Dear PB Readers,

It is said there is no "I in Team". This weekend I had a chance to see this first hand when I was just one of two hundred volunteers helping host the HSBC ITU Caledon International Triathlon. Hosting a small dinner party is often a logistical challenge. Hosting nearly 1000 people from ten provinces and ten countries is simply enormous. One team of volunteers picking up athletes at airports while another team of volunteers takes them to the home’s of local families. One team of volunteers picking up race equipment while another group is preparing the race site. As a group of volunteers were hosting the media and VIPs, another amazing group were coordinating the live band, awards, and registering participants. Add in media, camera crews, medical tent, scuba divers, police and road closures and you just start to understand what it takes to execute this past weekend’s HSBC ITU Caledon Triathlon. Saturday, after ten months of planning, I had a chance to see two hundred of the most amazing volunteers I have ever worked with truly illustrate that there is no "I" in team.

The HSBC Caledon Triathlon was an incredible success. Canada crowned its national Junior Champions, Age Group qualifiers and the HSBC Elite male and female titles. Olympian Samantha McGlone showed the huge crowd why she has become the most feared woman in Canada, by running away from the competitive elite women’s field. The classy St. Catharine’s athlete spent her afternoon signing autographs for the many kids and inspiring a new generation of young girls to look for healthy outlets for their energy. With McGlone and the elite women on the sidelines, Canada’s Paul Tichelaar won his first major international race. The twenty-two year old Tichelaar is the kind of ambassador every sport wishes for. A recent university graduate in engineering, the Edmonton native is a poster-boy for time-management and determination.

Being a part of a team that is committed to a common goal is inspiring. Watching two hundred of the people I care most about in the world, all helping execute the HSBC ITU CALEDON TRIATHLON was something special. Special thanks to the many PB readers who donated time, prizes, and energy to help make this past weekend’s event a tremendous success. I would like to welcome our two dozen new PB Readers to this our 251st PB Update. I personally believe that your mind is like a TV set and you have to continually, consciously ensure you program your mind. Allow negative images and ideas to permeate your mind and you are more likely to believe the world is a negative place. Consciously ensure your mind is exposed to positive people and opportunities and your mind keeps expecting success and joy to occur. I begin each day by waking up and realizing I need to consciously direct my life in a positive direction. ENSURE YOU ARE POSITIVELY PROGRAMMING YOUR MIND/LIFE. Keep those contributions coming into barrie@personalbest.ca and registering the important people in your life at our website at www.personalbest.ca or emailing me directly. Have a great week!

AUG 1ST PB HIGHLIGHTS

* GEORGE BERNARD SHAW QUOTE ON THE IMPORTANCE OF PLAY
* ARE YOU A BLUNTER OR A MONITOR
* THE IMPORTANCE OF PATIENCE AND COURAGE
* THE SIGNIFICANCE OF INCREASED WAISTLINES
* CANADIAN STEVE NASH CONTINUES TO IMPRESS
* THE FIVE STEPS REQUIRED TO ACHIEVE ANYTHING YOU WANT

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW QUOTE

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: On Saturday afternoon I had a chance to see George Bernard Shaw’s quote in full force. Jimmie Georgas won the HSBC Duathlon. Georgas is 79 years old, and the Collingwood, Ontario native raced 3km run, 40km bike, 10km run in just under three hours. Twenty minutes before Georgas finished two of his younger peers (seventy-five year old Julian Hutchinson and David Vass) finished a 1500m swim, 40km bike, 10km run. I watched the faces of the local high school volunteers as they saw men older then their grandfathers "staying young because they were continuing to “PLAY".

ARE YOU A BLUNTER OR A MONITOR?

The world is broken up into two groups: Those who like to know everything about their environment and those who want to hide from it. Monitors are people who want to know everything which impacts upon them. If they are having a surgery they want to know what the operation is, how far the surgeon will cut into their tissue, how long they will be unconscious and specific details about the process. Blunters are people who don’t want to think about their operation and would prefer to simply wake up and have it over. When it comes to exercise, blunters run on a treadmill in front of a TV set or jog with their headphones on. Extreme blunters don’t like to exercise without a friend or personal trainer to help distract them from the perceived pain or boredom of exercising.

