The Knot

On Sunday evenings, I would get a “knot” in my gut and begin to count the minutes left of my weekend. There became no greater dread than my alarm clock on Monday morning which always seemed to buzz too soon. I also began to live for Friday nights and Saturdays throughout the week. Instead of getting from my job, I slowly began to focus more on getting through it. Saturday’s became the day I could be myself. I would train with my friends, compete in sports and share ideas about fitness and performance. My library expanded more about sport performance and biomechanics than rehabilitation. I was living on a weekly 1 to 6 ratio in terms of time spent on passion and work. That knot on Sunday evenings was my body begging me to reverse the equation.

Before I go further, I don’t want to give you the wrong impression of physical therapy. I enjoyed helping people and watching my patients improve, but that knot was telling me I was meant for something slightly different. I wanted to use the knowledge I had gained from therapy, but on a slightly different population. I valued the relationships I had built with my therapist coworkers and I grew immensely from the experience and pressure of managing people’s health.

The Goal

It didn’t take sitting in an hour each commute of traffic to realize I missed sport, but the time sitting in my car hammered home my need for a new direction. I missed the rush of fitness and sport, but most of all, I missed achievement. My body was telling me I was built for action. That knot was my sign that I was designed for more than one happy day per week. I believe that everyone has this internal desire to reach a high level in some vocation. We all respect and adore people that have achieved mastery in some area. Unfortunately, most people attempt to reach high levels in something other than their job. When your job is where you aspire to be your best and that job is also your passion and purpose, however, you will find endless energy and true happiness. The alignment of your passion, purpose and vocation is magical. Things will come naturally and your body works at full energy and impact. The challenge is that sometimes our biggest obstacles to achieve this alignment are the people closest to us.

The Obstacles

I can remember the day I told my parents I was going to leave my budding physical therapy career and live in a guy’s basement to help drive a start-up company that was focused on the new concept of speed and strength improvement for young athletes. I also remember the opposition that I met from them and my closest friends. “What? Leave therapy to run kids around? Therapy is a good career and you are born either fast or slow. Strength training for girls? You are out of your mind and will go broke,” was the common response.

Most people never reached for their dreams, so most may try to stop you from getting to yours. Being “safe” in life can sometimes lead to being “sorry” later regardless of what the old anecdote says. The lesson I learned is that people don’t always know what is best for you. Your knot may be there to help you decide that for yourself.

The Leap

To me, leaving my first career was like jumping out of a plane. The first step involved anxiety and fear, but once I was out, the real exhilaration began. I realize now you may have to go through some pain to get to the pleasure, but you have to trust in your “gut” and go for your passion. My advice would be to take that leap and go for it. Unlike the plane, if things don’t go your way, have confidence that you can always go back to where you started.

The List

Use the checklist below to examine your current situation. If you experience any of these, this could confirm your need for a change:

You count the minutes until you finish work on Friday.
Saturday is your day to do what you love.
You wish Sunday had 30 hours instead of 24.
Monday morning is the most difficult time to hear the alarm clock.
Your real passion doesn’t have much to do with your work.

The Questions

Do you have a knot in your stomach? Take a moment to truthfully answer these four questions and your answers may just give you the directions on how to untie it:

Do you ever notice your body trying to tell you something about your career path?

Do you have people around you that may be keeping you from your passion?

What is your passion/work ratio?

If you had all the money in the world, what would you do for a living?

The Answer

Rooney Rule: Successful people love mondays.

Being successful isn’t about being rich, it is first about untying your “knot” and being happy. Most people measure success in wealth. I believe that you cannot put a price on doing what you love. I also believe that if you do what you love and you aspire to become great at that thing, the money will also come. When you reach this greatness, and you are aligned with your passion, you don’t hate mondays.

You live for them.

Over the last few weeks, I have done a few interviews that have caused me to reflect on the state of both the fitness industry and human nature. During the interviews, I was repeated asked a handful of questions that all seemed to be seeking out the same thing: A Silver Bullet.  Whether it was about health and fitness, nutrition, or money, every interviewer attempted to get me to support the concept of a Silver Bullet while I did my best to sway them to see things from a different perspective.  Below are some of the enlightening exchanges:

Question #1

Interviewer: “If you were on a deserted island and could only do one exercise, what would it be?”

MR:  “That is a tough one.  I need to decide the most effective use of my time.”

Interviewer: “Well, you like to dead lift and bench press.  Maybe that is a start?”

MR:  “They have barbells and hundreds of pounds of plates on deserted islands?”

Interviewer: “Well no, but those would be pretty complex exercises.”

MR: “I was thinking complex exercises like trying to decide between the breast and the free.”

