Archive for Monday Motivation
How to Tell a Winner From a Loser
Here is a great list I first that I first heard from Martin Rooney.
Go through the list and ask yourself, “Are you a WINNER or a LOSER”.
How to Tell a Winner From a Loser
A Winner says, “Let’s find out;” a Loser says “Nobody knows.”
When a Winner makes a mistake; he says, “I was wrong;” when a Loser makes a mistake; he says, “It wasn’t my fault.”
A Winner goes through a problem; a Loser goes around
it and never gets past it.
A Winner makes commitments; a Loser makes promises.
A Winner says, “I’m good, but not as good as I ought to be;” a Loser says, “I’m not as bad as a lot of other people.”
A Winner tries to learn from those who are superior to him; a Loser tries to tear down those who are superior to him.
A Winner says, “There ought to be a better way to do it;” a Loser says, “That’s the way it’s always been done here.”
Are you a WINNER or a LOSER?
Try to see when you were guilty of being a loser. If you can find them and correct them for the future, GROWTH and IMPROVEMENT are SURE to OCCUR.
If you have a Big Enough “Why” You will Figure out the “How”
If you have a Big Enough “Why” You will Figure out the “How”
If you have a goal the goal should be VERY VERY IMPORTANT to you. The more important the goal the EASIER it should be to explain WHY the goal is IMPORTANT.
In other words the STRONGER the WHY is the easier it will be to figure out exactly how to get there.
There is a story of two parents who had a child with a HORRIBLE DISEASE for which doctors said there WAS NO CURE. The parents had a HUGE WHY. The NEEDED to get their child BETTER.
They set out on a MISSION to find a CURE to save their child. The parent clashed with doctors, scientists, even support groups. They persisted going into medical libraries, reviewing animal experiments, questioning researchers and doctors all over the world to find a way to achieve their goal of curing their son’s condition.
The two parents researched until they finally DEVELOPED the TREATMENT that everyone else thought was IMPOSSIBLE. They had an incredibly important reason to find the cure, they found out the HOW. Today, the cure is known as Lorenzo’s Oil, which is named after their son.
This story shows that if yo have a BIG ENOUGH WHY you WILL FIGURE OUT the HOW.
Ask yourself WHY is your goal important? If you can answer this you will be able to figure out you what you need to do to achieve your goal.
How to Achieve your Goals in 4 Steps
Vincent Lombardi once said,
“The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion their commitment to excellence, regardless or their chosen field of endeavor.”
Don’t just make a goal, Make a COMMITMENT to the goal!
Before I reveal the steps you need to take here is a quick riddle…
“There are two frogs on a log, and one of them decides to jump off. How many frogs are now on the log?”
Most people say there is now only one frog left on the log , but they are WRONG. Just because the frog “decided” to do something, doesn’t mean he did ANYTHING at all.
The key to commitment is the combination of both decision and action.
Without both, you are no further along than when you started, and you are just indecision.
You either DO IT or YOU DON’T DO IT.
Are you going to be the frog that JUMPS or just DECIDES to JUMP?!?!
And now here is How to Achieve your Goals in 4 Steps
1. Make a commitment to a GOAL
You NEED to be the frog that jumps. If you don’t COMMIT to your goal and get started you will never get achieve what you want. Don’t be the frog that just “decides”. Go out there and DO IT!
2. Make your commitment PUBLIC
Let others know you are “going to jump”. This will help hold you accountable. Now since you told someone it is REAL.
3. Make NO EXCEPTIONS
There are always going to be risks and hardships on our way to any goal. If there is an obstacle you need find a way to go around it and FIND A WAY to MAKE IT HAPPEN! If going around it doesn’t work then GO THROUGH IT! In order to be successful you need to take RISKS and MAKE SACRIFICES. If you get off track evaluate your progress, make adjustments and keep moving forward. You can make detours on your path to success, but just KEEP GOING and you will eventually reach your goal.
4. Make it HAPPEN
When you are FULLY committed to something there won’t be any fear because you KNOW you will achieve you goal.
