Todd Durkin, MA, CSCS, NCTMB

Kevin Plank, founder of Under Armour, gifted me a watch last year inscribed with these words: “BE HUMBLE…BE HUNGRY.” What great words to live by in our daily lives! As we search for happiness and success fulfilling our life’s mission, it is important to be passionate, driven and committed. But, at the same time, it is ever critical to be humble. Humility is the grounding of our humanity.

My feature article for the December TD Times is Part I of a two-part series. Part I focuses on the virtue of humility. I want to give credit to Brett and Kate McKay as a reference for this inspired material below. I hope you enjoy it.

Part II will be in the January 10th edition of TD Times and will focus on the second half of this mantra – Be Hungry.

What is humility? The definition of humility need not include timidity or becoming soft in character. Instead, humility simply requires us to think of our abilities and actions as no greater, and no lesser, than they really are. Real humility requires that we are completely honest with ourselves. We must honestly assess what talents, gifts, struggles or weaknesses we possess and the magnitude of each.

Humility is the absence of pride. We are taught to think pride is a good thing, but pride functions only when comparing others to ourselves. Don’t base your self-worth on how you stack up to others. Instead, focus on yourself and how you can improve. C.S. Lewis said the following about pride:

“The point is that each person’s pride is in competition with everyone else’s pride. It is because I wanted to be the big noise at the party that I am so annoyed at someone else being the big noise. Two of a trade never agree. Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looking, but they are not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or better looking than others. If everyone else became equally rich, or clever, or good-looking, there would be nothing to be proud about. It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition has gone, pride has gone.”

What humility is not. In our quest to be humble, we often confuse humility with false modesty. I think we’ve all been guilty of this at one time or another. When we are recognized for a great accomplishment, we act as though what we did really wasn’t that important or that big a deal. For example, we spend many hours meticulously creating an excellent presentation for a conference or workshop, and when people praise us we say, “Oh, it was just something I threw together.” We have a tendency to devalue what we’ve done under the pretense of humility. In fact, people often take on the guise of false humility for the sake of receiving more praise and adulation from others. You want people to think “Wow, he said he just threw that together! Imagine what he could do if he had spent hours on it.” When you do something well, don’t toot your own horn excessively, but truthfully acknowledge what you accomplished.

How to practice humility:

• Give credit where credit is due. The prideful person will take as much credit for a success as possible. The humble person seeks to shine the light on all the other people who helped make success happen. No person relies on just one pair of bootstraps alone. Innate talent, a supportive family member, co-worker, friend, teacher or coach, educational opportunities, and some lucky breaks always contribute somewhere down the line. We live in community with others and our community contributes to who we are and all that we are able to accomplish. Share the credit.
• Don’t name/experience drop. Have you ever been in a conversation with someone who felt it necessary to interject talk of vacationing at the world’s fanciest spas, dining at pricey restaurants, knowing someone famous or wearing the finest clothes? When does name and experience dropping truly belong in any conversation? People who behave this way often have an exaggerated sense of their own self-importance and it will never adequately mask their insecurity. Resist boastful talk. Let others be the first to congratulate you for an accomplishment or admire your possession.
• Do what’s expected, but don’t make a big deal about it. My parents’ and grandparents’ generations understood the idea of fulfilling your duty. In his book, The Greatest Generation, Tom Brokaw made this observation:

“The ‘older’ generation did what was expected of them. But they never talked about it. It was part of the Code. There’s no more telling metaphor than a guy in a football game who does what’s expected of him — makes an open-field tackle — then gets up and dances around. When Jerry Kramer threw the block that won the Ice Bowl in ‘67, he just got up and walked off the field.”

Despite that game being played before I was born, I love the tenacity, toughness, and “matter-of-fact” attitude this story symbolizes. Why don’t we take a lesson from our elders? Do something because you’re supposed to do it and then go on about your business.