Interviewer:  “Those sound good.  What equipment do you need for those?”

MR: “Equipment? None?  If I was on a deserted island and could only do one exercise, I would choose to SWIM.  I am not a great swimmer and those are two types of strokes I would have to practice to get off that island!”

Question #2

Interviewer: “If all you could eat was one supplement, what would it be?”

MR:  “Only one?  Man, can’t I at least name two?”

Interviewer: “No, only one.”

MR:  “Well, I could go with creatine for strength and power, or fish oils for my joints and skin, but I think I will go with a CoCo Puffs.”

Interviewer: “CoCo Puffs?  Why do you say that?”

MR:  “It’s obvious.  The box says it is part of a nutritious breakfast, loaded with vitamins and heart healthy too!  Creatine doesn’t have that.”

Interviewer:  “Come on, I am talking about just taking one supplement.”

MR:  “If I only eat one supplement, I would die fairly quick.  If that is going to happen, I choose CoCo Puffs.  They are tastier than Fish Oil and chocolate milk will keep me alive longer.”

Interviewer:  “You can’t pick that.  And they are not even that healthy.”

MR:  “What??  Are you saying that General Mills is lying?”

Question #3

Interviewer: “What are the essential areas of the body to develop to be a great athlete?”

MR: “I would say the first to develop is an open mind.”

Interviewer: “I know where you are going, but I am talking about areas you can build like the posterior chain.”

MR:  “Well, you can’t build that without an open mind.  If I can’t choose that then I pick the heart.”

Interviewer: “Good. So you mean to develop it for stroke volume and cardiac efficiency.”

MR:  “No, I mean for desire and compassion. You can’t have them without heart.”

Interviewer: “Come on Martin.  I know what you mean, but what about the back?”

MR: Okay, I then choose to develop a strong back.”

Interviewer: “Would you develop this for sprint speed and jumping ability.”

MR:  “Neither. I would develop the back to support the weight of your goals and dreams.”

Interviewer: “This interview is not going the way I wanted.”

MR:  “Don’t worry, that is why I have also picked thick skin as an essential area to develop….”

Question #4

Interviewer: “What are a few things you need to know to be a great trainer?”

MR:  “There are so many things.  But I guess I would start with knowing how to be on time.”

Interviewer: “That is ok, but I was thinking more about science ideas.”

MR: “Science doesn’t matter much if you are 15 minutes late for an hour session.”

Interviewer: “I know that, but what about biomechanics?”

MR: “Yes, that is important.  I would focus on standing up straight and keeping the hands out of the pockets.”

Interviewer: “What? Who cares about that?”

MR:  “The client.  When you stand up straight and keep your hands out of your pocket, you look more interested.  When you are more interested, your client knows you care and gets better results.”

Interviewer:  “Come on.  I want things a trainer can learn or do.”

MR:  “I am giving you those and by doing that, I have shown you a third important thing to being a great trainer.”

Interviewer:  “Yeah, what’s that?”

MR: “Being honest…”

Although it might have been easier to answer with the bench press, a book title or a body part, I wrote this blog to remind us that being fit and successful usually involves more than one or two things.  As I reflect on these questions, the more I realize how attractive and misleading the concept of a Silver Bullet really is.  There will always be a flood of enticing ideas like 6 minute abs, magical elixirs like 5 hour energy, and remarkable claims of the Shake Weight. The moral of the exchanges above is that there is no single best way.  If there was, I guess we would all be doing it.  Your goal is to realize that and be on the careful search for “better.”

Two weeks can seem very different to two people.  Depending on the circumstance, some might see it as a long time, or a short span.  For instance, one could be in a job that they dislike or a hospital bed, and those 14 days could seem to stretch forever.  Another could be on a luxurious beach vacation and the time could seem to fly by.  In either case, two weeks is 14 days and what each person does in those 336 hours will determine their outlook.

The last two weeks in my life have been nothing short of amazing. Although some parts seemed long and others quite short, I hope you might agree that my last 14 days might be hard to believe:

This two week span challenged the mental fortitude, physical strength and professional skills that I have worked to develop over the last few decades.  In those 14 days, I traveled the globe, worked with athletes and coaches of the highest levels in sport, and saw some of the wonders of the world.  The 14 days began at Fort Benning, Georgia where I was honored to return and train the Army Ranger elite instructors.  From there, I took a 15 hour flight to Beijing, China and stood atop the historic Great Wall, rode a 200+ mph bullet train, presented for over 24 hours to over 500 high level Chinese athletes and coaches in the top sport province of Shandong, walked the cobble stone floors of the Forbidden City and tried some exotic foods that I would wish to forget.  Upon returning to the US, I watched my top fighter and training partner, Jim Miller win “Submission of the Night” in a UFC Main Event Fight in Nashville, TN and then hosted a 2-day TFW Certification event in NJ for 23 new members.  The final night of the 14th day was a surreal finish when I saw that 9 players from the Patriots and Giants with which I have previously worked would be going to the Super Bowl as I performed the final sign off on my third book with Harper Collins.

