to.
This is the person who lived your dreams.
This is the person who waited for you to do all of these things.

Meeting this person is one definition of hell. If you are lucky you will only meet them on your death bed. How about now? How would you feel if tomorrow at coffee a strangely familiar person sat down and greeted you with a frown and a subtle shake of their head, saying “When did you give up?”

You can stop giving up. You are that person. It isn’t too late to take your life personally. There is still time to meet the person you could’ve been and greet them warmly as your twin.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Murder

It’s not a quest unless you might lose your life.

Let’s be honest…if you don’t get fit you probably won’t lose your life…right away anyway. If you jump out of that airplane you probably won’t lose your life…at least statistically the odds are in your favor. If you climb Everest you probably won’t lose your life…not in this day and age unless someone really screws something up. All of these things carry some measure of risk, I grant you but are they going to kill you? Physically I would expect to continue on this corporeal plane after any of these activities.

And I would expect to die after each one.

Yes you read that right. I would expect to die. I would not only expect to die I would be trying to pierce my heart with a blade and pour my life’s blood out. I would commit murder upon the person I am.

If I choose my quest correctly I am going to kill the person who chose that quest. The person who chose to jump, climb, or dedicate themselves must die in order for me to become the new person who has attempted the quest. Just the very act of setting out will cut the throat of who I was so that I may become who I will be. The quest is not an incubator. The quest is not a cocoon. The quest is not a benign easy process. The quest is an active, homicidal activity designed to put you in a crucible of change.

So are you willing to put who you are to the test? Are you willing to step, like the explorers of yore, into the unknown abyss where monsters and incredible creatures may lie in waiting to devour you? Are you willing to walk through the fires of change to discover who you may become?

I am giving you permission to kill the person you are in order to become the person you want to be. I am giving you permission to go on a quest to find that person.

Let’s launch your ship on a Homeric hero’s journey. Get on board or get left behind! It’s never too late to be who you were meant to be.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

Sunday Story…Success

Recently Kim McLaughlin from CrossFit Invictus put up a blog post about the three types of success. You can read it here: http://www.crossfitinvictus.com/blog/three-types-of-success/

This got me to thinking about how we measure success in some other areas of our lives. The work we do in the gym or the box is great. I want you to set a PR. It feels freaking great to lift something you previously thought was impossible. What about your life outside these four walls? I know most of you have one (except maybe me!)

Where are your personal records in your life? Not the size of your bank account or the type of automobile you drive or your zip code? What personal records do you have that you are trying to surpass? Are you trying to be more philanthropic? Get to church more? Volunteer more? How much more? Is there 1 more thing you can do to help this world and the people in it who really need your gifts, skills and talents?

Can I get better? At my job? At my parenting? At my personal growth? At my self-talk? Am I spending some time each day in gratitude? Will you write down where you are kind? I know we are trained from an early age to be self-deprecating but how does that really serve you? I was told…”don’t be too full of yourself.” Really? Who should I be full of? I am not saying you should run around and tell the world what a great person you are (your actions will do that) but you should recognize to yourself the things you do that are good and kind. It’s ok to pat yourself on the back for being a great human.

Do you show up? Do you do what you say you are going to do when you say you are going to do it? Are you consistent in your approach to your life and the people around you? Can I count on you to be consistent? We all know people who are not. We are never sure who is going to show up from one day to the next. At least with certain people we know who they are…we don’t like it, we don’t enjoy that person but we know who they are…we can count on them to lie, cheat and steal. There is a consistency there. Will you be consistent…can I count on your word, can I count on you to be the person you say you are? Am I who you think I am? Am I that guy day in and day out? This is a consistency to be admired and celebrated. I want to hang out with people like that.

Your life should be a celebration of person bests. Your life should be one of constant and never ending improvement…if you aren’t growing, you are dying. Your life should be consistent and congruent. You are walking your talk.

The beautiful thing about being human where we are right now is You Can Change. If you look at yourself and see something you don’t like, we can change. We can do better more often.

Life is like a burpee…you can’t fail as long as you keep getting up off the floor.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Your Best

Isn’t good enough. It just isn’t. I’m sorry; I know we tell our kids…”try your best, that’s all that matters”. But it isn’t all that matters. As a matter of fact, I can’t recall ever getting the Tried his Best award. I’ve gotten blue ribbons, gold medals, championship belts and honorable mention awards but never a tried his best certificate.