• Perform service and charity anonymously. Prideful men and women want everyone to know when they do a charitable act. They drop mention of the size of their donations, they speak of all the time they volunteer, and they never miss a chance to remind a beneficiary of their generosity towards them. They are obviously doing service for the wrong reason – to stroke their egos and gain acclamation. Real charity is not self-seeking; it is done solely for the benefit of others. Next time you do something nice, try keeping it completely to yourself. It’s a tough test of your humility.
• Stop one-upping people. Few things are more annoying than someone who must constantly one-up others during conversation. You say, “I once went to a Bon Jovi concert.” The one-upper says, “I once had backstage passes to a Bon Jovi concert.” Whatever someone says, the one-upper must do one better. Resist the urge to take part in these ego contests. Be the better person and let the one-uppers have their moment of glory. Stories might be re-told the next day, but good character is remembered for years.
• Remind yourself of humility. I recently saw a shirt that said, “It’s not easy being humble when you are as great as I am.” I laughed and thought it was funny. In truth however, we should work to remind ourselves of the virtue of humility. Pray for it, meditate on it, put the word on your mirror or in a conspicuous spot. As I write this article, the words “Be Humble…Be Hungry” are going up in my gym at Fitness Quest 10 to remind me and all clients and staff just how important it is to be hard-working, dedicated, driven, and hungry for success, while also being appreciative and grateful for all the opportunities in our precious lives.

As we celebrate some of our most cherished holidays, be mindful of the virtue of humility. My gift to you is one of my favorite motivational stories, one that reminds me that my greatest accomplishment is small relative to the larger world, but so is my greatest problem when I am uplifted by my community of friends and family. Click link below to meet Dick and Rick Hoyt, the 2008 Triathlete Hall of Fame Inductees, and be reminded of how our own humble efforts fit into a world where there is true greatness. Earlier this year, I learned about this amazing father and son team who have together competed in nearly 1,000 race events, including 200 triathlons and multiple Ironman competitions. Theirs is a story that humbles me as a man, a father and an athlete. Enjoy the holidays and remember, “Be Humble…Be Hungry.”

CLICK HERE to Meet Team Hoyt

ANNOUNCEMENTS
Congratulations Ryan & Christine Rogers!
Noah Daniel Rogers was born December 2nd at 3:57AM. He is a very a healthy baby, weighing 7lbs 3oz. and 20in. Congratulations to his family and a big welcome from all at FQ10!

(Ryan Rogers is a personal trainer at FQ10, Director of mentorships, and has been with the team for 7 years). Congratulations Ryan & Christine!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fitness Quest 10's General Manager Julie Wilcox Creates "Fresh and Easy" E-Cook Book

 

For those of you that know my General Manager, Julie Wilcox, you know that she is awesome! As great of a manager and leader that she is, her other passion is cooking. Julie has done a superb job putting together an ebook on her favorite recipes, and I must say: IT IS A MUST BUY!!! www.freshandeasy.weebly.com

 

If you purchase her ebook before December 24th (it makes a great holiday gift), you will be in the running for a FREE "21 Day Transformation" package worth $100.00 that we will raffle off. See Holiday Gift Ideas Section for more information!

"Miss Fit" Women's Boot Camp

When: Jan 5th - Jan 30th
Time: 5:30 - 6:30 AM, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday's
Where: 11454 Blue Cypress Drive, Scripps Ranch Community Park

 

Extra Dates:

Pre-Fitness Assessment/Orientation: January 4th @ 12 noon
Post-Fitness Assessment/Celebration: February 1st @ 12 noon (Location @ Fitness Quest 10)

Call or email to reserve your spot today!
Fitness Quest 10: 858-271-1171
10006 Scripps Ranch Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92131
Email Anna: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

 

Receive $25 off if registered before Dec. 10th
Receive a 15% discount for referring a friend

 

What is "Miss Fit" Women's Boot Camp?
"Miss Fit" Women's Boot Camp is a four-week outdoor program of fun, dynamic, and functional fitness instruction, nutritional counseling and motivational training. You will be inspired and have fun while participating in a fantastic workout led by Certified Fitness Trainer and Exercise Physiologist Anna Renderer.

 

What can I achieve from camp?
Your body will become more fit and toned, and your cardiovascular endurance will dramatically improve. You will gain more confidence making improvements in your physical well-being. Also, you'll meet great people who share in the same vision of striving to reach their goals for a healthier mind and body. You will gain valuable incite on how to make exercise and healthy eating a permanent and enjoyable part of your life.

 

What is the cost (investment in your health)?
Each four-week boot camp has a fee of $250. That covers twelve hours of instruction, the before and after assessments, nutritional guidelines packet, and biweekly emails giving you tips and inspiration! The educational value alone is worth hundreds. Where else can you get premiere or cutting edge fitness instruction for that incredible price? You truly can not put a price on your health, self esteem and the confidence you will gain from "Miss Fit" Boot Camp. If you look at what you will save in medical bills down the road or having to buy larger size clothing or lost opportunities due to your health, $20 for an hour of empowerment is priceless!