I didn’t list those things above to impress you.  I listed them to impress upon you that what caused those events to happen are not as a result of what you think.  Every week, I receive emails and questions from people around the world who ask me what is the one thing they need to do, eat, read or exercise to have have a week or two like this.  What I tell them, however, is not what they have to do to make it happen, but instead what they DON’T have to do.  Getting to present in China was not easy.  Neither was writing a 420 page book or having the courage to step into a room full of Army Rangers and discuss what it means to be a warrior.  In a world where people are constantly either looking for or being sold a silver bullet, I have come to the realization that those two weeks actually took 20 years of not doing a lot of things to make them happen.

Confused?  Good.  Because the purpose of my blog to get you to think (and then act, of course).

Life is cumulative.  To me, this means that where you currently are in your life is not just a culmination of all of the things you have done, but more so all the things you chose not to do.  Many people, however, choose to believe that the things you do are the ones in which you are measured.  Although this may be true, doing the wrong things can lead to mediocrity.  Removing them is what leads to eventual greatness.  Removing the inappropriate things from your life may just be the faster and easier route to achieve your goals in life.  So, instead of believing my life is measured by the books I read and places I went, I like to think my life is measured by all the parties I missed, the TV I didn’t watch, the bad food I didn’t eat, the video games I didn’t play, the bad or negative people I didn’t surround myself with and workouts I did not miss.  It was the missing of all these things that was actually what allowed the other things to happen.

Using my philosophy, what do you need to quit right now to succeed?  Where are you spending time that is going to hold you back?  Many people think a “Bucket List” is all the things you would like to do in your life.  I have a slightly different approach.  In order to achieve your “To Do” Bucket List, I first think you should make a “Not To Do” Bucket List of the things you shouldn’t be doing.  Start checking off that list and I promise the “To Do” Bucket List will get much closer to reality because the easiest way to get what you want is to first remove what is holding you back.

Using this approach, you should see that adding a few new items to an already poor diet is not going to reduce body fat.  Instead of worrying what it is you need to eat to get lean, first start by removing all the things you know you should not be eating and I guarantee you will immediately get leaner.  Then add the healthy things you know you should be eating and you will be well on your way to the body you want.  This is much easier and less confusing that spending hours reading another fad diet book that you won’t stick with.  Helpful hints here would be removing processed sugars and replacing most liquids you drink with water.  Then worry about the benefits of quinoa and kale.

I hope that you see there is a secret in this philosophy.  To have a few weeks like I listed above is not reserved for the rich or naturally talented.  It is reserved for the one that is prepared to do (and not do) what it takes to be great.  The secret is that it is all under your control.

Test yourself, break records and compete against other members

Decrease/Increase the reps or intensity accordingly if this Hurricane does not fit your fitness level.

The page numbers refer to our Ultimate Warrior Workouts book

Click here for an explanation of Hurricane Training and to see the different levels of difficulty.

Post your pictures and results on our TFW Facebook Page to be featured in a future HOW

* Do this workout at your own risk. Any exercise program carries with it some risk and we are not responsible for injuries sustained from this one. You should consult with your doctor before starting any new exercise program.

Test yourself, break records and compete against other members

Decrease/Increase the reps or intensity accordingly if this Hurricane does not fit your fitness level.

The page numbers refer to our Ultimate Warrior Workouts book

Click here for an explanation of Hurricane Training and to see the different levels of difficulty.

Post your pictures and results on our TFW Facebook Page to be featured in a future HOW

* Do this workout at your own risk. Any exercise program carries with it some risk and we are not responsible for injuries sustained from this one. You should consult with your doctor before starting any new exercise program.

Test yourself, break records and compete against other members

Decrease/Increase the reps or intensity accordingly if this Hurricane does not fit your fitness level.

The page numbers refer to our Ultimate Warrior Workouts book

Click here for an explanation of Hurricane Training and to see the different levels of difficulty.

Post your pictures and results on our TFW Facebook Page to be featured in a future HOW

* Do this workout at your own risk. Any exercise program carries with it some risk and we are not responsible for injuries sustained from this one. You should consult with your doctor before starting any new exercise program.