Once you COMMIT to something and GET THROUGH it, no matter what happens you WILL feel a SENSE OF ACHIEVEMENT and SATISFACTION. Committing to something CONQUERING your FEARS and going THROUGH OBSTACLES will make you FEEL PROUD of YOURSELF!
Life Lessons Learned at Underground Strength Gym
My Trip to the Underground Strength Gymnasium
By John Gaglione
This is a quote from Underground Strength Gym(UGS) owner Zach Even Esh.
“There are those that do
and those that don’t
Those that will
and those that won’t”
Zach is one of the most inspirational people I have ever meet. He kicks butts in the gym and in life. Zach really just embodies that quote. He IS willing to do what others WON’T. He is not afraid to be different, say what is on his mind, and follow his heart no matter what the circumstance.
He started out as a gym teacher for an school in New Jersey. Zach always had the mind set that he wanted to help others improve their bodies as well as their minds. Zach had many great ideas to improve the training of the schools teams and improve the curriculum of the health classes in the district, but the district was content with staying average.
I visited Zach this past weekend and we were talking over dinner and one thing he said really resonated with me. He is the jist of what he said
” If you go on a job interview are you going to say. Hi I am John I am very mediocre. I am going to take all of my sick days, I will arrive barely on time and leave as soon as I can. My strengths are NOT doing any EXTRA work and ONLY doing the BARE minimum. I am really good at being average and when I tired I am going to take it easy ….”etc etc
The sad thing is this is reality for a lot of people. Zach stopped teaching and found another avenue to help kids get stronger both PHYSICALLY and MENTALLY.
He started training athletes in his garage and now he owns UGS gym. He was WILLING TO DO WHAT OTHERS wouldn’t. He left a VERY secure job to become a trainer out of his garage?!?
Zach followed his heart and he NEVER QUIT on his dreams of becoming a successful strength coach. He now trains athletes from all over New Jersey and trains some of the best of the best from Blair Academy and Rutgers Universities. These are some of the most ELITE wrestling schools in the area and Zach delivers AMAZING results.
He prepares these young men for BATTLE on the MAT as well as in LIFE. He teaches the kids responsibility, integrity, and determination through his rigorous training protocols. He teaches the kids that HARD WORK PAYS OFF and being average just isn’t going to cut it.
His workouts are a mix of free weight training, calisthenics, odd object training and other unconventional methods. Zach‘s methods may seems basic to some, but they are BRUTALLY effective. There are NO filler exercises in his program. Every move serves a purpose.
Zach‘s program is what PHYSICAL EDUCATION SHOULD BE.
I had the pleasure of training with Zach and his crew last Friday night. We shut the doors had the music cranking and we GOT GOING. There was NO STANDING AROUND. We were moving from start to finish.
I felt right at home as if I was at one of my old wrestling practices. I can’t totally describe the feeling, but I FELT ALIVE!
It was a blend of power, strength, and endurance training. The pace Zach and his wrestler kept the entire workout was quite incredible. Zach explained that our goal is to OUT WORK the other team. This is a similar philosophy to what the legendary coach Dan Gable said. You always find a way to OUT WORK your opponent. If you KNOW you are working HARDER than everyone else YOU CAN’T LOSE.
If you always put worth YOUR BEST EFFORT and work harder than everyone else the WINNING WILL TAKE CARE OF IT SELF. You CAN’T STOP when it get TOUGH you have to KEEP GOING. Zach teaches his kids to FIND A WAY around obstacles in life rather than just accepting defeat.
Zach also told me to ALWAYS stay POSITIVE no matter what. There are ALWAYS going to be people who DON’T believe in you, but it DOESN’T matter. Zach says to surround your self with other POSITIVE people and KEEP DOING WHAT YOU ARE DOING. People who are NEGATIVE simply won’t SURVIVE at UGS gym.
UGS gym has an amazing positive atmosphere that when you TRAIN there you feel like YOU ARE PAR T OF THEIR TEAM. That support system is positive, but still is also an intense training environment. These qualities of the gym are what fosters GREAT SUCCESS.
