The BIG reason I get out of bed every day is because people depend on me. And I like it that way!  It gives me purpose and creates some good pressure for me to go out, show up and execute daily.  I would rather have people depend on me than me depending on them.

Yesterday at church our pastor had us stand up to do the Hokey Pokey! Remember that from when you were a kid?Where in life do you have one foot in and one foot out?   Hmmm. Good question.

I am a lifelong Vikings fan.  There have been a lot of ups and downs as well as disappointments throughout the years (please don't mention the 1998 NFC championship game), but I continue to cheer them on regardless of what kind of season they're having. Last Sunday might have been one of the BEST Vikings games I ever watched.

The other day a friend of mine was shocked to learn I get up at 4AM.  "How can you do that?"  One simple answer. PURPOSE over PLEASURE.  I say this because I have a clear purpose bigger than myself.

I saw a saying once that said "The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let things go."  I like that imagery.

This past week I hit a BIG goal. I dead lifted 500 pounds!  At age 51!

The Twin Cities Marathon was on the calendar yesterday. Known as The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America...this always falls on the first Sunday in October. For 41 years that has been the case. This time of year is absolutely perfect for a marathon - especially in Minnesota. Blue skies, crisp cool temps and colorful leaves are among the many, many highlights along the 26.2 mile course.

Playing it safe is one of the riskiest things we can do.  I can't think of many worse things than being 3,5...10 years down the road and seeing ZERO progress in life.  We were not created to be mediocre. But unfortunately many people choose to stay in the "safe zone."  Not smart.

One of the craziest things about us humans is that we have a tendency to make things more difficult than necessary.  It's like my dad used to say "if you do it the hard way, you get it done right."

I remember back in 80s when I had my Atari 2600 video game console. My brother and I would sit for hours playing games. Pitfall was my favorite. I remember my brother and I walking into Target with a jar of coins we had accumulated from odd jobs so we could buy that game.

This is a wonderful time of year! New beginnings are most apparent in the spring, but different new beginnings happen in the fall. Sometimes I think of it like January and the coming of a new year, but in September the year already is 75% complete.

Relying on online videos simply doesn't work as a solid workout strategy.

The first step to achieving massive success in any area of your life is COMMITMENT. 

Not just part of the way but ALL of the way.

Years ago I had a very wise trainer named Chris Giesking.  It is no surprise he is now teaching at a local college because he was full of wisdom.  One of the coolest lessons he taught me was that fitness is like BINGO. 

At the beginning of July, I got word that the dog belonging to a friend of one of my friends went missing.  He got spooked by fireworks while staying at a home other than his own and took off. I didn't know the owner, but my heart for dogs is larger than life and my dog Rosey had such a fear of fireworks she could barely leave the house on July 4.  This dog was lost in Burnsville, not far from where I live, so I knew I needed to help.  

So often when we feel a tight muscle we default to stretching.  We've been told over and over, feel tight? Get stretched.  The problem is, the muscle never gets any looser and remains locked up.

One of my old mentors used to say "your original intent was to drain the swamp but now you find yourself up to your armpits in alligators."  Can you relate?

One of our favorite family activities is boating on the St. Croix river.  It is a such a beautiful river with lush state parks on both sides.  We were fortunate to get a day out there last Saturday.

Summertime is officially here in Minnesota. Everyone is outside doing all the outdoor things Minnesotans love to do....hiking, fishing, camping, boating.  One of my favorite summertime activities is mountain biking.  I've learned many lessons on my mountain biking journeys.  

When people around my age of 51 complain about "being old," it's like nails on a chalkboard.  I just turned 51 last month and I feel like I'm in better shape than I was in my 20s.  How can I say that?  Aren't I supposed to be "old?."