New Year’s Eve is perhaps my favorite day of the year.  Not just because this day is renown for great parties, but I also cherish this day as both an opportunity to reflect on the past and also to look forward to the future.  Every year, on New Year’s Eve, I take part in the most strenuous workout I can perform.  During this annual workout, I have developed an interesting exercise tradition that helps me to reconnect with myself and my vision for the future.  Of all the exercises I have delivered over the years, this one may actually give you the greatest results in terms of affecting your destiny.

How the session is devised is that I want you to pick some of the toughest (and often least favorite) exercises to perform.  Do this to not only finish the year with something difficult, but also to enter in to the new year with a new standard of toughness.  These sets of exercises in themselves is not the magic behind the New Year’s Eve session.  Although the exercises are great to work and build the body, that happens in between each set, however, is actually the exercise that works your most important muscle: your mind.  To work this area of the body, you should have one piece of paper and a pen.  During the rest periods between each demanding set that leaves your heart pounding in our chest, you are required to write down a number of meaningful “promises” to yourself that you must achieve in the new year.  Although this may not sound special, this could be the best holiday season gift you could ever receive.  (Note that I am calling these gifts promises, not goals or resolutions.  People often make resolutions and goals and then do not stick to them or see them through. These are no longer strong enough words.  Goals and resolutions are often quickly forgotten, but a promise to ourself is meant to be kept!)

Make The Investment

The greatest investment you can make is an investment in yourself.  All too often, however, we are so caught up in what we are currently doing that we rarely sit back, analyze where we are and what we have done and make a decision about where we would like to go next.  I am also quite sure that we don’t spend any time writing down powerful promises to ourselves.  Spending time doing this at least one day per year  can make a difference in your life.  I know that it has for me.  Try my method of writing down your promises with your next workout.  Even though it may be a few days after the new year, there is never a bad time to start this process.  Find a couple of hours, get the pen, the paper and get going.

“Thou ought to be nice, even to superstition, in keeping thy promises, and therefore equally cautious in making them.” Thomas Fuller

As a guide to writing your promises during the rest periods of the workout, I recommend that you split your promises for the year down into three specific areas:  Physical, Spiritual and Financial. I have concluded that a person must sustain growth and development in these three areas if he or she is to continue to lead the life he or she imagined.

To help all the readers with more specific direction, here is a short, but potentially life-altering set of 14 promises that are always mandatory items for my yearly list.  Although you may have many more, I recommend that you start with this list.

Physical Items for your future

I promise to have a Bodyweight and Bodyfat of……

I promise to make the following changes in my diet…. (i.e. foods, calories, etc.)

I promise to exercise …… many days per week

I promise to quit the following bad habits …..(i.e. smoking, drinking, etc)

I promise to attain the following new skills…..(i.e. surfing, skiing, etc)

I promise to attain a ……level in my chosen sport

Spiritual Items for your future

I promise to read ….. number of books

I promise to investigate the following topics…. (i.e. communication, leadership, etc.)

I promise to develop better relationships with …..

I promise to take a vacation of …. days to ……

Financial Items for your future

I promise my income for following year will be….

I promise to invest …..dollars

I promise to donate ….dollars/my time to charity

I promise myself ……(major purchases) for the following year (i.e. car, house, etc.)

When drawing up your list, attempt to make the promises both specific and as realistic as possible.  The promises should be something that you can attain with hard work and the specificity will give you something exact for which to strive.  Once your list is completed, make a few copies of the list and hang them prominently in a few places that you will see every day.  You should also cross off each promise once it is attained or keep a running list of your totals so that at year’s end you can see how many promises you kept to yourself.

“Promises are like crying babies in a theater, they should be carried out at once.” Norman Vincent Peale

There is no better time to start carrying out your promises to yourself than today.  Go out and get the next book you promised to read, call the person you promised to call, get to practice or change your diet.   Remember that 2012 is not about what you are going to do, but about what you are going to become.  By following through on your list, I promise you that this year is going to be your breakout year to become that someone that you have always promised yourself you would be!

Need More Inspiration? Here is a video link from my New Year’s workout:

Test yourself, break records and compete against other members

Decrease/Increase the reps or intensity accordingly if this Hurricane does not fit your fitness level.

The page numbers refer to our Ultimate Warrior Workouts book

Click here for an explanation of Hurricane Training and to see the different levels of difficulty.

Post your pictures and results on our TFW Facebook Page to be featured in a future HOW

* Do this workout at your own risk. Any exercise program carries with it some risk and we are not responsible for injuries sustained from this one. You should consult with your doctor before starting any new exercise program.

