today

Today is where you are.
Today is where you begin anew.
Today is a good day!

I am a human. Yes.
I am a woman. Yes.
I am a CrossFitter. Yes.

CrossFit is all about today. 
It's not 'just' about staying fit and get fitter.
It teaches us that every day is new.
It teaches us that every day is an opportunity to be kind to ourselves by either pushing ourselves beyond where we thought we could go or to be kind to ourselves by modifying a workout to get the most out of what we have today.
It teaches us about who we are through mental strength as well as physical strength.
It teaches us that because every day and every workout is different, we can only do the best we can today.
It teaches us that if we fail today, we can start anew tomorrow.
It teaches us to think about a plan in order to achieve more.
It teaches us to believe in own abilities.
It teaches us to just keep moving forward.

You were an athlete.
You were more active.
You were lighter.
Those are all *so what*s.

Today is where you are.
You have sore shoulders.
You have tight calves.
You have wonky knees.
You broke a bone.
You have a disease.
You have recovery time from surgery.
You have nerve damage from a surgery.
Those are also *so what*s.

We are all the same in that we all have something 'off-kilter' that could be a life blocker or a crutch. The difference is what a person does with those things. 
CrossFit teaches you that nothing has to stop you.
If you pay attention, CrossFit teaches you to pay closer attention to yourself. 
Today is the day on which you base your efforts, whether they be rest, modifications, or all-out effort.  That's it.
It's that simple.
It's also that deep. 
The depths of how CrossFit's lessons permeate the rest of your life is both surprising and profound.
The confidence to get through anything is what's profound. 


Today is where you are.
Today is where you being anew.
Today is a good day!

who would you be?

The Five People You Meet In Heaven
               ~~Mitch Albom~~

I read this long ago and consistently find my mind wandering to its concept. There have been many people who've come in and out of my life, exponentially so since I began CrossFit. That's one of the many perks of CrossFit for which I am grateful. The community of CF is talked about all the time and to those on the 'outside' it may seem phony. To those of us on the 'inside' it's powerfully true. The community is as diverse as the numbers of people in it. By diverse I'm referring to energies.  As with any group, not all energies are rosy and gentle, but the mix of everyone is important. I know I wouldn't be who or where I am now without meeting many of the people I have met through CrossFit.

Sometimes the 'why' of an energy in my life, rosy or blue, is a mystery, but begrudgingly eventually I'll take the time to dig because I'll want to find a balanced place for it within me. Some require heavy work, some just a quick look then a nod of "thank you".

Seconds change minutes that change days that change life directions.
The second I met my husband opened up a life that led to four more amazing people in my life...our daughters.
The second I was encouraged to try CrossFit opened up a life that has me living with my eyes wide open, not just in a foggy haze of growing old.

If you haven't read Albom's quick, interesting book, I recommend it.
If you have, then do you, also, ever think about:
Who would you be if you had never met __________?
Where would you be if you had never met ___________?

 

your yin/yang

Never underestimate the power of stillness. 
Never underestimate the power of quietness.
Never underestimate the power of being alone.

The boisterous, fun, joyous energy experienced at CrossFit Beacon is beyond wonderful.
There is a consistency to the movement and flow that surrounds me at Beacon.
I love being challenged to become a better coach and athlete. What I learn for my job helps me to continue to grow as a person. It's a part of my life I've allowed to evolve. I never imagined.

Having the balance of stillness, quietness and alone time when I'm away from the gym is beyond important, it's necessary. 
It allows the best and worst of every experience to bubble up, to be seen and felt. 
Absorb, listen, feel. Don't shy away from it.  Embrace it.

Never underestimate the need for balance.
Never underestimate the need to be alone.
Never underestimate your yin/yang.

the little things

I bought a few oranges today.
Nothing earth shattering, I know.

 I just felt like having a drink...basically a screwdriver with a little soda water.  But we don't keep orange juice in the house, hence the purchase of a few oranges.


fresh orange juice
plenty of vodka

As I was juicing my oranges a sudden and breathstopping awareness overcame me.
Today is January 5th.
My father crossed over on January 5th, 2005.
January 5th.
Leonard was well into his 88th year.
He died from a massive heart attack which occurred while he was in the process of juicing oranges for his wife's breakfast. In their later years, Leonard juiced fresh oranges for Jane every morning.
He left earth in the middle of a gesture of love. 



Celebrating 50 years of marriage

In the photo ----> , Len and Jane were renewing their vows in the presence of their 6 grown children.  Slight alterations to their clothes, but the same hearts showed up. The same ones present when Len asked Jane to marry him three days after they met.  Their marriage wasn't perfect, but they loved each other and that was enough for them to work hard together and keep loving each other.  They were together for 60 years.

By this picture, my mother had already begun her slide into Alzheimers, but Dad just kept loving her and kept juicing fresh oranges for her every morning. 