My coach, CJ Martin at CrossFit Invictus, told me once…”Full Effort is Full Victory.” (It’s part of a quote from Gandhi by the way.) Full Effort. Not best effort. This is not a rationale for not winning by the way. I can’t do anything about my opponent’s efforts, the weather or the playing field. I can’t control the things I can’t control. All I can control is my effort. And not just the effort on game day. The effort 6 months before game day. Every day in every practice, in every attempt, did I provide my full effort, not my best effort? Was I focused in my mind and body or was I somewhere else? Full effort.

You are probably thinking to yourself about now…”how does this apply to me? I don’t compete. I’m not a world class athlete.”
Your life is a battle. Every day is a fight between the right way and the easy way. Every day you get to choose to put forth your full effort or your best effort. I did my best is what second place says. You can rationalize and compromise and decide you aren’t going to speak the truth today…you are going to do your best. Or you can pull your boots on look life dead center and give full effort. You can speak the truth. You can own your feelings. You can grab the right way and throw it over your shoulder and kick the easy way to the curb.

We all have things we aren’t’ doing. Truths we aren’t speaking. Stuff that we aren’t facing because we are afraid of the consequences…it isn’t the right time, I don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings yet. Is that full effort….full effort to stand in the world whole and complete? Full effort to be honest and tell the truth?

Your life depends on your full effort. Your full effort to confront the demons of mediocrity, compromise, and cop outs. At the end your gravestone can read “he tried his best” or “he played full out”. The choice is yours.

Full effort is hard. Best effort is a cop out. Full effort is full victory. Best effort is a loser. Win the war between the right way and the easy way.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Your 6-pack

Lately, I have been hearing about this desire, no this need to have the chiseled 6-pack ab look. I get it…it’s a measure of fitness (we think) and if you have a 6-pack you must be in really good shape. But like a lot of other metrics that have nothing to do with fitness 6- pack abs come with their own set of problems.

First, everyone has some ab development under that layer of fat. To get that 6-pack you so want you need to get your body fat % down, way down. For most women that is going to mean under 15% and for men it’s under 10%. Your individual percentage may need to be lower. When you get that lean it has a whole host of problems…a compromised immune system is one of the biggest issues. You get sick more often that you did when than you carry a bit more fat. If you are a woman you may have issue with your menstruation cycle, as in you won’t have one anymore. And as we all know that is a measure of health. Your performance is going to suffer. You may not be able to lift as much weight as you could before. You may actually end up a bit slower. You thinking processes may also end up compromised.

So how are you going to get that lean?

It all about the diet, dummy! You need to eat natural and unprocessed food. Over processing makes food unhealthy and it will wreck your metabolism and hormone balance. Too much sodium, too much sugar, too many chemicals all combine to ruin your pursuit of lean and healthy. Stop eating processed crap. The worst offenders are the highly processed, refined, hydrogenated vegetable oils.

I have said this hundreds of times: eat meat and vegetables (including starchy vegetables), some seeds and nuts, a little fruit. Avoid sugar. Eat enough to support activity but not store fat. If you do this you will find your body responding.

Avoid alcohol. You can’t drink and maintain a 6-pack. It’s that simple. I know you have all these example of people who do but you aren’t those people. So quit drinking.

Lift heavy weights. Especially squats…if you know me you knew that was coming. Squats build strength, squats build a rock solid core, squats will build muscle everywhere in your body, squats rock.

Move fast, and move fast often. If you aren’t sweating and panting after your workout you aren’t going to see the physical development you want, nor will you be healthy.

Here’s the bottom line:
Lots of people who are NOT healthy or fit have 6-packs. What you want is to be healthy and fit and have a 6-pack so you are going to have to do something new and different; the tried and true hasn’t worked. It is going to require some experimentation on your part. There is no cookie-cutter formula for this. You are different than I am. You need to know what your fat % is now so we can target to a new and exciting number. You need to know your performance numbers as well so we can make sure those don’t go down.

