Dean
Dean
What do you think of when you think of discipline?
Suffering, pain, restrictions, perfection?
It’s unfortunate that so many of us focus on the negative connotations of discipline. That we think that reaching our health and fitness goals is just one unbearable task after another.
In reality all the successes we have in life are due to the positive aspects of discipline.
Discipline is in reality nothing more than structured training.
That’s what education is.
A system of skills that build on each other. You have to learn to add before you can do algebra. You need to learn your colors before you can draw a rainbow. You crawl before you walk before you run.
I really enjoyed watching this years Olympic Games.
The athletes who reach that level didn’t just show up by accident. They planned, prepared and practiced.
Part of that process was failure. It usually is.
Can you imagine if Usain Bolt decided that since he got beat at the Jamaican trials that he wouldn’t bother going to the Olympics? Instead of folding his tent and going home it pushed him to work harder.
His God given talent wasn’t enough. It rarely is.
The result of his renewed effort is that he earned, he achieved, he made history (and not just as a gold medal braggart :)).
Discipline is about perseverance, not perfection.
Discipline is about planning, not procrastinating.
Discipline is about practice, not just participating.
Have you ever had a bad habit?
How do you break it?
By practicing good habits.
And sometimes it takes many many efforts until you get it right.
Have you ever been frustrated because you are unable to perform an exercise in the gym correctly?
I have, and still am at times.
If you train with us you know that we are very particular about movement patterns, hip hinging for example.
It takes practice, and lot’s of it, to be able to progress from simple hip hinging to explosive movements using that same pattern.
Do you think anyone does it perfectly the first time?
I was practicing my 1-Leg RDL right along with you this morning, and I was thinking to myself how much work I still have to do.
But because I know when I have it right I will move better, be more efficient, and get more out of my training, I practice it.
Do you feel like throwing in the towel when you went on a brownie bender last night – again?
Me too.
But I know that the consequences of giving up are far worse than getting back on the horse and making the next great choice.
You are not perfect, stop pretending you are.
Accept it, but don’t use it as an excuse.
It’s all too easy to look at the guy next to you and think “He’s lucky, He’s a natural” when in reality he has practiced these movements for the past 5 years.
It’s tempting to look at the woman next to you and think “she must have great genetics” when you don’t know that 3 years ago she weighed 75 pounds more than she does now, and it took all of those years to break bad habits and build the good ones.
People don’t just wake up one day and win gold medals, or fit into size 2, and eat properly, and train optimally.
They planned, they practice, and most importantly they persevere.
Nobody is going to hand it to you.
The “luck fairy” isn’t paying you a visit.
You have to be committed to taking action…every day.
You gotta want it.
Badly enough to…
Make It Happen!
Coach Dean
Yeah I am talking to you sweet lips!
Shhh, don’t tell anyone, but here’s the super secret hush hush lowdown on what to do on recovery weeks…
Recover.
You earn your recovery weeks by busting your tail for 8 to 12 weeks of hard training.
Enjoy It.
Our next scheduled recovery week is August 27th through Labor Day. This is not random, haphazard or unnecessary. This is part of the training plan that we put together every year, and it is a vital part of our training program. Recovery weeks are the key to lower injury rates and increased progress. Don’t try to outsmart the system. I can give you the names of people who have unsuccessfully tried, and it’s just not worth it.
To many of you recovery weeks are a new concept, and that’s ok, because we want you to know why we do what we do. Invest a few minutes of your time to understand the “secrets” of recovery weeks and how they make you better.
Part of our mission at Get Fit NH is give you the best training, skills and resources to live your life healthy and to the fullest. We are privileged to have some great allied professionals on our team (click here to see them all). All of our partners are highly skilled professionals that are committed to helping you get and stay healthy.
Our very first partner was Amy Troy and her team at Chichester Massage, who has always done an amazing job helping keeping our clients in the game. It has been fun to watch as our businesses have grown over the years. Amy is and always will be a great friend of our business.
But we (and Amy in her graciousness) realize that not everyone is going to travel out to Chichester, and are more likely to be looking for options a little closer to home. To that end, I am pleased to introduce Christen Scanlon, LMT of Peace & Balance Body Therapies. Christen is right down the road from our Concord location at 214 South Main St.
Christen is Nationally Certified and licensed in the State of NH for both Massage Therapy and Esthetics. She got her start at the renowned Elizabeth Grady salons located primarily in Massachusetts. She went on to work with physical therapists for a year before taking a job at the Omni Mount Washington Resort, where she was able to work with the many athletes drawn to the area by the mountainous terrain.
