We tend to all be able to appreciate what ‘leaving something better than you found it’ means in a physical sense. Picking up after yourself, picking up trash off the ground, leaving the surroundings a little nicer than when you arrived. Now, the mark of really appreciating this is how you apply this to relationships, feelings, and some of the less observable, measurable imports in life/community. And the great stretch exercise is how you apply it to yourself each and every day. LESSONS: Do one t...
May 27, 2019•6 min•Ep. 386
Allium vegetables – like onions, garlic, leeks and shallots – have a host of health benefits, including possible reductions in the rates of some cancers. Two of the most commonly used of these veggies – onions and garlic – are also the most pungent; sometimes too pungent. But despite some drawbacks, they are minor compared to the variety of health benefits that these veggies can bring. WHAT WE TALK ABOUT Let’s start with garlic. This vegetable has been a part of great, tasty dishes for hundreds ...
May 26, 2019•4 min•Ep. 385
On this episode, Kevin talks talk with Amber Klein. Amber is a well spoken, well known & passionate high energy Spartan Ambassador for the Spartan Race brand. She truly believes in our mission & has the passion, and race experience, to back it up. TAKE AWAY POINTS: You CAN really do more than you think! Promote & support what you believe in Keep your training fun Anyone can do a Spartan Race! SUBSCRIBE: Apple Podcasts: http://bit.ly/SpartanUpShow YouTube: http://bit.ly/SpartanUpYT Go...
May 24, 2019•3 min•Ep. 384
Have you ever talked yourself out of an opportunity for no reason at all? Excuses for no reason at all? Self sabotaging yourself before you’ve even put your feet on the floor is a great recipe for frustration and never getting out of your own way. LESSONS: If you’re nervous about doing something, perhaps this means this is an opportunity you SHOULD take Are you answering the knocks on the door? Those thundering knocks are opportunity, waiting for you to answer the door and say YES! Discomfort an...
May 23, 2019•3 min•Ep. 383
Insecurities are just obstacles. Painful, yes. Unfortunate, indeed. Debilitating? Don’t have to be. An insecurity doesn’t have to be a barrier to the things that you want but if you don’t use the right tools and focus on overcoming your insecurities they can absolutely become 10 foot walls that are difficult to get over. It’s important to be active in challenging your insecurities through various actions that can work to eventually overcome them. LESSONS: We all have insecurities but we need to ...
May 22, 2019•4 min•Ep. 382
One of the most recognized faces of daytime TV, Mara speaks with Joe De Sena in this interview about the perspective gained during her childhood growing up outside the country, her perennial struggle with being overweight and the magic of serendipity. Her goal is to end all abusive relationships, including with food. Join us this week as we explore discipline as a key to sustaining wellness. LESSONS Find what feels intrinsic to you Travel to gain perspective Design & organize your tools to f...
May 21, 2019•31 min•Ep. 381
I understand the value of a resume and what it’s intended for. But, we all know the resume game and some of us even have a professional writer “polish” it up. So what is the real value? Also, a resume is simply a collection of yesterday’s events. With a resume mindset about life we become static and superficial. Let others keep record of your accomplishments and use that saved energy to keep doing new and exciting things. Otherwise, we tend to default to doing the same things over and over. I pr...
May 20, 2019•6 min•Ep. 380
Imagine you’re in a supermarket and you want something healthy to drink, but you want something tasty, too. Many people might think – and with some good reason – that a naturally flavored drink like grape juice or orange juice would provide a beverage that’s refreshing and good for you. But with the choices available to consumers in most supermarkets, they would be wrong. Why? There are two assumptions many people make about their choices at the market based on labeling. 1) That a “natural” choi...
May 19, 2019•4 min•Ep. 379
Spartan Pro Team member Nicole Mericle came into OCR from a running and bouldering background and was able to make an almost immediate impact. She is widely considered the best female OCR “short course” athlete in the world, winning multiple championships. LESSONS: One can become a great obstacle racer even when obstacles aren’t your initial strong suit. Indoor climbing gyms are phenomenal for obstacle race training. With climbing, just get started. Learn the basic holds and moves. Repetition is...
May 17, 2019•3 min•Ep. 378
Do you know your worth or do you let others determine your value? Sometimes you need to say no in the short term so you can yes to something bigger in the long term. In a world where so much is free or discounted, don’t feel like you need to do what everyone else is doing. LESSONS: Don’t let labels determine what you do and who you become. True Spartans are ready & willing to turn obstacles into opportunities Decide what you want to achieve and take action towards achieving those goals. Say ...
