Dean
Dean
On September 13th and 14th twelve amazing athletes and 2 intrepid coaches representing Get Fit NH are embarking on an odyssey to “Reach The Beach”. (Check out the madness here)
Coach Megan has been working like crazy to organize the team of 12 (not to mention getting me in line) for the 205+ mile adventure that starts at Cannon Mountain and ends up at Hampton Beach the next day.
But this group was not content to let the opportunity to help others go unnoticed, and adopted the team name “Beach Bound for Boston” shortly after the marathon bombing.
Here’s what team member (and RTB instigator) Mae Lynn has to say:
“All Americans took the horrible event at the Boston Marathon in April personally. But as runners, we took it especially hard to see our sport attacked at the most famous and most revered race there is, at the very spot many of us have dreamed of finding ourselves someday.
Like everyone else, we felt helpless and wanted to do something for those whose lives were forever changed that day. When we came together to plan for the Reach the Beach Relay shortly after the bombing, it was obvious what that something should be. We would do what runners do. We would run. We would be Beach Bound for Boston.”
The One Fund has raised more than $60M from people just like you for the victims and families of the bombings, but many still have a long road ahead. If you would like to donate directly to The One Fund, please click here
We are on a recovery week from regular training next week, but that doesn’t mean we have to let ourselves be lay(or is it lie?)-on-the-couch-do-nothing slobs.
In fact my suggestion is that you take the time you would normally be training and focus it on other productive activities that will help you reach your goals faster.
For you early morning exercisers, that might mean sleeping in another hour, and then taking the time to prepare and eat a nice breakfast.
For those who train later, taking the time to plan out your menu and shopping for the next week would be a fantastic way to spend an hour, especially if you struggle with doing this on a regular basis.
Get out and take a walk, hike a mountain, take a bike ride, or get on the water. Give your body a break. You will not lose muscle, gain fat (unless you eat like a horse) and get weaker in a week.
Just stay out of the gym already!
I take training weeks off, Nancy takes training weeks off. We feel better, get recharged and are ready to hit it hard when we get back. Seriously why are we even having this discussion again! 🙂
As a reminder this years Labor Day Sweat-A-Thon is a fundraiser for our friend Dustin Williams in his effort to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis foundation. So come on out and let’s sweat for CF!
Recovery Week: August 26th-September 1st
Labor Day Sweat-A-Thon for CF
Date: Labor Day, September 2, 2013
Time: 9:00am to 10:30am
Place: Get Fit NH Concord
Suggested Donation: $10.00
The weather has been gorgeous, and Coach Meagan has been working on quite a lineup of activities for late summer and early fall!
It all starts with the Reach the Beach Relay on September 13-14. Get Fit NH has a team of 12 adventurous athletes running 200 miles from the mountains to the ocean. Should be incredible!
For all you cyclists don’t miss the annual Pedaling for Payson bike ride to benefit the Concord Hospital Payson Center for Cancer Care and the Gene Gillis fund. You can choose a 16, 30, 51 or 77 mile ride, so no matter what level of rider you may be you can participate and have a great time for a great cause. Click Here To Register.
On September 21 Coaches Meagan and Erin are headed with a crew up to Killington Vt. for the Vermont Spartan Sprint. The Spartan was the first adventure race that Nancy and I ever did, and I highly recommend it for first timers. It is a blast! Click here to register – 10:00am wave if you can
A little bit closer to home is The Color Run, being held September 28th at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Those who did The Color Vibe back in May had a fantastic time, and this is sure to be no different. Check out all the action and register for the fun by clicking here.
The adventure continues with a foray down to Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA for a new event – The Electric Run – on October 5th, 2013. This is on a Friday night, and it is like nothing I have ever seen before. Looks like a big party, so check it out here.
New Hampshire Motor Speedway is once again the host the Renegade Playground Challenge on October 12. This is also a great race for beginners, so don’t be shy! Our Team Name is GET FIT NH, and you can get special pricing with promo code GETFITNH. I’d like to see us come out in force for this one. We are getting as many people into the 9:00am wave as possible, so click here to get as close to that time as you can.
Once you register please let Coach Meagan know so we can join up with you. If you have questions, or to let her know you signed up, please get in touch with Coach Meagan at meagan@getfitnh.com
We are over halfway home in our 30 Challenges in 30 Days, so don’t stop now.
Yes, I am calling you out. Yeah, you with the twinkie in your hand. Put it down!