Zach Even Esh is the man and I want to thank him and his crew at UGS gym for an amazing weekend. We learned a lot, trained hard, and made some great friends. This is MY version of what Zach said and a quote I try to live by…
“You have to DO WHAT OTHERS DON’T
To ACHIEVE what others Don’t”
Be a person that “DOES” not a person that “DOESN’T”. Find a way to make it happen. Do worry about what people say or think. Do what is RIGHT FOR YOU. Work hard and DON’T be ORDINARY, be EXTRAORDINARY.
The only difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little EXTRA. You have to do the EXTRA to get BETTER and BE SUCCESSFUL.
OUT WORK the person next to you and GOOD THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN!
Keep Training HARD and SMART! Go and KILL IT in your training TODAY!
Educate, Motivate, Dominate
-Coach Gaglione
Can a weakness be a strength?
Sometimes a weakness is actually a strength in disguise…
Guest Blog and story from Alwyn Cosgrove
A young boy who was born without a left arm was sent to Judo lessons by his mother in a bid to help with his confidence. So he began taking lessons with an old Japanese master.
Ever practice session the master taught the boy one throw. Just one technique over and over again.
Every so often the young boy would see the other students learning different techniques and ask the master why he wasn’t learning anything else.
The master always replied – “Just focus on this one throw. Keep practicing”
Several months later, it was the state Judo championships and the old master entered the young boy.
The young boy was terrified.
The first match began and the young boy grabbed his opponent and to the shock of all the spectators – easily flipped him to the ground. Instant win!
The second round was a little harder but the one-armed boy again pulled off the technique – the only technique he knew, and won.
The third and fourth round amazingly went the same way and the young boy found himself in the tournament final facing a much bigger, stronger and tougher opponent, who had won the tournament for three straight years.
The young boy was overmatched it seemed. Te referee and the organizers of the tournament spoke to the master and asked him if he wanted to withdraw his student..
“No” said the master. “We will fight”.
As the final match began the entire crowd were on the edge of their seat. The opponent stepped and grabbed the young one-armed boy and pulled him towards him. For a second it looked as if it was all over…
But then the one armed boy reached with his right hand, stepped in and BOOM – he threw his opponent flat on his back, to win the match!
The crowd went nuts – the one-armed boy was the state Judo Champion!
On the drive home, the young boy asked his teacher – “Was this a set-up? Did they just let me win because I only have one arm? I only know one technique – these guys know hundreds!”
The teacher replied “No – you won fair and square. But there are two reasons. You won because you mastered one of the most devastating techniques in Judo. And the only known way to defend against that throw is to grab the left arm!”
What appeared to be an incredible weakness – was in fact his greatest strength.
You Are A Champion
You Are A Champion
Who am I? I am a CHAMPION.
Wrestling season is underway and you NEED to have a WINNING mindset if you WANT TO WIN.
Another video I got from Alli Mckee’s Blog
BELIEVE you are a CHAMPION and you will BECOME one.
Ask yourself…
How does a CHAMPION Act?
How does a CHAMPION conduct himself in public?
How does a CHAMPION TRAIN?
How does a CHAMPION accept defeat?
What does a CHAMPION think about when he is about to compete?
If you have a BIG enough WHY you will FIGURE OUT the HOW. Ask you self WHY do you WANT TO BE A CHAMPION. If you can answer that question you will figure out all of the answers.(Really think about this one, if you can truly answer this you will be MUCH more successful if you are not sure READ THIS)
ACT AS IF and you will become.
ACT AS IF YOU ARE A CHAMPION AND YOU WILL BECOME ONE!