May 16, 2019•3 min•Ep. 377
We are human. We are fallible. And sometimes that means that lies slip from our tongue. We all do it or have done it but it’s important to understand how pervasive lying can impact you. In the beginning lying may make you uncomfortable but the more that you lie, the more your brain accommodates to this discomfort and soon enough it’s not uncomfortable anymore. This is when it starts to get tricky because when lying becomes habitual and you lie more often, you begin to move into dangerous territo...
May 15, 2019•5 min•Ep. 376
His early life was so “perfect” Nick Green says he was too afraid to take risks or to fail. He was lucky, a business concept found him during college and forced him to learn resilience and the value of failure. Once he overcame that fear, the world of possibilities opened up to him! Now he is building a mission driven business ThriveMarket.com. What does it take to thrive in life? A good place to start is your nutrition. Nick has devised a way to make healthy organic food accessible & afford...
May 14, 2019•30 min•Ep. 375
Be careful of the unintended consequences when you try to create a culture of ‘show up early’. When we communicate correctly our set of standards that are consistent with our expectations we create opportunities for the behavior we desire. I don’t really want you to show up early, I want you to show up prepared. The reason I tell you to show up early is because I’m tired of you not being prepared. But I don’t communicate that properly. What gets lost in translation and the behavior we begin to r...
May 13, 2019•4 min•Ep. 374
Spartans, here’s a riddle for you: What do lengthy financial reports and food labels have in common? Answer? To some, they might seem a bit boring and overly detailed, but they’re both really important. In this podcast, you’ll learn about some of the key ways to read a food label so you can quickly zero-in on the most relevant information impacting your health If you only had access to one piece of information in a food label, what would it be? That would be “serving size.” Food companies know t...
May 12, 2019•4 min•Ep. 373
Idaho’s own Ian Hosek comes on the Spartan Up Podcast to discuss how he coaches people of all backgrounds and abilities. He also talks about getting a coach himself to help his mental game. Ian gives a few specific workouts which will help the new runner take on a Spartan Sprint. LESSONS: Running power translates to lifting power. Do deadlifts for help with tire flip an atlas carry. If you are brand new, try the Spartan Sprint. SUBSCRIBE: Apple Podcasts: http://bit.ly/SpartanUpShow YouTube: http...
May 10, 2019•4 min•Ep. 372
Are you in it for the long game? The long haul? Many Spartans have spoken about the patience and the undaunting work ethic and determination it takes to get a taste of success let alone get to the top. Our fearless leader Joe DeSena recently made an Instagram Story on this. Gary Vaynerchuk says this on the regular, and of course, ask any Spartan Racer if they out of the blue started winning races. NO. You gotta be it in for the long game if you want to get to the top. As they say, Every overnigh...
May 09, 2019•3 min•Ep. 371
Often, we take on a lot. More than we should maybe. We say YES to things we only feel lukewarm about and we nod our heads to things we would rather shake them to. The thing is, if we are saying YES to everything then it’s difficult to really tease apart what matters to us and we can end up being resentful of our own inability to set firm boundaries. Sometimes we have to set a firm NO so that we can have even firmer YESES down the road. When you set a firm NO, when you pass on something that you ...
May 08, 2019•3 min•Ep. 370
Kelly is a self made wellness guru, founder of Be Well by Kelly, who based her premise on a simple concept - design your plate with the fab four: protein, healthy fats, fiber and leafy greens. See how she took what started as a side hustle between her day job to becoming one of the most recognized nutritionists to the superstars. Learn what your cravings are really telling you and a bit of science behind what will make you “Be Well” & Spartan strong. Bonus is Courtney De Sena joins our “fab ...
May 07, 2019•27 min•Ep. 369
“Don’t talk about it, Be about it.” ~Even-Esh “Let your actions speak so loudly, that I cannot hear your words.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson Zach Even-Esh talks about how this manifests in a coaching environment with his athletes in the gym. I like to use it not only to drive me forward with action, but to also help manage my expectations of others. It’s so often we are told one thing or another by someone who could either be trying to ‘sell’ you, has low or distorted self-awareness, is confused or no...
May 06, 2019•4 min•Ep. 368
Matt B. Davis talks to “Air Force” Ken Corigliano - Ken has been obstacle racing since 2012 and is currently serving in the U.S. Air Force as a Major. He uses military training and obstacle racing as a basis for a mindset of embracing challenges and learning from failures. LESSONS: Obstacle Course Racing builds character. Connect with adversity and embrace the challenge. Failure can make you better or worse. Take small steps with family when enrolling them in a fit lifestyle. SUBSCRIBE: Apple Po...
