I wonder if the world would be different in my eyes if I never wrestled?

My older brother told me "It's the most awesome sport!" I was in 8th grade at the time and he was a sophomore in high school.

Of course, I wish my parents knew this to get us all involved in wrestling much earlier.

My older brother started wrestling his sophomore year in high school and I began my freshman year. My younger brother began in 1st grade.

Before I rant, I want to preface this and say that NOT all wrestlers are the same. There's plenty who slack off, skip practice, complain, make excuses and the like. But the Wrestlers who go ALL in and live the lifestyle, THEY are the ones who grow into ass kickers in LIFE, not just on the wrestling mat.

Just like not all Wrestlers are the same, NOT all Coaches are the same. As a wrestler, we like to think of ourselves as a rare breed, but I'll be damned when I see Wrestling teams that lose year after year. To me, THAT is NOT a wrestling coach, or a coach of ANY sort. The kids on that team will never learn the true lessons that come from wrestling.

Wrestling is the ultimate truth teller.

When it's competition time, we don't get to see who worked hard DURING the season, we get to also see what you did or did NOT do in the off season.

If I wasn't a wrestler, I often think I wouldn't pay attention to the details of EVERYTHING.

My expectations of people are MUCH higher.....

My standard is Excellence. I see no other way. Because I am a Wrestler....

• That person who answered the phone at the restaurant like they're doing me a favor. I bet they didn't wrestle.
• That parent who has no sense of urgency to help their child train & get the edge, I bet they never wrestled.
• That waiter who never comes back to see if you need your water refilled, I bet he never wrestled.
• That entrepreneur who has the tools to improve his business but makes countless excuses, I bet he never wrestled.
• When a Football players tells me he couldn't make it to the gym because "I had max outs last week" I think about how as a Wrestler, I Maxed out every single day I was in practice. Then, I went home and ran 3 - 5 miles in the freezing temps and jumped rope in a freezing garage.
• When a parent asks me, "Is the training at The Underground Strength Gym always this intense?" - I wonder what seems so intense about lifting for 3 workouts a week totaling 3 hours? I assume this parent never wrestled.
• That team that goes year after year after year with a pathetic losing record, maybe that coach DID wrestle but I know he did NOT follow the code of a wrestler. I know he did NOT have a True Leader as a Coach.
• Anytime someone has an excuse ...... I wonder, did that person ever wrestle?

Yep, that's a rant. And, there's plenty more where that came from. Watch the video if you're a wrestler. Or, you can make up an excuse and be "too busy" while you waste time on facebook instead of getting better!

[youtube width="700" height="400"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qU1lVsXxhAE[/youtube]

Listen.....

Sometimes you gotta lay into people and tell them some hard f--ing truth. Some will accept the truth and use it to take them to high levels, others will cry in the corner and make more excuses.

The answer is NOT to take the easy road. The Obstacle Is The Way.

That's what this blog is. It's NOT a rant. It's all truth.

Set the standard as EXCELLENCE and nothing less. Period.

Live The Code 365,

--Z--

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