Thursday Thought...

DS...pushin weight!

A question we should all ask ourselves...

Know what it is to have PASSION? It's this: "Before you can inspire with emotion, you must be swamped with it yourself. Before you can move their tears, your own must flow. To convince them, you must yourself believe." -Winston Churchill

What moves YOU?

Now what is your answer???

P.T.S.!

Be Unstoppable with these 3 Simple Steps of LeaderShip



A couple of NBL's...Natural Born Leaders

Leadership expert John Maxwell told SUCCESS Magazine in April 2009, "Ego and insecurity are the two greatest land mines of leadership. Ego creeps in when you start not to value other people—when you begin to look at people as what can they do for you instead of what you can do for them." He says there are three characteristics needed to become a successful leader.

1. Build consensus. Abraham Lincoln was great at bringing together the people around him to help make up for his weaknesses. "The fallacy of leadership is thinking if you can lead in one area, you can lead in all areas," Maxwell says. Value the opinion of others before making a decision.

2. Practice humility. Instead of talking about their own accomplishments, leaders look to give the team the credit.

3. Take risks. Leaders are not afraid to step out and say this is what needs to be done. Winston Churchill, for example, stood alone against Parliament in his opposition to Nazism. "Churchill had the courage to do what he felt was right even in the midst of severe opposition," Maxwell says.

(Courtesy of Success Magazine)

Here is Recco's same 3 characteristics and how they apply to YOU and your wellness:

1. Build consensus. As human beings we all have a desire for fellowship. That is why church's are so powerful and everywhere you go. The same goes for CrossFit. The community CrossFit brings is so powerful to get people not only doing FITness but doing it well and beyond what they think is possible.  Your inner circle (Positive friends, family, co-workers) is the key to helping support and hold you accountable to reach all of your goals. You are never going to be 'ON' 100% of the time. When you are not on, most times your inner circle is and will help spring board you right back into Action! Use them as needed. And in turn you will do the same for your inner circle. 

2. Practice humility: Think about it. Or better yet "Flip the Script". We someone is going on and on about themselves and it seems like they are never going to stop, at what point do you tune out. Nobody wants to hear about how great they are doing all the time. The most powerful form of credibility is "up-selling" someone else. Practice edifying someone else. You will quickly see how many more people start respecting you. 

3. Take risks. Courage is impossible without fear. You can be at 2 stages in life and 2 stages only. Comfortable, living in mediocrity and eventually that will turn into unhappiness and never being fulfilled. The other stage is Uncomfortable. Being uncomfortable will result in constant changing and growing within you. You are either growing or dying. What side of the fence are you on???

P.T.S.!

Be YOU, Be the Truth

REAL men carry their nieces diaper bags in public

Bruce Lee is not only very well known for what he did, but also what he has said. I watched this clip and thought about his words in terms of CrossFit. 




What if you considered exercise and fitness as a physical expression of yourself? 

What if your workouts were truly a representation of you? 

I think some of us FEAR our workouts are indeed a representation of us.  We become self-conscious of what others will think.  We become motivated by less than productive and less than truly authentic expressions of just who we are.  We cheat, we fudge, we don't listen, we become forgetful, we don't try too hard for fear of losing, we try not to stick out, we judge ourselves, we assume others judge us.  We think our score is somehow a negative statement on our worth. 

Is all of that who you really are? 

What if every workout you did was truly you, with no meaning, no judgment, just expression? 

What are the possibilities that could show up for you, if you came to each workout as a blank slate and open book, ready to be shaped, like water.

(Courtesy of Becca at CrossFit LA)

Mental WOD for the Week: Play to Your Strengths...Find out How

Logan shows you what to do when you run out of rowers:-0

Growing up a lot of different people (parents, teachers, coaches, mentors) would tell me to play to my strengths. Well what if I didn't know what my strengths were?

So lets input our 1st Mental WOD for this week. To help uncover YOUR STRENGTHS you need to identify your best traits and weaknesses. Take a blank sheet of paper and draw a line down the middle. Label one side "Love it!" and the other side "Loathe it!"

During a this week, carry this paper around with you and separate your activities into the two categories.