Let your leadership benefit you! Referral Incentive

It's always more fun to get friends involved and do something to help each other! Refer a friend and get 15% off the cost of the Boot Camp. You can get an additional 5% off for each friend you refer, up to 5 friends, a total of 35% off the cost of Boot Camp!


ATHLETE CORNER: "THE FEAR OF STRENGTH - PART 1"
By Brett Klika
You’ve seen me say it before, “The first step to getting faster is getting stronger”. The relationship between strength and speed is commonly misunderstood. Either athletes are afraid to get stronger in the weight room because they think it makes them slow, or they spend all of their time in the weight room thinking it will make them fast. Neither idea is in line with what actually makes an athlete faster. The first part of this article, I will address how getting stronger can help make you faster. The second part will talk about how the wrong program actually can make you slower and hurt your performance.

When you run, you bound from one foot to the other. This is called your stride. If you want to improve speed, you have to improve both your stride frequency and stride length. Stride frequency is how many strides you can do in a given amount of time, stride length is how far you bound from one foot hitting the ground to the other. Stride frequency is improved largely by tricking the brain to send out messages to the hips and legs to cycle faster. This can be done by over-speed training and hundreds of hours of proper technique work. Stride length is largely effected by how much force is put into the ground when your foot hits. This is improved by hundreds of hours of proper technique work, and improving your body’s ability to create force. Increasing force comes from getting stronger. Getting stronger comes from a well-designed, progressive resistance training program.

The role of getting stronger in the weight room is to convince your body and brain that is capable of putting out more force than it is used to. The easiest way to visualize this is to think about walking a mile with a 30 pound vest on. The day, walk the mile without the vest on. Day 2 will seem a lot easier. This is due to the body and brain adapting to the 30 pound vest, and when it’s gone, these adaptations stick around for a little bit. Even though you are only moving your bodyweight, your body is geared to move something 30 pounds heavier. Your muscles put out a greater degree of force, so your body moves faster, and it feels lighter. This is the same adaptation that getting stronger in the weight room causes during speed training. If you can squat 250 pounds, and you only weigh 150 pounds, your legs are capable of moving much more than your bodyweight. When they are only moving your bodyweight, your body seems lighter, so it moves faster. This has the same effect on men and women. Within certain parameters, and in conjunction with a proper running program, consistantly improving your strength in the weight room can help you consistently improve your speed on the field.

Strength training must always be accompanied by running technique work as well as speed drills specific to the needs of the sport the individual is trying to get faster for. Weight training is a valuable component of a training program, but the needs of the sport in regards to sport skill, conditioning, tactical work, etc., need to be addressed as a high priority as well. An athlete can get slower if they spend all of their time focusing on their weight room lifts, ignoring all the other components of the sport. A weight training program should be designed to compliment tactical sport work, not trump it. The overall goal of a program should be to improve an athlete’s on-field performance as well as decrease injury. Next month, I will discuss how focusing too much on weight room lifts can actually hurt your performance.


FITNESS PROFESSIONALS SECTION

Want to join Todd's Mastermind Group for Personal Trainers?

Due to popular demand, Todd's Group of entrepreneurial, success-driven trainers is expanding!

• Are you ready to propel your business to the next level?
• Are you ready to step up and "Play Big"?
• Would you like to be able to connect with Todd and his experienced, expert group of fitness entrepreneurs that share systems, support, wisdom, articles, and experience on a DAILY basis?

This special group provides:

• On-going daily support via Google Group
• Monthly phone call with TD Mastermind Coach
• Live meetings
• Total immersion in the solutions, strategies, and BIG thinking to grow your business FAST.

This expanded Group officially starts January 15, 2009. If you apply now and are accepted, Todd will be providing strategic planning for 2009 to make this your BEST YEAR ever. This planning will start December 15, 2008 and will be FREE until January 15th.

To find out how you can get involved in this special, unique opportunity, click in on the link to get more information or to apply.

 

CLICK HERE NOW for Todd's Unique Opportunity!!!!


UPCOMING EVENTS
Perform Better Clinic: January 24, 2009 - Los Angeles, CA

Todd will be teaching his "Going for Greatness" program which will include a 1 hour workout and a 1 hour empowerment and educational workshop on what it takes to get to the next level in business and in life.

CLICK HERE for more information.

 

 

IDEA Personal Trainer Institute: February 19-22, 2009 - Alexandria, VA.

CLICK HERE for more information.

