People are people, too!

What is it about people?  You love them, you hate them, they make you laugh, they make you cry, and most of them, I'll be honest, I'm pretty sure they are just plain crazy.  But please, don't tell them I said that..

The funny thing about people, is that every single one of them has a house, a family, a daily life, a circle of influence, or I guess you could just say they have their very own lives.  Every person is different.  Their thoughts, talents, dreams and desires, all different.

Have you ever been somewhere, like say, driving down the freeway, there are tens of hundreds of different cars with different people in them going to different places and doing different things and ALL this stuff is going on at the very same time as stuff goes on in your very own life, and you don't get to see any of it.  And its going on ALL over the world. 

Yeah, I know I'm weird.  It's stuff like this, though, that just boggles my mind sometimes.  Here we are, doin' our thang, and so is everyone else.  And all you can do is sit there and wonder how in the world it all fits together and what your part is in it all.  But let's be honest, most of the time we don't.  We don't wonder where we fit in, we are just busy, you know, doing whatever in the world it is that we do.  Busy busy busy being busy.  And we forget.  We forget about everyone else and think mostly about ourselves...when maybe...just maybe..what we SHOULD be doing, is thinking more about everyone else and LESS about ourselves.  Hmm.

NEW POST!

I haven't posted in a while. Facebook kind of took over and I guess I liked the whole posting snippets about your life in 420 characters or less thing.  But then I got to thinking that it was stunting my brain use.  Sure, sometimes it is difficult to abbreviate your thought and place them in that small space, but then what happens is a lot gets left out.  Not that half of what is posted is important anyway.  But here I am, rambling again.  What was I getting at??  Oh yeah, I think that I might start posting more blog (or is it "making more blog posts?) to exercise my brain more and get it used to writing.  I have always wanted to write a book, and though the thought of finding a subject to write about for a long long time, or crafting an elaborate story stymies me at this point, perhaps some day it could become a reality.  The truth is, when I write, I work out a lot of things in my head.  It's almost like thinking on paper and it helps me become a stronger person.  So... here we go!

Test

Test to see if this works to post from my phone. It better since I paid good money for this app!



-- Post From My iPhone

Process over Results

A while ago, one of the coaches who I look up to and learn a lot of good things from, Dave Ward, posted an article that he got from Triathlon Magazine about athletes. It was called Are you a Level 6 Performer. It basically compares mediocre type athletes to "Level 6 Performers", which are those althletes that just have a higher midset for success. There was one point of his review of the article that really struck me and helped changed my mindset of working out. Here it is, word for word:

"Process over Results
This is probably my favorite principle. Level six performers focus on execution. They spend less time thinking about winning and more time focusing on what it takes to win. They are focused on the process, not the result. They understand that the process will lead to the desired result. By focusing on the process, they stay “in the moment” and are not distracted by their emotions.
This is not to say that you should not visualize. Personally, I’m a big believer in visualization, which I picked up from golf. What it means is that you need to focus on what you are doing when you are doing it.
Lower level athletes tend to focus on a desired result, rather than focusing on the
process that will lead them to a result. You simply cannot wish your way to a
higher level of fitness. It takes work and it takes time.
Focus on the process and the results will come. When you achieve your results that’s the time to enjoy them."

When we focus too much on our desired result (losing a certain number of pounds, getting into a certain size, etc) it is too easy to get discouraged because change takes time. Instead, we should be focusing on the process and staying in the moment. Putting every ounce of our energy and thought into what we are currently doing and giving our full 100%. Don't go through the motions and just jump around and do things half hearted. Do everything ON PURPOSE. Give your all so you can look back and say that you did. FOCUS on the process and the results WILL come.

Review of Renueva 2008

A few weekends ago, my church hosted their first (that I know of) Conference. I think it went very well. The purpose of the conference was to "refresh, renew and restore", and personally speaking, it did just that. After the conference, I certainly felt rejuvenated and had a new boost in my faith. I had been going through some personal issues, and was even considering to quit my worship leader position at the church. You know, sometimes things become too much, and you need to take the chance to recharge your batteries, so the conference was just what I needed.

I didn't actually do much for the conference, which was kind of a relief in itself. A lot of times I feel like, besides the pastor and his wife, that I'm the ONLY one who does anything, and sometimes that gets a little burdensome. I did play one song, though. I played the spanish version of "Never let go" by Chris Tomlin, but before I did it, I told a story about a scripture in Romans (8:30something) that had really spoke to me at a point in my life where I felt abandoned. I don't usually speak much before playing, which I am working on, but I felt led to this time and it actually went quite smoothly. The best part, though, was when I was done, a lady from our congregation came up to me and gave me a big hug. In preparing for this conference, it was really the first time I had taken the time to talk to her, and I think what I said really spoke into her, so I was very encouraged by that.

