In honor of Memorial Day we will train our bodies and minds to always be ready for the next battle just in case it’s on our own soil; whether it’s against thugs, terrorists, or other wackos.
We will be open from 3:00pm to 7:00pm that day.
We encourage everyone to attend a Memorial Day service in the morning and to honor every veteran, Active duty or Reserve military person you see.
They stand in harms way and keep the bad guys away from your house and mine.
Many people today think they are entitled to be healthy without doing anything about it.
I am not just talking about being lean or ripped, just generally in good health.
Folks, it’s not just a given that you will wake up each day and be healthy, much be fit.
Granted, some people are born with certain medical conditions that are devastating right from the beginning.
I am talking to the people who born with all their body parts there and functioning well.
Those who weren’t blessed with that often work much harder than those who were to get healthy and fit.
Why is that?
Probably because they don’t assume that everything will improve with no effort on their part.
Why don’t the others work hard too?
Simple, here’s why:
I am sure I could add to that list, but you get the point.
Think about it; why should you be able to smoke, eat total garbage every day, drink sodas and beer all the time, sit on your butt and watch TV, and do nothing more physically demanding than text or play video games and even in the remotest part of your imagination think you will be healthy?
The fact is, you won’t!
I have a poster on the wall at my gym that says you are not entitled to anything and that you have to earn it.
That is the raw, hard truth!
The Cave will be closed May 12 & 13 (Thurs. & Fri.)
In case you are wondering, this has nothing to do with cats, but a lot to do with dogmas.
I just liked the catchy title!
So let’s briefly define dogma as quoted from Vocabulary.com
“Dogma means the doctrine of belief in a religion or a political system.
The literal meaning of dogma in ancient Greek was something that seems true. These days, in English, dogma is more absolute. If you believe in a certain religion or philosophy, you believe in its dogma, or core assumptions. If you belong to a cult that believes that cupcake consumption is the only true path, then you follow the cupcake dogma. Dogma, once adopted, is accepted without question. Go eat cupcakes!”
This definition forgot to include strength and fitness systems, which are loaded with dogmas. Many people get almost psycho about “their” training system, which of course must be the best in the world because it’s the one they are using.
I heard a very wise statement by Richard Ficca at his Powerlifting seminar a few months ago, to the best of my recollection it was this, “A thousand Italian mothers will make sauce a thousand different ways, but they all use tomatoes.”
While I am not a competitive Powerlifter, I do incorporate Powerlifting into our training at my gym.
Some might ask, “I thought you had a CrossFit gym?”
My reply would be what Coach Glassman stressed when I was at his seminar in Santa Cruz, CA years ago . Fitness should be broad, general, and inclusive.
Powerlifting has been a huge asset to our training!
A thousand different coaches might teach weight training a thousand different ways, but they all use weights.
Zach Even-Esh emphasizes not discriminating against any thing that will make you stronger. I fully agree!
Some people think that only one type of weight is superior to all the others.
Take your pick:
This is just a few, of course, but you get the point. Why not take advantage of the benefits of all of them? We do at my gym.
Resistance is resistance no matter what tools you train with.
So, starve your dogmas and get more out of your training!
There are very few books I recommend any more.
This one is well worth reading!
The general public is often scammed by the “latest and greatest fitness break through”.
Why is that so common?
Simple–
This is why people fall for the supposed shortcuts.
Take the recent study that claims that one minute of intense exercise is equivalent to 45 minutes of moderate exercise. Evidently they worked with really out of shape people in this study. Any exercise will get untrained, sedentary people in better shape for a while.
That’s not the main point, though. The main point is most people have no clue what intense exercise is.
Intense exercise is way harder than most people will ever want to do, especially more than once.
Don’t be fooled by the hype and garbage that floods the Internet!
There are many parallels between how you train and how you live your life.
Most of the people I respect as mentors have gone “against the grain” of popular opinion in both of those areas.
They don’t worry about being cool or accepted or liked, they just blaze their own path or “follow their gut instincts” like Zach Even-Esh always says.
I learned very early in life that trying to be cool, accepted, or liked were dead-end streets.
That was way before the Internet existed (yes, there was life before social media, believe it or not). Just nowadays it’s easier for people to be coerced to follow what others think, often without ever thinking a matter through on their own. Just have the same opinion as those who shout the loudest or who can use the most profanity and you become part of the popular culture. How dare anyone defy popular culture and have your own opinions!
I don’t care if the subject is world view, lifestyle, nutrition, religion, philosophy, or anything else; don’t blindly follow the crowd! Do your own research, think things through, don’t make snap decisions.
To be healthy and fit throughout your life, this is vital. You are unique, so set up your training in a way that helps you achieve your goals. Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing! Find what works best for you and work at it consistently.
While the basics don’t change, the applications of the basics can be quite varied.
If you are training to compete then use what enhances your capabilities in that sport.
If you are training for general fitness (which I do), then train that way.
Quit comparing yourself to everyone else, that is a huge waste of time.
The Cave 