Really, though this 6- pack thing is a construct like “thigh gap”. Having a 6-pack won’t have you squat more, throw faster or farther, run longer, or be immortal. You are going to make some sacrifices to get there. If you are willing we can get there. But you are going to make some changes. And if anyone says they will only love you if you have a 6-pack just go ahead and dump that chump!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Supplementary Finis

As I have said before, supplements are designed to add to an already outstanding nutrition program. You need to eat real food. You need to eat food that is well prepared, sourced from quality ingredients, and not full of additives and other processed crap. Then you can look to add things into your dies that will help you perform better.

In part 1, we talked about glucosamine, fish oil (omega 3) and DHEA. Those are supplements everyone should be taking whether you work out a lot or a little. 2000mg of glucosamine, 3000mg of fish oil (epa & dha), and 10 -100mg of DHEA depending on gender and age.

In part 2 we talked about Vitamin D and protein powders. These 2 are more dependent on your exercise regimen, age, and need.

These last 2 I only recommend for those of you who are hitting the gym 3+ days a week and are pursuing goals of increasing your strength and stamina.

BCAA
Branched-chain amino acids are essential nutrients the body gets from protein. They help prevent fatigue and improve concentration. As athletes we use them to improve exercise performance and reduce protein and muscle breakdown during intense exercise. You can take them before, during, and after exercise. Most BCAA formulas are the same and often are flavored. It is not a terribly expensive supplement.

Creatine
Creatine is a chemical that is normally found in the body, mostly in muscle fibers. It is made by the body and can also be obtained from certain foods.
We use creatine to improve exercise performance and increasing muscle mass in athletes and older adults. The science on this is not definitive however and not everyone will benefit. Creatine is involved with making the energy muscles need in order to work. Some people find that creatine has them retain water or upsets their stomachs. Most creatine formulas are made with a carbohydrate solution (sugar) that helps make the creatine more effective. Usually a 5 gram dose is all you need but you may want to start with less to make sure you have no adverse reaction.

Supplements are designed to enhance and improve health, fitness, or performance and sometimes all 3 at the same time. Check with your health provider, especially if you are taking medications. You would not want a bad interaction to ruin your day!

Again, fix your diet first. Just like you can’t exercise your way out of a bad diet, neither can you supplement your way out of a bad diet.

Eat right, eat real food.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Supplementary II

You can’t out exercise a bad diet. Nor can you supplement your way to health. Supplements are designed to add to an already good diet or provide something that may be missing from your good diet. There are also things you can’t necessarily get from your diet.

Last week we talked about glucosamine, fish oil and DHEA. Those 3 things are very difficult to get in your diet. You can eat a lot of fish and still have an oega3 vs. omega 6 imbalance. And that is a big problem for inflammation in your body. This week we will tackle 2 more.

Vitamin D
Vitamin D is required for the regulation of the mineral calcium and phosphorus in the body. It plays an important role in maintaining proper bone structure.
Most people get Vitamin D from sun exposure. You should be able to get enough Vitamin D through exposure to sunlight. If you expose your arms, legs, hands, and face for about ¼ of the time it takes to get a mild sunburn you should produce enough Vitamin D. Here’s the problem, however. We don’t spend enough time in the sun. We wear sunscreen. And as we age our bodies become less efficient at producing Vitamin D from the sun.
As supplements go, Vitamin D is relatively inexpensive and easy to take. 2-5,000 IU should do it.

Protein powder
If you are eating right you may be getting enough protein to support your activity level. If you are building muscle or spending a lot of time in the gym you may need to supplement your diet with additional protein. Protein powders are an easy way to get more protein into your system quickly. You should be ingesting anywhere from 50 grams up to 1.5 times your bodyweight in protein grams a day. 1.5 times would be for a muscle building phase. Generally if you weigh 150# you should be eating between 100 and 150 grams of protein a day. You should know how much protein you are eating a day.
There are lots of sources for protein powders. Read the label and make sure you are getting protein and not sugars and other stuff you don’t want. I prefer whey protein myself and I love SFH fuel for taste and the little extras (MCT) that are in it. SFH makes very high quality protein product from grass fed dairy cows. You could use protein from any number of sources…egg, soy, rice or other vegetable sources. The choice is really yours but make sure it is clean and free of unhealthy additives.
I take a protein shake after I work out to get protein into the system. I will also get one in when I am in a hurry and need some quick fuel.

