“Go Silent!” commanded one of my formative Zen Teachers… i sat. i listened to the silence. sat some more. listened to the silence some more. in conventional American Fitness Training, we are not trained to listen to the Silence. in fact? in conventional American Fitness Training? we are trained to drown out the […]
Warrior 3? hec, how ’bout a WARRIOR FREE!? it’s awes(om)e hearing how my devoted students are making use of my vast array of online streaming classes and videos while i take my public teaching to the Rez kids…though i miss our weekly sweats, gotta say, the hugs from the kids are preciously priceless! […]
“Nothing matters, but everything counts.” – steve ilg, THE OUTDOOR ATHLETE (1985). Are you serious in your Practice or sincere? If you are ‘serious’ in your training, then everything matters, but nothing really counts in a spiritual growth sense.
Spontaneous Fitness is not versus Structured Training. Spontaneous Fitness training, my Noble Friends along the Path of Wholeness? Is a HARD EARNED training effect from Structured Fitness Training.
“Daddy…i’m not so nervous now that I am here…I LIKE THIS PLACE!”
the PLACE to Dewa (7) was referring was a rolling pinyon and ponderosa-studded ranch located about 12 miles northeast of a Tibetan-like refuge of crazy alpine beauty known as Westcliffe, Colorado. i’ve never been never before my ol’ snowshoe racing pal and legendary Burro Racer (yeah, i said, Burro Racer) invited me to be a “Celebrity Athlete” along with Chris McDougall who just penned a NY Times Bestselling book called, Natural Born Heroes which documents the Tarahumara Natives of Copper Canyon and their relationship with an enigmatic white runner turned guru, Micah True. I, Dewa, and Sandra would spend the weekend with Chris at the Woolfe Hotel in ‘downtown’ Westcliffe – which is on the National Register of Historic Buildings because it was built in 1887 and is still amazingly reflective of that era. it’s also haunted which, well, that’s another story. let’s just say we had a very interesting pre-race night.
How feeble ilg spent a 53rd Birthday on this Plane(t) during a very paltry incarnation; finishing in the top ten of a 3-day cycling stage race and easing the lactic acid from my muscles through Steve ilg’s High Performance Yoga, and hanging with my precious family…the way i live my life is my response to all […]
yet, as i tapped into my breath and spun my pedals? a certain Pratyhara arose…yeah, a Drawing of my Senses Inward. perhaps it was the Time Trial helmet which accounted for the acoustics of my breath to seem more resounding. whatever it was, the rhythm of my breath and pedal cadence drew my spiritual self inward yet my outer Awareness remained on high beam; taking the shortest lines through the serpentine road, seeking and riding upon the smoothest ribbons of asphalt laced upon this old county road, veering away from the puddles of the still wet road from the soaking rain just an hour or so earlier. such things add up in a Time Trial, the Race of Truth, for there is no drafting; just you, your inner power, and your breath against the clock.
knew i was going fast when, by mile 10…
Yesterday at 10,910’… surrounded by my lifelong friends; cold, snow, and high heart rate! Felt fleet, felt a sense of Wu-Wei – effortless effort – and raced to a top 10% of all 400+ finishers…today? well, not so much…
DAY TWO: 2nd Stage of the IRON HORSE BICYCLE CLASSIC – CIRCUIT RACE.
in bike racing there is an oft recited catchphrase; “Sometimes you are the hammer, and sometimes? Well you’re the {explicative} nail.”
this morning? feeble ilg was the latter.
in fact, i finished very nearly DEAD LAST!
finished in 3:03, 26th out of over 500 registrants and over 450 starters. i liked the math going into tomorrow.
most of all? i LOVED seeing my family at the Finish Line; Dewa going crazy with love while holding up her hand-written sign which read, “GO DAD GO!!”
such is why we race.
wish me Godspeed tomorrow and keep your Wholistic Fitness practices strong.
they work.
trust me.
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Photo of Coach and daughter Dewachen, living the Path (upside down!) by www.jamesqmartin.com
