Here we go again y’all! On December 14th at Powell’s Sweet Shoppe in Windsor, Liz Rait in conjunction with Hulk Helping Hearts has organized a fundraiser benefiting Jon Michael Martin! Starting tonight, come by the gym and pick up these flyers so you have your ammo to do a little good on December 14th (Wednesday).
20% of your total purchase will be donated to the Jon Michael Martin foundation, as long as you have one of these flyers! The flyer is good for all day! They have more than just candy too… You need stocking stuffers and gifts from the heart to give to families and friends anyway, am I right? Of course I am :).
Need to know more? E-mail me at AllLevelsTraining@gmail.com
Fair warning… This post is all about me. Yup, like you don’t get enough of me… This post is to help you understand the psyche I carry behind Hulk. My mentality before every workout that started the “train leaving the station” saying way back when no one really knew what Hulk was…
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You see, I approach every single Hulk workout like it’s the Superbowl. Yes, that intensely. Not because I’m so high on myself that I’ve lost all sense of reality, but because… well, why shouldn’t I? To me, Hulk is my baby. I’ve been kicking, screaming, and raising this little guy since he was entered into this world 3 years ago. I fed him, washed him, taught him the tools necessary to be as great as he can possibly be, and gave him enough love for 3 back-to-back lifetimes that to know anything BUT would be an impossibility… That’s when he grew. Hulk grew up into a beautiful monster. A Frankenstein unlike anything the world has ever seen, nor will it again at the rate Hulk is consuming everything it gets its hands on…
Enter: Gameday. I spend all day thinking about Hulk. Every minute it is on my mind in some capacity. From who said they aren’t going to be there to the people I know need to be there the most. From the workout I’ve got designed for the evening to the approach in which I want to make it. From special “audibles” that need to be called from time to time to the faces I can’t wait to see contorted in beauty.
Every Hulk workout is an opportunity to say “I’ll be damned, I really AM amazing!” or “I had no idea I was capable of this kind of hard work…” right on down to “I’ve worked out, but never like THIS.” Not all, but to many, this is a game changer. This is a life changer. When I say “this” I’m not referring to my challenge, I’m referencing the moment when you’re on the ground doing a plank or in the thick of the most push-ups you’ve ever done in your life and a small whisper creeps up behind you saying “I know this is hard, but you can do this” and ending in a primal internal scream bellowing at the top of your souls lungs saying “I AM DOING IT.” It’s that very instance in which you can subconsciously grasp on to that one moment when you thought you were a loser, and you were the greatest you’ve ever been. Your brain will NEVER forget that. Nor will your heart… What are the two things success listens to the most? See where I’m going with this?
I reference how life is one big Hulk workout, and I’ll stand by that forever. Life is not pretty, and life is anything but easy, but when you are hit with that moment of “I can’t handle this…” you do. You handle it. You have to. You have no other choice. Do you want to lay down and “settle” or do you want to rise up and battle? I want to battle…
My intensity is born through years of being meek. My screams are the voice of many, and everything from the lighting to the music needs to be perfect. In the House of Hulk, in that very moment, I am king. You are king. We are all kings. Why should the championship game be reserved for sports stars? In the House of Hulk, we’re a team taking on insecurities, vulnerabilities, low expectations and the paralyzing vision of failure constantly dancing on our retinas. We are the underdogs with the bookies stacking all the numbers they know against us. We are the Rudy’s. We are the Rocky’s. We are the Bad News Bears. We are a rag tag assortment of individuals that come together under the lights and will stop at nothing to grab that championship shovel, hoist it high above our heads, and let the look in our eyes say it all… We won.
Wanna know why I’m so intense? Because every single day is the Superbowl. That’s why.
PS I swear on all that is holy I have never seen this video in my life. I created the Hulk chant on my own, sitting in my room. I think Drew Brees knew a good thing when he saw it…
Hulk Helping Hearts! Just a fraction of the turkeys! Thank you to Kristie Clay (click here) for donations, pictures, and kicking butt in the workout!
