Month: February 2020

Politics Will Not Be Enough

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UGH!! Politics! Who needs it? Every time I scroll through my Social Media page there it is- someone ranting or arguing about social justice political idealism. So much to say, so little time.

The truth is I don’t care about your politics! To think a politician, a system or a belief is going to “fix” what is so inherently broken is foolish. I want to tell everyone to STOP!! Just stop with all the back and forth on who and what is going to give us the best economic growth, why pro-life is even a political issue, and the propaganda that puts fear in the lives of voters.

EVERY TIME. Every. Single. Time….I read a commentary on issues like gun control and abortion I wonder where their ideas come from in the first place. One side says, “Don’t take away my rights to bear arms, but let me take away your rights to your uterus.” One side says let’s have some sort of gun control as if that would “fix” the mass shootings happening way too often, while the other side blames mental health.

What is wrong with the world is not of a political issue. The problems we face are not going to be fixed by our current corrupted Government. The reason is that the problems we face are ones of moral values that are way more complicated than how we vote or who we vote for. Therefore, the world doesn’t need YOUR opinion on YOUR political stance to make this world a better place!! SO STOP trying to convince me about your party, your president, and your belief system.

As a mom and educator I have faced these issues and wondered how best to approach them. How do I raise my own children and my students to the morals and values of equality and justice. Yes, I teach them that voting is a right and necessary. Yes, we discuss issues like racism, classism, sexism and all the other isms. We quote the Declaration of Independence and every morning we stand and pledge our allegiance to the United States of America! What I find more and more terrifying is the apathy I see when we discuss about the injustices. Doesn’t it make sense though? I mean if we are teaching our kids to leave the “issues and problems” to the politicians so we can eat, drink and be merry, why should we care?

Until we can all face our own corruption and encourage the world to a “spiritual and moral awakening,” rather than a political one, will change start to happen. The Government is not going to take care of us. The Government DOES NOT EVEN CARE ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN! Just take a good look at our public school systems! I am not preaching anarchy, I’m simply stating that if we want our lives and the lives of those around us to be better than it was yesterday, we need to be the ones to roll up our sleeves and get involved. Politics will not be enough!

Love Always

Rest, Recover, Recharge, Reconnect

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We all want to be successful. Whether that be in our careers, relationships, or in our recreation and hobbies. We are taught from a young age that in order to be successful you must work hard, and if you want to be more successful than your peer, then you must work harder than your peer. If you want to be the most successful then anyone else, then you must sacrifice and/or find “ways” to succeed, even it that means compromising honesty, integrity and whole hearted values.

It isn’t unusual to hear about people who work too hard that they end up with headaches, stomach problems and sleepless nights. Some people work so hard they get heart attacks and strokes. We all know someone who just works until they are ragged, and think thats a good measurement of success.

With running there is no difference. You hear about runners who train so hard and so much they end up injured or dying.

With all the technology we have today to improve our athletic abilities- hydration drinks, nutrition and protein shakes, pre-workout supplements, recovery drinks and so forth, there is one piece of the equation I believe that doesn’t get as much attention as it should, and not just in the case of running. That is the importance of recovery while resting.

As human animals, because we really are just animals, we need rest in order to live well. Most animals use winter time to recover, rest and recharge for the spring and summer days.

God even took one day of rest after he created the entire Universe, which tells us that if even an all powerful being, who doesn’t even sleep, needs rest, how important is it for us?

We do not value the concept of rest. We get up early and work until it’s way past dark and applaud those who do. We use our weekends to get ahead, to play hard, to catch up on the chores and get away to “do” something.

We just simply do not have the time rest. So our bodies AND our minds pay for it.

Science and research are starting to discover, or at least beginning to realize an old truth, that rest is part of the wholeness of health. Rest is in fact just as important as exercise and diet.

One of the reasons some people give up on running so quick is because they don’t give themselves permission to rest, recover and recharge. They want to run faster and longer as soon as possible. They don’t want to wait for months or years to be where they want to be with their goals. So they turn to gimmicks like recovery drinks or something like steroids.

So if you are new to running- give yourself time to rest, recover and recharge. That means taking a day off completely. And when I say take a day off- I mean a day off from everything. No running, no working, no catching up on chores. If you are like me, and need a somewhat clean house to be restful, do it the day before. Taking a day off means reading a book, watching movies, listening to music while writing in a journal. Taking a warm bath. It means taking the time to also reconnect with yourself. Resting is not just for the body, but it is especially for the mind. As a coach I try to teach my athletes the value of meditation or visualization while resting after a workout.

I know it sounds unrealistic, especially if you have a family, with soccer, swimming, dance and baseball games, and endless hours of homework, so it’s going to be very difficult to find the time to rest. SO maybe instead of a whole day, it could be one or two hours of just resting the body, soul and mind.

I cannot stress enough on how important this one missed piece of the puzzle this truly is. I am a believer that this little treasure does not only work with athletes, but with every single person. Imagine if we all came from a place of ease, rest and peace, instead of a place of dis-ease, restlessness, and stress?

Here’s to more rest for you!

Love Always

This Sucks!

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That’s right! Running sucks– because it is hard. So why on earth would anyone want to do it? For starters runners have cute butts. Who doesn’t want an ass you can bounce a quarter off? 🙂

In all seriousness, building endurance and stamina takes time. Not every run is going to go smooth, in fact most runs are challenging and incorporate some kind of pain. This is what separates the tough from the lazy. If you ask any great athlete, it takes months and years to master a skill. To get better at running, therefore, is to go out and run. Before running my marathons, I was running half marathons, and before running half marathons I was running 10Ks, and before running 10Ks I was running 5Ks… you get the point. So technically it has taken me five years to build up my endurance for the 26.2 miles.

You see, after making the decision to start running or to improve your running performance, it’s going to suck. This is because you will experience some kind of pain, some kind of set back, and it probably won’t feel good the first few times you go out. But when your body finally starts to transform and you are taken away by the euphoria of what is known as the runner’s high- all the pain is soon worth it. And let me tell you, it is definitely worth it.

Now, if the pain scares you, be encouraged, you are stronger than you think you are, and sometimes you will have to FORCE yourself to keep going. This is why running is so dependent on mentality.

Running is 90% mental- 10% perseverance. The physical part follows the path of your mentality and your perseverance. Most people have the opposite in mind. They follow the physical and let that lead their mentality which shortens or kills any potential of gaining the price.

There is something about pain during exercise/running that tells people to STOP; however, when we listen to that voice, we prevent ourselves from true transformation. It is IN the pain that trains your body to run further, faster and to transform your body.

So today’s tip– ALWAYS work through the pain. Go that extra second, minute, rep, whatever it is. Push yourself beyond your limits and you will succeed.

Of course don’t be stupid and work yourself to an injury- that is why recovery is so important. So stay tuned for the next post about the importance of rest.

Love Always