In late 2009 she moved back to Concord and began working as an independent contractor at Akasha Massage and Bodywork. In 2010 she opened her own business, registering the name Peace & Balance Body Therapies in 2011. While Christen is trained in many different modalities of massage, ranging from that which is intended for relaxation to that which caters to specific injury, she loves working with athletes and individuals who have simply adopted a more healthy lifestyle and are looking to truly take care of their bodies!
Peace & Balance is also pleased to offer all current members of Get Fit NH a discount on massage.
You will receive 25% off of your first visit and 10% off of every visit thereafter.
This is an incredible opportunity to get the body work you know you need at a great price. It would be kind of silly not to take advantage!
Christen’s website at www.peace-balance.com even offers the ability to schedule online (which is super convenient), so head on over and make an appointment today!
Hey guys, here’s a chance to make your voice heard. Let us know which pic is your favorite – voting is open through Thursday August 9th, so get that vote in now!
Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world’s leading questionnaire tool.
Katie was in our S3 contest top 3, and it shows! She reminds us just how much nutrition plays a role in fat loss. Bonus photo – sporting the abs! Keep up the great work, Katie!
“I joined boot camp 7 months ago, and have lost 25 lbs so far – 22 of those pounds since the start of S3 (talk about diet playing a huge role).
I went from a size 10/12 to a size 6/8. In the picture below, the grey pants are a mens 33″ (I had a hard time finding women’s pants that would fit my big thighs!) and the purple shirt is a large.
The jeans are an 8, and the plaid shirt is a small. For the first time in over 10 years, I wore a bikini to the beach and walked around without wearing shorts – I was actually embarrassed by my stark white legs, and not my jiggling fat, haha.” – Katie
Donna, you look great! You have worked hard and earned the right to wear whatever you want. Keep it up, we are just getting started! 🙂
“If not for Get Fit NH and all the things they (Dean and Nancy and all my Get Fit buddies) have taught me about training, nutrition and a can do attitude…this picture would be much different!
First time in 49 years I am wearing a bikini!!!!!!” – Donna K.
Remember Diane’s transformation story? Well the other half of this power couple, husband Steve, sent me his photos too. The other day Steve was sharing the (oh so sad but still challenging) story that had he no longer had a suit to wear for work- Incredible Job!
“Dean, Erin & CJ – I just wanted to say thank you. 52 pounds lost in 9 months. THANKS!” – Steve B.
The Hits Keep Coming!
Congrats to Jen for stepping out of her comfort zone and Making It Happen!
“Hey Dean and Nancy!
I wasn’t going to do the contest because I’ve already gotten rid of most of my bigger clothes. (I’m the anti-pack rat.) But I realized that I did have some progress to show still.
The olive green shirt was my comfort shirt when I first came to Get Fit NH Bootcamp last June. The purple one is my current comfort shirt.
In the 2nd photo, the navy blue shirt is my Army Basic Training PT shirt I got when I graduated…back when I could run an 8-minute mile! I can fit into this one again pretty comfortably now!
But my favorite is my pants photo. The gray pants are the size 14 that I was able to buy after my first two months of Bootcamp, down from an 18!
And the black leggings are the pants I had the courage to buy this spring. Never, ever, ever did I think I could be a leggings girl – but I am now! And my butt looks fabulous in them, thanks to Nancy’s cracking whip!” – Jen Schwab
Wanted to pass this on from our friend and colleague, Dr. Brett Coapland. He and Dr. Peter Larson will be conducting a workshop at NHTI this Saturday August 4th, entitled “Running For Life: Strategies to Help You Stay Healthy, Avoid Injuries and Run Strong.”
If you are a runner (or want to be), take advantage of these two experts dropping some knowledge bombs and setting you up for success.
Topics to be covered include:
By Pete Larson
– Why We Should Run
– Running Injuries: Why They Happen
– Choosing a Running Shoe
– Running Form: Foot Strike and Stride
By Brett Coapland
– Muscle Imbalances: How They Contribute to Injury and Performance
– Strength Training to Improve Running Economy
– Common Running Injuries: What to Do When They Occur
– Recovery Strategies for Optimal Running Performance
Group Activities
– Gait Analysis workshop for 2-3 volunteers via treadmill
– Optional high speed filming of running stride after workshop is over
It’s not often the opportunity rolls around to learn from two world-class experts, so lace the sneaks up and run on down!
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