In the love column are things you look forward to doing, tasks that seem to make the time fly by or activities that make you feel fulfilled after you've completed them. Tasks that are difficult to concentrate on and things you hope you never have to do again belong in the loathe column.
At the end of the week, you'll have a clear picture of your strengths and where your passion lies. Specifically identifying the activities that strengthen you will help you purposely gravitate toward them, as well as help you neutralize the ones you hate. You'll be able to avoid some of the activities that weaken you. For those you can't, by having your week so filled with activities that invigorate you, you'll have the strength to power through those activities that drain you.

At the end of the week send me the pic of all your love's and loathes.

Check where this idea come from.

Early in his life, Marcus Buckingham was fortunate to discover one of his strengths—that he is energized by people who are good at what they do. He developed that strength into a career, during the course of which he has interviewed tens of  thousands of successful people. His interviews have led him to write books that have sold millions, to speak before untold numbers of people and to share the stage with dignitaries, visionaries and world leaders. He now works through his company to help others discover and develop their unique strengths and abilities.

Feeling a bit anxious, the 12-year-old boy took his place in front of the audience. Students at his school in England participated in the daily assembly programs and, like some cruel joke, he was picked to read a passage. Looking around, he saw a multitude of eyes—all focused on him. As he opened his mouth to speak, a curious thing happened. His words flowed perfectly, and he completed his reading flawlessly. Never before had Marcus Buckingham been able to communicate well. Since he’d learned  to speak, he stammered so badly that people could hardly understand him. He endured psychologists and therapists but, while he knew much about what was wrong, not until that day in the assembly did he have a clue how to fix it.

"I realized right at that moment an odd thing,” Buckingham says. “I’m strengthened by having eyes on me, and the more eyes the better.” While many people tend to close up when speaking in public, he discovered just the opposite was true for him. His mind seemed to work better and faster when many eyes were upon him. So he began to pretend. When he was talking to one person, he would pretend that he was in front of 10,000. And after several months, the stammer went away.

Buckingham’s discovery at 12, that he could use something that strengthened him to navigate around a weakness, marked the rudimentary beginning of his life’s work. Although it would take him a number of years to articulate his philosophy and several career moves to fully develop and refine his message, his success in conquering his stammer by using a deliberate mind game served as his first stepping stone. “Now I speak for a living!” he says. “How ridiculous is that?”

Buckingham’s father and grandfather worked in human resources, and both helped nurture his interest. His father worked for Allied Breweries, which owned 7,000 pubs at the time. His father’s quest for ways to select better pub managers led him to an American company, the Gallup Organization, in 1983. 
                 

Read the rest of the article HERE

Tricky at Its Finest

Have you ever moved your alarm clock to the other side of the room so it would FORCE you to get up earlier than you want to in the morning?

How about wearing your workout clothes instead of  your pajamas so it would be easier to go to the gym?

What about putting a rower in a front of the TV...ahhhh maybe that's just my wife:-)

It is just as easy to trick ourselves into doing something as it is to trick ourselves out of doing something.

Some of the best and most successful people set up 'tricks' for themselves. They out-think themselves because they already know in advance how they are going to feel in the future so they trick themselves. It creates behavior that results in doing it rather than wanting it.

We all know what we need to do that is GOOD for us. So why not do it in advance to MAKE ourselves DO IT?!

What are some of the best ways you have tricked yourself???

Wake Up Call...

How serious do you take your goats?

As the Open WODs are wrapping up for the workout #1 I am reflecting on how the excitement of the games creates that urgency to prepare yourself.

So it's time to fess up...
For example...Double Unders.

Double Unders are a high skill movement. But not so high skilled that they are impossible to conquer. All it takes is CONSISTENT practice and a dedicated attitude and double unders will be your b*tch. I have talked to several people that it has taken them far too long time to ever do a workout with double unders all the way through. Now that the games rolled out DU's in week one I have seen people not only do double unders...but kick some *ss in that WOD...Congrats!

So my challenge to you (and myself). You all know your goats, sound off now, what are they and how do you intend to conquer them for good? Because you know you can, you just have been avoiding/or mediocrely working on them.

Think about the movement that you know would make you DNF next week's open WOD #2.

Whatever it is go for it!

Make it count like it would knock you out of competition. Don't wait for a competition to WAKE YOU UP!

Introducing Monday's Mental WODs for the Week

More Mental Toughness = More Pullups...GET IT GREGO!

Since the start of this blog I have been looking to have a theme each week (preferably on Mondays). And I think I have finally found it:-) Each week, on Monday's, we are going to have a Mental WOD for the week. We will have an activity or exercise for you (and I) to practice throughout the week. They are designed to train our mental  & emotional capacity to make us better.

