Sunday Story…Excess becomes You

It’s that time of year again. Excess becomes the norm. At least the excess of things that may not be so good for you. Most of us don’t over-exercise this time of year but we often over-eat and/or over-drink. 

There are lots of strategies to help prevent us from overdoing our celebrations. I am not going to go over them here. What am I am going to give you is a strategy to navigate these next few weeks so you can emerge stronger and filled with energy to attack the new year with joy and purpose.

First...Love yourself. Stop beating yourself over the head for doing things you think you should not have done. They are done. Oh well. You did whatever it was now get over it. 

Second...Express gratitude...every chance you get. Have you ever thought about being grateful for the spaciousness to make bad decisions, learning from those decisions, and then moving forward? This is how we get wisdom...by making bad decisions and then profiting from the analysis.

Third...Plan ahead. Save some space for self-care before and after those events and times when you may consciously over-indulge. And notice I said consciously over-indulge. That leads us to the last thing.

Fourth...Be conscious. You are human full of foibles, faults, and face-plants. You aren’t perfect, none of us are. You are still loveable. You are not beyond redemption. It’s ok to be less than perfect. Just be conscious about it.

Enjoy every bite, every sip, every interaction. Then when retrospection has you wishing maybe you could have done things a little differently you can take that lesson to heart.

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

Sunday Story…Grace

It’s that time of year again. Parties, lots of tempting food and drink, tacit permission to over-indulge, spiraling guilt and shame over your lack of willpower over those temptations. What is the answer to the question of how will you navigate your way around those hazardous shores?

In a word...Grace. Your first step is to find within you the power of Grace. Grace will forgive your missteps. Grace will help you regain your power by allowing you to be charitable to yourself. You don’t have to just be charitable to those less fortunate than yourself. Charity begins at home, with yourself. Grace requires you to be kind...to yourself first. Beating yourself up for not being perfect is a losing battle. You will never win and you will continue to be swept down into a maelstrom of guilt, shame , and recrimination.

Grace is waiting for you. But you are going to have to dig in a little to find her. 

First...Love yourself. You with all your faults and warts. Get up in the morning and tell yourself...I love you. You are already perfect.

Second...When you step off the path (and you will, we all do), smile, forgive yourself, and step back on.

Third...Ask for help. The people who love you, love you no matter how many cookies you just ate. We will hold your hand, smile, and laugh and cry with you. And then we will recommit with you to hold our heads up and move forward.

Grace...try it, you might like it!

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

Sunday Story...The Last Time

 I recently read an article that talked about  your “last time.” We never know when the last time we do something happens. Unless we are consciously setting something aside forever we may not know this is the last bee I will ever see, the last rose I will smell, the last time I will say goodbye to someone (unless we know they are really leaving the earth.)

So the “last time” gets relegated to memory. I can think back to the last time I ever did a scuba dive or shared space with my dog. But was that really the last time or was it just time before I did it again?

Here’s my take...you never know when this is the “last time” so developing the habit of staying in the present moment will help you appreciate the people, things, and experiences in real-time, as they are taking place. In the present moment and only in the present moment can I experience all there is to experience. 

The other part of being in the present moment is to express yourself fully in that moment, never allowing the moment to pass without expressing your gratitude and emotion for that experience. Being in the present also means having all of your being in the present as well.

Never allow a gratitude to be unsaid that needs to be said. 

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodsyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

By the way, here’s the link to the article:

https://www.awakin.org/read/view.php?tid=2522

Sunday Story…Waypoints on your journey

You are wherever you are on your fitness journey. Yesterday I had the pleasure of watching one of our coaches hit a back squat personal record of 400#. It was a thing of beauty…nice and deep, straight back, good return. He’s been working for this for quite some time and yesterday all his hard work paid dividends.

 

At the same time, I had a young man in for a private session. He’s 12 and just starting his journey. Of course, the question was how long until I can do something like that? The answer is it depends. There are so many variables on this fitness journey.

 

I will never get to a 400# back squat. My journey is not taking me in that direction. That young man may get there in 10 or 20 years. Or he may never get there. It will depend on him and his level of commitment to his own journey.

 

Realistically where are you on your journey? What is your level of commitment to your goals? Are they just ideas and dreams or do you have a plan and a program to manifest those goals? Without a plan and a program, you will never get out of the garage to hit the fitness road.

 

Want a 400# squat? You can have one if you really, really want it. But just wanting won’t be enough. Commit to the goal. Make a plan. Follow the plan. Adjust the plan. Recommit to the goal.

 

By the way… you know I’m not just talking fitness. Right?

 

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412