Starting is important, but finishing what you started pays dividends in your mind, body and spirit. Quitting before you are done is draining and demoralizing, I’ve been there. Taking action every single day is key to reaching your goals, small and big.
You are worth seeing this through to the end, so Plan, Prepare, and Win!
30 Challenges in 30 Days 22-30
Day 22: Eat Veggies at your first meal – yes breakfast!
Day 23: Have your recovery drink before leaving Get Fit NH (or right after other strength training)
Day 24: Eat only raw vegetables today
Day 25: No Caffeine today. – (big culprits: coffee and chocolate)
Day 26: Eat 2 cups of vegetables at any one meal (salad doesn’t count)
Day 27: Replace your bread/pasta/rice with a vegetable at dinner
Day 28: Make a salad a main course for lunch or dinner today.
Day 29: Eat lean protein and a veggie anytime you eat today
Day 30: Not eat any added sugar foods – check each label carefully. Click here for sneaky sugar names
You can do it, there is no doubt.
Dig deep and Make It Happen!
If you have been around Get Fit NH for any length of time you know that we are a proud supporter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Many in our Get Fit family have been affected by CF in some way, and we are happy to support the efforts to find a cure for this disease.
That made it a real no brainer when my friend and fellow coach Dustin Williams from Precision Fitness in Bentonville AK asked us if we would help him with a fundraiser he is spearheading. It is amazing what can be done when we all work together!
Dustin sent me this note from a friend of his that really hits hard about living and fighting this debilitating disease.
“As an adult with cystic fibrosis, it does change your life. But if you stay vigilant, as healthy as can be, and check in with your doctors and pulmonologists on a regular basis, you can live a some-what normal life. I was diagnosed with “CF” when I was 3 years old. I have been taking 5-7 pills every single time I eat, since than. On average, I am hospitalized once per year due to a severe cold, pneumonia or some other kind of lung infection. Daily, I do nebulizer treatments, work out and eat A LOT. I am 25 years old now and still fighting this disease. Between my wife, who is a huge support system for me, my job and family… I plan on living as long as possible and over-coming this disease, thanks to everyone who donates their time in volunteering, to find a cure. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Sincerely, Austin L. Reed”
We are going to do our part to help Dustin and Austin on by holding a “Working for CF Cure” fundraiser this Labor Day, September 2nd from 9:00am to 10:30am at Get Fit NH Concord. This will be the only training we do that day, so get on in here, get in a training session and help us support this worthy and important cause!
Working For The CF Cure
Date: Labor Day, September 2, 2013
Time: 9:00am to 10:30am
Place: Get Fit NH Concord
Suggested Donation: $10.00
Let’s all Make It Happen for CF!
You ever hear that from mom when you were a kid?
“Stop picking at it Dean, it will never get better!”
It’s not only that it’s kinda gross, but my mom cared that whatever cut, slice or scrape I happened to have at that moment got better.
So what does that have to do with training?
Well actually it has everything to do with the next recovery week we have coming up in a couple weeks, the week of August 26th.
As we have explained before (Minimum Effective Dose, Recovery Is Where The Magic Happen, I Hate Recovery Weeks) it is not the training that gets you better, it is training + recovery that causes us to lose fat, build muscle and look and feel better.
And that’s where the scab analogy comes in.
Recovery = Healing.
Just like you wouldn’t keep picking at a scab and expect quick healing, you can’t keep training a tired body and expect it to get better either.
You must let it heal.
There are a lot of things that help our body heal better from training.
Evidence and experience tells us that complete recovery weeks are a huge part of recovery, healing, and just plain getting better!
In fact the hardest part of most recovery weeks is between your ears. You will not “de-train”, get fat, lose muscle and turn into a couch potato in a week, so just stop picking the scab!
Recovery Week Schedule and Upcoming Dates to Remember
Recovery Week: August 26th – September 1st.
Labor Day, September 2nd: Working for the Cure for Cystic Fibrosis Fundraiser at Get Fit NH Concord
It has been really cool to see how fantastic all of you are doing on this challenge. Some days are easier than others, but all of them are going to contribute in your efforts to lose fat, gain muscle, and feel great!
Don’t Skip Any!
Here is an additional challenge. Don’t think of these things as a one time shot, keep doing them, over and over, until they become habit.
I was reading a book by one of my mentors, Martin Rooney, called “Training to Win”. In it Coach Rooney was expounding on the power of habit. He wrote that studies show that 90% of what we do on a daily basis is done out of habit.
90%!
Now that could be a good thing and could be a bad thing.