How we think about ourselves, our life, our friends, our family, our world around us determine the decisions we make -> to create the actions we take -> which results in where we are today.

Think about it logically; We think and feel better...Our lives become better and it starts with our thoughts.

Some Mental WODs will work great for you! If so, continue to do them and add it into your daily life or weekly routine. Some Mental WODs just won't work for you. If so, no worries it just doesn't click with your personality. I know for me I have tried a lot of different ideas, routines, exercises over the years and a lot of them just don't click with me either. Other ideas, routines or exercises will work great and I continue to use them to make me better. Just give each Mental WOD an honest effort for its designated time frame to give it an opportunity to click for you.

For those of us that do CrossFit or have a serious FITness program we know the benefits of how exercising our body works. Now its time to exercise our mind and thoughts. Creating that mental toughness, HIGH Self Esteem, HIGH Self Confidence that we all want (and need) to take our lives to a HIGHER level.

Some Mental WODs will be designed for just a week. Other Mental WODs may last longer than a week and we will use Monday as a check in point to see how everyone is doing and for you to voice your opinion or advice to help others. The Mental WODs will either help you become aware of something or be designed to have you take action on something. They will cover all aspects of exercise, nutrition, time management, financial, goals, habits, leadership, etc...

Commenting throughout the week on your progress with each Mental WOD is HIGHLY encouraged to help your progress and motivate others in the process.

Lets give it a shot and have FUN!

If you have a great idea for a Mental WOD comment to this post or email me. I am always open for ideas.

P.T.S!

Build Your Willpower Muscle

i dont have time...the Mayor lost over 50lbs with just about 1.5 hrs of CrossFit a week!

Your self-control "muscle" is just like the other muscles in your body — when you don't use it...you lose it. But when you give it regular workouts by putting it to good use, it will grow stronger and stronger, and better able to help you successfully reach your goals.

To build willpower, take on a challenge that requires you to do something you'd honestly rather not do. Give up gluten or dairy, do 100 sit-ups a day, stand up straight when you catch yourself slouching, try to learn a new skill, be nicer to your mate.

Setting yourself up for success is so beneficial when stretching your Willpower muscles. Here are a few ways to help you on the path the Elite Willpower FITness:

1-Make it public: Start a blog, facebook page or something where other people can view/get updates and help hold you accountable. The fear of acceptance or failure to others sucks way more than giving in to your old ways.

2-Start a challenge with your friends: Healthy competition is a GREAT thing. Throwing $$ in the pot or motivational consequences will even make YOU more successful at it.

3-Read daily goals/affirmations: we are how we think. Once you know why you are doing something when you continually remind yourself you train your subconscious to do exactly what you want.

4-Make a start and end date: Putting a timeline on the goal/challenge will create urgency to not let you or others off the hook and make your goal/habit/challenge make sense to complete.

5-SUCK IT UP! Stop being a baby and make it happen. I want this and I want that...make it happen you all have enough resources to know what to do, its not rocket science. Stop being a baby and JUST DO IT!

Complaining...I think NOT!

Post WOD fatigue = marker mustache time:-)

It takes the same amount of calories to complain as it does to trust...It takes the same amount of effort to be miserable as it does to be happy.

How many times a day do you think something negative about yourself? How many times do you complain out loud about the way you look? (Men, please don't think you're exempt from this) I want all the negative self-talk to stop. I want the six inches between your dome to be a place of encouragement and love, and that includes loving yourself.

Letting out frustration is one thing. It is normal and healthy. When you cross the line to complaining is when you start blaming (yourself, friends, family, co-workers, and the worst blaming GOD).

We are what we are because of our thoughts and actions that have lead up to today. You want to change that start now and know that it takes time, effort and the way you think about YOU to change.

Believe it or not they is actually something out there called a Complaints Choir. All over the world people unite and sing about complaints. And complain about EVERYTHING!..Really?

Recco Says: Complaining makes you feel worse and everything around you worse. Taking positive action makes you feel better and make a change for the better.

No Regrets...

HOLD IT! DON'T DROP...OR ELSE!

For the past week I have been back in Sioux Falls at CFSF. And it was so great to see everyone.

It was just over 2 years CrossFit Sioux Falls started from 0 and now it is something amazing!

