Sergeant Tony's Blog

RAPID EYE MOVEMENT

Many of you know that I had to travel back to my hometown of Fort Smith, Arkansas, last week. My sister-in-law died after a valiant battle with cancer. We also had to put my mother in a nursing home. Those things, combined with other things that have happened in my life in the past week, have made for a pretty tough time.

As I’ve talked with some of you this week, I’ve realized that I’m not the only one who has been hurting.

One of my favorite music videos is REM’s “Everybody Hurts.” If you’ve never seen the video you can go here and see it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91euxMQ0Zyg
I’ve told my son, Nathan, to watch it at least once every six months. It’s a reminder to give everyone a break, to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, to reserve judgement, to be patient, to be kind, to be understanding, to remember that the other person you meet on the street, in the store, in line at the bank, in traffic, in the elevator … or even sitting across the dinner table from you … needs your understanding … your friendship. Even when you don’t understand them … understand them anyway. Knee jerk reactions, impatience, flying off the handle, jumping to conclusions, assuming … are all things that lead to misunderstandings, broken relationships, prejudice, and anger.

As human beings we are body, soul, and spirit. Every major religion acknowledges the complex make-up of the human species. There are incredible reasons for exercise that transcends physical wellness. The benefits of exercise are also mental and spiritual. In fact, I often wonder if THE major benefits of exercise aren’t mental and spiritual and that exercise just also happens to have a physical benefit.

Over the past 8 years of Boot Camp, I’ve dealt with personal grief and heartache, acute sadness and feelings of extreme despondency. Just like some of you have during the past eight years of your own life.

In March of 2003 I had a TV in every room of my house. I was literally watching the TV 18 to 19 hours a day. The invasion of Iraq had just begun and there were imbedded reporters alongside our troops. They were charging hard from Kuwait in a dangerous and deadly drive to Baghdad. My son, Matthew, was a part of that invasion … at the tip of the Marine Corps spear, they said.

I watched the TV for hours everyday looking for my boy.

A few weeks earlier I’d taken him to the airport to say good bye to him, perhaps for the last time. As he walked away from me, heading down the corridor of the airport to his gate, he paused briefly, turned back, and waved to me. Was that to be the last time I’d see my boy alive? I didn’t know. When he was out of sight, I sat down on a chair and cried like a child.

In the midst of all of that … I did Boot Camp … everyday.

Of course I prayed and prayed and prayed with all my might … but nothing touched the core of my being like being at Boot Camp with my “family” and exercising as hard as my body would endure. I pushed and pushed and pushed. I ran harder and faster than I probably should have … the exhaustion was such a blessing. A blessing that transcended everything else.

When nothing else would, Boot Camp ministered to me in ways that I can’t really explain.

And that is where I find myself even today. And after talking to many of you this week, I know that many of you are hurting too.

When you hurt, especially when you hurt, don’t neglect the physical aspect of who you are. Getting out of the house and driving to Boot Camp may be the last thing you want to do, but you will find afterwards that it was the best thing that you could have done for yourself.

If you are experiencing days of grief and sadness, I pray that they pass quickly.

And if your days are happy and good and the sun is shining in your life, be ye kind, one to another.

Be patient. Give your fellow human being the benefit of the doubt.

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NEW YORK CITY MARATHON & TEAM FOR KIDS UPDATE
I want to thank so many of you who have made such generous contributions to Team for Kids! Some of you have been absolutely sacrificial! It’s still not too late to give.

If you’d like to make a contribution, all you need to do is click on the link below. You’ll need my registration number: 95426 and my last name (Ludlow) to make a donation. Of course you can make a cash or check donation directly to me if you’d prefer.

http://www.nyrrc.org/cgi-bin/htmlos.cgi/mar-programs/nyrrf/team/2007/donations.htm

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NEW YORK HELP NEEDED
If you know of hotel, hostel, or “under the bridge” accommodations for Manhattan, I’d really appreciate hearing from you. I lost the hotel room that I’d been counting on and am in need of some last minute help with a place to stay. If you, or someone you know, can help me with this, please let me know! I’m not picky.

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BOOT CAMP SECHEDULE FOR THE 07/08 SCHOOL YEAR
There are three classes to choose from, Monday through Friday: 0530, 0830, and 5:45 PM. (The Friday evening class always meets at 5:30)

The 0530 class has a weight day workout and a cardio workout EVERY morning! The choice is yours!
The 0830 and 5:45 PM classes have a weight day workout on M/W/F and a cardio workout on TuThu.

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ONE HOUR OF CARDIO HOMEWORK: SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!

I’m concerned that many of you do NOT get your one hour of cardio on the weekends. So, here’s my FREE OFFER! That’s right, FREE OFFER!!!!

You can join us on Saturday mornings for the half marathon training. You can run with us for an hour and enjoy the fellowship and fun of running with a group. See below!

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HALF MARATHON TRAINING

We’ll be training this coming Saturday at 8 AM at Shelby Farms.

We’ll train up until one week from the St. Jude’s Half Marathon on December 1. We train at a “5 minute ‘on,’ 1 minute ‘off’” routine. Meaning that we jog for 5 minutes at an 11 minute 30 second per mile pace, and then walk for 1 minute. Then we repeat that for the total length of time for our run. This coming Saturday we’ll be going for 2 hours and 10 minutes total. Trust me, at that pace, it’s really doable.

The cost for the training is $75 for everyone!

Beginners are welcome! You can come this Saturday and give it a trial run for free.

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YOUR BUSINESS ON THE BLOG

If you check the blog page of the Boot Camp website (http://usmcfitnessbootcamp.com/blog/), you’ll find the links to many of your fellow boot camper’s business sites. Check it out! If you’d like yours listed too, contact me ASAP!

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FRIDAY EVENING CLASS

The Friday evening class always meets at 5:30! The class meets Monday through Thursday at 5:45.

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God bless you all today.

Tony

Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow
USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
4888 Southern Cove
Memphis, TN 38117
901-644-0145

www.usmcfitnessbootcamp.com

www.shaklee.net/tonyludlow/main