I am back in Colombia again loving life but I wanted to do a quick post on the 4th of July. I was home in LaPorte Indiana and decided to run in our 5K. I did not train for the running just decided to run. The cool thing was I finished in 21:06. Did not hit my goal of 20:00 minutes but I did finish 11th overall and won the over 41 division. I also beat everyone over 30 so that was cool!
Will fill you in as we progress here in Bogota!
I will do a review on these two items but my birthday came early! Picked up a pair of twins gloves and some king shin guards from http://www.fighters-inc.com! They are made in Thailand through Daytona Beach. Looks like all my gear is from over there. I know have Winning HeadGear – King Shins – Twins Gloves (+ RingSide Gloves).
Pretty pumped.
On goals, I got stuck in Bogota for 3 weeks, so I got a little behind on the goal of 5.5% but getting right back to it this week. I actually had a major stomach issue. I start back with measurements with BB3 on Monday. I went and picked up 2 tubs of afterglow! So I am ready. Tomorrow after Combat Fitness I am hitting the grocery store.
Really excited about a real good week of training! It is amazing how new gear can motivate!
BTW has anyone seen the new video of John Clarke and Combat Wrestling if you have not check it out!
Now that I am 99% Next week I am starting to get back into CW…
You know I grew up watching ABC sports, I mean we only had 3 channels back then NBC, ABC, & CBS I guess I am dating myself!!! Every Sunday it was the “The Thrill of Victory or the Agony of Defeat” from ABC sports where a skier just gets nailed. If you do not remember or are to young to remember I put the video below.
The point is that one of the greatest guys I know last night experienced what some would call the “agony of defeat”. Why would I blog about defeat? Well, I think we can ALL take a life lesson from Mr. John Clarke. Last night John Clarke stepped into a cage at StrikeForce as the 5th fight of the night in front of thousands of people making his pro fighting debut. He came out and did what most people only dream of “DOING IT”.
He went into the cage and went to war for around 4 minutes when he took some hard shots and the referee had to jump in and stop it. For most people this would be the “agony of defeat”. As I watched this amazing person get stopped I crumpled myself and felt a sudden state of sadness. I wanted to brag and tell the world how much of a bad ass John is and then I realized how much of an egoic asshole I was being! John is a freaking bad ass!!!! AND A TRUE champion. How many people have gone after their dream? How many people have sacrificed family time, work time to go after the dream?
You see here is the key, most people talk few do.
Yes, it would have been awesome to see John win, but it is a sport there has to be a winner and a loser. John may have lost a battle in that cage last night, BUT he won a victory in life, he did it! I am telling you he is going to go on to amazing things because of that fact!!! No challenge will slow him down! I know this because at 2 AM when most people would have caved, John with his wife’s urging went out to the dance floor and danced! DANCED – good for him! Life is way to short.
What can you take from all of this? Take your shots! Go after your dream (AJ this is you! 
), you only live one time. It might not work out exactly how you want it to and that does not mean it is negative! “It is what it is”.
If you do not take the shots in your life who will? Stop talking and start doing and quit worrying about what other people think. John Clarke just earned another ranking in my mind as he is a true champion in life. A great father, a great husband, a great person and he goes after it – win lose or draw he is living his life and pursing his dream. What are you doing about yours? It is all a matter of perspective.
Did John win in that cage last night? No, but did he win in life? Hell yes! So many lessons from Mister John Clarke last night! How will you handle your life if things don’t go exactly as planned? What will you do if you have a negative judgment?
I know what John is going to do, he is going to be a better father, a better officer, a better business man. I just think about it and one thing rings in my mind thanks to his wife – “He danced.”
You have 1 life to live, GO AFTER IT! Live your dream. Win, Lose, or Draw – DANCE! Enjoy it, this life is the only one you got. Thank you Mr John Clarke for showing me that again. We all have our battles and we will win some and lose some and it is not in the winning that determines where we go, it is in that judgment of losing that really determines how we are going to make our lives.
I heard a quote that puts it all in perspective , “success is getting knocked down 10 times and getting up 11!” John will fight again and he will win, he is a warrior. But in my eyes last night he became a true champion. A champion of life. Do the same don’t just talk about it, go after your dream. Win, Lose or Draw you will be a much better person for doing it!
Many blessing to you – and one more thank you to John Clarke for showing me once again what is truly important in life.
JB
Here is the video I grew up with…
We are all heading to Strikeforce tonight at the Bank Atlantic Center here in South Florida. John is making is debut and we are all excited to support him!
John is a great guy with an amazing positive attitude and I am blogging about him because he truly deserves great things. He started HaganA East a few months ago and is really the founder of Combat Wrestling. He has mixed wrestling with combat in no other way that I have seen. I really see his style of Combat Wrestling blossoming in the world of MMA. He has been training with the George St. Pierre camp and they loved what he brings.
As I said John is an amazing guy in all rights and he deserves the support of all of us. I am looking forward to tonight as I get ready to head out! Can’t wait to see John Rock-n-roll!
BTW my shoulder is back to 90% and I have some real cool things coming up. I am doing a Kickboxing seminar with the legend Joe Lewis in a few weeks and then I have certifications for Combat Fitness and HaganA instructor all coming up in the next few months. I will keep you posted on all of it.
I also have some equipment reviews coming this week. Life is amazing, live it and love it!!
JB