Quoted from the video above…(From Zach Even Esh’s Blog)
Today gentlemen, I am honored to coach you
More honored to be leading you onto the field of battle
But theres another honor to be bestowed upon you
And that is in the answer that comes with that question:
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Thats right, and you need to remember that all through this game
I will conquer what has not been conquered
Defeat will not be in my creed
I will believe what others have doubted
I will always endeavor to pull esteem, honor, and respect out of my team
I have trained my mind and my body will follow
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
I will acknowledge the fact that my opponent does not expect me to win
But I will never surrender
Weakness will not be in my heart
I will look to my comrades and to those who are a part of me in this world and those who have trained
me
And I will draw strength from them
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
I will gladly go out into the field of battle
And I will move in everything I can do
And I will reach my field of battle by any means at my disposal
And when I get there, I will arrive violently
I will rip the heart from my enemy, and leave it bleeding on the ground
Because he cannot stop me
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
To my side I have comrades, comrades that have been with me through thick and thin
Who have sacrificed their blood, sweat and tears
Never will I let them fall, never will I let them down, and I will never leave an enemy behind
Because our opponent does not know my heart
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
No one will deny me, no one will define me
And no one will tell me who and what I am and can be
Belief will change my world
It has moved continents, it has moved countries, it has put men on the moon
And it will carry me through this battle
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Defeat, retreat: those are not in my words
I dont understand those definitions
I dont understand when things go wrong
I dont understand mistakes
But I do understand this:
I understand victory,
And I understand never surrendering
No matter how bad things go my heart and my mind will carry my body through limits and weakness
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Today will be that day
Not tomorrow, not next week, but right now, right here
In your house and in your homes
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
History will remember me
I will not let worrying affect my cause
I will define myself
I will write my own pages
And no one will tell me what I cannot be
I will never give up
Not until Ive given everything I got
Because who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
Who am I? I AM A CHAMPION!
The Warrior Spirit
The Warrior Spirit
Video from Alli Mckee
I found this video on my fellow fitness professional’s blog last week. Alli Mckee is a strength coach and figure competitor in Maryland. She is a great inspiration to all of those women out there who want to get in shape. She works extremely hard, competes in figure competitions and has amazing results! She certainly practices what she preaches!
This video is perfect since this Monday kicks off high school wrestling season in New York. In wrestling there is only YOU and your opponent. If you LOSE IT’S YOUR FAULT, If you WIN IT’S YOUR FAULT. In wrestling you have no one to blame, but yourself. Wrestling really teaches you to take responsibility for yourself and take control of your training. If you don’t put in the time you are going to get worse and you can’t rely on your teammates to do the work for you.
You need to have the WARRIOR SPIRIT. Wrestling is a FIGHT with RULES. You have to have the mindset to win at all costs in order to excel at this sport. In wrestling you may need to sacrifice many things to get better. You need to be diligent with your diet so you are not over you weight class. If you are over a TENTH of pound you cannot compete in that weight class. For example if you weigh 217.1 you can’t wrestle 215(2 pound allowance). The next weight class up is 285?!? Sometimes you need to train around injuries or skin condition, but wrestler FIND A WAY TO TRAIN NO MATTER WHAT. They need to SACRIFICE during the holidays during November and December EVERY YEAR they compete. Most people wait to January to do this, but for the wrestler this is not an option. The little details matter in wrestling and combat athletes need to always be on their toes and keep up with their strength training, conditioning and diet in order to be successful.
No one said this WAS EASY. Wrestling is one of the HARDEST sports to compete in. It is NOT for everyone, but those who decide to prepare for battle on the mat will surely reap the rewards of training like a WARRIOR. Wrestling build tremendous strength in the body and in the SPIRIT. It has been said that “once your wrestle EVERYTHING ELSE IN LIFE IS EASY.” Wrestling builds character and a tremendous work ethic that can be applied in ALL aspects of life. You want to succeed at your job, your sport, your relationships? Guess what you NEED to put in the TIME and the EFFORT in order to be successful NO MATTER WHAT YOUR GOALS ARE.
If if you aren’t a combat athlete you can TRAIN like one and HAVE THE WARRIOR SPIRIT. If you TRAIN like a WARRIOR you will LIVE like a WARRIOR. If you have the WARRIOR mindset think “How much easier will it be to reach your goals?”
