| Hi Friend!
Every year, especially in Boston, spring comes. The snow melts, the rain comes, the flower stems poke out of the ground, the tree bulbs start to develop and the energy starts to rise. There's a buzz about the city. The Red Sox return. The marathon happens. More runners fill the streets. More people fill the walkways. The Charles River gets busier with boats. Spring sports leagues start. Windows start to open. It's fun. It's also time to spring clean.
Spring cleaning Every year I've been with Vanessa we spring clean. That doesn't only mean physically cleaning surfaces and such, but that means out with the old, to make space for the new. If there's clutter, especially in the closets, drawers or bookshelves, it's time to Marie Kondo the area and ask if items are still bringing me joy. It looks like it's a lot easier for her to do than it feels like for me because I'm running out of the easy stuff to say thank you and goodbye to. I mean I can't get rid of all my framed newspapers of Boston Sports Championships.
Why can't they go on the wall in between our wedding photos and baby pics?
O.K. So maybe Adam Vinateri and Big Poppy aren't immediate family, but they're kind of extended family right?
Grrr. I know she's right and now she can screen shot this sentence and frame it on the wall, but I'm not ready to say goodbye, nor do I want to. So down to the basement they go. Sad. I know.
Spring Cleaning - Benefits There is no question that the house feels better, lighter, less stressful after we spring clean. I'm not sure if there's science on this, but we feel like we produce better and are better people afterwards because there's better chi. Everything has a home. If it doesn't fit it goes to the basement. The basement is basically the waiting room to leave the house.
You know how your computer runs better with less clutter, less videos and pics taking space on your hard drive? Same thing happens to you. You do better. You clear your "cache" and empty your trash, when you spring clean.
Showing Up Tuesday night the roads were unexpectedly thick making for a stressful and longer commute for many people.
Life feels more blessed and full all the time (hence the need to spring clean), so you gotta practice the habit of letting go, saying no and making room for what's important.
You also have to show up. A hit in the record books looks the same whether it was a line drive in the gap or a bloop single over the outstretched arms of an infielder. You get to check the box of did I exercise or did I workout, so long as you show up. It may not be your best workout, it may not be your best effort, you may have missed some of it, you may have to leave earlier, but if you show up, you get to check the box. And that box, when continually checked, looks pretty darn good and can lead to wins. If you don't show up continually, that leads to losses.
Being prepared for what's next! Everyone knows that its better to plan ahead vs. winging it. Everyone knows its better to be prepared vs. unprepared. And for many things you do plan and prepare and for some you don't.
Right now its spring. Not the fun, warm & sunny kind, but it's here. Winter is in the past. My clients and myself are spring season and spring sports ready because we've been training for it since January.
What this means is our bodies are ready for most spring activities that come our way, but not necessarily sport skill or seasonal activity ready, because we don't train those (we're not physically throwing baseballs, hitting golf balls, or gardening in class).
We did however prepare for many of the movement patterns and common injuries experienced that comes with participation in spring sports.
We did MB Shuffle Step Side throws to prepare for any transverse plane rotational throw like baseball, tennis, golf & lacrosse.
We practiced base running and conditioning our shoulders & legs for swimming, biking and running that comes with triathlon season.
We practiced hopping over hurdles on 1-leg to develop lower body power to help us put more force in the ground for running, hopping (jumping) and landing.
We practiced deceleration / braking, change of direction and footwork with agility ladders to prepare for the stop starts in lacrosse, tennis and ultimate frisbee.
We did a lot of pulling exercises and opening exercises for the posterior chain of the upper body to reduce injury risk and postural imbalances that occur from / with the repetitive overhead throwing motion that occurs in baseball, softball, lacrosse, tennis and swimming.
We did a lot of pillar stability work (core work) to be able to transfer force from the ground, through the legs, through the core to the upper body and back down to the ground.
We trained one of the most important abilities in sports and life:
durability!
Everyone is ready physically to go out and play and with the exception of any skill rustiness or skill acquisition needed, play well because they're physically able to.
And now we're preparing for summer. Beach season. Summer sports. Wearing less clothing. Bathing suits. Tank tops. Beach volleyball. Stand up paddle boarding. Kite boarding. Water skiing. Triathlons. Obstacle course races. As well as golf, tennis, softball, baseball, lacrosse, ultimate frisbee, running, cycling, rowing, swimming and hiking.
You're going to want to do more with the changed weather and seasons and when you want more, you have to become more and the way to become more is to do more...
...and do less.
So consider spring cleaning to make room for the new; to free up space to move faster, feel lighter and be weighed down less. To perform better.
Show up! Good day: show up. Bad day: show up. Day off: show up. Day on: show up. Show up to earn the checked box of completion and stack those completed workouts continually to win at your goals and in your life.
Plan & prepare ahead as much as possible. Take some of the thinking out of it by outsourcing some of the details of the things you're not strong at, to other people, so they can help you continually peak and be prepared for the next season and you can focus on the doing and execution.
Either way. Still show up. Because following a bad program, trumps not following a good program. And showing up helps to give you the energy later to spring clean even if you don't want to.
Making trips to the basement (while practicing farmers carries, bicep curls, shrugs and overhead walks),
Coach Mike
p.p.s. Phase 5 begins, Monday, April 23.
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