The Drive & MORE news!

Today's thoughts started as a short post about running...but then it turned into something much bigger. I'll start this post first with my run-lovin' ways but then I'm going to move on to what appears to be a bigger topic...the drive to progress, achieve and grab life by the...tie...yeah tie!...and OWN every minute of it.

As for the running, no matter the road condition, the weather forecast, the -6 wind chill (yes NEGATIVE 6)...I got my ass up at 6:15am and made it happen. It was a super slow pace because of snow packed roads and ice patches, but I just didn't care. All I wanted to do was bundle up and get out there and run...so I did. 

And I'll admit, while out there this morning, my finger tips and cheeks going numb despite being bundled, I wondered what was driving me? Where was the push coming from to want to wake up before work, before the golden sunrise and go run outside in weather most people will spend the day avoiding by never stepping foot out their door (which is completely reasonable!). I know part of it was when I was in the midst of a conversation with a friend over dinner last night, I mentioned getting up to run in the negative windchill weather. To which I was met with "you're crazy". And a HUGE smile graced my face. A SURE sign I am really a runner at heart. I LOVE when people say I'm nuts for going out and doing something that only a select group of us really understand...until they too decided to try out running, and then next thing ya know, we aren't so nuts after all!

The other thing, the BIGGER thing that struck me was that in general, I'm feeling very ambitious. Very driven. But not just feeling it, actually doing something about it. As I've mentioned a gazillion times,I'm STILL studying for the NASM personal trainer cert. It is the one I want added to my resume and the material is VERY challenging for someone with no health or wellness background. I keep plugging away and working with my test client...but it is going SOOO slow. Slower than I need it to. I've been getting some visibility since the start of this year that I feel requires I start building some certifications, even if it is only considered an entry level certification (keeping in mind STILL working toward an NCAA certified PT certification). So today, I decided to do this...

Although IFA is not an NCAA accredited organization (sort of the standard for nationally recognized certs), it does provide me with a basic certification that allows me a good jumping off point! It will open some doors up for me that were closed simply because I did not have ANY certification at all. And yes, technically I can put "CPT" next to my name now (woohoo!) but won't do it until I feel 100% secure with my basic trainer knowledge (just how I am I guess!). That said, apparently my basic knowledge was enough to pass this IFA online certification test. It wasn't super hard but compared to NASM test quizzes, believe it or not, it covers very similar material...but just a bit easier to digest when reviewing their IFA study materials.

Combine this with my latest news of being selected as a Train Dirty Fitness Ambassador, I am starting to finally believe in myself to the extent that apparently others believe as well. I want to keep pushing forward and let all the successes I've experienced in such a short span of time this month motivate me to reach for the stars and GRASP THEM!

Today has been an important day for me. I am actively learning how to MAKE things I want happen, even if that means I can't jump to the exact spot I want to be at...it is about creating your own stepping stones...and this CPT certification, though not my first choice, is one of those stones.

dream hard, work hard!
Rachel