Monthly Archives: January 2015

In-Depth Post #2: A Smooth Beginning

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Good evening y’all. First semester is almost over already?! Where has the time gone?! It felt like just last week that I got back from my summer vacation, now I’m done half the year! It is been a stressful few weeks for me. I had an english essay due, a film project to finish up, math everyday, cadets, and I have to worry about what classes I want to take. Or even if I want to continue my time at Gleneagle. And to top it off, I started my In-Depth! I’m not going to lie: it is going to be a stressful few months to come, but I can not wait to see what I accomplish by the end of it!

So for my In-Depth, I’m doing CrossFit if you didn’t already know. With my busy schedule, I am finding it hard to concrete a time for my CrossFit training. CrossFit also needs to be done on a daily basis to be able to see results. So believing in myself, I made a decision that I yet have regretted. I will do CrossFit in the morning. So every morning, I get up at 4:50am. I quickly brush my teeth, put on some shorts, and bike about 3km to the CrossFit location where I would start my CrossFit class at 5:30am. The class ends at 6:30am, giving me enough time to go home, get ready for school, and start my day.

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It was super hard on my first day. I was sore, tired, and unmotivated to continue with the day. And with the amount of work I am getting in school, it is hard to adjust. I go to bed as early as 9pm now, so I still receive my daily amount of sleep. I am not complaining since it was my decision, but I wish I had more time so I can adapt to the sudden change physically and mentally.

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Can’t even

But besides the getting up in the morning part, I am really enjoying CrossFit! There is this rush I get after working out that I would not get from drinking coffee or sleeping for an extra hour. The people there are really supportive and are helping me get through my first few days; however, they are still intimidating since they are all older than me and have been doing CrossFit for a few years. At first, I thought I would do fine since I consider myself to be an active fellow; although, my first CrossFit workout was brutal. The workout was something I never experienced before. over 100 push-ups, 80 sit-ups, and 120 medicine ball throws in one routine?! That is crazy. I only did half of each, and I still could barely move after the workout. I almost puked the second I stepped outside the building. Trust me, at first I was really frustrated with myself. But at the end, I was kinda excited. Excited to see what I will be able to accomplish by the end of the project, and to see what skills I can do that I thought I could never accomplish.

My coach for the morning classes is Robert Farrer. He is one of the owners of SheepDog CrossFit and usually teaches the morning classes. He is a wonderful person. He is supportive, educating, and just a cool person to talk to. I do not have as much interaction with him as I would like because it is a class and I am not his only student, but there are times where I do talk to him. This is how I incorporate the first three chapters of Edward De Bono’s “How to have a Beautiful Mind”:

How to Agree: I believe fitness is one of the most important aspect of living a healthy life, and since Robert is very educated in the field of fitness, he agrees with me. Although I recently just met him, I believe we have similar values of fitness, and see its importance of living of good life. I also agree with what he says about CrossFit, and how it leads to a healthy life. Robert is very educated in the field, and I would not question him on the topic.

How to Disagree: Since I only recently started CrossFit, there hasn’t been anything I really disagree with Robert. Like i said before, he knows far more than I do in the field I believe disagreeing with him without adequate knowledge on the topic would be rude and arrogant; however, I have put my own opinion on specific workouts and how they are to be done. Besides that, I haven’t found an opportunity to really disagree with him on the topic of CrossFit.

How to Differ: My mentor and I haven’t really gotten to know each other that well, so it is hard to discuss our differences. However, I notice that we have different values about how often we should workout. He believes that you should go hard for a few consecutive days and only resting for 2 days a week. I believe that we should take more rests in the week. But like I said, Rob is the professional in this situation.

Thank you for reading my blog, and I can not wait for you to see my improvements! Bye for now!

Leadership 11: Challenges

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Good day. As leadership progresses, I am learning new ways and techniques to lead from the middle which will be very helpful in any group situation being school or cadets. Here are my answers to some challenge questions.

1) I deal tension best by taking a moment to myself and reflect on what happened. Once I run through what has happened, what caused it, and what I could do it fix it, I come back to the situation and release the tension before. I might also take the time to discuss the tension with somebody who I believe knows the best solution to get rid of the tension.

