Got to Start Where You Are

Great day! here's the run down: ballistic warmup, sprint warm up, ran 3 miles with weighted vest, rest, ran 2 miles without vest, walked half mile with a buddy, core, and stretch. Also got to pick on some cheer girls and a couple of ladies that really did work out hard! I love life, now.

Since this is my first week blogging about all this some may think that this is a normal workout week for old Coach N. Truth is that I have had to build up to this pace. In fact, my plans are to work even harder and build up to another level of training. Just a few months ago I was walking the distances not running. Little by little I keep starting where I am physically and pushing to where I want to be.

Today a good friend of mine named Brian, who has been walking, was at the track at the same time as me. He is doing great! He has built up a great pace. A couple of times he has mentioned that he might not could run with me, but he is moving that way. I saw him stretch out and run for a lap or two today. It's cool cause we are not comparing ourselves to one another we know where we are and push from there.

Reminds me a little of a man that Jesus healed. Actually, Jesus cast out a whole lot of demons from him. Talk about a radical cleansing! When Jesus was leaving that area the dude wanted to go with him. But Jesus said, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you." (Mark 5:19). Yes, you read that right - go back to where you are start there and let them know all that Jesus has done for you.

Don't compare your results to someone else's. 

You can never be another person, you can only be a better version of yourself.

Reverse Direction

Whoa! Today was turned totally around, and it was cool. More on that in a minute. Here's the run down friends: ballistics warm up, 2 mile run, stairs jazzed up to 15 sets, surprised body with sprints, dash "burpies", and core to stretch. Also, got to chat with a cool dude about veggie juicing.

Now, here's for the reverse direction. Life happened today! Morning appointments, afternoon mentoring season, and planted the garden. I had planned on going to the track this afternoon but everything today started to take too long. As the time opened for me to head to run I found as many excuses as there are ants in my garden. In fact, I almost did not go at all.

The track kept calling and finally I surrendered. There came a point that the reverse of the day began to remind me of a great reverse of direction that we all called to in our life. This reversal calls us initially for our salvation. Then as life happens we find ourselves in need of more reversals. These make themselves available to us in times when we make the wrong choices in life. We have to humble our selves, stop making excuses and make the reversal back into a grace relationship with Jesus. I sure am glad this reversal keeps calling us.

Acts 17: 20 "Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,"

Revelation 2:5 "Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place--unless you repent."

The difference between who you ARE and who you WANT TO BE is the work you put in.

 

Rest & Recovery Day

Hello Campers, today is a scheduled day of rest and recovery. Our bodies need to rebuild after pounding on them so hard for a couple of days. Today is built in to build up day. Yup, deliberate rest does a body good.

Since beginning my workouts I've come to enjoy this day. At first I love it because I didn't have to push so hard and keep training. Now, when R&R day comes I actually miss the running, steps, and sweat. But I've discovered that I can actually see greater amounts of improvements and productivity after today.

Makes you wonder if that is why God built in a rest and recovery day in every week for us called the Sabbath. On the Sabbath we can rest, reflect, recover, and refocus on Him. It helps u
s to rebuild, reboot, and recover. So the Sabbath was made for man after all. How about that?

Mark 2:27  Then he said to them, The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

Nobody who ever gave his best regretted it. - George Halas

Running With Weighted Vest

Okay Campers today was fun at the track. Spent time doing interval work. I use these to gain speed and a little endurance. Here's the walk through - ballistic warm up, ran 800 meters to get loose, then jog 300 meters with a sprint for the final 100 meter (repeat this for two miles), stadium bleacher runs x 9, stairs x 6, and then sprint work in segments of 30 yards to 40 yards. Finishing up with core workout and great slow stretch.

One thing I didn't mention is that this was all done with a weighted vest of 20 pounds. It does slow you down but today is not about today it is about getting stronger for tomorrow. Training with this vest has improved my endurance, skills, and times. Plus it is a great mental challenge.

There are times to train with the weight and then there are times to take it off and run. Life, especially our faith life mirrors this to some degree. We need to be training our faith. Every day exercising on purpose our faith in order to get stronger for days ahead. Use the small weights and use the small sprints to help you prepare for the long haul.
   
Hebrews 12: 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.

We do not quit playing because we grow old, we grow old because we quit playing.-
Oliver Wendell Holmes

Get Moving & Go Places

Hebrews 11:8 is my new life verse. I've shortened it down for you a bit and I hope you see the little humor in it. It was by faith that Abraham obeyed...He went without knowing where he was going. 

I love that last part - He went without knowing where he was going. There is something powerful about a man that is willing to launch out when God says launch and he has no idea where he will wind up. All he knows is that Father says hit the track so he hits the track! No discussions, no committee meetings, he doesn't have to have it all figured out - he just hits the track.

Today, was one of those days to hit the track. I took two days off to recover from a brutal workout Friday. (yea, I know yesterday was long - preached 3 times and did a wedding - but no running). I had no idea what I was going to do today - kind of like Abraham.

I knew I would warm up. Ballistics, light stretch, small sprints and chugged some water. Hit the timer and off for the first mile. The day on the track held me to 3 miles. Then it was time for stadium stairs and bleacher work.  My son Carson talked me into adding a jump-hop for the last two sets of stairs a couple of days ago so I put that in.

After some time to recover I added in 4 sets of gassers. I've asked our middle school football athletes to do this so I thought, "Let's see if the Old Coach can do it." I survived. Then onto my core work and stretches to finish up. All in all a good way to begin the week.

Cool thing today was that I got to see some friends who have begun working too. I am so proud of them! They are pushing themselves and really worked hard. The coolest thing to me is that they could have been on the couch or simply doing nothing. But they were out there - kicking it hard - pushing themselves. 

I bet there were times that Abraham wanted to give up. I bet he started some weeks having no idea what all he would get into or who he'd run into. This one thing we know he did not stop! He kept pushing no matter how hard life got, no matter the set backs, no matter the heat. 

Get after it my friends!

It does not matter how many times you get knocked down, but how many times you get up. -Vince Lombardi