Thursday, October 19, 2006

Daddy Fat

Daddy Fat is the 10-15 pounds of fat weight that is wrapped around your torso like a loose and floppy belt. It's a sad condition that sets in from an unbelievable amount of sleep deprivation right after Mommy gives birth. You can't workout on 3-5 hours of sleep, so what happens is that you're tired and you need to stay awake.

So you eat a bowl of cereal.

That bowl of cereal is still with you. It's on your belly and stubbornly attached to your ass. Fruity Pebbles on your ass and Coco Puffs on your belly. It sounds like a sex fantasy but its not. It's your reality. You went ahead and got fat.

Crossroads my friend. Make a decision now before it is truly too late. Stop the bleeding.

Go to sleep. Wake up. Workout. Then deal with your life. Don't try to workout after you deal with your life. You'll get fat that way.

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Frigid Mornings

I blew out my knee my freshman year of college in my 2nd Track & Field meet of the season. I was a pole vaulter. It was a devastating injury for me because I loved jumping and at 18 years old, its tough to swallow the fact that you can't do something anymore. I could have gotten back to jumping, but I was never able to overcome the psychological barrier of leaving the ground after that.

But, something very wonderful came out of it. One year later, I had discovered rowing. I joined the university crew team and quickly earned my seat in the varsity boat. The coxswain coached us novice rowers how to row on the erg (indoor rowing machine). I asked what time the best guy on the team could pull on this machine. I made it a point to beat that score. To be honest, I never beat that score. The guy who had it was one of the country's top rowers. He was a 6'5" monster. But I did establish the 2nd fastest times on the team within 2 weeks. The next summer, that monster and I had the privilege of rowing at Penn AC's national camp under the direction of Ted Nash, US Olympic coach.

But that's not the story actually. The story was how I got to practice when I started out on my college team. I didn't have a car and lived off of campus. Didn't know any teammates to bum a ride off of them. So I rode my bike to and from the boathouse each morning, 10 miles each way.

It was soooo cold - February mornings at 5am. The darkness made it feel even colder. I'm cold thinking about it. I remember covering my hands in saran wrap before I put my gloves on hoping that would cut the chill (didn't work). I remember hiding behind a building one time just to take a break from the wind chill. I was a little nuts. My teammates thought so! But they respected me. It brought the work ethic of the team up, and we got fast together. How could they complain that our water workouts were hard when I rode 10 miles beforehand and would ride 10 miles home? 20 months later, we rowed to 3rd place in the Dad Vails Regatta, the country's most prestigious sprints race.

It's not a story that I think will inspire you because there was some nuttiness to the whole thing. My telling it is more of an effort of showing you how committed I am to what I do. A few people have recently asked me if this startup is worth all of the hard work. And the answer is yes, because none of it is work to me. It is what I am, so it comes naturally, which makes the work incidental.

About Me

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NY, New York, United States
I'm 34 years old, the proud father of 2 beautiful children and husband to Jennifer, a beautiful, smart, and very caring woman. I'm an athlete - someone that was blessed with the ability to move fast and fluidly past, around, up and over my opponents. But, my body now reminds me that those days are numbered. I'm the Founder of Agile Fitness, a company dedicated to helping others achieve their fitness goals. Resume: - Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist ('96). - Bachelor of Arts & Science, University of Delaware, ('95) - Masters in Business Administration, Baruch College Zicklin School of Business ('01)