Again, we should try to get most of our dietary needs met with real food on a regular basis. Constantly trying to find a “magic pill” that will “fix” us is a futile pursuit. There is no magic pill except diet and exercise, working hard and eating right.

Get in the kitchen first!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Supplementary

Supplement:
noun
1.
Something added to complete a thing, supply a deficiency, or reinforce or extend a whole.

Lately I have been getting a lot of questions about supplements. What should I take? What do you take? Is it worth it, moneywise? Will I perform better, look better, or something else better?

Here’s the bottom line. You need to dial your food intake in. You need to be very conscious of your recovery process. All the supplements in the world will not make up for poor food choices, excess alcohol consumption, or lack of sleep. Just like you can’t out exercise a bad diet, you can’t out supplement bad diet.

That being said, there are several things you can and should be taking no matter what your diet or exercise regimen. Always check with your physician before you begin a regimen of supplements to make sure you won’t have any adverse reactions. Here they are:

Glucosamine
Glucosamine is made by your body and is designed to keep your joints healthy. The supplement is derived from shellfish and will help your ligaments and possibly other connective tissues remain supple and strong. 2000mg a day should do it.

Fish Oil
More specifically Omega-3 Fatty acids. Essential Fatty Acids are not made by your body. You must get them from your dietary intake. They are essential for your health. Most people who are eating a Standard American Diet (SAD) have an imbalance of Omega-3 to Omega-6 oils. This is unhealthy. Omega-3s will help with overall inflammation (a big enemy of health), joint health, and brain function. There is less good information about heart health. Hard to go wrong but you need to buy very high quality purified fish oil. This is one every one of us should be ingesting. 3 grams or 3000mg will do it IF you are getting the right stuff. Read the labels!

DHEA
DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) is a hormone produced by your body's adrenal glands. These glands are just above your kidneys. DHEA supplements are made from wild yam or soy. DHEA production peaks in your mid 20’s and gradually declines as we age until a severe drop off after age 60. It is believed to help build muscle, fight the effects of aging, provide more energy, improve mood and memory, and improve libido. It functions as a precursor to both male and female sex hormones. You will need to experiment a bit on the dosage depending on age and sex. You can also have this tested (saliva) to find out whether your levels are normal or low.

These are my top 3. I have been taking all 3 of these for years upon advice from several orthopedic doctors. We all need to keep inflammation down as this is the cause of most disease of illness. We all need to have healthy joints, bones, and muscles. We all need to keep our hormones up in the right levels. These things are critical to maintaining optimal health and fitness.

If you start with these 3 you can’t go wrong. Glucosamine is fairly cheap. Fish Oil is not but don’t skimp on quality (we do offer a very good one for sale here in the box). DHEA is also fairly common.

I do take lots of others and I will share those with you over the next few weeks.

Remember…Your diet will influence 80% of your results in the gym and in life. Get that straight; add these 3 things and you will see even more results!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Act Your Age

Not really. At least not the age the world thinks of at a certain age. Let’ be honest, you and I know that when we think of someone 70 or 80 years old we don’t picture health and vitality. We picture decrepitude and dotage. We picture someone in the twilight of their days, one foot in the grave and the other foot dragging along.

This isn’t you. At least it doesn’t have to be you. But you better do something about it and you better do something about it now. This is one of those things that pays an compounding dividend over time. The rewards are not linear but progressive. Just imagine if you had been in serious pursuit of your health and fitness from age 20. You could have years of health and fitness under your belt. But when you start is not as important as starting. If you start now in 10 years you will have 10 years of chasing health and fitness. But if you wait until you are a certain age, you will have lost all of those years from now until then.

Don’t act your age. Act the age you want to be. This doesn’t mean you have to repeat all the mistakes and angst you had at 25 or 35 or whatever. This means when you get up in the morning you take all the wisdom of your years and apply them to creating the life you want. When I look around at the average almost 59 year old I do not see myself. When I look in the mirror I see an example of shining health and fitness.

Show up today. Tomorrow you can look in the mirror and see more vitality, more health, and more fitness. 10 years from now the rest of the world will see someone 10 years younger than you are instead of the opposite. When you hit 60 it really will be the new 30 for you because you spent decades optimizing your health and fitness.