I leave you today with some inspirational quotes from the video above. I recommend you READ ONE A DAY. Don’t just READ IT think about WHAT IS MEANS TO YOU!!!! How can you apply the WARRIOR MINDSET to YOUR LIFE?
Whatever your goal in life have the mindset of a champion and start your journey as a WARRIOR today!
Good LUCK to all of the wrestlers PAST AND PRESENT who have trained here at AFTLI. I KNOW you have what it take to BE A CHAMPION. Remember “It’s not about the six minutes. It’s what happens in those six minutes.”
And REMEMBER THERE IS NO TOMORROW, START TODAY!
“It was a Vision quest. But all I ever settled for was that we were born to live And then to die; we’ve gotta do it alone, Each in his own way. And I guess that’s why we gotta love those people Who deserve it like there’s no tomorrow. Cause when you get right down to it…there isn’t.”
1.“A man who conquers himself is greater than one who conquers a thousand men in battle” – Buddha
2.“Champions aren’t made in gyms, Champions are made from something they have deep inside them; A desire, A dream, A vision.” – Muhammad Ali
3.“Fall down 7 times, get up 8″ – Japanese Proverb
4.“The greatest test of courage on earth is to bear defeat without losing heart”
5.“True strength is not always shown through Victory, stand up, try again and display strength of heart” – Rickson Gracie
6.“Courage is doing what you’re afraid to do. There is no courage unless you’re scared.”
7.“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently” – Henry Ford
8.“The joy of Victory is too short to live for that and nothing else”
9.“Victory is reserved for those who are willing to pay it’s price”
10.“Don’t believe that winning is everything. It’s more important to stand for something. If you don’t stand for something, what do you win?”
11.“Pain is temporary, pride is forever.”
12.“True victory is victory over oneself.”
Educate, Motivate, Dominate
-Coach Gaglione
The LIFT STRONG PROMISE Part 2
The LIFT STRONG PROMISE Part 2
If you missed part 1 you NEED To READ IT HERE!
Here is another story from Alwyn Cosgrove. This story of Alwyn really shows how TRAINING is a great way to learn how to LIVE LIFE. Training “under the bar” has really taught Alwyn how to DEAL with ADVERSITY. Here is another except from a t-nation article that Alwyn was a part of.
“If I were to tell you that you were about to get into a fight with the toughest opponent the world has ever faced, how would you prepare?
You’d probably learn some martial arts, do some combat training, get stronger, faster, better conditioned, hire instructors and formulate a strategy to take on the opponent.
But what if I told you that all the kicks, punches and chokeholds won’t work against this opponent? It’s invisible. Your instructors can’t help you.
That’s the reality of facing cancer.
I bested cancer. Twice. Most people don’t survive the first time. I have no idea why I was given these extra days on this planet, but I treat them like a gift.
Prior to my bone marrow and stem cell transplant I had to undergo a battery of fitness tests. The treatment itself is so brutal, you need a certain level of conditioning before the doctors will even consider doing the treatment. They did heart tests, lung capacity tests, and a ton more.
I passed the tests and entered the “fight” and won. I didn’t think much of it until after being in remission when I met a young girl who was facing the same transplant situation. She said, “Oh wow! You got the transplant — that’s amazing!”
I have to admit that I didn’t feel that amazing.
She went on, “I need to get one but I can’t pass the tests right now. I’m not in good enough shape to survive the procedure right now.”
That’s when I realized the horror of her situation. She, while fighting cancer, needed to improve her fitness, so that she could win.
How does a cancer patient get in shape when he or she is being bombarded with a malignant disease, chemotherapy, drugs, and radiation? It’s an uphill battle for everyone, but cancer patients are starting well behind the starting blocks.
I knew then that I had survived in part because when the disease hit me, I was in condition. I was strong. I had muscle. I had cardio fitness. I had gritted my teeth and grinded out a heavy last rep, or a max effort sprint.
My body could handle whatever the doctors were going to throw at me. Cancer couldn’t.