May 03, 2019•4 min•Ep. 367
The Bataan Memorial Death March is, as they say more than just a marathon… it ‘honors the thousands of heroic service members who defended the Philippine Islands during World War II, sacrificing their freedom, health, and, in many cases, their very lives.’ Joe, Colonel Nye, Sefra Alexandra, Erica Walker, Marion Abrams and Command Sergeant Major (Retired) Frank Grippe embarked on a sojourn to honor the men that exhibited true grit to their bone marrow. The 26.2 mile ruck through the White Sands M...
May 02, 2019•51 min•Ep. 366
If you haven’t experienced performance anxiety yourself then most likely you know someone who has. Performance anxiety is common and its intensity can span across the spectrum. Although dealing with performance anxiety can sometimes feel like a hopeless feat, there are actually some pretty effective strategies that can help you learn to manage the worry you feel in the face of public performance. First, remembering that the individuals around you - whether out in the crowd or on the race course ...
May 01, 2019•4 min•Ep. 365
How do you create a corporate culture that allows people to live their best lives? Based off the principles that Lonnie observed in his father, the famous red shoe wearing wrestler Moondog Mayne - he created a philosophy that helps spread positivity in the workplace. Lonnie is an expert aggregator and motivator of brilliant minds, this week you will learn what it really means to walk a mile in someone else’s red shoes! This episode of Spartan Up is brought to you by DNAfit. Get personal with you...
Apr 30, 2019•23 min•Ep. 364
Let’s be more cautious about always over-prioritizing Safety above everything else. Using the phrase “Safety First” as a default teases us to not engage in the critical conversations revolving around risk assessment, risk mitigation, and risk acceptance. It feeds risk aversion and zero defects mentality. It can create mindless procedural automation. And, it can also create the exact hesitation that leads to increased danger or threat. I like to tell my loved ones to “Be Smart” not “Be Safe”. I f...
Apr 29, 2019•5 min•Ep. 363
What Is Mental Flow: A State Of Self-Motivation Do you remember the last time you completely focused on a task that was both challenging and satisfying? It may have happened during your last a long race (Sprint, Super, or Beast), or listening to an intense piece of music, or while you were solving a crossword puzzle. What do those moments have in common? They may have been times when you experienced “flow.” What is it? How to achieve it? WHAT WE TALK ABOUT Getting into “flow” (which is similar t...
Apr 28, 2019•3 min•Ep. 362
This week's Spartan Athlete host Matt B. Davis talks to Faye Morgan. She was a gymnast and spent time in the Marines. Now, she is a mom of 4 and a Spartan Pro. She talks about how she conquers obstacles and finds time to train, and how she thinks about an athletes unique strengths and weaknesses. LESSONS: You can’t just rely on speed anymore as a Pro racer. There are multiple ways to attack obstacles. You can train in smaller chunks of times. Once you start small, you can build up your training ...
Apr 26, 2019•4 min•Ep. 361
Experiencing painful emotions is a part of life that we cannot avoid. But we try to through various types of numbing mechanisms. This could be anything from alcohol to drugs to food to over-exercise to gambling to social media. We are pretty proficient as a society in wiggling our way around uncomfortable feelings and moving towards either a numbing position or something more comfortable. But if you are looking to toughen up your mind and improve your performance in life, learning how to manage ...
Apr 24, 2019•5 min•Ep. 360
World famous for his physique and his “Insanity” workouts, Shaun T has graduated from teaching healthy body to teaching healthy MENTALITY. His superpower is getting uncomfortable - the more uncomfortable he is, the more he is learning and growing. Shaun T tells Spartan founder Joe De Sena how he has spent his life confronting issues and resolving them with “truth, trust and transparency” and moving forward with “passion, power & persistence.” True strength is in vulnerability, honesty and le...
Apr 23, 2019•28 min•Ep. 359
When I find myself getting frustrated, struggling with events or life, being disappointed by others or my expectations it’s usually because I’m investing too much emotional energy in the area of interest. Or, not enough energy in the area of control. When we find ourselves going down the emotional or irrational mind path we need to create a trigger to get us back into rational and process oriented mode. This is where the area of control can come into play. Control what you can control and identi...
Apr 22, 2019•8 min•Ep. 358
Ginseng has recently gained popularity for those looking to get an extra edge on the job, or to improve daily focus. It also has rejuvenating qualities that can support an increase in energy. There are two main varieties of ginseng, American and Asian (Korean) that have slightly different benefits, so talk to you doctor to make sure you’re taking the appropriate one for your needs. In addition to its well-known energy-boosting potential, here are three other reasons to use ginseng: 1: Stress Rel...
Apr 21, 2019•3 min•Ep. 357
