Hey All,

I hope everyone is doing well. As the outdoor season approaches I wanted to give you all an update on how my training is going and give a few tips and advice. And let you all know that my blog is currently going through some changes! It is now Hurdlingthroughlife.com and I will be posting multiple times per week. Some posts will be updates on me and track, others will be informational about hurdles and track, there will be workout tips and health tips post, advice posts and Q&A post (so send me questions!!!) and of course Feature Fridays will continue!

I also wanted to let you guys know that I am working on a Spoken Word Poetry Chapbook that I will be having per-sale for very soon!!! I am currently looking for an illustrator and working on the book cover so it is almost complete! The proceeds will go to my Road to Rio journey! If you want to check out one of the poems that will be in the book click here!

So today I wanted to talk about staying prayed up. Lately, I have been focusing on staying “prayed up” as I enter what will be one of the toughest journeys in my life. I wanted to share how I keep my peace and faith with the hopes of helping someone who may need it. 🙂

Workout Update

Trackside everything is going extremely well. I’m strong, healthy, and most importantly I feel fast! I am very excited to be opening up next week!! It seems like time has really flown by. My first meet will be here in Mesa, Arizona at the Mesa Track Classic on April 8th. I’m hoping to have a decent opening time but the most important thing is to properly execute my race strategy and find my race rhythm. Sometimes, the time you run isn’t the most important thing but executing your strategy and finding your rhythm (especially in hurdles) is always important. If you want a sneak peak below is a video of me going over a few hurdles 🙂 (I had some cool music to go with it but youtube muted it 😦  )

As I previously mentioned, lately I’ve been really focused on keeping my peace and staying covered in faith. While I consider myself someone who has a personal relationship with God and who is deeply connected to my faith, often times I fall out of it and lose the connection. Last year I struggled with filling my spirit but this year, I feel as if my connection is stronger than ever and I want to keep feeding it so it can continue to flourish. I think this is important no matter where someone is in life. It doesn’t matter what a person believes in but filling one’s spirit whether through mediation or prayer or both is essential. We are spiritual beings and to ignore that is doing oneself a lack of service.

So, I have been meditating, praying, and listening to sermons a lot more often and because of that I feel a lot of peace going into this season. Regardless of the outcome of my races and my season I want to be filled with peace.

Advice to Young Athletes

Being an athlete is a lot of stress, can be extremely emotional and it can break you down spiritually (especially if you aren’t performing the way you intended). Whenever someone is passionate about something and it doesn’t work out the way they intended it can be very hard on them. And on the flip side when things work out it is always good to know the big man above is looking out for you. But most importantly staying grounded mentally and spiritually while you are going through the journey (good or bad) is so important. So, I advise finding whatever it is that keeps you grounded and holding on to it! It will get you through your successes and your failures in life in general, not just sports!

Workout Tips

This does not only apply to athletes, no matter what our life’s purpose is we all need something to hold on to that isn’t flakey like people. Lol. So my workout tip is mediation. I know you are probably thinking, “that’s not a workout!” But it is! It is working out your spirit and mind. Our bodies are not the only thing that needs to be whipped into shape but our spirits do as well. I reblogged a previous post I had about the benefits to mediation please check it out here!

Start with small sessions and build your way up. Mediated for 5 minutes a day, just clear your mind and find your peace and try to increase from there. If you already mediate, great!! Maybe you can push yourself to mediate longer or more often.

Thank you all for stopping by and lookout for the changes coming soon!!!

Thanks for reading!!  Please feel free to like, comment, and share! 

Want me to discuss a topic?? Let me know by commenting below!