It's the little things we do for each other that speak the loudest and mean the most.

On this January 5th, with my vodka laced, freshly juiced oranges I say CHEERS to the most wonderful father who taught me, by example, how to love.



I've never been very serious. Dad didn't mind.
Not sure about my girls. :)



Leonard W. Swett
4/1916-1/2005
 



I can't escape those squinty eyes
and I'm okay with that!







you choose

Today, the Sunday before Thanksgiving, a friend posted on FB, "Do I have to have to wait until Thursday to be thankful?"  She was being cheeky.  But her message was true.  No one need wait to be told to be thankful, truly thankful.  It's your choice.

Life is on the move...flowing forward...yin/yang-ish all the time.
My dad would say, "You're always faced with at least two choices. Make the best out of whichever one you choose."  True. Give yourself chances to explore the results of your choice.  Be aware that you can continue to choose again.  I like to add two words to a choice: "...for now."
Those words remind me that nothing is permanent unless you make it so. If it's a choice that works, that's pretty powerful for your energy.  If not, then keep on moving toward another choice!

Thanksgiving is bigger than just one day.
I'm not waiting to be thankful.  I'd burst!!  :)

**just for fun:  ~~I'm pink~~
http://www.quotev.com/quiz/1366538/What-is-Your-True-Color-Aura/

bruises

We all bruise. 
Physically.
Emotionally.

Learn to read your bruises.
They're honest reminders to moments in life.
Well, most of them are. Some are a little trickier to read.  The emotional bruises of the heart fall into that category.  These, however, often manifest themselves with physical visuals: tear stained cheeks; red puffy eyes; forlorn looks.

If you find yourself getting bruised in exactly the same way over and over again, then STOP doing/acting/searching in the same manner!

Change up your outlook/your behavior/your attitude/your assumptions that the world around you owes you anything.  Your own willingness to work at all parts of your life will garner results that meet your efforts.  The bruising may still come, but hopefully in new ways and places. That indicates you've changed something.  That's good.

Learn to read your bruises.
In CrossFit, we bruise. It's a great way to see your technique, your successes, your failures. (Did you really think these mutterings would not turn to CrossFit? :) ) Bruises quietly coach you as you stare at them in the mirror to assess their meaning.
Bruises on my clavicles tell me the catch of my clean is solid.  Any lower and I wasn't getting under the bar low enough. 
Bruises just over my knees tell me I'm not opening up fully before getting under the bar. Wrong place to bruise...too low.
Reading these helps me to change, to work on my technique, so I'll have better results.  Being a visual person, I call up the visual of the bruises to help me as I work on my lifts.

Learn to read your bruises.
They're honest visual reminders to moments in life.
Be willing to change your outlook/your behavior/your attitude/your assumptions that the world around you owes you anything without you putting in some effort.

The bruise on my hip?
Damn table jumped right out in front of me!  
No? Okay, read: I need to stop hurrying out the door. 
damn.

cliff diving

I've been doing a lot of 'cliff diving' lately.
I've also been inspired by seeing some people around me do some 'cliff diving' of their own. 
You know that kind of diving...standing on the edge of challenges, both physical and energetic in nature, mustering up the motivation to take the plunge into self-growth.
Sometimes I just want to stomp my foot, pull the 'pout', and demand that the challenges alter for me instead of me having to alter for them.  Too bad that's not possible!  Womp womp.....

Reality is that I'm thankful for the moments I'm forced to the edge.
I'm thankful for being privy to other peoples' edges.
The edge is the place to be in order to keep feeling truly alive. 
The edge clarifies what's important.
The edge pushes against stagnancy.
The edge is just another opportunity.

There is no denying that CrossFit has shaped the "older" me.
Because CrossFit creates a new 'edge' every day, it's taught me to live a bolder life than I ever thought I would, both physically and energetically.  It's taught me to feel "comfortable being uncomfortable".  This also means, of course, that I'm always aware when I am trying to shore up that edge so I don't have to take the dive into the challenge....enter the foot stomp and subsequent 'pout'. 

There's no hiding from oneself unless you believe in giving up.  And there is no giving up in CrossFit.  You see that damn workout through.  You may dial yourself back a little, you may take a little longer to reach your edge, but if you want the most out of your workout/your life, you continue to muster the motivation to see each challenge through.  Face it down and you have added strength to be open to the next challenge.  Teeter on the edge of it and you're forever stuck in that frustrating place of feeling 'safe' but incomplete. 

Watching others dive off a cliff is a great reminder that some dives are graceful and some are belly flops, but they have mustered the motivation to take the dive.  I may stomp and pout once in a while, but all that does is make the edge crumble so I am forced off the cliff!  Whether a "10" or belly flop, the important thing is to take the dive to feel complete.