So, this weekend, I had a goal of raising 25 turkeys for 25 families by running a bootcamp on Saturday with the cost being… 1 turkey! Well, thanks to Hulking Helping Hearts (Special thanks to Jodi Curry!) we successfully doubled that goal. Not to mention clothes, blankets, and additional fixins’ for a Thanksgiving feast for those who wouldn’t normally have such a pleasure! Not to mention ALSO that the workout was pretty killer… One of those workouts where when the workout is done and I turn the music down, everyone stays sprawled out on their mat in silence. My favorite :). Thank you SO MUCH everyone for helping make the holiday season a little more enjoyable for families in need out there. I want to take this opportunity to have everyone save the date forDecember 10th!That is the date I’ve got a big event planned to collect toys and food for families of Sonoma County. Details to come shortly 🙂
Hulk Conquer!
I just wanted to remind all you Hulksters of Heart & Soul that we’ve got a FOOTBALL THEMED workout tomorrow and Wednesday! Come decked out in your favorite teams gear! Or a cheerleader! Or a ref! Get ready to Tebow the hell out of this fit test workout, which is going to take our fit test exercises and do them in new, creative ways that are going to leave your body aching for turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberries (canned please), corn, twice baked potatoes with bacon and cheese melted on top, yams, Hawaiian bread rolls, and whatever other Thanksgiving delicacies your tummy desires! Which brings me to my next order of business…
Post Turkey Day Master Trainer Challenge!
Heather Muysken (Click here) and myself will be running a TWO HOUR MASTER TRAINER workout where we combine our talents and rock your holiday socks off and get you back into gear and out of the insulin-soaked coma a lot of you are going to be in.
Date: November 25th (BLACK FRIDAY – This Friday…) Time: 1pm-3pm Cost: $20 Location: Anytime Fitness off of Santa Rosa Ave.
All levels of fitness are welcome, as well as people who do NOT belong to Anytime Fitness! If you’d like to sign up e-mail either myself (AllLevelsTraining@gmail.com) or Heather Muysken (Heatituppt@me.com). Be prepared to sign a waiver and sweat your tryptophanned butt off!
Next post? Be ready to read my interpretation of how I treat every Hulk workout like we’re the underdogs in the superbowl. Same level of importance… Think it’s a little exaggerated? That’s fine, you’ll see it my way soon enough ;).
What does it mean to be a part of Hulk? By now, you’ve all come to find out that it’s more than “just a boot camp.” The reason I bring this up now is because halfway into week 3 (I told you time was going to fly!), I want people to understand what we’re doing here. I like to think that our actions are our mission statement. For those that are a little more lingual, let me feed your literary taste-buds:
Hulk Mission Statement
Hulk is a process starting from within, not from without. The goal is self improvement, starting with your strongest muscles; Your heart and soul. Hulk is here to overcome fears that manifest physically and translate into the thought “this is too hard for me.” Once those fears are battled (not conquered… life will forever be one big “hulk workout”), it’s because you’ve got the confidence to battle them. You get the results people don’t get by doing the work people don’t do. Getting the confidence to hulk smash your fears and insecurities with a balled up fist and a primal scream is the hardest work there is. As Hulksters, we do it. We battle. It may not always look pretty, and it will not always be comfortable, but it will be a journey that leaves you standing taller. Prouder. Full of the realization that you are the king of your own castle. As Hulksters, we refuse to take “I can’t” or “I’ll always be this person…” because settling for anything less than supreme respect from yourself is unacceptable. As Hulksters, we live by what I’ve dubbed “The Hulken Rule.” Treat others BETTER than you wish to be treated. As Hulksters, we open our arms to vulnerabilities and insecurities because we know the struggle. As Hulksters, we will NEVER turn away those asking for help, even when they don’t ask for it. As Hulksters, we stand atop a mountain of downtrodden emotions and lack of self worth with our hands stretched towards the sunlight screaming “Join us! The view from the top is beautiful!” As Hulksters, we are worth it. We are Hulk.
I say we strive for better, not perfect, for a reason. Perfect is a default for striving to be better. Perfection is also an illusion. If you are constantly trying to be perfect, you’ll never be able to truly enjoy life’s imperfections that make life so wonderful in the first place.
Remember… You are only as beautiful on the outside as you feel on the inside. Until you learn to love yourself, you will always see ugly in the mirror.
