My Mini Journey

If you know me, you know I am a passionate person and have great passion for health, fitness and football, to name a few.  One of the things that I have also been passionate about is how much I hate running long distance!  Growing up, running long distance was as bad as eating my vegetables or cleaning my room.  I have never had a problem running sprints but running longer distances was my ‘enemy’.  In terms of body types and if you know anything about muscle fibers, I am more of a ‘fast twitch’ type of a guy.  During high school football, one of our ways to condition was by running five 350's.  A 350 is one timed lap around the field equaling about 350 yards traveled.  Our Defensive Backs were given 50 seconds to complete the 350 while Linebackers were given 55 seconds and Defensive Linemen 65 seconds.  I will never forget my excitement, after being moved from Safety to Outside Linebacker, when I realized that I was going to get an extra 5 seconds to complete my 350's!  I believed I had to work harder at running longer distances than most people because my short legs provided me with short strides and I was unable to cover the same amount of distance as those with longer legs.  Now I know that is nothing but a poor excuse, but I used it to train my brain to believe that running long distance was not for me. 

Sometime in November I was having dinner with a friend from college and we began discussing the Indianapolis Mini Marathon.  My friend ran the Mini last year and really enjoyed herself and felt very accomplished after completing the race.  Running a marathon is something I simply knew I would never attempt to do – after all, I don’t have the right ‘body type’.  I did not like to run long distance so why on earth would I run a marathon?  The longest race I have ever run was the 5K Cat Race in Carmel a few years ago. After our long discussion about her experience with the Mini, I had come to the decision to sign up for the race!!  I needed a good challenge for myself heading into the year of 2012 and after being inspired by my friend Lindsay, we decided to become training partners.  I made up my mind - I was going to attack one of my biggest fears, running long distance, 13.1 miles to be exact.  

I did not make a New Years Resolution for 2012 but I have made the decision to run the Mini Marathon on May 5th.  Competitive people always need to fill that desire to compete, so this is the challenge to myself that I have made. I have set a goal to overcome my long-standing issue with long distance running.  The commitment and dedication to the preparation and training is going to be an important part of my journey to complete the Mini.   We don’t need to rely on resolutions to tackle our goals.  The timing of my goal happens to coincide with the start of the new year, but striving toward something fills a spot in me.  My goal is set and the theme I want to live by every day is: 'Wake Up With A Purpose".  Life moves fast and I am taking it upon myself to enjoy every day and lead a purposeful life.   I am able to enjoy every day because I love what I do and the people I work with.  My purpose is to make a difference every day for those I coach, teach, train and also for yours truly, by continually challenging myself and setting new goals.  Now I ask you - what are your current goals?   Make today your day and every day after it! 

-Coach Cole

YOUTH STRENGTH DEVELOPMENT

I was very excited to see the growth in our Youth Strength Development program this past session.  My first group in the summer of 2011 had 4 boys participating.  The fall session brought great growth as 20 boys and girls participated in the program.  I was very proud of all of the athletes involved who were making the choice to get fit and improve their health.  It was amazing to see the increase in confidence in many of the athletes as well as the excitement they had to take on new challenges.  Many of my trainees saw great improvement by the end of the program and below are just a few of the results. 

Push Ups    Week 1 Week 6      % Improved

Mason             28          47                     68%

Matthew       15             34                    127%

Brennen       18             30                     67%

Pull Ups    Week 1  Week 6   % Improved

Jalen            10               21                 110%

Rogan           5                11                  120%

Jordan          3                11                  267%

Sit  Ups    Week 1  Week 6   % Improved

Sloan            22          39                 77%

Ashley          29           39                 34%

Max              28           38                 36%

Jump Rope  Week 1  Week 6  % Improved

Brady             68             138           103%

Max                40              61             53%

Ashley            57              79              39%

I want to send a special thank you to my assistants David Klain, Justin Klausner and Matt Leitch as they were very helpful in making sure everyones technique and form were always correct.  I look forward to starting the Winter 1 Session on January 3, 2012 as we now will have two youth fitness groups.  One group will be all 5th/6th graders while the other group will be for 7th/8th graders.  At the end of the session, we sure to check out how our athletes improved their strength!  

Cole's Workout of the Day-Primetime Nasty Nine

The Adult Fitness Class was challenged today with the Primetime Nasty Nine.  Everyone in the class did an outstanding job and pushed themselves to their personal limits!  It really tested each person's physical and mental toughness.  Here is the workout and the scores from today's class.  Keep up the good work!  

Primetime Nasty Nine

9 Rounds for Time:

9 Overhead Squats

9 Military Press

9 Air Squats          

9 Hurdle Jumps     

9 Burpees                 

9 Jump Rope Rotations           

9 Power Pulls                           

9 Walking Lunge Steps

9 Push Ups

Today's Results

Ryan Cole: 26:21

Marsanne Kunzer : 27:32

Brandon Lafferman: 29:02

Kris Schepers: 29:18

Sue Beale: 29:29

Steve Oakley: 30:15

Childhood Obesity

We all know that obesity is a ongoing problem in our country, not only with adults but with the children in our communities.  We have seen the world of technology constantly grow and evolve which has been great for many things such as medical advancement, global communication, business manufacturing capability – the list goes on.  The downside of technology is the huge impact on the level of physical activity of our youth.  The development of the internet and different gaming systems has led today's youth to a much more sedentary lifestyle.  It seems rare for kids to go outside and creatively make up their own games anymore.  Instead, they choose to sit at home and play games inside.  X Box now allows kids to communicate via headsets and play with other people from locations all over the world.  This allows for hours upon hours of gaming without boredom which in turn means no physical activity.  

As adults, we need to take a much more active stance regarding what our children are doing in their daily routines.  I am not saying that video games should not be played, that is unrealistic and I myself played nintendo growing up.  We do need to make sure they are getting outside and being active every single day however.  We simply cannot allow children to come home from school and sit in front of a television or computer for 6+ hours when we also expect and desire that they have a long, healthy life.  Approximately 17% of children and adolescents in the US, ages 2-19 years, are obese (http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html).  That is 12.5 million children!!  This is something we can and should influence, and parents need to be accountable for what they are allowing their children to do to their body's.  Parents need to set a positive example and take control of their own health in order to teach their children the importance of exercise and nutrition.  

I believe kids should be involved in as many activities as possible at a young age.  There is no reason for a child to concentrate on one sport at an early age.  They should be involved in a number of things whether its sports, music, theatre, or any other hobby that they enjoy.  This will not only keep them active, but it will help their physical, mental and social development.  My advice to parents is to take an active role in your child's life and take responsibility for what they are doing in their free time.  My advice to the youth is to get involved in as many things as you want and enjoy being a part of different teams, clubs, and other organizations.  The habits you form during childhood will carry over into adulthood and it is important that children are not facing set backs later in life because they spent countless hours playing video games, watching television, and playing on the computer.  

-Coach Cole