Welcome To The Community

Together, we’ll dive deep and find the strength to never give up because Great Things Take Time.

Rot, I do not do,

I do not rot but let me tell you,

Is this Seuss? You have no clue

Seems Adrian has lost his marbles, whew

If you were forwarded this email, you can subscribe and join the Great Things Take Time Community to get content from me every Wednesday.

Here's what's in today's email

• Rot Not

• Moments with Maurice

• What's Got Me Smilin'

Rot Not

Last week’s Instagram AMA brought up a lot of questions, and a theme also started to emerge. A lot of you were asking how I or my coworkers handle our schedule, if I take rest days (and if so, what they look like), and what my workout schedule is. 

Don’t worry, I have the receipts to back up the “so everyone has been asking….” save your Hate-orade for someone else 😛 

I can only imagine that those of you who wonder about my schedule are looking for some help in breaking through a plateau.

The first thing I want to say before I even get into days off/days on is that a lot of the way I look and perform comes from genetics. 

Many of us have strengths and things we naturally excel at; I’m lucky enough that I can use mine for work. On the other hand, I would fail miserably at any type of communications work. What do you mean there is an urgent email I just received, I need to get ahead of? Gonna need some help finding it in my 100,000+ unread messages… (This is not dramatics for the newsletter, I’m not kidding).

The point about mentioning this is to remind you that things don’t look the same for everyone. With social media (and even newsletters), you get a picture of who a person is, and I want to encourage you not to beat yourself up trying to follow something you think is the total truth. If I told you that licking subway poles was my superpower and you know that every time you get sick, you lose momentum for the next month… maybe don’t listen to me.

So here’s the tea: I don’t rot*. Well, almost never.

*In case you aren’t familiar, rotting is defined as the act of lying in bed or on the couch all day, barely moving except to go to get more snacks or go to the bathroom.

Do I get a medal? A pat on the back? A national day of celebration for my commitment to the grind? Hell no. Because no one cares, and my non-active days are nothing that the no days off crowd would celebrate.

For me, a rest day incorporates stretching, mobility, or recovery work, like foam rolling.

So, rot, I do not. The rotting is not pure; there are other things that accompany it. But this isn’t hardcore work, it’s gentle movement that keeps my body from feeling like it’s shriveling up. 

After all, I’m in my 40s, and the transition between the movement in my day-to-day and complete stillness is drastic enough that it makes me feel off. It’s the difference between getting out of bed in the morning and hearing things crack (hint: I don’t mean the floors), and moving through my day without stiffness. 

I still get the TV in, the couch lounging, and all the food that comes with it, but it’s accompanied by recovery work that limits the days I feel like I got hit by my car just from fixing a part (fun fact, I did tweak something trying to fix something on my car the other day). 

This works for me because I notice a difference in both my movement and my everyday life when I incorporate it, and I encourage you to throw this in on a rest day. Instead of staying immobile all day, find at least 15 minutes to do something to offset the normal wear and tear of your week. Pay attention to where you feel the tightest and what it might come from (sitting at the computer, carrying a child, any other repetitive or loaded movement) and find a way to neutralize that. Bonus points if you can do it without scrolling on your phone!

Maybe this is one little habit you can add to your day that will help open things up and get you set for the next day. It’s like the recovery version of picking out your outfit, making a reservation, or packing your lunch. 

It also might not work for you, and that’s okay. Don’t listen to me, I’m just a guy who runs nowhere for a living. But if you incorporate this, and it works for you, I’m very interested in hearing more about it! 

Happy stretching! Remember, Great Things Take Time, and that includes touching your toes 😉 

Moments with Maurice

If you only pause to reflect on your life for one moment today, do it now.

If you’ve been journaling along with me, take the time to pause on the reflection and write down your answer to the prompt. Even if it feels silly in the moment, looking back on what you’ve written down can be eye-opening when you start to see patterns form.

Because no matter what, there is always something to smile about.

The Downshift

A new season of life means new paint. What do we think of this color? Does it fit my personality? They do say that the car you drive can sometimes represent your personality. But what if I told you this is a total joke (don’t believe everything you read on the internet, kids) and that I’m going in another direction.

A Moment In The Desert

Scenes from my Arizona trip last weekend. Special shout out to the Andaz Scottsdale gym that allowed me to hang with my favorite coworkers. Don’t forget a visit to lululemon to check another store off the bucket list!

Being in a new environment (desert shades of brown vs. city shades of brown) got the wheels turning. Anytime I have a few minutes of stillness (usually seems to involve a beverage), I try to take a moment or two for a check-in on how I’m feeling, what my goals are, what I need to work on, etc. (Hint: newsletter prompts are often helpful)

Damn, They Put Their Foot In This!

In this case, they is me and I am very proud of this steak. That is all. Be proud of your handiwork, even if it’s something simple.

Remember:

-Adrian