– Hulk
PS Team Heart I encourage you again to listen and absorb this song. Team Soul, it has been made very evident that you all need the same musical therapy tonight. Consider tonight’s workout rewritten.
The way I see it... Every Turkey collected is a family fed on Thanksgiving. Let's do this.
Goal:To collect at least 25 turkeys for less fortunate families who wouldn’t otherwise be able to enjoy a home cooked meal on a day where many of us take for granted how fortunate we REALLY are.
How:I will be hosting a boot camp! It will be a total body blitz, so be ready to feel pretty damn euphoric after being responsible for feeding a family AND getting your adrenal glands dumped while your endorphins get pumped!
Time:11am-12:15pm
Location: Anytime Fitness on Santa Rosa Ave.
Cost:1 Turkey. That’s it. A turkey. If you can afford a boot camp, you can afford a turkey. There will be someone here from the food bank to collect the turkeys at 11am sharp so be sure to be on time!
Date:November 19th (This Saturday!)
Special Note: PLEASE E-mail me AllLevelsTraining@gmail.com (NO OTHER METHOD PLEASE) to let me know if you plan on attending so I can keep track of head count. I ask you e-mail me so I can consolidate responses :). Social networking can be a nightmare when you’re busy!
The way I see it, Hulk Helping Hearts is going to make a big difference in a lot of lives this Holiday season, starting this Saturday. Plant a positive seed, get a positive flower. We all have so much going for us even when we think life is miserable… As tough as life can be sometimes, ask yourself if enjoying a home cooked meal on Thanksgiving is one of those issues. If it’s not, let’s help those out where it IS an issue!
If you’d like, you are MORE than welcome to donate more than 1 turkey! I hope that goes without question ;). If you need me to come pick up a turkey in the morning because you’re not able to make it to the gym, just let me know and I’ll pick it up in the AM! E-mail me at AllLevelsTraining@gmail.com and I will be your liaison.
Lastly, PLEASE spread this link on your facebook page. For every 5 people that would like to go to boot camp but can’t make it, at least 2 of those people will donate a turkey even if they can’t attend so SPREAD THE WORD! HULKSTERS, SPREAD THE WORD!
See you all this Saturday, at 11am, for a butt kicking workout while making a difference :).
$10 for Zumba participation gets you one of these bracelets. Or you can buy one for $5 You know you want one!!! Can’t wait to see you all at the fundraiser for Jon Michael 😀
Hulk out celebrating Taryn's birthday! Sporting the bands like champions 🙂
Part of the Hulk crew sportin’ the bands at Jackson’s for Taryn’s birthday. These things are flyin’ like Hot Cakes!
He supports himself!
Alright y’all, here’s the skinny… We’re doin’ this Zumbathon on October 16th (Sunday) from 12pm till 3pm here at Anytime Fitness off Santa Rosa Ave. You’re going to come and dance your butt off to some sweet Zumba moves. If that doesn’t tickle your fanciest of fancies, then we’ve got some baked goods for sale by several of our awesome Hulksters. Want more baked goods? Your opportunity to pre-order the first ever “Hulk Cookbook” fit to be published this winter will be at this very event. If anything, I’ll be there to make sure you’re smilin’, jivin’, and wilin’ in the name of Health via Jon Effin’ Michael!
In all seriousness, every bit of proceeds goes towards this remarkable little boy and his remarkable parents. Every single penny of profit. Please take the time to visit his website (link above) and learn about what this family is going through. To sum it up, we’ve got a couple Hulksters (Amanda Jane Martin and Jeff Martin) who had a beautiful baby boy recently. This beautiful baby boy was born with a rare heart defect that requires 3 surgeries. Insurance covers the first 2 surgeries (which have been successfully completed), number three falls on the family… I know I don’t have to tell you how expensive that will be. Think “John Q.” only instead of Jeff holding up a hospital and trading his heart for his little boys… We’re raising the money together :).
ANYBODY can come to the Zumbathon, all you have to do is show up with a smile ready to soak in the support (and hopefully add some of your own, not just financially either)!
For information on how to get a bracelet please contact Jessica LaVenter (Click Here for facebook page to message her) or email her at Jessica.Laventer@gmail.com.
October 16th! 12pm-3pm! Can’t wait to see you there Hulksters and Co.!
iamhulk 