2) When I find myself following an ineffective leader, I should do everything in my power to help the leader without offending him/her or taking their position. It wouldn’t be my time to lead, but as a person with valuable skills, I could assist the leader to make him/her a better leader. Additionally, I also could see myself being a leader from the teams opinion, or a “the people’s leader” which could represent the team in a more relatable matter.

3) There are a variety of “hats” I need to wear. In school, I need to wear a hat that is mature, respectful, and eager to learn. i need to be focused on all my school subjects and pay attention. In cadets, I need to be a leader, a fixed point, and someone the cadets can come up to when they need help with cadet or personal matter. Outside of school with my friends, I wear a hat that’s funny, caring, and thoughtful. With my friends and peers, I am an outgoing person who likes to have fun. I like to have an adventure and live on the more dangerous side.

4) I tend to focus more energy on promotion rather than production. I see myself leading a team with enthusiasm rather than working for a leader. Not to say I can’t do the other, I tend to focus on promotion however. I believe I do a better job of promoting than because I can have more fun promoting rather than producing.

5) I will contribute to my committee’s success by not only adding my own opinions and suggestions, but by assisting anyone who needs help with their part of the committee. I might not be a leader in my committee, but that shouldn’t stop me from being a good teammate. I will do my best to help younger grades from my previous experiences. If given the opportunity to lead however, I will constantly overwatch my committee and help when help is needed. I won’t be someone who is always mean and nagging, but I will get tasks done with the right amount of trust and respect from my committee.

6) I would rather see others fulfill their own visions because it is more important to be a good teammate than a great soloist.There are many opportunities where I can see my own vision come true and be fulfilled, so I should take the time to help others fulfill their dreams. It might not be what I originally wanted, and I might get frustrated at time, the end goal is to make my teammates happy and be part of their happiness.

7) I constantly let the people in my team know that I care about them by being an overall good person. I constantly ask if people are doing good, and asking how their days were, and making sure everything is alright. I always remember what they tell me, so when I see them again, I can ask questions regarding our conversations before. I also ask if they need help and offer to assist them with anything they need. I show them respect, trust, and kindness to let them know that I am always caring about them and my team.

Leadership 11: Myths

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Hello, down below are some debunked myths about leadership. Please enjoy.

1) Being in school for many years, I have learned a variety of skills through my peers. One of the most recent things I’ve learned from my peer is how to be more outgoing. When making friends and going to a new school, it is important to not be shy and step outside your comfort zone, which will lead to new experiences.

2) leadership can be learned though a variety of ways, and the way I learn leadership is by cadets. With so many opportunities to lead, cadets has taught me to become a better leader. For example, in cadets there are times where I will need to teach a lesson, or lead a small group of young cadets. These are all leadership opportunities I am learning from. There are also school opportunities where I can lead my peers.

3) The key things that prompts me to follow someone else is someone who does what they preaches and someone who cares for their team. If someone is consistent with the way they lead and does whatever they tell others to do, I would follow that person because I know there are a variety of ways to lead, but good leaders always does what he believes in. And if someone is putting him/herself before the team, that leader has the heart and integrity to be a leader.

4) What prompts me to consider another person’s opinion is when that person explains his idea thoroughly. When a person has an idea or opinion, he/she should explain his/her reasoning and “argue” why we should consider the idea or opinion. I might not see the situation from the person’s point of view, but if he/she argument makes sense to me, I would consider their opinion.

5) I agree that when you move up in an organization, the weight of your responsibility increases because you have yourself and a team to watch out for. When a leader, you must over watch your team and make sure everything is running. However, you need to keep in mind that you still have a job to finish and you need to find a balance between helping your team and yourself.

6) I believe that I am capable of achieving anything if I put myself into it 100%. If I set myself to be a good leader and took the time to develop myself, I can be a good leader. I personally believe that there isn’t such a thing of reaching your full potential because you can always develop yourself to be a better person. However, reaching my potential would be leading other people in any situation, yet letting other people ave an opportunity to show their leadership skills.

7) Although most people will never be the CEO, they should take leadership opportunities when appropriate. That does not mean that they should tell everyone what to do when they’re not on the top, because this may come off as rude. But when there are opportunities to lead, people should take the chance of improving him/herself. And once these people have taken the opportunity and have had positive results, others will see them to be more of a leader.

