I’d slept in after a late night of Kung Fu training and woke up to a call from my mom. It was the morning of 9/11/01. We didn’t own a television, so I went straight to my Dad’s office,  to see the horror that had been playing out.

That afternoon I taught a kids Kung Fu class. Only a few showed up, as so many of us were dazed and confused that day.  Digesting that most surreal moment in the history of our country, of the modern day, was incredibly difficult for all of us.

I remember looking at those little lives, thinking how humans are capable of so much good, yet some create such incredible sadness. I asked myself, as so many of us did, how anyone would be or would want to be capable of such terror?

There is, there was no answer. So many lost lives, so much misunderstanding, so much confusion. So much sadness. When emotions flood it takes a long time to absorb them, to make it into something that honors what was lost. We were all floating in a sea of sadness.

All I wanted to do that day was show every one of those little kids kindness and give them hope. There will be anger, but it should never come at the expense of the greater good. We are all in this together, and that is where our power lies. Kindness, in the end, will always reveal the high road and that is the road I wanted those little kids heading toward.

For all that was lost that day and for the pieces of hope we still carry from it, we press on. Each act of self care is an act to amplify goodness in the world, to defy that hate. Every smile, every good deed, every act of love is light in the face of darkness.

We never know what today will bring. All we know is what we can bring to this day. Bring a full heart, bring kindness, bring gratitude.

To your health,

Coach Michelle

Gumsaba DIY Boot Camp – We will not forget.

Equipment: TRX (optional), Jumprope, Dumb Bells, Mat

Part 1: 5 min Dynamic Movement + 5 minutes Rhythmic Cardio. 

Part 2: TRX Warm Up Chipper 10/8/6

Prioritize proper head and body position to encourage good patterns for Part 3. If you do not have a TRX available do the exercises in ()

TRX Split Fly  (Hi plank 30 seconds)

TRX Muscle Up (Glute Bridge Pullover)

TRX Chest Press (Glute Bridge Fly)

TRX Superman (Superman)

Jumprope X10

Part 3: Uppers, Lowers, Core!

Set 1: Upper, Repeat 3X

6 Push Ups

12 Biceps Curls

12 Alternating Split Flys 

12 Bent Rows

Set 2: Lower Body, Repeat 3X

6e Step Ups

12 Prisoner Squats

12 Alternating Reverse Lunges

12 Glute Bridge Hip Extensions 

Set 3: Core, Repeat 3X

6 Navy Seal Ups

12 Bicycles 

12 Reverse Crunches

12 Low Plank Body Saw

Part 4: CARDIO Run, Bike Or Row 

10 Minutes at 60%-70% HR Max 

Max is 220-age

Example for 50 year old: 

220-50=170

170 x 60%=102 -119BPM

Part 5:  Static Standing Stretch 30 sec/side

Chest Stretch

Deltoid Stretch

Figure 4 Hip Stretch 

Hamstring Stretch

Quad Strech

Calf Stretch