#50 Don't Forget What We Learned

Don’t forget what we learned.  Woke up at 2:40am.  Couldn't sleep.  Afraid I was going to miss my alarm.  I was so excited to get back to the gym.  The pandemic has changed gyms across the world.  Camaraderie is different, and you can’t even dap people up after a crazy lift. 

For me, it’s my squad: the #4AMCREW.  For me, I think about the environment.  Just to be back in an intense environment that I missed.  Smelling the fucking rust of the plates.  Being back in the zone and having a daily routine that I’m excited about.

Write it Down

I started to think to myself… I need to write down those things that I don’t want to forget through this process.  I recommend doing the same with whatever you have going on in your own life.  Life gets us busy; we start to migrate back to how things were, and sometimes the lessons you learned are lost.

Break out your notes section on your phone or buy a notepad at the store.  Write down two or three things that you don’t want to forget.  What has made you a better person during this pandemic?

My Thoughts

Time moves so fast, especially when you're a parent.  Everyone always says, "Your kids grow up so fast."  And it's because all sports seasons are longer.  School, sports, work.  Before you know it, boom.  It's like they're in high school.  I'm telling you, it’s crazy.

Then, there were no sports, home-schooling became more of a thing, and many things changed with my work schedule.  Things seemed to slow way down.  Life in general dramatically slowed down.  It allowed me to calm my brain and really value that extra time I was given.  Being given this unique slice of time has made me more appreciative than ever.

Human Interaction

Daily human interaction with people outside of your family is something you can't take for granted.  Straight up. Going into the gym today, I don't know if I've ever been in an environment where everybody was up.  Everybody was up.  Meaning no one wanted to fucking miss today.  Everybody was smiling.  Everyone was excited.  It was like motherfucking Christmas when you were five years old.  In a group environment, most of the time you have one or two guys up.  One or two guys down.  As a group you pull everybody up, and then you get the most out of everybody. 

The camaraderie, the support, and the interaction.  Whether you get that at your job site, whether you get that at your club, or wherever.  It doesn’t matter.  Maybe it’s just with your neighbors, right?  You're sitting six feet apart and having a beer on Friday night, just shooting the shit.  These things are easy to take for granted.

Adapt

You must adapt.  Early on, I understood that there were people that weren’t prepared to work out at home.  Understanding this early on was huge for my business.  Most people don’t have access to much equipment.  They may have a few bands, a few dumbbells, or just their body weight.  Then I hear that some gyms don’t allow people to superset.  Time to adapt and adjust.  Multiple workout solutions were needed to fill the void. 

You must adapt to serve people’s needs if you expect to survive and thrive.  Not only did I have to adapt, but I needed to create more.  People need different variations and different programs.  They still need a legitimate challenge.  They still want to push themselves.

Reflect on these ideas.  And if you get busy in life, or you need checked, take a second to write it down.