The CrossFit program sells itself. It works and it works for anyone who wants it (results, goals, challenge...etc)

What makes it so special and every great CrossFit Affiliate special is the community it has. And I would put CFSF's community up against any other affiliate around the globe. The people, the relationships, the energy, the potential you all have is 2nd to none.

Here's how you make and keep a GREAT Community going and growing:

You C-A-R-E!

You care about the people and the people will care about YOU. You push yourself and everyone else will push themselves. You demand excellence and others will demand excellence.

Annie and I put our blood, sweat, tears, heart and soul into CFSF. And because of that it is the greatest place in Sioux Falls.

You have this place called CFSF that can do amazing things for you physically, mentally, emotionally. Use it and abuse it!

Now I leave having no regrets. I miss my CFSF peeps everyday. I think about you constantly. I look forward to hearing from you, texting with you, seeing the emails...keep them going.

I know it was only a brief period of my life but it will always be apart of my life. I learned so much for everyone there. You helped me be more confident, a better listener, and do things I wouldn't normally do.

I learned how to lead, teach and inspire. I learned how to not judge a book by its cover. I learned how to call you out and when not to call you out. I learned how to make FITness be FUN 1st. I learned how to build relationship credibility.

Everything I learned at CFSF I will take with me on to the next adventure. Not knowing how my life will turn out. Only knowing that everything I have gained through this time in my life I can only WIN!

Thank you for everything you did for me and my family.

Don't settle. Always push yourself. Demand to be the best. Have no excuses. Relax and have fun.

Never look back. And have no regrets in life.

Recco

You WANT to Succeed??? Get Some True Grits...

5 DeadLifts to go...its True Grit Time!

Have grit. Grit is a willingness to commit to long-term goals, and to persist in the face of difficulty.

Studies show that gritty people obtain more education in their lifetime, and earn higher college GPAs. Grit predicts which cadets will stick out their first grueling year at West Point. In fact, grit even predicts which round contestants will make it to at the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

"Aren't people just born with grit?"

The good news is, if you aren't particularly gritty now, there is something you can do about it. People who lack grit more often than not believe that they just don't have the innate abilities successful people have. If that describes your own thinking .... well, there's no way to put this nicely: you are WRONG!!!

I was having a conversation with a close friend of mine and we were discussing why he wasn't happy in his current life. He said to me, "I just don't have your mentality" and he is absolutely right. Because of his current mentality, he is exactly where he is supposed to be, but if he is NOT happy then its time to change his mentality or nothing will change for the better. What does he expect?

Whether its your job/career, FITness level, family/marriage life, or where you live if you don't have grit, if you don't change your mentality, if you don't sac up, take action and get ready to be uncomfortable you will not change. Resulting in your unhappy life continuing on day by day.

You want to succeed? Think about it...You must have effort, planning, persistence, and good strategies if you really want to succeed with your life. Embracing this knowledge will not only help you see yourself and your goals more accurately, but also do wonders for your grit.

Found from: http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/02/nine_things_successful_people.html

Try Something New

Back squats are easy...OverHead squats are the REAL deal

One of the great things about CrossFit is it forces you to do things that you never thought you could do. And when you do it is an AMAZING feeling. And the cool thing about it...is there is always something to learn, develop and get better at.

The way I see it, is we get in shape->get a lot stronger->build more confidence->but don't stop there...

Because it will get to the point where anyone can do a kettlebell swing, or a burpee, even a pullup is easily possible.

But...

Can you walk on your hands?

Do the splits??

Snatch your body weight???

Do a back flip????

Once you can begin to do highly skilled movements then anything is really possible:-)

Below is a cool video of a guy that has never attempted a back flip...never attempted! And in less than 10 minutes he learns and successfully does one.

Never stop learning. Never stop growing. And we all secretly want to be a ninja (well at least I do).

P.T.S!

Objective Measurable RESULTS...

It is easy to NOT notice improvement with your CrossFit. Day in and day out we push ourselves to the LIMIT. I find myself constantly UPing the weights, scaling UP the gymnastic skill and by doing so, I can easily fall in the trap of bvNOT noticing improvement.

The video above is "DT". It involves Heavy lifting at a very FAST pace. One of my main goals in CrossFit was to build a lot of total body strength (i.e. lift heavy weights). I originally finished the workout 2 years ago at 18:32 and barely survived. A week and a half ago I finished in 13:06 and felt like a completely different person.

