"I can't turn left" + Road Warrior Call 4 Comments & Why I write ColdShower #75🥶🚿

The word etcetera is always abbreviated no matter how formal the writing.

Shower thought via Reddit… etc. etc. etc.

The ColdShower: Weekly thoughts for better health, habits, and happiness. 

MARCHing Forward.

• Embracing setbacks & injuries

• Becoming a Road Warrior

• Why I write

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Recharge: 🧊🛀Cold Plunge🧊🛀

Cold Plunge- (noun), Life lessons. Experiencing a revelation akin to full-body submersion in freezing cold water

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“I can’t turn left”

Last Sunday, as my eyes opened, I realized something was terribly wrong. I woke up practically immobilized from the neck up.

I laid there in agony. I groaned to Jordan. Then I proceeded to lift myself out of bed while keeping my head in one place.

It was clear to me this injury was serious. This wasn’t just morning stiffness. This was a pinched nerve in my neck that I would battle for the foreseeable future.

The pain was excruciating. A 10/10, comparable to the pain of 50+ mile races.

I was thrown into a ring for a fight I didn’t ask for and an opponent ready to go 9 rounds.

What the heck happened

I’m 30 and active. “What the heck happened?” As I retraced my steps, I tallied the neglect I gave to my nutrition, sleep, hydration, mobility, and strength training. I was on 8 planes, spent lots of nights in a hotel room, and was sick twice last month.

While I managed to hit my running goal of 20 miles per week each week, I blocked out the signals of a body that needed rest.

Taking the fight head-on

When you dig yourself into a hole, you have to climb your way out. I’ve spent the last week climbing, inch by inch, prioritizing mobility, recovery, and rebuilding my body to withstand the impact of running.

I don’t wish this upon anyone. But I’m grateful for my response to this setback. Previous running injuries have put me in a tailspin where I get depressed and let that spill over into all areas of my life.

I responded intuitively to this injury. I decompressed. I moved my body - A LOT. And I remained grateful for the mobility I still had and each phase of healing.

Here’s to embracing setbacks as a learning opportunity.

-Jon

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Refine: Road Warrior

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Hear ye Hear ye

Knights of the Road — Lend me your ears!

Next week we’ll start a new series: Road Warriors — How to keep healthy habits while traveling.

I’ve been traveling a lot to start the year for kickoffs, sales meetings, and conference season. But, I’m not alone. I know lots of you are well-seasoned travelers.

Drop me a comment with your best travel tips and I’ll find a way to incorporate them into this month’s series.

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Rethink: 🛁Bathtime🛁

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Cue: "Introspective badass playlist

RT: Why do I write?

Last week I broke a 73-week writing streak. You all paid attention.

I received several questions like — “What happened?” and “Why did you break your streak?”

The better question is why I continue to write.

Around the 40-week mark….

A shift happened (Yes, it took almost a year). I no longer needed the motivation of a long streak to write. I wanted to write. And I built a solid foundation of good habits and routine.

What changed?

I found my voice. I believe to write anything worth reading, you have to first connect with yourself.

So I started listening. I started tuning out distractions, and tuning into my inner monologue. And I became at peace with who I found.

Now the best part» Writing connects me to YOU. I love the process of communicating my own thoughts into written word for others to draw meaning from. We all can get better as communicators. I’m far from perfect. But I look forward to honing my craft every week.

In summary:

• I write for me.

• I write to share meaning with you.

• I write to continuously hone my communication skills.

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THANK YOU for making it to the end!