Weekly Word: August 8, 2021

News & Notes
The summer came, and the summer went. It amazes me that we are in the midst of August and fall sports are about to begin. With that being said, I have some tough news to share as we are losing my aide-de camp Steven Rose as he heads back to Ursinus College to play his final football season. 

I threw a lot of work at Steven this summer and oftentimes it was chaotic. He kept coming back, asked tons of questions, and thought deeply on how to refine what he is doing to be better. Knowing Steven for almost a decade, I am confident he will keep this mindset for the rest of his life and in doing so, accomplish anything that he sets out to do. He was the hardest working athlete that I ever coached and now he is taking that work ethic and becoming an incredible coach that wants the best for everyone that he works with. 

We are going to miss him these next couple months on the farm but good luck this season and see you during Winter break! 

Random Thoughts on Parenting
I was listening to a lecture this week and heard something that really made me think. One responsibility that you have as a parent is to basically offer your child up to the world to experience a variety of things. Some of these things will be challenging. Some of these things may not work out great but the thing you should remember is that you cannot keep them sheltered from everything. Eventually, they have to get out the in the world. The challenge for us as parents is to teach our children things like truth, courage, and love and this will hopefully prepare them to tackle anything that they may encounter.

Fast forward a few hours after listening to this lecture and I saw an example of this play out at my daughters soon-to-be pre-school. Some of the mothers there were talking about the tears they anticipate shedding on day one drop-off. They were laughing about it but also very serious. Sending your little one off is tough but necessary. I think one thing to keep in mind is that everything that you have done with them from ages 0 to right now matters. Everything that you have done with them and for them lays the groundwork for future situations that you, or they, may face. There will always be challenging but remember that you have shared the values that you deem important and trust that you have done enough.

Fitness Tip
I recently finished reading a book titled Physiology of Strength written by Theodor Hettinger in 1961. This book gives a great scientific look at the some of the strength building concepts that survived the test of time and still practiced today. One important concept that is brought up over and over again is the value in practicing a move or exercise on a daily basis. Lets use the chinup for example. If you have a goal to do a chinup ,the first thing I would recommend is getting yourself a pullup bar. Once you have it set up, it is then time to go to work. Each day you will spend time on the bar trying to improve your strength. In as little as 20-60 seconds a day, you could see great improvements.

How can one make such great improvement with so little time? The answer is isometric muscle contractions. Hettinger realized decades ago that the most efficient way to improve strength is with isometrics. In our pullup example, it would be using a stool or jumping up so your chin is above the bar. Then, you will squeeze and hold your chin above the bar for about 40-50% of your maximum hang time. So, if you can hang for 20 seconds, you will practice hanging for 8-10 seconds. Do this everyday and you will get better.  Like the great wrestling coach Dan Gable said, if something is important to you, do it everyday. If it is not important then don't do it at all. 

What I've Been Reading...
Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
At the beginning of this year I decided I was going to start dabbling with biographies. I am really enjoying them so far. After getting a few Ron Chernow and Walter Isaacson books as Christmas gifts (all there bios are 500+ pages), I am going to make it a goal to finish them by the end of year. I have Hamilton, Washington, da Vinci, Einstein, Franklin, and a few more! If I read one a month, I will get to my goal. Now on to da Vinci...

Leonardo da Vinci was an interesting man who was interested in everything! He spent most of his days learning and thinking and at times, it appeared as if he may have been a bit unmotivated to create art. That wasn't always the case as he was continually refining his technique. In his mind, none of this work was ever finished and he often held on to projects for 20+ years before adding a revision here or an edit there. I am amazed at the amount of research Isaacson did for this project and also that things like da Vinci's original journals are still in existence and readable today. 

Quote of the Week
"Movements of the soul are made known by movements of the body" -- Leon Battista Alberti

I hope you all have an awesome week!
Chris Fluck