TD RECOMMENDS

2 Brand NEW TRX DVDs!

 

TRX Train Like the Pros DVD & Guide
Pros know: it takes the right moves to take your game-or your fitness level-to truly superior heights. Now, elite professional athletics consultant, Todd Durkin, is here to share them. CLICK HERE to purchase.

 

TRX Team Sports DVD & Guide
Ready to train with professional coaches? Suit up for a tough and exhilarating DVD workout featuring elite strength and speed-training consultant to the NFL and NCAA, Todd Durkin. CLICK HERE to purchase.

NEED CECS???

We are proud to announce a new CE partnership

between Todd Durkin Enterprises and DSWFitness, Center for Continuing Education, to offer my best-selling TD Performance DVDs as home study continuing education courses.

Train your clients to be faster, stronger, quicker, more powerful and more flexible. These DVD courses will definitely teach you to unleash their full athletic potential. Learn all the exercises, drills and techniques I use to train the pros. Each CE course includes an instructional DVD packed with exercise and drill demonstrations designed specifically to build your training arsenal. The study guides include comprehensive and thought-provoking DVD reviews and specific application and programming ideas.

Available now in this series:

 

Flexibility for Performance

- Learn the six best stretches to use with your clients and athletes.

 

Dynamic Warm-Up - Prepare your clients and athletes for superior sport performance.

 

Joint Integrity

- Build a strong foundation in your clients and athletes.

 

Core Conditioning

- 30 exercises to strengthen and improve core muscles to prevent injury and enhance performance.

 

CLICK HERE to purchase any of these 4 DVDs and get CEU's!

GUEST ARTICLE: "BREAKING THROUGH PLATEUS"
By Ryan Burgess
When an unhealthy individual finally decides to commit and improve their health and fitness, the initial focus is usually on one area: exercise. They may try to “diet” in the beginning, but most “diets” don’t even last longer than it will take for you to read this article. Before long, old eating habits (the key word being “habits”) come back into the picture, but in most cases, some form of exercise or activity will remain. In the beginning, this is good. Let’s face it folks, our country is so sedentary and inactive, if I could convince every American to walk around the block after dinner, I’d call that a victory. There comes a point, though, when people that are committed to working out hit a wall. Whether you are young athlete that’s trying to lose/gain weight, a parent that is trying to set the healthy example in the house while juggling all of your responsibilities, or a weekend warrior, if you are training, you should have goals. But what happens when your progress to those goals begins to slow down, if not come to a screeching halt? Instead of trying to find even more time to train, getting frustrated and, god forbid, throwing in the towel, I’m going to share with you a few areas that you can address to help you get over the hump.

I have a very quick exercise for you, and I promise you won’t even break a sweat. Draw a big circle on a piece of paper, and cut that circle into 3 pieces. Write "Training" in one piece, "Nutrition" in the second piece, and "Rest" in the third piece. "Training" encompasses all of your physical activity- weight training, cardio, hiking, running, walking, or anything else that you enjoy doing to get your heart rate up. "Nutrition" is every morsel of food you put in your body. Finally, "Rest" is a two-pronged tool. First, it is the literal definition of the word: the relief from work or activity afforded by sleeping, any relief from exertion, a state of quiet and recreation, peace, freedom from trouble, and tranquility. In addition, rest should sometimes be active. This includes massage therapy, ice baths, or any light activity you can do to promote circulation without fatiguing your muscular and nervous systems. The circle on your paper represents an appropriate approach to health and fitness: notice how 66% of that circle is what you are doing AWAY from the gym. That majority of the circle is what I consider "recovery", and it is where most people can stand to improve if they have reached a training plateau. Remember this: training is where you give your body the potential to grow, nutrition is where you give your body the resources to grow, and recovery is when your body grows. You can lift all the weight in the world and run until you drop, but if you don't take care of yourself, I guarantee you will break down and not tap your true potential. Below I’m going to give some quick suggestions on how to improve the recovery portion of your training program.

