What constitutes "In Shape"??

I have come to really appreciate this question and over the years my attachment to it has evolved considerably.

For many of us, the relationship we have with our body image is one that we check-in to EVEryday of our lives multiple times a day...basically anytime we look in the mirror. We check-in with this idea or connection to "in-shape" that we see on the magazines in the grocery isles, the billboards and other advertisements, desperate housewives, and a number of other poisonous interruptions to our subconscious that tend to play way to big a part in answering this question of "am I in shape?" Our question towards our physical state should not be vain asking ourself, "do I look good?"...our question(s) need to be "do I feel good and do I feel strong?"

Our subconscious conditioning through these poisonous advertisements has unnaturally polluted our perception of what it is to be in shape to a detrimental degree. We really need to wake up to this. We are very backwards in our thinking when it comes to being in shape...we think in shape means physical  when in reality it should be rooted in mental. Obviously the physical aspect of "in-shape" matters but again it should be a question of strength and feel primarily and vanity(if we must acknowledge it) secondarily.

Our physical bodies are a product of our thoughts, actions, and most importantly our EVEryday habits. When we ask ourselves, "am I in shape,?" our first responsive thought to this should most definitely be, "well how is my mind working? Are my actions aligning with my words in my life and in my relationships? Currently, are my instincts strong towards being positive in crucial or character building situations or have they been strong towards being negative? Does my routine serve me or does it take away from my potential happiness? (And thennnn)....oh yeah, let me check on my stomach and make sure it looks good!" This should be the order...tailored to the individual and the questions that keep them on their desired path of life performance.

Our level of consciousness towards the physical benefits we receive when we focus on cultivating our mental as well as spiritual strength is as valuable a resource as any we have on this earth. It should be thought of as an equal to Water!! It is measurable in our EVEryday habits. It is measurable in our relationships. It is measurable in our own self reflections. Our level of consciousness is parallel to our level of life.

Athletes that desire to be at a state of consciousness in not only their physical routine but even more importantly their mental routines separate themselves from the pack infinitely before the baseball even begins. They desire to create championship habits EVERY SINGLE DAY. They are very in tune with the conceptual question of "WHAT'S IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW?" Is what I am doing right now making me work towards being not only the very best but my very best?

Sometimes when you look in the mirror you just have to allow yourself to get chills at the presence of blessings you have in your life. If that is hard for us to do then we need to figure out a way to create a habit that can help us achieve that goal of truly appreciating what we have. This is measured in not only our quality of athleticism, sportsmanship, training, physique, and endurance, but more importantly it is measured in our quality of life. This ruthless thankfulness and appreciation of all your blessings, again, is as valuable to your life as water.

Harnessing your appreciation of the game of baseball is the first step towards becoming an elite player and an elite person. That appreciation spills over into the mirror into consciousness and realization of self when asking "am I in shape?" When you appreciate everything you have the first question you will ask is "do I feel strong?" Second question.."how can I get stronger today in the game of life?" Third question..."what can I do to help others today?"

Next time you are feeling out of shape when you look in the mirror, tell your mind to focus NOW, on creating a couple of new tangible positive habits that can get you out of your current routine and on to one that will nurture your inner beast and help you to reach your maximum abilities. Tell your mind NOW to be so ridiculously thankful that you still have that person you almost lost. Check in with your appreciation of the mirror you have to look in and the bed you just got out of.

NOW get off your ass and do some push ups.

Much love to the world out there that desires to keep getting better and appreciates the game of life EVEryday you live and get to love.

Thanks for reading,

Isaac

Balance in the Baseball Life

As for anything in this life, balance is the key to success. Balance is something that takes consistent consciousness and effort to achieve, and it is something that is never reached, only sought after. One can not be enlightened once they believe they have reached a pinnacle, because reaching is part of the beauty and grace in the movement. I believe that too much contentment can be distracting, and that appreciation of focus is a much better approach. That all being said, balance in Europe is something that has not been so easy for me to achieve. It has been brand new territory for me out here, not only geographically, but metaphorically as well. I chose to explore the opportunity out here in the Czech Republic not because I was giving up on my endeavors to continue reaching for a major league career, but more so to step outside of the box for a summer and see if I couldn't find some new and untapped opportunities out here. I decided that I would make a decision for me instead of making it based solely on the hopes and dreams of making it to the big leagues. Its like you want it so bad that you become a slave to it, so I just chose to look at it differently this summer. I don't know what next season has in store, let alone the next few months of my life. It always swirls around and goes up and down, I'm just here for the ride now. My hunger seemed to fade out here a bit with regards to my work ethic and some decisions I have made, but I know that was part of the learning experience so I allowed myself a bit of lee way for a couple months. I am really looking forward to the next phase when and where ever that will be. I am hoping to play in Venezuela or Australia...two entirely different places for baseball, but nevertheless I would be happy ending up at either place.

When you are in such a new place I think you have to let go for a while and disconnect from your norm and discover some newness. I did that while I was here and it has put me into a new norm for some time. I am ready to get back to balance. Out here I have such minimal obligation of responsibility...its pretty much show up twice a week for practice and once a weekend for games, and then chill and have free time the rest of your week. Of course you can go practice every day if you choose, which I tried to do at least 4-5 days a week. Regardless, that is what the job here consists of, and you don't make too much money, but its enough to enjoy yourself.

We just had our last game of the season here in Czech and unfortunately we took the loss in the first round of playoffs. I will be heading back home here with a couple weeks, although home is such a relative term these days. For the last few weeks here I am looking forward to getting back into a more balanced routine, and a great foundation of this for me is to revisit my yoga practice. I just went to hot yoga here in Brno last Thursday, and I plan to go tonight as well. Its just a chill little bus and tram ride away from my flat. Every time I am in a consistent practice everything else is falling into place all the time. Yoga is a huge part of my ability to achieve balance. In addition to all the benefits I have received from it physically, the consciousness and appreciation it helps me gain is infinitely strengthening. I always thank myself every time I get into class.

I tend to go on tangents from time to time. The point of this blog is to help young ball players that are curious and want to learn about the lifestyle of baseball in order to help them become better pitchers,  players, and people. I give my perspective on this life and stay positive about things regardless of my situation, because if it helps any one player decide to keep going then its worth it to me. Stay tuned.

Thanks for reading,
Isaac

PS. This is a sweet song I have been digging. Music is necessary.