Good For Everything
Every Sunday night, when the weekend is winding down, I fire the grill up and cook two pounds of hamburger and three pounds of chicken breasts. Inside, I have three cups of rice boiling, fruits and vegetable getting cleaned, and Tupperware containers lying everywhere. Every Sunday night I prep my meals to get me through Wednesday. I have it down to such a science that the process has actually become relaxing. Everything is in its place and hopefully, from start to finish, I can keep it under an hour.
I prep my meals because I hate not knowing where quality food is. It takes me about three meals in a week of eating out before I start feeling sick or I decide I would rather starve than be at Chipotle.
On top of that, my stress levels are much better knowing exactly what I am eating, the macronutrient breakdown of each meal, and the quality of the food. My workouts are better because my body is properly fueled. I am a much friendlier person without the anxiety I get over eating poorly. The gym runs much better because my energy levels are higher, my coaching is better, and I have the energy to talk to hundreds of people every day.
Most importantly, I am not sick. I am not lying in my bed, rundown, or tired.
Meal prep is not just good for eating well, it is good for everything.
Every Saturday, the First Lady of Fitness and I go on a really long walk in a really beautiful place. Somewhere along this walk we will pick up the pace to a jog. When we get tired of jogging, we will stop and do some pathetic yoga-esque stretching, pushups, pull ups, sprinting, and some gymnastics – all of which is very unolympic. The only rule is that the workout is over as soon as we stop having fun.
Getting out in nature to walk, run, push, and pull makes for a really good workout. I get a little stronger, the gymnastics makes me a little more coordinated, and the stretching, although good for me, makes me remember why I hate stretching. I also get to spend a couple really high quality hours hanging out with my wife. There is no TV, no internet, and no cell phones so we get to reconnect after a long work week and just hang out, distraction free.
I also find doing fitness outside to be so refreshing. I get a little vitamin D to fuel the soul, breathe some fresh air, and reenact the same feeling of playing when I was a kid. I love picking up a barbell and banging weights around, but there is also something very freeing about running around with no boundaries and feeling some grass or sand under your feet.
During the week, I spend a lot of time in the gym and it is nice to get out and play in a different setting. It refreshes me for the upcoming week and as we drive away, I am usually extremely excited to get back to coaching.
Fitness is not just good for being in shape, it is good for everything.
Every day, sometimes around 9 AM, sometimes around 2 PM, I go for a walk on the board walk. About 20 minutes in, I sit down, stare out into the ocean and try to see if it is possible to see the curvature of the Earth. As I stare out, I begin to have a really personal conversation with myself about the things I would like to accomplish, things I struggle with, things I want to continue to develop, how grateful I am for the people around me, and in the end I try to spend 5-10 minutes thoughtless. It takes about 20 minutes and I get up, head back to the gym, and put the plan into action.
Being mindful is not about developing a hyper-hippie meditation practice. I tried that for about six months and I enjoyed it but it became a little cumbersome. Developing a practice of mindfulness however has given me the freedom to be present, be honest with my own personal strengths and weaknesses, and truly analyze how I affect other people’s lives.
On the walk, I usually am listening to and audiobook or podcast about training so I get an hour or so of learning in for the day. I am walking so I am getting some low stress fitness and cardiovascular gains. I also am able to check in with how I am feeling, my current stress, and emotional state. If I am having a rough day, acknowledging things that are bothering me allows me to separate from the emotion, find the root of the problem, and proceed with my day.
I am a better coach because I think about better ways to help people. I am a better boss because I think about how lucky I am to have our coaching staff. I am a better friend because I think about how cool it is I get to run a gym with my best friend. I am a better husband because I think about how grateful I am to have a wife that lets me be in a gym for 14 hours a day.
Mindfulness is not just good for peace of mind, it is good for everything.
Every action you take leads to a chain reaction of future events, actions, emotions, and opportunities. If you want to be good at everything, do things that are good for everything.