For instance 15 years ago it was my habit to:
You know back then I thought it was normal for me to be drinking Pepto-Bismol every day. I am NOT kidding, you can ask Nancy.
These things were my “go to”. I did them every day because, well, that’s what I did. It was pure habit.
And what did that habit get me?
The good news is that I didn’t have to be stuck with those habits for the rest of my life, and Neither Do You!
Be A Creator!
But I want you to stop thinking that you have to “break bad habits”.
Instead I want you to think about creating new ones.
You see when we focus on what we “shouldn’t” be doing we dig in, we get stubborn, we go negative and we set ourselves up for failure.
This is one of the reasons the 30 Day Challenge has mostly “Do’s” and very few “Do Not’s”.
Human beings were created to be creative. So start creating new habits.
For instance when you start eating 20-30 grams of lean protein at each meal and adding healthy fats into your diet, you are creating an environment where:
When you do this all the time, when it becomes habit, you will most likely find that:
And all this happened pretty much “automagically” because you were a creator and replaced habits. It largely takes the ever elusive “willpower” out of the equation because now this new habit is something that is as part of your nature as turning off the TV and going to bed early enough to get enough sleep. (You are doing that, right) 🙂
More than anything else this is the “secret” to my successfully losing bodyfat and keeping it off for years. I have no more willpower than the average bear. But I do have some pretty good habits.
So let’s get back to the challenge.
Don’t forget to keep checking in on our Facebook Page to let us know how you are doing. Be encouraged by all the people who are creating new habits, one by one, day by day.
Make it Happen!
30 Challenges in 30 Days 15-21
Day 15. No alcohol today.
Day 16. Eat fish for a main dish.
Day 17. No bread or baked goods today.
Day 18. Try a veggie you never had before. Artichoke, Kale, Brussel Sprouts? Just go for it!
Day 19. Replace any fruit/fruit juice with a veggie.
Day 20. Eat 5 colors at one meal. No Jonathan Kovar, Skittles do not count.
Day 21. Stop eating at 7:30 or two hours before bed.
Nadine Jennings was kind enough to offer us with a huge supply of amazing tea from her and husband Peter’s Cafe’ – “Baked” – during this years Sizzlin’ Summer Slimdown. Her background in all things tea was eye-opening! My favorite is Cucumber Mojito, but she has literally dozens of varieties.
Since so many of you had the chance to try them, and enjoy them, we have decided to stock some of their most popular flavors as well as their incredible gourmet coffee at Get Fit Concord. Epsom-ites please don’t feel left out, because I will be glad to deliver your order straight to Epsom anytime you need me to.
I love me a good cup of coffee and tea, and I know many of you do as well. We will be stocking 12oz. bags of coffee, as well as Tea Tins and singles.
Enjoy!
Tea Tins: 20 Bags – $10
Tea Singles: $0.75 each
Gourmet Coffee: 12oz. – $10
As promised the signup for the “Performance Project” is here, but I need you to do me a big favor.
ONLY signup for this go around if you are 100% sure you can be there ready to rock. Our plan is to make this a regular event, and I assure you we will get you in on it. Please don’t signup and then not show, as that steals a spot one of your team could have taken.
I also promise you will not go into this blind, but have the opportunity to review the specific assessments and performance standards ahead of time.
Don’t wait until the last minute to sign, because we absolutely are cutting off at 40 of the Get Fit NH team.
Make It Happen!
Place: Get Fit NH Concord
Date: Saturday August 17th
Time: 8:00am to 10:00am
Agenda: Pure Awesomeness!
Ok guys, by the time you read this you should be three or four days into the 30 day challenge.
Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page here for daily updates and to tell us how you are doing.
By the way, how are you doing so far?
In order to prepare you for next week, check out the challenges for days 8 through 14, and prepare to win!
30 Challenges in 30 Days, 8 – 14
Day 8- No artificial sweeteners in your drinks. What did you drink instead?
Day 9- Eat healthy fats, fish oil, avocado etc.
Day 10- Take A Multivitamin. We recommend a good whole vitamin like Prograde VGF 25+ (Click Here for Details) but start anywhere
Day 11- Log your food for the day. Did you do it? Find it helpful?
Day 12- No cheese of any kind today, just because! What did you eat instead?
Day 13- Post a recipe to our Facebook page here: http://facebook.com/getfitnh, or in the comment section of this post if you are not on Facebook.
Day 14- Plan one weeks menu. Tell us how this will help you eat better during week 3.
Make It Happen!
You must be logged in to post a comment.