Dog Fighting

So not what you thought but I definitely got you’re attention right? So there is this phrase that people use when speaking of or to “underdogs”.

“It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”

Erin:Lauren DL:FS

I always like to ask this. How the heck did the “big” dog get so big? It’s very possible that that dog used to be small, and got tired of getting kicked around. So instead, chose to be the big dog. To do the work that it takes to be better than they were the day before, and as they stand toe to toe with their opponent. They don’t need to have fight in them. They live the fight, they are the fight, greatness was a choice made long ago, and they are going to let that other dog know not to mess with them ever again, and eventually the little dog becomes big too.

    Haley:Lauren Squat

I think we all know combat sports can go south real quick, it takes one punch, kick, or poor judgment call while grappling to end a fight. That leaves a lot of other games, races, events, challenges, and opportunities for greatness to be decided in a much less abrupt manner.

Mark:Mike Heavy DL

Quite often, I would even say the majority of the time. The athlete(s) who have wanted it longest and have had that internal fight within will find themselves as the victors. So the Fight in the dog was decided and the size was earned.

Three ants

We as compassionate human beings love a good underdog story. They work real hard, they get their opportunity and magically they are in the right place at the right time. Interestingly enough that just generally does not happen. There are always favorites but it’s the faster, stronger (read here: bigger) athlete that takes the day.

Mark:JB 12days

So moral of this story, train smart, eat smart, Lift often, run hard, be the big dog in the fight, because some punk always thinks they have your number.

Oh and keep smiling, that’s important!

Athlete Profile: Erin Little

“Erin Little? Really? I love people with ironic last names.” – Bender

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Erin Little at Syracuse University

“Optimist Prime” as we like to refer to her, is possibly the most excited, most peppy person I ever have had the good fortune to work with. At a solid six feet of awesomeness, Erin’s laugh is infectious, her drive unparallelled, and her support of those around her is unwavering.

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Erin attempts a hit during a volleyball match.

A little bit about Miss Little: she is a recent NCAA Division 1 volleyball standout at Syracuse University, and was a professional player with Finnish League Bronze Medalists Oriveden Ponnistus VC. As you can see, Erin came to the CA well-decorated. Her sensational attitude toward others and training made her an easy fit here.

There was work to do though, and finding the right training partner was important. This is where “Optimist Beta” comes in. Lauren Salter, a CA sponsored athlete, got a tweet one day from Erin, who inquired about the Facebook pictures under Contemporary Athlete’s page. The two kept in touch via Twitter until Erin returned from Finland. Only a few days later, Erin made her CA debut.

Lauren has been as much a driving force and supportive role for Erin as Erin has been for Lauren. Together, they have learned to succeed here in the CA and out.

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Attempting a block

There is something important to be said for having a great training partner: the right one will always make you perform better and vice versa. Erin’s place in the CA is important: She is an athlete of constant confidence, of moral support, and ultimately she is a leader by example.

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Erin (right) and her training partner, Lauren Salter during warmups at Contemporary Athlete

I’m not sure of what Erin thought when she first showed up at the CA. Probably that I was a little crazy as most of what we do is unconventional, but Lauren talked her into staying and she has been a stalwart of hard work and fun. This carries through her work within the CA Professional Athletes as well as with the other amazing people I work with in my open training groups.

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Off-weight lunge and twist…a “favorite”.

Erin, like many of the athletes I see walk through my doors, suffers from OTS (Over Training Syndrome). Too many days of training in a gym, on a court, and on game day, and not enough rest had left all kinds of issues in her body, and she was headed down the road towards injury. We reigned in her training and essentially started at square one with her lifting.

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A particularly early Monday morning usually means coffee in hand during warmups.

Erin’s foundation as an athlete is solid, so stripping away the clutter was easy to do. With the right support, her goal-setting is moving forward, and watching her grow has been extremely fun. Erin recently decided to return to her alma mater to act as an assistant volleyball coach in order to further develop her own game, and losing her for the school year will be hard. Knowing she will be back next summer, though, has made that loss much easier.

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The “C” Word

The “C” Word

There are some words that all coaches and trainers hate. We all have a list of words that make our skin crawl or blood boil. Our own verbal pet peeves but I think the “C” word is the most frequently used within many training facilities, and for me and what we do here at Contemporary Athlete is the most infuriating of all of them.

I CAN’T

Can’t is a lack luster, poorly descriptive, half hearted word for quit. It is generally used for early onset defeat; a submission to mental weakness, or in most cases the fear of failure. It brings about uncomfortable feelings, warm ears, sweaty palms, nausea, and an intense desire to find the closest exit and to use it… quickly. Can’t flows like a fast running spring stream of verbal diarrhea preceding or following the why’s and how’s for not trying.

For me, this is a debilitating word. It can take an amazing training day, filled with the opportunity for greatness, PR’s, and personal growth and immediately send it into the workout wood chipper.  The downward spiral of doomed feelings and tears trigger a good trainers highly honed training as an emotional triage expert and an a long toothed conversation about desire, and positive reinforcement quickly follows the dirty word can’t.

Can’t is a choice, it’s a choice to not try.

Now here is the happy part of this trainer’s rant, it starts with a question:

Vic Crawl:Pull

Why not choose TO try?

I CAN

sounds exponentially better. It is much sexier. There is no hard consonant sound at the end of it. It’s shorter to say; so that is always nice for those of you that are endurance athletes looking to conserve energy. The best yet though, is it always ends with you smiling. (Yeah seriously, try that s**t out in the mirror)

By saying I can you accept the challenge, which lay ahead of you willingly and with a smile. So go out there and be a catalyst for awesome and stop standing in your own way, lead those around you with a smile. Best yet you won’t get up-charged by your trainer for the psychological services that will be offered for saying you can’t. Or the dry cleaning bill for crying on their clean training gear for saying you can’t.

Gabby:Erin The future