In-Depth Post #1: Off to an Anxious yet Exciting Start

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Well hello there.

The Christmas season is over, the mall is starting to calm down, and the TALONS students have just begun their in-depth project! I’ll be honest: I am quite excited to start in-depth this year. The idea of spending time to learn skills you are passionate about is interesting to me. We have such busy schedules in our lives and might not take enough time to enjoy the hobbies and activites we like. The fact we are getting marked on it is just the motivational post we need to pursue our interests.

This year, I had a variety of ideas. I wanted to do skills such as photography, ukulele, dancing, and singing. I even had the idea of sword swallowing at one point! (I did not bother running it through Ms. Mulder. I had a gut feeling it would not go through.)

But at the end, there was one activity that circled my mind constantly. It is becoming a growing sensation and I feel it would be beneficial for me to be part of it.

This year, I decided to do…. CROSSFIT!

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Now you might ask, what is crossFit?

Well, CrossFit is a strength and conditioning program designed to prepare you f8cab551004953db454bdaa9babcd5136or life and for sport better than any other program. CrossFit uses the best methods currently available to improve general fitness and incorporates them into a structured program. These methods include high intensity workouts that are both physically and mentally challenging. What makes it different than other workout programs is the level of intensity and endurance needed to do CrossFit. Workouts include running, gymnastics, powerlifting, olympic weightlifting, and other forms of workout activities. CrossFit is not for everyone, so you should carefully do your research before joining anything. CrossFit also focuses on every part of the body, rather than a activity focusing on one muscle group. For example, biking improving mainly on your legs or kayaking improving on your arms.

And why on earth would I do this to myself?

Personally, I believe fitness is the key to a healthy body, a healthy mind, and a healthy soul. It has been proven that healthier people live better lives, so why not start young? Also, as an army cadet, I have opportunities to reach my full potential as an individual. Some of these opportunities include parachuting and gaining my Royal Canadian Basic Parachuting Wings which is a high achievement. However, the requirements for the course is intense. 7 pull-ups, 39 sit-ups, and run a mile under 7 minutes? It way seem easy, but with about 20 kids ranging from the age of 16 to 19? Competition is not easy. I believe CrossFit will help me achieve my goal of making it in the parachuting course and becoming an overall healthier person.

Who are you planning to have as your mentor?

Ncrossfit-fuengirola-slide01othing is solidified yet, but I was curious in this CrossFit instructor who co-owns the SheepDog CrossFit location in Port Coquitlam. His name is Sebastien Lavoie. He used to be in the Canadian Forces, so this man knows what he is doing, and would be perfect at helping me reach my goal.

How are you planning on reaching this goal again?

The main way to improve your fitness is to be consecutive. You can’t slack off and take a few days off. That is how you lose the fitness you just worked so hard for. I know it is said that you need to meet with your mentor for 1 hour a week, but I feel like I will be meeting with my mentor more often than that. I need to create a steady workout plan and stick with it to see results. I might try to quit, and I might cry a few times (or a lot of times) but I need to find my motivation. I will be doing my training at the CrossFit building in Port Coquitlam (SheepDog) and hopefully, if i find time, on my own once I gain enough skills about what I’m doing.

CrossFit seems kinda cool. What would you need to do CrossFit?

So the main need I need for accomplishing CrossFit is motivation. Without that, I would be as useless as a bag of potatoes. wall-balls-black-and-whiteMotivation is the flame that will push me to my limits and be the best that I can be. On a more technical note, the equipment I need for CrossFit include workout equipment such as medicine balls, weights and bars, pull-ups bars, jump ropes, and a variety of equipment that I still have yet discovered. Besides that, I just need my gym strip, a water bottle, and my courage.

A few questions I have for CrossFit include:

– How long does it take to develop the basic skills of CrossFit?

– Can CrossFit be done on my own if I understand the fundamentals of CrossFit?

– How long will it take until I see improvements?

– Can CrossFit be adapted to fit for every fitness level?

Well these are just a few questions I will hopefully answer by my next post. Thank you very much for stopping by and I hope you have a good day!

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