Right after that WOD it inspired me to look through my CrossFit journal to find out what my old time was. As  I was flipping through the pages I started to notice some of the workouts I have done over the last 3 years. I noticed all kinds of improvement from strength increases, speed and proficiency in all movements. Then I found a couple pics and noticed even more positive change.

It is so easy to get caught in our heads and get de-motivated if you don't 'feel' as if you are improving. Journaling your workouts, weights, times, pictures, video's are so vital to break out of your own head and notice all the hard-consistent work paying off.

What is one of your favorite WODs that you remember you had a b*tch of a time with and now it is a different story?

Tell us how you feel and where your overall FITness is today compared to back then.

One of the Best Result Driver!

G and Me at the 2010 Games

We all workout because we all have goals...i.e. we all workout because we want one thing RESULTS!

Nobody workouts out just for fun. Yes, working out can be fun (especially when I am coaching:-) but we sweat, bleed, have shortness of breath all because we desire to reap the benefits of exercise.

Now a lot people workout and honestly are wasting their time. They don't push themselves to their limit. They don't really want what they say they want (lose 20lbs, fit in a size 4, get back to my high school wt, blah, blah blah). They take easy street. And wonder why their pants don't fit or the scale isn't dropping:-0

You want the truth...I don't think you can handle the TRUTH!

To ensure that you will PUSH yourself beyond what you think is possible its time to make your FITness a competition and treat it as a sport from here on out. Once you do, you will have more results than you ever thought possible! Every single person on the planet no matter who you are and where you came from has the opportunity to be very FIT and very healthy.

In the CrossFit world, this week begins the biggest and BEST time of the year to watch, learn and experience exactly how FITness can and is treated as a sport. The CrossFit games season starts this week. To read more go to http://www.games.crossfit.com/ and if you are ready sign up and see what you are made of.

TGIF

Nice Sex...ahhh WOD Hair

"The tempatation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed" Old Chinese Saying

Look at your workouts to know more about YOU

I attack "DT" the same way I attack Life

"How you do anything is how you do EVERYTHING." Virtuous.

How you workout represents the kind of person you are.

DO YOU???
Notice the kind of workout habits you have?
Show up on time?
Practice your goats?
Notice how you react to certain workouts or movements mentally?
Workout when you don't 'feel' like it?
Give it your all when you are working out? With your family life? At your job?

I can a lot about a person by how they workout. And I am not talking about skill or strength level. I'm talking about passion, determination, wanting to be pushed/challenged/motivated.

If you want the most out of your health and FITness, you probably want the most out of the rest of the aspects of your life. And for those of you I'm talking about, I applaud you!

How Do YOU View the WhiteBoard?

When I see FSquats on the board, I honestly cry 1st, then sac up and go for it!

How do you view the WhiteBoard when you 1st see it?

Excited? Scared? Intimidated? Up for the Challenge???

I used to always change up how I displayed the whiteboard at my old box.

I would never post the WOD in advance on our blog.

Sometimes I would have it up all day and the next class coming in would see it right when they walked into the gym.

Sometimes I would erase the WOD after every class so no one would see it right up until the WOD would start.

I am always intrigued on how people viewed the Whiteboard. I would look around and pay attention to everyone's body language as the read what they were getting themselves into.

What is your 'Self Talk' once you see what your Workout Of the Day is???

P.T.S!!!

A Balanced Approach to Self Disciplining YOURself

Leisure Time is part of the plan

Self Discipline is one of the best characteristics on the planet to attain any dream accomplish any goal you set out to do.

Here is a great post on how to discipline yourself in all areas of your life.

Start disciplining yourself upon waking up. The best time of the day to keep your mind focused on discipline is right after you wake up. Take few minutes to figure out your plan for the day and how you can best accomplish them. When you train your mind to focus on certain things early during the day, you will have less distraction and you will be more productive when the day is over.

Discipline yourself to be healthy. Picking healthy choices in food, drinks, rest hours, relationships, and lifestyle have a tremendous impact on your health. A person who is healthy is happier, self-fulfilled, and lives a longer life.

Discipline how you use time. It is a priceless commodity which you can never take back once you spent it away. Do your best to use your time wisely by doing things that encourage your growth. You only live once and you don't have all the time in the world for yourself. So invest it wisely.