In fact, since that time, I have heard of several people who now want to help, which is pretty cool that we, as a church, are growing and people want to participate.

Even Pro Footballers use P90X!!

(See previous post titled "Take it to the Xtreme")
I am currently on day 71 of my 90 day P90X journey and found this article on an NFL football player who decided to use P90X to improve his kicking ability:

Philadelphia Eagles' David Akers gets a kick from new regimen

By Matt Gelb Inquirer Staff Writer

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - David Akers acknowledged he was embarrassed. The Eagles
kicker is a perfectionist. He keeps diligent track of his statistics in
practice, games and training camp. That's why his 2-for-10 clip from beyond 40
yards last season made him desperate to change something.Then one day, while in
Dallas during the off-season, Akers saw an infomercial for a new training
regimen called P90X."I said, you know what, it looks legit because it's not some
gimmick," Akers recalled. "It [involves] actually working hard and changing the
regimen all the time."He tried it for the sake of change. He did not intend to
lose weight, but he ended up dropping 20 pounds and 6 percent of his body
fat.And his leg feels stronger. He has shown that in camp. Akers, out to prove
last season was a fluke, has made two 60-yard field goals, including one
yesterday."I'd be real happy if I was able to keep this type of power and
consistency through the season," Akers said.Last season, Akers lacked on deep
kicks for the first time in his career. For a lifetime 68.1 percent kicker from
beyond 40 yards, 2 for 10 was like a slap in the face.Akers, though, was not
overly disappointed with last season. He made every field goal under 40 yards
that he attempted (22 for 22). Of the field goals he missed from beyond 40
yards, many were near-impossible kicks, he said. Plus, he was working with a new
holder, Sav Rocca, which caused some headaches."You don't lose it just like
that," Akers said.The distance was not the problem. A 57-yard attempt in Week 14
against the New York Giants that would have tied the game banged off the right
goalpost. He did not think he had a shot at making it from there, anyway.Still,
Akers questioned himself in the off-season. The 33-year-old cannot regain the
strength he had as a younger player, but he wanted to do something new.That's
when he saw the infomercial for P90X, which boasts on its Web site that users
can "get absolutely ripped in just 90 days.""I liked it because it really worked
a lot with the explosion of the legs," Akers said. "Jumping, cardio aerobic,
push-ups, pull-ups, jumping back and forth, it's crazy. Yoga, stretch, tempo . .
. it's all kind of mixed into one."

He convinced Eagles trainer Rick Burkholder, who said he lost 30 pounds on
the regimen. "And he was standing on a chair doing it at first," Akers said.
Burkholder has the injured Eagles doing parts of the training
system.Special-teams coordinator Rory Segrest sees a different Akers, who now
weighs 183 pounds."He's showing really good leg strength right now," Segrest
said. "He's hit them in warm-ups. He's hit them during our team reps."The first
day Akers came to camp, he was playing around with Rocca and long-snapper Jon
Dorenbos. He said he nearly hit a 70-yard field goal. That's when he realized
that maybe this regimen could pay off."There's something to it," Akers said of
his new training technique. "It's not like, 'Hey, take this pill, you're going
to lose 40 pounds of fat.' You bust your butt. It's tough."

If you are interested in trying out P90X, find it here: www.beachbodycoach.com/demaak in the store. And stay tuned for my 90 day results!!

What's been going on?

Yeah, I guess I haven't posted in a while! I guess I have kind of replaced this with a fitness forum that I post on, so I haven't been here as much as I should! I have a bunch of ideas in my head of things to post on, even some drafts, but I just haven't gotten around to actually doing them!

Well, one thing that is different is that I lost about 20 lbs. I talk a little bit about it in a previous post (which I can't figure out how to link!) in January. Well, I have stuck with the Beachbody programs and have been pretty successful. I think people are starting to notice the results. I think I posted a while ago about P90X. Well I'm past day 60 of the program. I will post my results with that on day 90.

I am really liking the whole losing weight and feeling go about myself thing. It's really working out for me. I'm more active now than I've been in a long time and feel much more fulfilled. If you would like to feel the same, you can visit my other site and sign up for more info, or just bop around. It is www.beachbodycoach.com/demaak . HOPEFULLY, I'll post more later!!