Winter in most of Canada and the northern parts of America brings new opportunities to train outdoors and enjoy the wonders of snow, ice and below freezing temperatures. If you like to train on your bike it also causes a weird form of torture. People throughout this wide swath of geography sit on their bikes in the basement, stationary, strapped to magnetic flywheels. They spin and they toil, but they do not move.
I am one of those riders.
I have yet to get a fat bike (vowed not to get another bike without getting rid of another first!) Not sure why I ever agreed to that, something about being obedient. Anyway, here I sit spinning and not moving and needing something to preoccupy my numb mind and butt.
The perfect answer: Netflix. Potential hours and hours of 2 whole seasons of Narcos. At first I find it violent, but then after a few hours my soul and spirit seem to adapt. So now I have a numb mind, butt and spirit.
The next morning I begin my assigned homework.
Read Matthew 6, Ephesians 1 and Philippians 4.
All 3 of those chapters spoke to me in different ways.
Matthew 6; do not worry.
Ephesians 1; I have been chosen to know the hope to which He has called me and the riches of His inheritance and his power.
Philippians 4; this is what I am supposed to be putting into my brain (and this really got me): "Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things.
So much for binging on Narcos.
Switched to a podcast that was enriching and uplifting and everything began to change because what I was focusing on changed. It is such a slippery slope.
What have you been letting into your mind? What have you been focusing on?
Coach Yurij
Comment
On Sunday, February 5, 2017, Leo Quan said:
Thank you Yurij and all the comments so far on what we're focussing on. I admit, I've been pulled in a bit by the news this month. Pledging to take the focus off that part of the world and get intothe Word and simplifying my life.
On Monday, January 23, 2017, Brad P said:
It amazing me how consumed people are with the whole Trump thing at the moment, how much of their lives it is consuming. About 4 years ago I stopped watching the news and reading the newspaper entirely. It has had a massive, positive impact on my life. And it is remarkable as a business leader, how little difference it has made. I have an embarrassing moment perhaps every 6 months (no more) where there is a significant piece of news I'm not aware of but other than that, zero downside and massive positive upside.
On Sunday, January 22, 2017, Yves said:
Great wisdom Yurij. Before joining Warrior I did not think much about this. I make a consistent effort to read positive material in addition to the bible. I also choose who I hang out with. Spotify has a lot of good Christian music. Thanks Yurij. ( time in outdoors and nature is a great source of peace for me😄)
On Sunday, January 22, 2017, Kim Crickmay said:
Thanks for this transparency, Yurij. I had been watching the news so much in the last year. However it got really bad in December, like I was compelled to watch it and/or having it on while doing something else. Totally distracted and changing my focus to very negative things. Not much uplifting stuff on the news. I would turn it on at 5:30am when I could, and even watch it at noon and evening if at home. The stories were repetitious but I didn't care. I was concerned I would miss a developing story as it happened. I realize now that I was trying to protect myself, like "forewarned is to be forearmed". Like I was safer if I knew what was happening in the city, the country and even the world. That's just crazy and it was making me more anxious and crazy! God is my stronghold, fortress and defender. He fights for me and everything coming my way in 2017 has to pass through His awesome hands first. I'm safe and secure in Him, no matter what.
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, David Covey said:
Yup, guilty. I felt exactly the same with what I was watching on tv when I was reading through Philippians 4 over the past few weeks. Junk in = troubled soul. Good stuff in = peace of God.
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, Bernadette Vecchio said:
About 10years ago I realized this truth about garbage food for the brain... Although I didn't yet have an intentional relationship with God He was working on and in me by prompting me to change the type of music I listened to... For some unknown reason I had a desire to only listen to instrumental and classical music because I was becoming acutely aware that the drama in mainstream music was not leading me in a good direction. The way I look at music, TV, etc now is the same way I look at my body nutrition... If I'm going to make an effort to feed my body good food then my mind needs good food too. I still struggle with thoughts of worry though which are just as or more toxic than TV and music...
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, Clarise said:
I've been spending a lot of time on facebook to "numb" my mind, butt and spirit after work. I think that's been causing me to focus more on worry. Now I'm trying to replace it with more prayer and bible time. Thanks for your honesty Dr. Yurij!
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, Tyler said:
Strangely, I can relate. I most often have worship music or the audio Bible in my ears. Thank you for the gentle and simple reminder to be aware of what we think of.
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Stephen Lippitt said:
I often do my bike on the trainer listening to Christian music. I enjoy getting introduced to new bands, sounds, and lyrics to keep me focused on being creative and being excited about ways to express love for God. I also try to focus on my heart rate and zones imagining myself getting faster and healthier as I train for my upcoming races this summer and fall.
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Brad said:
Awesome Yurij! What we read, listen to and who we associate with is going to determine the quality of our life. If we let garbage in, we all know what's going to come out. Thank-you for the reminder. Love you!
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Tyler Kong said:
Wow. Simple and profound. Similarly I got rid of my Netflix app on my phone and tv. No more distractions. It's tough but worth it. Thanks coach for sharing your struggles too! Here I thought I was the only one ;)
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Lindsay said:
At first I giggled at the comment about result of Narcos and spinning causing a 'numb butt mind and spirit', but it is so true. It's easy to become numbed out to violence, etc. in television or movies. Thank you for the follow up on feelings and focus, this was a huge take home for me from Friday's Dreams seminar.
Warrior Coaching.png)
Comment
On Sunday, February 5, 2017, Leo Quan said:
On Monday, January 23, 2017, Brad P said:
On Sunday, January 22, 2017, Yves said:
On Sunday, January 22, 2017, Kim Crickmay said:
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, David Covey said:
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, Bernadette Vecchio said:
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, Clarise said:
On Thursday, January 19, 2017, Tyler said:
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Stephen Lippitt said:
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Brad said:
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Tyler Kong said:
On Wednesday, January 18, 2017, Lindsay said:
Leave a Comment