Stop acting your age. It was good advice when you were 8. It isn’t so good when you are 38 or 48. Start acting like you are in the peak of health, like you are at the pinnacle of fitness. There is only way to get there. Show up. Do work. Repeat.

See you tomorrow!

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John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday–stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…What you Want

There are 3 things that are going to get you where you want to be:
1. Know what you want.
2. Know that it is possible to get what you want
3. Know you deserve what you want.

Let’s talk about that first one. The first one, knowing what you want, will stifle everything else. Do you really believe you know what you want? Do you know what you want like you know the sun is coming up tomorrow, like you know you are going to take your next breath?

Too many of us are conditioned to want certain things or to want them in a certain way. Just like every kid wants the same toy at Christmas, we, as adults, are conditioned by marketing, peer pressure, and the media to want certain things.

But being told what to want is not the same as really wanting. We are told we need to look a certain way…our bodies need to conform to certain ideal. Our faces need to be characterless caricatures of real life. My face tells a story. My body carries all the starts and stops of my life, all the chapters of the book my life is writing. It is mine.

So how do I sift through all the messages and decide what it is I really want. Not what my family thinks I should want. Not what the collective wisdom forces upon me. Not some idealized version of me and my life (Ken & Barbie, Ozzie and Harriet, etc.) But what I really want.

It’s simple, really. When you write that thing down your heart sings. When you imagine yourself as that person you smile and nod with satisfaction. When you see the work involved, the sacrifices to be made, and the effort to be expended you roll up your sleeves and say “bring it on!”

Quit being a slave to other people’s expectations for you. They aren’t you. They aren’t living in your body. They haven’t had your experiences, your depth of life. You and only you can decide what you really really want.

When what you really want is something you want like you want to breathe…then you will get what you want. There won’t be room for any excuses. There won’t be any vacillation or whining or cutting corners. Your goal will loom in front of you like a rising full moon and you will drive yourself to hang that moon yourself.

Figure out what you want…we will work on the rest later.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Commitment vs. Motivation

I often hear people say they need to get motivated. But I suspect that isn’t what they really mean. Motivation is easy. Motivation just means you decided to do something.

You are motivated to work out. You are motivated to eat healthy food. You are motivated to get more education. You are motivated to be a better spouse. You are motivated to do lots of things. Motivation comes easy.

All you need for motivation is a decision. I need to work out or whatever you decision is. Maybe you finally got the message that healthy food is better for you. You decide to eat better. Making that decision, getting that motivation is, for the most part, simple. Motivation often arises from an external source. I read about the benefits of exercise and get motivated to do some. External sources and rewards are excellent choices for finding motivation.

Where the rubber meet the road is around Commitment. Motivation is like taking a shower; most of us need to do it every day. Commitment is part of your being. When you commit to a course of action you are going to get that action done no matter what. Nothing is going to stand in your way once you are committed. If the water is cold I may lose my motivation to take a shower but if I am committed? Cold water showers are my friend. If there is no shower? A garden hose will work. I am committed. Motivation comes and goes but commitment is here to stay.

You say you want to be healthy. You do the research. You see the Doctor, the trainer, the therapist. You are motivated to get healthy. But somewhere deep down you aren’t really committed. Deep down you don’t believe in your soul that health is yours for the taking. You need to take that first step…Get Committed. Decide to listen to the Doctor and DO what he says. Decide to listen to the Trainer and DO what she says.

We all know how smart you are, already. But if you were so smart why haven’t you already done this? Get out of your own way and get committed to a course of Action. Action is the visible result of commitment. You can say you know what to do all day long but if you don’t do it, you don’t really know.

Lose your motivation, Find your commitment.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sundaystories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Peak Experiences

I have been fortunate in my life to have had many “Peak experiences”. I define a peak experience as a high point in life where I have felt ecstatic and more alive and whole than is usual. Jumping out of an airplane comes to mind…that moment when you step out 10,000 feet above the ground is unparalleled.

These moments sometimes need to be looked for and cultivated. Other times they just need to be noticed. Obviously skydiving is an experience that I planned and went out of my way to experience. But that sunset the other night, or the moment when you spy the mountain lake at the end of a long hike? Those things require you to be present and notice them.

What happen when the peak becomes mundane, everyday? What happens after you jump from the plane 100 times? Is it still a peak experience? Could it or should it be? Is there every a time when we should be immune to the experience of wholeness when the moon rises full again?

