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Last Man Standing diaries...
Some behind the scenes stories and diary entries from my time in the tribes
Last Entry: 29 Dec 2008 - 18:07
My Blog
First entry: 25th June 2007 2am
Last Entry: 07 Dec 2009 - 01:05
Latest blog entries:
Dec4th - Shebbear
What an uplifting experience it was visiting Shebbear College in Devon these past two days. Teaching well-being seminars to the kids where I shared some advice on how to perform under pressure – and more importantly, what it means to feel pressure. I tried to be realistic and practical in my teaching, to remind the students that ‘feeling the pressure’, getting nervous or having personal struggles is entirely normal – it’s more about how you interpret those signs of pressure. I gave the example of when I used to go really RED in the face if I got embarrassed as a teenager. I remember it was really such a pain! I couldn’t control it & sometimes it made me lose my confidence cos I just couldn’t face going embarrassingly red in public! But the problem was not the ‘going red’. The problem was that I saw it as Terrible to go red in public. But when these signs of pressure (whether it’s extreme nerves, shaking, going red, the…
Dec 3rd - Sven and Inverdale
Just got back from the BBC Sports awards at Loughborough university where i was demonstrating Hour of Power, doing an interview and also a mini Challenge....so quite a full night. It was good fun being interviewed by john inverdale, someone who i've watched for many years hosting World's Strongest Man events or Wimbledon on the BBC. And during my interview I jokingly challenged Sven Goran Erikson (previous England football manager) to go against me in the dumbbell lifting. Little cheeky n my part, but good fun. I guess you could say that I shouldn't pick on someone of his age, but he's probably no older than my dad...and I can pick on my dad because he's actually still my main rival! In fact, just a few hours ago I was discussing with maximuscle the prospect of potentially setting an official Guinness world record in dumbbell lifting, at a famous London landmark (can't say yet!) early in 2010. that would be awesome, and such a landmark for what we&…
2nd DEC - good people
Some people seem to have goodness within them, and some of us have to really work at it. For example, I would naturally be quite selfish and would naturally want to be an outrageous flirt and would naturally be quite vain - and so I have to make a concerted effort to not do or be those things. And for the most part I win the battle - but it does feel like a bit of a battle. But I feel as if some people have more of an inate goodness and morality to them which means they don't seem to struggle so much with such things. Unless I'm just imagining it and giving people more credit than they deserve. But take for example men and women. Men have to really fight with themselves not to check out every good looking woman who passes them in the street, whilst I think many women do not really have to fight with themselves in that way. Why? I guess a few things made me question my motives in various things today: my motives in my ambitions, my motives in my daily work, my mot…
1st DEC - huffing and puffing
It really felt like winter has arrived today, walking through town centre with the lights on the trees and the freezing cold air. As much as my body is not a real fan of the cold, there is something lovely about winter. Taking a stroll down the street in a heavy coat, breathing out air that freezes up Met today with a good friend who is running a new chain of health clubs - one of which he's like me to manage for him! It's an interesting offer and something I am considering, but it's funny how when you've been your own boss for a long time, the thought of working for someone else is both enticing and scary. Knowing that something is a good opportunity, but at the same time getting that feeling of cold feet that comes with the thought of giving up some of your freedom. Is that it feels on the night before your wedding? I guess no matter how good something is, if it means giving up even a small amount of freedom, there is a part of me that fears it a little. …
Mon 30th Nov - Juggling
Aside from work, I spent a lot of today juggling bits of furniture and possessions - trying to finally get things in order. It's funny when you step back and look at how many times in your life you spend re-organising and 'juggling' the same possessions in different rooms, different houses, different layouts of the same room! If you pushed fast forward on your life it would look like a comedy:) I think of the Mongolian nomads we stayed with (gambolt and his family), and how having such few possessions makes life SO simple. Boring too perhaps, but definitely simple. Make the bed in the morning, make a fire, sweep the floor...job done! No shifting music speakers, filing papers, re-organising and replacing clothes/shoes/, old memories in the form of letters, pictures etc.. I must have a few cases worth of old letters and pictures and little memories. It's hard to know exactly why we keep them, but I guess for me it's partly because i know I'll forg…