The other day I heard this song from the 90s by a rock band called Extreme.  The chorus goes "stop the world, I want to get off."  It made me stop and think.  
The world has been crazy over the last few years.  At times I am left feeling disoriented and would like to stop the world...and get off.  Luckily I have a good coach who keeps me from crashing and burning.

Isaiah 43:18-19 says: "Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."

One of my friends made the comment the other day that everything seems to go right for me.  Nothing could be farther from the truth.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. - Romans 8:37

Maybe you were once athlete, a soldier, or super fit.  Then life happened.

Kids...career...keeping up with the Joneses....scooping up the dog poop in your yard.

You know all those things that wrestle for your time leaving you exhausted.

"Whoever walks with integrity walks securely." Proverbs 10:9
 

At the end of last week I felt like an old man. My joints ached, my energy was low, and I was mentally foggy.   When I went mountain biking my legs felt like they were full of cement.  I turned to Matthew 11:28, one of my favorite passages, for guidance: "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Lately, I've experienced some setbacks with my finances and my business.

It feels like life has given me a hard push knocking me back and leaving me feeling stressed and anxious.
 

I just got back from my annual turkey hunting trip with my dad to the Black Hills - perfect timing to resend this oldie but goodie to you guys.

I love hunting because it requires patience and endurance...and definitely builds character. You learn to keep going with the hope that you will be successful even when dealt lousy conditions or setbacks.




 

Proverbs 24:16 says "For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again."  Who can forget the Rocky movies?  As cheesy as they are, they are forever etched in the  American culture.  It seems like every Rocky movie featured a big fight in the end where Rocky was getting beat up but is able to muster up enough strength to come back and win.
 

Sometimes I feel like the "fitness priest."  Very often, clients and future clients alike confess their "fitness sins" to me.  And just as often, right after confession they tend to follow up with excuses.  We all tend to find excuses or reasons not to be successful.  But what if we were to find an excuse to win?
 

Hi Tracy,

I love Proverbs 22:13: "The slacker says, "There is a lion outside! I will be slain in the streets!"

It nails one of the biggest pieces of head trash....Excuses, excuses, excuses.

People always find fake "lions" i.e. excuses as to why they can't be successful. We live in a world at the moment where 'cancel culture' is abundant. Folks are being 'cancelled' left and right because of things they say or actions they take.

One of my all time favorite things to do is watch my nephew play basketball!  He's been playing ever since he could stand - thanks to his dad's love for the game and the Little Tykes hoop that was a permanent fixture in their house.  Every chance he could get, he was throwing the ball into the net!

This past week I had the incredible opportunity to watch him live out a dream by playing in the MN State High School Basketball Tournament at Target Center! Nothing compares!  

What do you think about yourself?

Philippians 4:8 says: "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things."

Are you a positive thinker? 

Proverbs 23:7 says "As a man thinketh so is he."

Truly what we think becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.

Henry Ford, the founder of Ford motors said  "Whether you believe you can do a thing or
not, you are right."

"The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice."  Proverbs 12:15.  When I was younger, I could jump right into a workout and crush it with very little or no real warm up.  As I have grown older and wiser I have learned how important a good warm up is.  I follow the military rule of the "7 Ps."
 

"Do ALL things without complaining and arguing." Philippians 2:14

Here is a great story I like to read when I find myself complaining.
 

I love Colossians 3:23 which says "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,"

Just the other day I heard a great podcast with former Hall of Fame NFL quarterback Kurt Warner.

He was talking about the movie "Underdog."  Underdog is the true story about his life and struggles as he worked to fulfill his dream of playing in the NFL.

"The Spirit of the Lord God is on me. The Lord has chosen me to tell good news to the poor and to comfort those who are sad. He sent me to tell the captives and prisoners that they have been set free."  Isaiah 61:1  My personal training business is more than business. It's my ministry.  It's not just here to serve me financially.  It's here to make an impact by being a POSITIVE force in the lives of other people.
 

I grew up living on an acreage lot surrounded by woods. It was a lot of work to keep it up.  Every weekend my dad had my brother and I out doing chores in the yard.

Our "favorite" was moving railroad ties.  These were long and heavy blocks of wood covered with nasty creosote oil that would cause a rash if it came in contact with your skin.

At the time I didn't understand how moving railroad ties would affect the rest of my life... but it did.  You see, my dad taught us the value of HARD WORK.  We would work hard first and then we got to go have fun with our friends. Many times he paid us extra after completing the work.