Test yourself, break records and compete against other members

Decrease/Increase the reps or intensity accordingly if this Hurricane does not fit your fitness level.

The page numbers refer to our Ultimate Warrior Workouts book

Click here for an explanation of Hurricane Training and to see the different levels of difficulty.

Post your pictures and results on our TFW Facebook Page to be featured in a future HOW

* Do this workout at your own risk. Any exercise program carries with it some risk and we are not responsible for injuries sustained from this one. You should consult with your doctor before starting any new exercise program.

A common question I receive is, “Which place did you like the best?”  This is a difficult question to answer because each place was radically different yet equally enjoyable.  I was inspired by the relaxed feel of Rio de Janiero, Brazil, but also by the lighting pace of Tokyo, Japan.  I stood in awe of the Colosseum in Rome, Italy the same way I did Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland.  I have made lifelong friends in chilly Helsinki, Finland as well as in steamy Bangkok, Thailand.  Narrowing my favorite to one place is nearly impossible. If I am pressed, however, Russia stands out as my most intriguing trip.  Having grown up during the years of the “Iron Curtain,” I was unsure what I was going to discover.  One important thing I found is you can’t always believe what you hear.

Moscow is a progressive city pushing Russia into the future with modern businesses, cars and fashion.  St. Petersburg is an incredible example of how architecture can instantly transport a person back hundreds of years.  In between those two cities, however, is a lesser-known jewel of Russia, Yaroslavl.  At 1000 years old, Yaroslavl is one of Russia’s oldest cities.  It also houses some of the nicest people to some of the tastiest food I have ever eaten.  My hosts were successful men that had established themselves in the city.  Dressed impeccably, they radiated class and distinction.  One night in Yaroslavl, however, they also demonstrated another important quality: compassion.

As we stood outside of a restaurant nestled against the Volga river, a small boy no older than 8 came up to our group.  He wasn’t wearing any shoes and was quite dirty.  I was stunned because I realized that this boy had approached to beg us for money.  Although I had many experiences like this, never was it the child was doing the begging.  Before I could search for loose change, my host told the child he had a deal for him.  He said that if the boy could do 20 pushups, he would give him 100 dollars!  The boy looked at the man in disbelief, but the other distinguished gentlemen assured the boy this was a legitimate deal.

My host got down on the ground in his fancy clothes, and demonstrated a perfect pushup the way it had to be performed for the boy to get the money.  The boy got down on the ground and started. The first few looked good, but at 7 reps, my experience told me he wasn’t getting 20.  He struggled and fought with everything he had, but at 13 his tiny arms gave out under his weight.

The little boy rose to his tiny, dirty feet with his head and eyes down looking absolutely dejected and defeated.  Just as I started to resent my host for putting the boy through this hopeless challenge, the man took a knee, looked the boy in the eye and delivered the lesson.  He stated, “If you continue to beg the rest of your life, you will always remain weak.  If you do this exercise each day and get strong, some day you will build the strength so you no longer have to beg. Do you understand?”  The boy nodded yes, and then, in what shocked both me and the boy, my host gave him the 100 dollars.

This experience made me appreciate not only what I had, but also what I have become.  You see, I can remember being like that boy.  Although I may not have been begging in the streets, I did not have many of the things I desired in my life.  Through physical training I have been afforded opportunities that would not have been possible without the strength and confidence I have developed.  The lesson my Russian host provided was true:  With physical strength comes ability.  And with ability comes confidence.  And with confidence comes the courage to take on challenges.  I am so passionate about fitness because I know that being fit means far more than having a low body fat or strong muscles.  Being fit will help you lead a more productive life.

On the banks of the Volga, I began my training love-affair with the humble pushup.  Since then I have traveled the globe finding over 100 variations of this powerful tool that builds both the body and mind.  I consider my books, videos, articles and blog gifts that I give to everyone.  My latest present is my PUSHUP WARRIOR app that shares everything I know about pushups.  With over 120 variations and 60 workouts, I know you will find your “lesson” here:

TFW’s PUSHUP WARRIOR APP

The story should remind you that as 2011 comes to a close, you should not just reflect on what you have done, but also what you could have done better.  Your hindsight should influence your foresight and, therefore, your actions for 2012.  Every thing left unsaid and deed left undone is your guide for future behavior to achieve your dreams.  If you choose to accept them, you will come to see that mishaps and missed opportunities will be the greatest gifts you receive.  This story should also remind you that your purpose after receiving these gifts is to give them away so others can benefit from your mistakes.  By sharing your experiences, you help others to move more quickly and safely toward their dreams.  What my mom always told me is actually true.  It is far better to give than receive.  Happy Holidays.