1. Nutrition. My nutrition advice comes from first hand experience with clients and myself, so if you are dealing with any serious health issues, consult with your physician before making any drastic changes to what you are eating. As a whole, we are facing a very odd health problem in our country: despite being over-fed, we are still somehow undernourished. When the majority of your diet consists of highly processed foods, you are heading down a dangerous path, because not only are you putting excess weight on your frame, you’re not giving your body the micronutrients it needs for optimal performance. Trying to make up for that by shoveling supplements down your throat is NOT the answer. If you were able to take politics out of the issue, many food scientists would tell you that will still don’t completely understand how all of the macronutrients, vitamins, and minerals found in many natural foods work in relationship with one-another; we just know that they have an immeasurable amount of positive health benefits. Here’s my challenge to you: try to eat a vegetable and or a fruit with EVERY single meal. It’s not that hard- Mother Nature did a pretty good job of making these things easy to eat without much preparation. I also wanted to comment on organic food. If something is labeled “Organic”, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the healthiest thing for you to be eating. Just because you can find potato chips and cookies now that fall in this category doesn’t give you the green light to live off of chips and cookies. In terms of produce and animal products, though, I’m a firm believer in examining the source of your food (I thank Michael Pollan for that). This is especially the case for animal products. In terms of choosing grass-fed beef over grain-fed, check out these quick facts: when cattle are raised eating their natural diet in their natural environment, they end up leaner (meaning less overall fat for the consumer) with drastically higher levels of Omega 3 fatty acids and Conjugated Linoleic Acids (CLA), both of which have incredible health benefits (if curious, just Google the health benefits of both, and you’ll find scores of studies explaining how important they are). If you don’t know where exactly to find these kinds of products, check out US Wellness Meats. It is true that the cost is more for these types of products, but so what? If you don’t invest in health now, you will be paying for disease later. Just 10 short years ago we didn’t pay a fraction of the cost of what we now pay for 500+ channel satellite TV and cell phones for everyone in the family, yet we’ve found a way to fit them into the monthly budget. Spending a few extra dollars on healthy food isn’t an expense, it’s an investment.

2. Rest. I could write an entire separate article on the importance of sleep, but all I want to address now is quantity. If you’re a typical American, you’re getting somewhere between 5-6 hours of sleep, when we need to be getting at least 7-8. “But Ryan, it’s sooooo hard! I mean, there’s just so much to do, how could I possibly sleep that much?” Here is a suggestion: figure out what time you have to wake up in the morning (leaving you enough time to eat breakfast of course), and then subtract 8 hours. If you have to get up at 6am, that would be 10pm; 5am, 9pm; and so on. The additional 1-2 hours of sleep that most people are not getting is often consumed by mindless activity such as watching TV. If your shows mean that much to you, buy a DVR and watch them on the weekend. It’s also very important to give yourself a little “mental rest” every single day. You can call it prayer, meditation, or whatever you want, but devoting just a few minutes a day to some personal quiet time will go a very long way.

So there you have it folks. December is typically a month where health & fitness falter, so hopefully I’ve provided you with enough tips to help you thrive during the ‘08 Holiday season!


SERENITY TUNE UP: "REFLECTION....CALM YOUR MIND"
By Marilou Ramos
Ahhhhh.........Here we are full swing into the holiday season. As 2008 comes to a close during this festive time, what better way to bring about Joy to the World & Peace on Earth than to take some time-out for Reflection. Yes.......Time-out for Reflection!

Imagine: Standing on a pier looking out over a vast, beautiful lake. Mountains in the distance, trees and forest surrounding you. However, you're also surrounded by heavy winds & a darkening, cloudy sky. As you look down at the lake, the surface is turbulent & gray.....it reflects the darkening sky & your body feels the extreme chill and discomfort of the impending storm. Yoga philosophy likens our frantic, stressed minds to that environmental condition of the lake. When we are under stressful conditions such as today's economy, family pressures, poor health, etc., it wreaks havoc with our minds. Here we go.......Time-out for Reflection!

Visualize: Sit with your eyes closed & see the above scene in your mind. Place one hand on your forehead & the other hand on your heart. Identify causes of stress, tension or worry in your life. Acknowledge them silently & see them as if they are the clouds in the sky above the lake. Begin breathing slowly and lower your hands to your stomach. Feel your gentle breath begin to calm your body/mind and allow the "clouds" of stress to gently blow away. As you calm yourself, imagine leaning over the pier to see your own reflection in the calming lake surface. Stay with your visualization until the sky becomes blue & you can imagine seeing the reflection of the entire forest & mountains surrounding your personal reflection on the calm surface of the lake.

Mantra: I allow stress & tension to gently leave my body & choose to embrace the beauty of life. Reflection calmly restores me.

Breath: Slow, long inhalation followed by a slow, long exhalation. Create a gentle, comfortable rhythm with your breath.

Taking Time-out for Reflection relaxes us & re-focuses our minds. We can actually feel our body/mind grow calmer, which enhances all our mental and bodily functions. Time well spent toward Peace on Earth. So long 2008!

Namasté