Sunday Story…Never Say Never

 

Or Always. My partner, Ellie, reminded me the other day of something I said way back in 2013. I told her I would Never teach a 5:30AM class. I would never get up that early and I would never be available to teach that class. So, if we scheduled it, she would be the one teaching it and she did for many years. Fast forward 7 years and “boom” a pandemic happened. Something shifted in me, and I began to arise at 4am. That’s right…the time also known as 0’dark thirty. I found a new groove.

 

People who said they would never run a mile let alone a marathon find themselves training and lining up on race day. People who say losing weight never works for them find a way to miraculously lose the weight. Maybe you said you’ll never (insert that thing(s) here). And then there you are in the thick of whatever that thing is.

 

Never encompasses a long time. Always leaves no room for deviation. There is room for a shift in perspective. There is the possibility you will receive new information that makes never untenable and always impossible. I get it…we all love the certainty and finality that never and always provide. But the fact is we will often be wrong when we use those words.

 

Never say never…or Always…Never say Never! You may be proven wrong before you know it.

 

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

Sunday Story…On Vacation

Enjoying the tropical paradise in Cozumel Mexico! 

Sharks, eels, and fish, Oh My!

Enjoy your Holiday!

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

Sunday Story…The Critic and the Cheerleader

It’s that time again. The end of the year when we take stock of what the past year has given us…the celebrations, the highs and lows, the goals met and those that never came to fruition. 

Often when we look back over our accomplishments the inner critic comes out and camps on our doorstep. This is the guy who picks apart every little thing that you didn’t do, every failure, every  finish line not crossed. We need to put this guy out to pasture. He is not helping….not one little bit. As a matter of fact if you were in a relationship with someone who criticized, condemned, and complained about you constantly you would drive that toxicity from your life (wouldn’t you?)

Look, in any given time period some things will go well and others not quite as you expected. If I dwell on the bad the good loses its luster. All the less than stellar results are just lessons to be learned. In many ways those things are more important than things that went swimmingly. But you will need to keep your inner cheerleader busy helping you see those things.

Go ahead and assess your last year. Learn the lessons that were available to you but don’t stew about the things that weren’t right. Let those go without reservation. Look for the things that went right and celebrate all of them!

Kick the critic to the curb and let the inner celebrant have all the fun.

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

Sunday Story…Full Steam Ahead

Damn the torpedoes! This is often the approach we take early in life. All in, no quarter, life lived with the throttle wide open is often our default position when we are young. And it works for the most part. We have the energy, the enthusiasm, and the physicality to make it work.

But it is also said that wisdom is having good judgment. And good judgment comes from bad decisions. Recently I qualified for the fittest experience competition in January. After the online qualifier I placed 5th which was good enough (barely) to get an invite to come to Austin. But as many of you have noticed by my gimpy walk over the last few months I am not 100%. Will I be 100% by the end of January? I suspect I will be but that’s not the issue. The issue is how well can I train between now and then? And the answer is not that well. When we combine that fact with the fact that the CrossFit open and the road to the 2022 games begins at the end of February the best decision may be to let the healing process take a little longer.

In the past I would have thrown caution to the wind and accepted the invite. Although it would be fun to go throw down in Austin, it wouldn’t be smart and it certainly wouldn’t move me toward my long term goals of extraordinary health and fitness.

What are your long term goals? Is what you are doing moving you toward those goals? Or are you sabotaging the long term goals in pursuit of short term satisfaction. Sometimes the best course of action is delayed gratification…the fruit is always sweeter when it is ripe.

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412

Sunday Story…Full Effort

Is Full Victory is something my coach used to say to me whenever I expressed dis-satisfaction in my performance. Those words helped me to focus on what was both important and under my control.

We are coming into a time when it is easy to lose focus…on your fitness, on your nutrition, on your important relationships. Many of us have conflicted experiences around this time of year. It is easy to fall back  into old patterns of behavior that we have spent years trying to shift. And when we do, we beat ourselves up for not doing what we know we are supposed to do.

Here's the deal…you aren’t perfect. You won’t eat perfectly every day. You won’t have a gold star workout every time. Sometimes you will be a jerk. Forgive yourself. Move on.

The idea is to give your full effort every chance you get. Real satisfaction lies in the effort. You won’t be first every time. You won’t be last either. Learn from your less than stellar performances. It is the effort that counts.

So when you fall off track ( and you will as we all do) acknowledge the misstep and decide to make another, better effort. Give yourself a pat on the back for doing it at all. Just the effort puts you so far ahead that victory is yours.

John Mariotti

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com

775-338-2412