Because cancer didn’t train the way we train.
I started weight training to improve my martial arts competition skills. Who knew that the lessons learned in the ring, and the qualities developed under the bar would save my life?”
As I have stated in the previous article I have purchased over 100 LIFT STRONG bands to help support cancer research. Many people might ask what I am going to do with 100 bands? The first one I took for myself.
I wear the LIFT STRONG band as a reminder to ALWAYS put 100% effort in life. Whether I am training an athlete, working on a new project, or writing articles, I am always trying to get better every day. The LIFT STRONG wrist band is a constant reminder to always do my best no matter how challenging it may be to do so.
Sometimes when I don’t feel like training I just take a look at my wrist and I remember the LIFT STRONG story and all of the hardships Alwyn had to go through JUST TO LIVE let alone perform better or lift more weight. Alwyn didn’t make any excuses and HE BEAT cancer even when times were tough HE KEPT ON FIGHTING and he won.
As you can see by the picture I make sure I wear my LIFT STRONG wrist band every day. I am proud to have LIFT STRONG wrist band tan line as a result of this. No I am not saying it is just about WEARING it, it is ABOUT LIVING IT. Like I said the LIFT STRONG band is a constant reminder that I should STOP MAKING EXCUSES and FIND A WA TO MAKE IT HAPPEN! It is a constant reminder no matter what obstacles I face in life there is always a way to get around them, go over them or GO THROUGH THEM. There is ALWAYS a WAY to SUCCEED and it is our job to figure out a way to GET IT DONE and BE THE BEST WE CAN BE.
In order to spread the LIFT STRONG message I give a LIFT STRONG band to my athletes and clients who I feel embody the LIFT STRONG philosophy. I tell them the story of Alwyn and how he beat cancer. I tell them NOT to listen to people who say you aren’t good enough. I tell them no matter what, you can ALWAYS FIND A WAY TO WIN. Sometimes it is going to be hard, but you can ALWAYS get BETTER if you work hard and stay committed to your goals. I tell them when they need some motivation to just look at their wrist and remember all of the training they have been through.
My plan is to keep spreading the LIFT STRONG philosophy in order to make the WORLD a better place one band at a time…
Pay it forward and spread the message. And remember don’t just wear the band, LIVE IT! Make the LIFT STRONG Promise and COMMIT to all of your fitness and life goals!
LIFT STRONG to LIVE STRONG
Educate, Motivate, Dominate
-Coach Gaglione
The LIFT Strong Promise….
The LIFT Strong Promise….
Alwyn Cosgrove is a strength coach out in California. He is a cancer survivor who has started an organization called Lift Strong. The organization sells wrist bands, t-shirts and other products to help support cancer research. Once I started working at AFTLI I bought over 100 wrist bands to help support the cause.
If you would like to support the fight against leukemia and lymphoma please click on one of the links above and make a donation.
We all can make a difference in the fight against cancer.
Anyways here is the story of LIFT STRONG and why it got started.
Alwyn Cosgrove has a simple training philosophy. It is to get results by any means necessary. He is an excerpt from an interview Alwyn did on t-nation this past year.
“I think most people just take life for granted. I mean, what would you do if you only had a few more years left? We all think that we have decades of time. But what if you didn’t? What if you don’t make it to retirement age? Would you live differently?
I think being diagnosed with Stage IV cancer and then being in remission is like being told that your life is over, and then being given a second chance. You don’t waste it.
After cancer, you just start to look at everything differently. You savor everything positive. Every conversation with someone is enjoyable. Other little things don’t bother you.
It’s hard to spend any time on anything negative at all, really. I’ve even cut some negative people out because I just don’t want that energy in my life. I just don’t have that kind of room to carry other people’s crap, you know?
I still get regular CT-PET scans. It’s actually a weird feeling when you go for check ups. Part of you knows that you’re okay, but part of you is aware that they aren’t doing scans for no reason. It just reawakens every old emotion inside you.