Discipline yourself in doing leisure activities. All work and no play make a person dull. You need to take some time to do things you love to live a happy life. However, be disciplined in indulging in them. Too much leisure keeps you off balance and make you feel guilty afterwards robbing you of your happiness.

Discipline your spending habits. This is usually the area in your life that you need to exercise more control since it is easy to keep off track and get yourself in debt. Buy only what you need and spend within your means. You are happier when you don't have to deal with financial stress.

Discipline your emotions. This is a very important area you have to discipline especially women. Wrong choices often took place because we jump into our feelings right away without thinking objectively. Emotions can be very powerful guide in our life but we need to master it so we can use it to our best advantage to live happy.

Earn the rewards of being disciplined. A disciplined person is a winner and a lot more accomplished than the rest. In order to live a happy life, be a master over your weakness by disciplining yourself consistently. As one famous author said, "Small differences in your performance can lead to large differences in your results".

Found from: http://www.ehow.com/how_4671701_discipline-yourself-happy.html

Quote of the Week

"We have a mental block inside us that stops us from earning more than we think we are worth. If we want to earn more in reality, we have to upgrade our self-concept."
Brian Tracy

Take it Easy...No Really Take it Easy on Yourself

Are you hard on yourself?

Do you find yourself constantly 'beating yourself up"?

Do you treat yourself as well as you treat your friends and family?

A research shows that simple question is the basis for a burgeoning new area of psychological research called self-compassion — how kindly people view themselves. People who find it easy to be supportive and understanding to others, it turns out, often score surprisingly low on self-compassion tests, berating themselves for perceived failures like being overweight or not exercising.

The research suggests that giving ourselves a break and accepting our imperfections may be the first step toward better health. People who score high on tests of self-compassion have less depression and anxiety, and tend to be happier and more optimistic. Preliminary data suggest that self-compassion can even influence how much we eat and may help some people lose weight.

“Self-compassion is really conducive to motivation,” Dr. Neff said. “The reason you don’t let your children eat five big tubs of ice cream is because you care about them. With self-compassion, if you care about yourself, you do what’s healthy for you rather than what’s harmful to you.”

Dr. Neff, whose book, “Self-Compassion: Stop Beating Yourself Up and Leave Insecurity Behind,” is being published next month by William Morrow, has developed a self-compassion scale: 26 statements meant to determine how often people are kind to themselves, and whether they recognize that ups and downs are simply part of life.

Read FULL Article Here

Are YOU getting 'Soft'???

Really fast elbows at 295lbs!!

Do you push yourself to your BEST?

If so, do you push yourself to your BEST everyday?

Do you use the God Given Gifts you have been provided?

It's hard to be YOUR BEST.

What are the steps you take to ensure you be your absolute best?

What do you do when your tired? unmotivated? work long hrs? spouse is giving you a hard time? don't want to get up early? want to cheat on your diet? just not fired up?

How do you snap yourself out of it? Do you read quotes? Watch videos? Phone a friend/coach? What is it?

P.T.S! and enjoy this clip...

Burnout can be a GOOD Thing

Armen...Burned-Out or on Cloud 9???

I love finding posts like these, that spin words/phrases around to the way we should think of them.

Enjoy...

Burnout is Beautiful

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Melissa Gorzelanczyk of Peace & Projects.

Everyone experiences burnout.

Maybe you feel overworked, sick of your marriage or stressed about money. Maybe you’re living a daily cliché: one step forward, two steps back. Life can be tricky like that.
Believe it or not, burnout can be a beautiful thing. Instead of surrendering to burnout, what if you could use it to transform your life? Just like the story of the Phoenix, what if burnout was a chance for rebirth?

Four years ago I was overworked, stressed and a bit burned out. Now, I’m in a much different place. Here’s what I’ve done since 2007 to help redefine my life.

• Quit smoking for good (after failing more than eight times)
• Eliminated over $42,000 in debt.
• Convinced my employer to let me work from home two days a week.
• Stuck to a budget so we could live on one income which allowed me to …
• Quit my day job.
• Started to eat right and exercise.
• Ended my relationship with stuff.
• Wrote a novel in a month.
• Defined myself as a hybrid homemaker. Now, I am home when my step kids return from school. I’ve also kept my professional      identity through freelance writing.
• Showed others how to live the same way in my first ebook, The Hybrid Homemaker.