You get to decide. You get to minimize those amazing experiences or exalt in them. Your choice. Remember when a small child sees something amazing for the first time? Those squeals of delight and amazement, the wide eyes, breath taking jumping up and down excitement. You could have that same depth of feeling if you choose to allow it in. But you will need to set aside your adult indifference and apathy in order to find it again.

Are you living without peak experiences? Why? Those experiences are all around you. Are you too old, too tough, too hard, and too grown up to see life, all of your life through the lens of child like amazement? Why would you rob your psyche of that joy?

I am going to suggest you start looking for those moments when you find that ecstasy, that alive-ness, that whole-ness in your daily life. Let’s be honest, you might not find it on your daily commute but isn’t it possible it is there several times a day and you just aren’t focused on finding it. What we look for we find. Ever buy a new car and then see all the cars on the road just like yours? Same thing.

Look for those moments…they are everywhere. We live in an amazing natural world, populated by amazing people who do amazing things.

So be amazed!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Dad

There is a phone call I can’t make today. Over the years my Father and I had a good relationship. I never felt judged by him for doing some of the odd stupid things I have done. I am fortunate I got to say all the things that I needed to say to him before he passed from this world. Not everyone gets that opportunity.

Everything I learned about being a man I learned from my father. All credit goes to him for the good things I know and do. The responsibility for all the stupid screwed up things I have done are on me. He inspired me to be the best at anything I tried my hand at. He taught me hard work is always worthy. He taught me that a day’s work is valuable no matter what work you were doing…sweeping floors, picking fruit, teaching a child…all work is important.

He taught me that people were to be valued. That each person in the world has gifts and we should look for and find those gifts. Don’t judge a person’s worth by the color of his skin, his occupation or his standing. Look for and find the good in each person. Get an education.

If it’s worth doing then do it well. If you take a man’s money, do the job he paid you for. You don’t have to win every time you play but you have to play to win every time. Practice hard. Enjoy yourself. Eat good food. Stay connected to the earth. Be kind to animals but don’t let them live in the house (didn’t take that one to heart, Dad).

My father was a good man. He raised 4 sons who turned out pretty well. I felt loved by my father. I was very fortunate.

If there are things you need to say to your father, do it today. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed to any of us and you don’t want to spend the rest of your time needing to say something you could have said easily today.

I love you Dad. I think of you every day and when I am faced with a decision I always ask myself what my dad would do. Thanks for all your love and guidance over the last 57 years. I wish you were still here.

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Active Recovery

We know to eat right, get lots of sleep, and work out. You are on your way to being more, to being the person you were designed to be. There is another element that is too often neglected on our way to being a better athlete: Recovery

Although recovery is considered part of rest it should be treated as thing in and of itself. The purpose of recovery is to allow the muscle to repair itself and to use muscles that are tired or sore from a previous day or period or hard training. In general, active recovery is defined by feeling better after exercising than before you started.

When we talk about active recovery we are talking about engaging in low intensity exercise after workouts. There are two different things here: one is immediately after you finish a cool down phase after a hard effort. The second is in the days after a competition or workout, a day of “rest”.

This is not the rest where we lay on the couch, watch TV and eat chips. This is the rest we call active recovery. Here are 5 things you can and should do regularly to recover.

Self-Myofascial release (SMR)---Foam rolling is one form, using a lacrosse ball or other specialty tools in an effort to massage the muscles. We are trying to increase our range of motion, decrease tone in over-active muscles, and release adhesions in the muscle tissues. Hit all the major muscle groups, avoid joints and bony areas. If you find a trouble spot hang out with those areas a little longer. You should feel better after doing this.

Walking---burn some calories, get outside and connect with the world around you. There is something else besides the gym!

Hiking, Swimming, Biking---all 3 of these should be tempered by your current fitness level. Keep it slow and keep it enjoyable.

Yoga---moving slowly through a range of motion, being in connection with your body and breathing deeply is very restorative.

Play---get out and play a game for fun. No keeping score, no going all out, no intensity, just play.

A large part of this is the mental recovery from hard, intense training. Letting your mind reconnect to your body in a non-competitive atmosphere and being around people and places that are different than your usual will re-energize your training time.

