Dreams do come true, and this week was living proof of that for me.
On Monday I met my coach Eric Cressey for the very first time at Cressey Performance in Hudson, Massachusetts (USA). All up, I’ve travelled from Australia ➜ Dubai ➜ New York City ➜ Boston ➜ Hudson just to meet him. The map below shows you the day trip I took from NYC ➜ Boston ➜ Hudson. It was an incredibly long day but I didn’t feel it, I was too damn excited to feel tired and on the biggest natural high of my life.
It’s a familiar story, but for those that don’t know it I’ll go over it again for you. Ever since my hubby introduced me to the Shoulder Savers I, II & III article series during my shoulder surgeries way back in 2006, I’ve been sold on his approach and style of training. I then started investing in his Assess & Correct, Magnificent Mobility, Inside-Out & Maximum Strength because I wanted to learn more. I wanted to start taking better care of my body and believed this was the right path for me at the time, of which it was. I then volunteered for The Human Guinea Pig trial he was conducting which gave me the opportunity to work more closely with him for the first time.
Then whilst on deployment, my shoulder started playing up again. I was determined that this time around I wasn’t going to end up on the surgeons table for a third time. There was only one person in this world I knew who could help me fix it, and that was Eric. So I emailed him asking him for advice. As it turned out, he not only gave me advice but during that process I ended up becoming an online client of his and have been ever since.
For the record my shoulder is completely pain free and has returned to it’s original state of being 100%. That’s all the proof I need.
So getting back to my original blog post, now where was I. That’s right, dreams do come true. I’ve said for the longest time I’d love the opportunity to meet and train with Eric. Back then, that’s all it was, a dream. Never in a million years would I have guessed it would one day be a reality. But there I was, standing in front of him in his place of business on the other side of the world to where I lived, not something you do every day, but it was something I did.
Losing Mum & Dad damn near destroyed me. My grieving sucked the living life out of me and left me with nothing more than a shell of a human being. It’s taken me the longest time to come to terms everything and to be able to finally move on from it leaving the worst of it behind.
Being deployed and by myself has helped me to do this in my own time and own space. I was then able to do what needed to be done so I could heal and start living my life again as it was intended. This was the starting point for me, to start living again. Living the life that I deserved. Living my life my way and not letting anyone or anything stand in my way.
So when I had to make a decision on where to go for my two week deployment break, I knew in my heart of hearts where it had to be New York City. New York City was a place I’d always dreamed of visiting and if I was going to be in the same country I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to meet my coach. And so I did, it was that simple.
To be continued……
I ♥ NYC! What can I say, I’ve already fallen in love with this city. Here’s a bullet point list of what we achieved on our first official day in NYC.
✔ Whole Foods Market, Columbus Circle
✔ Saw a Squirrel
✔ Bought Tickets for Wicked at the Gershwin Theatre
✔ Angelo’s Pizza for Lunch
✔ Drinks at Irish Bars
It’s finally getting closer to the end of my nine month deployment and things are starting to be planned and prepared for our return back home to Australia.
For me, this triggered the start of my own personal preparation. What you have to understand is that our life over here is completely controlled, in every aspect of the word. So returning back home takes a little getting used to in the beginning because it’s like going from fifth gear into reverse. Where possible I want to make that transition as easy as possible on myself.
To make the transition that little bit easier I’m starting to plan my leave and what I’m going to do on it. Initially I was going to go away to a Cleanse & Detox Retreat, but now I just want to go home and stay home. So that’s exactly what I’m doing for six glorious weeks post-deployment.
I also want to continue on with my health and fitness lifestyle. Being back at home I’ll have more control over my training and nutrition so I’m taking things to the next level. My training’s all taken care of. I’m meeting Eric Cressey face to face whilst I’m visiting NYC. Once he’s given me the once over he’ll create my next new training program to take away with me and return back home with.
As for my nutrition, I’m ready for a change and want to try different things to see how my body responds to them. Michelle Nazaroff will be helping me out initially until I’ve got that aspect under control.
I’ve also looked into classes on the weekend. Jason Clark from Committed Training personally runs Boot Camp classes at Kangaroo Point on Saturdays. If I want different, I have to be prepared to do different so that what I’m doing.
From the time I get home I have exactly twelve weeks until my 40th Birthday. So my present to myself will be my ultimate health and fitness. I’m half way there already and once I get home I’ll finish the job, once and for all.
So that’s what’s next.
Life is always about a choice we make, good, bad or otherwise.
Either way, we make them and along the way we learn whatever lesson we’re meant to learn from them. Some sooner, some later. For me, I’ve made a lot of choices whilst I’ve been over here about myself, my life, my family and my friends. I’ve found that when you disassociate yourself from them it’s easier to make a decision you otherwise wouldn’t make because you’re too emotionally attached.
Some of these decisions have been quite significant. Some known, some unknown. But the reality of them all won’t hit me until I’m back home in Australia. The fact of the matter is that I’ve made them. I took a strong stand in my life and made some decisions that are in my best interest and that’s what this is all about.
It’s the right time and I’m in the right place in my life to make these decisions. Of course, there will be others who won’t agree with me but that’s okay. The only person I have to answer to that matters, is myself. I have the right to choose the life I want to live.
The people in my life are the ones I’ve chosen to be in it. I no longer have people in my life out of obligation and/or loyalty, that hasn’t served me very well in the past unfortunately. I’m now much smarter and stronger, and I’m not afraid to make choices that will lead me to a happier and healthier life.
I can’t waste my time on things I can’t influence or change. Life is far too precious to waste even a second of it. Instead I’m only making pro-active choices that will lead me to better and brighter things in my future.
I wonder what my next choice will be?