None of this would have been possible without burnout. If I hadn’t reached a point where I felt exhausted, beaten down, burned out … I never would have come up from the ashes.
I’m here to show you how you can rise from the ashes, too. If your path in life feels crooked, you can turn around and take one step forward. That’s the beauty of this story. If I can do it, so can you.
Burnout is beautiful. It gives you the chance to:

Imagine.

I never thought we could live on one income until I imagined a life without debt. Really? People lived on one income? “What if,” I thought and the rest is history. Burnout led me to imagine a life where I didn’t have to work to support the family. That changed everything. What could your life look like? If you’re unhappy at work, there is another way to make money. Start imagining it. Even a simple internet search can help. If you are crushed by debt, there is a way to change that. Imagine your life without limits. Someone else is already living your dream life – start wondering, “How did they do that?”

Become the artist.

The desire to change starts with you. Once you feel it, use that passion to experiment and try new things. Become the artist – life is the masterpiece. To get healthy, you might challenge yourself to 10 minutes of exercise each morning. Looking to transform your diet? Eat like Leo. Take a stand against debt by cutting up your credit cards. Burnout brings strong emotions like anger, fear, jealousy and sadness. Use those feelings to light your creativity on fire. Keep mixing it up with new ideas and projects.

Set people free.

Don’t expect your employer to relieve stress at work. Don’t expect your lover to make you happy. Your burnout is not their responsibility. Give yourself permission to do all the work. Setting people free from your expectations will put you back in control. You can be burnout’s victim or victor. Find one reason to do something, not a million reasons to quit. Now, no one stands in your way.

Focus on tiny movements.

That’s all it takes to change your life. If you want to quit smoking, you can stop putting a cigarette in your mouth and lighting the end. Once you master the way you move, you can do anything. You can decide to write instead of go out to lunch. You can put away the beer and go to bed early. You can feel your feet on the ground for a run. Movements, no matter how small, shape your entire life. How you go through the motions is up to you. Ask yourself today: Is the way I move beautiful? Or destructive?

Start over.

Change can be slow, but it has to start somewhere. For me, burnout became beautiful when I fed new ideas to my broken spirit. Inspiration was everywhere once I wanted to look. Sites like The Happiness Project and Zen Habits gave me courage to begin a new life.

I know now: Burnout is just the beginning. It might feel awful at times. If it didn’t, how would you know when to try something new? Let your imagination fly. Learn what lights up your world before burnout defines it. Ask yourself for help first. Then, start with tiny movements. Tiny actions. Like building a new foundation, brick by brick, you can create something strong and beautiful.

Your SUBCONSCIOUS Mind Is A Powerful Thing To Waste

Daily Affirmations are a great Daily Mental WOD to build Champion Beliefs

At you at a point in your life where you want to be?

Let me clue you in on why you are exactly where you are today.

Your beliefs you believe, determine the Actions you have made, and have created the Habits you do, resulting in where you are today.

We get in life what we believe we deserve.

Are you happy with where you are today?

If yes, great! If not, what are you telling yourself you are? What do you believe you are?

You are always right, the mind attracts whatever it is familiar with, if you believe and tell yourself you are FAT, lazy, unmotivated, cant do this or cant do that then you are right. But if you believe you FIT, healthy, strong, powerful then you again are absolutely right!

Change what you believe and you will in fact change how you act.

Want to know how it starts?

It starts at the subconscious level.

The primary function of the subconscious mind is to believe whatever you tell it to be true. If you believe you are FAT, lazy, unmotivated, cant do this or cant do that, then you are right. But if you believe you FIT, healthy, strong, powerful, then you again are absolutely right! The subconscious mind doesn't change the reality of anything, it filters information you give it to support your beliefs you believe. It will literally filter what you tell yourself daily and will then affect the decisions you make and the outcome that happens.

Here's the magic...the subconscious can't think for itself. It doesn't know what it true or false. All it does is filter the information you give it (i.e. what you tell yourself constantly). You have the power to tell YOURSELF whatever you want to be true.

From this point on you have been telling yourself something, whether it is good or bad has been up to you, is it the I'm fat, I'm tired, I'm not motivated, i cant OR IS IT THE I'm strong, I'm powerful, I'm a champion,  I CAN do it!

Be conscious of what you believe, if you believe you deserve to be healthy, FIT, strong, confident then you will get it. And if you have been telling your yourself otherwise you have some work to do to reverse your limiting beliefs.

Tell it what you want DAILY and it will eventually make that true... they are true because you believe it to be.