I’m not sure that these feelings will ever go away. But maybe they’re good to bring up. It reminds you of your spirit and the support you have.
As much as they make me uncomfortable, at the same time I feel grateful for these thoughts. It’s as if they are a gift — a reminder to appreciate everything. That’s a gift that most people don’t have.
It’s been a struggle, but I’m still on the road.
It’s been about 15 months since my relapse/transplant. I’ve done about 215 workouts this year. I still get out of breath going up stairs, and get really tired doing the simplest things. I need about 11-12 hours sleep a night most of the time.
Despite all my training knowledge, resources, and my efforts I’m at about 50% of my strength levels before I got sick. I’m smaller and have less muscle, more fat, less strength, less endurance, and get winded easy. But I’ve come a long way. I have no complaints.
My first workout back (about a month post bone-marrow transplant) I did 20 minutes of walking.
On a treadmill.
At two miles per hour.
And then I vomited.
I also tried to do some push ups. I got 4 before my arms gave out. Last week, though, I did 75 push ups (in sets) as part of my program wearing a 30lb weighted vest. So I’m improving.
Week one I started doing four push ups and four bodyweight squats. I added a rep a day for the first week.
Week two I started with two sets of five of each and added a rep each day. I followed that protocol for the first month and then evolved into an EDT type routine for a while — one where I tried to perform more reps in the same time, and an alternate one where I tried to do the same reps in less time. Then I started back with lifting weights.
I’m probably one of very few coaches to have personally competed at a World Championships, and also been the least conditioned person I’ve ever met (post transplant). I’ve learned a lot from that process.”
Don’t take life for granted. Live each day to the FULLEST.
Find something you are PASSIONATE about and GO FOR IT!
If you have a goal you want to achieve START IT TODAY!
Don’t make EXCUSES, Find a way to GET IT DONE!
You have to BELIEVE before you can ACHIEVE!
It doesn’t matter if the odds are against you or not, the most important thing in life is to give 100% in everything that is important to you. Whether it is fighting cancer, getting your dream job, winning a state title, or benching 400 lbs YOU CAN DO IT!
You have to believe it is going to happen and give it your best effort even when it seems like you are going to FAIL. It isn’t always going to be EASY. In fact sometimes it may seem impossible, but many times “the impossible is often the untried.”
Wayne Gretzky once said “you miss all of the shots you don’t take.”
Stay tuned for the LIFT STRONG promise part 2 next week.
Monday Motivation: The story of Rohan Murphy
Rohan Murphy Finds a Way to Win… at life!
Rohan Murphy lost his legs as a very young child. He lost his legs do to a many birth defects.
Murphy who grew up raised in East Islip. Rohan never let his disability affect him mentally or physically. He was a very good wrestler in high school and even eventually went on to compete at Penn State. Now that he is done he still does powerlifting competitions (bench press) to keep his competitive spirit alive. Murphy personal competition bench record is lifted 350 pounds and his goal is 400.
Murphy tries to spread the message that hard work really does pay off and don’t let any physical or mental limitations hold you back. He really likes going to schools, where he will tell the story of his life.
Just to recap Murphy does all of this WITHOUT legs. He has NO hip joint on one side and HALF a hip joint on the other.
One of his old friends, Dan Rocklein, recalled a time when Murphy beat his teammates in a sprint during conditioning at wrestling practice. Keep in mind he was RUNNING ON HIS HANDS!
“I’ll never forget coach screaming, He’s got NO legs and he BEAT you? Do it again.”
Murphy does not use prosthetics. Instead, he uses his powerful arms to get around.
Murphy is a newly certified as a personal trainer at Gold’s Gym in Islip as well. He is using modified equipment to encourage other amputees or disabled people to work out.
Rohan Murphy can find a way to train and be successful even with no legs. Most of us are very fortunate to have BOTH legs, but often times people find excuses on why we can’t accomplish our goals. Stay positive and committed and YOU WILL find a way to succeed.
Don’t make excuses and find a way to train and be the best you can be.
Train Hard and Smart