Active rest will allow you to recover and maintain your fitness level. Just like when we eat dessert without guilt we need to walk or ride or relax without a clock or set outcome…just being human from time to time will allow you to be a better, faster, stronger athlete both physically and mentally.

So get out and rest…Do it now!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Your Abs

Are waiting. They are lurking right there…just below the surface. Sometimes when the lighting is just right, you’ve done just the right amount of work and you have eaten the right stuff they show up for just a fleeting minute. But that’s all…just a brief moment and then poof! Gone again.

The conversation goes on all the time…the bikini body…the beach body…the elusive smooth and flat midriff. It’s a bench mark that is easy for the world to see especially this time of year. I have the answer for you and you aren’t going to like it, not one little bit.

The reason you don’t have the abs you want? You have really good excuses.

You read that right. You know what to do. I have told you, other people have told you. You keep coming up with excuses why you aren’t doing what needs to be done. You don’t want abs more than you want that next cocktail, or the next TV show, or the next piece of chocolate cake.

You want the visible washboard abs? Quit drinking alcohol, get more sleep, and fix your diet. That is all there is to it. You will never out-work a bad diet and the older you get the harder it is going to be.

I can hear you already…what about_________ (fill in the blank)? All alcohol. Quit all alcohol consumption. But_______ (insert famous person here) drinks a glass of fermented rattlesnake wine every day and look at them! I don’t care. Want abs? Quit drinking. Period, end of conversation.

I know you NEED to watch Game of Thrones or the Late Show or whatever mindless pabulum shows up on your idiot box at night. Turn it off and go to bed. Early. Get 8 hours of sleep tonight. Don’t tell me you can’t. You can, you just won’t. Want abs? Sleep more.

I get that you don’t like to eat vegetables or that cooking your own food is too hard, or too expensive. Get over it. Diet is simple…eat real food that you shop for and cook. Eat meat and vegetables, maybe some starch once in awhile, some seeds and nuts, a little fruit. Restaurant food is never as healthy as food you prepare. Want abs? Eat real food.

Quit making excuses and start making abs! By the way this is true in a bunch of places…You can have results or excuses, not both!

See you (and your abs) on the beach!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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Sunday Story…Get Discomfortable

Once upon a time, not so long ago, in a place not so very far away I used to smoke and drink (a lot) and eat lots of not so good food. I was in my middle thirties, had the standard extra 25 pounds and thought I was in OK shape since I could still move a few bales of hay around (if there weren’t too many and they weren’t too heavy) to feed the critters.

Somewhere around this time I started TaeKwon-Do training and then into the gym. This started the journey that has had lots of pit stops on the way including a 6th place finish at the 2014 Reebok CrossFit games. The journey isn’t over. But my point today isn’t the training. My point today is change…transformation.

You can change. You can transform. Your future does not have to be the same as your past. But you can’t change or transform without discomfort. You can’t do the same thing and expect different results. If you are perfectly happy where you are you can just keep on keeping on. But if you want to make change you are going to get comfortable with discomfort.

If you want to be in better physical condition doing 20 minutes on the treadmill at 60% of your maximum heart rate is only a start if you haven’t done anything at all. After about 3 months of that something is going to have to shift if you want more results. You will need to get your heart rate up higher. You will need to run faster or longer. If you want to get stronger you are going to have to pick up heavier weights. You will never get stronger using the same light weights week in and week out. You don’t have to believe me…just look at some of your friends who have been going to the gym for years with little to no change. Still overweight, still on medication, still sick and tired, still no change…they aren’t going backwards but they aren’t moving forward just like that treadmill or stationary bike isn’t going anywhere. They aren’t showing up to work out with a goal in mind…an endpoint.

When I start a workout I have a place I want to end up…and yes, that is usually on the floor in a puddle of my own sweat. After a year of training I want to be better than I was a year ago…stronger, faster, and fitter than when I started. Maybe there is a point where the gains are harder to get, the personal records are further apart and fitness gets measured in smaller increments but there is no reason I can’t be better tomorrow than I am today.

Change is hard. Change is uncomfortable. If it was easy everyone would do it. Most people are not willing to get discomfortable enough or long enough to get what they truly want and deserve.

Embrace discomfort, enjoy the journey!

John Mariotti
www.crossfit-odyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com
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