Monitors, on the other hand, enjoy exercising by themselves and love to listen to their own "internal feedback" system. Top elite athletes are generally monitors. They push themselves extremely hard and continuously listen to their own bodies to see if they can dig even more effort out of themselves. A world class monitor will not only listen to themselves, but they will be evaluating their competitors to decide when they can use their weakest moment against them. Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan and Samantha McGlone are all examples of monitors who know how to get the most out themselves and when to strike at their competition’s weakest moment.

While I believe you can enhance your skills to become more of a monitor, most people have a dominant style which prevails under stressful situations. It is important to acknowledge your unique style and learn how to maximize it. Many blunters have been very successful in weight loss and exercise programs by utilizing the "buddy" system. If you don’t have a goal of high performance but simply healthy active living, a blunter-style can be a very effective. If, however, you have aspirations of excelling at world class athletics, then I strongly encourage the development of skills which teach you to listen to your own internal barometers.

COURAGE AND PATIENCE

Courage is not grim determination, boastful arrogance, or uncontrolled aggression. True courage comes from quiet conviction, which shows itself in self-control, calm assurance, and patient persistence. It takes courage, for example, to resist lashing back at others who hurt or offend us. It takes courage to endure the consequences of our attitudes, actions, and neglects without bragging or complaining. It takes courage to believe no situation is hopeless. It takes courage to remain optimistic about life when nothing seems to turn out right. It takes courage to maintain our enthusiasm and effort despite delays and setbacks. It takes courage to do the things we know are right in spite of our fears of rejection or inadequacy. And it takes courage to refrain from taking over a loved one’s responsibilities when he or she is failing to meet them.

WAISTLINE GAINS MEAN MORE THEN JUST BIGGER PANTS!

Waistline gain increases odds of cardiovascular disease. The more your waistline bulges, the greater the risk is for cardiovascular diseases proportionate to gain size. Waist Circumference (WC) has been shown more closely linked to cardiovascular disease risk factors than is body mass index BMI [1]. When one gains only 4 inches on the waist, this doubles the risk of cardiovascular disease. Prevention of waistline fat-weight gain is a wise choice for cardiovascular health. [1] American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2002;76:743-749

CANADIAN STEVE NASH CONTINUES TO GIVE BACK

I believe some people do things for contrived reasons. They have an agent with an agenda, or they are seeking publicity for a new product they are about to launch. Canadian NBA basketball Steve Nash is as far away from that kind of individual as one could get. This past week, Nash was in Toronto to host a yearly basketball fundraiser for children’s charities. Nash became the first Canadian to ever win an MVP title in the NBA. Instead of chilling out for the summer and relaxing (something he is entitled to do), the Victoria-born Nash was in Ontario donating another weekend of his life. The always humble Nash has chosen to use his talents and opportunity to help better the lives of others. While I marvel at his ability to put a basketball through a hoop under pressure, what impresses me most about Steve Nash is his ability to put a ray of hope into the lives of others who are less fortunate. While the media often talk about rich, selfish athletes, Steve Nash deserves everything he gets!

FIVE KEYS ELEMENTS TO ACHIEVING ALMOST ANYTHING YOU WANT

In the book, The Secret of the Ages by Robert Collier, he says, "you may have anything you want in life provided you:

1. Know exactly what you want
2. Want it badly enough
3. Confidently expect to attain it
4. Persistently determine to obtain it, and
5. Are willing to pay the price of its attainment."

Often I speak to people who are sincere in their desire to achieve specific goals but they lack the commitment and game plan to achieve those goals. Two years ago eighty-five year old Gordon Scott decided he wanted to help raise awareness for the War Amps and help fundraise for the charity. Currently Gordon is 80 days into a 100 day power-walk-hike across southwestern Ontario. Most children expect their 85 year old parents/grandparents to sit on the front porch and wait for their lives to end. Gordon had a major goal and was prepared to work tirelessly to achieve it. In the hottest summer on record in Ontario, Gordon is 85% of the way through his major goal. Not an hour goes by that some normal Ontario resident doesn’t drive past the senior citizen pulling a cart with the War Amps name and logo on it. Gordon knew what he wanted, wanted it badly, and is confident (I spent personal time with him a month ago as he walked through my town of Caledon). Through tornados, heat and hailstorms he has continued on his pursuit. With flat tires and great humidity he has continued on his pursuit and has garnered a significant amount of media awareness and cash for his charity. If you truly want something bad enough (a new job, a new home, the completion of a marathon or a triathlon) you need to use the skills noted above.

HAVE A GREAT WEEK AND TRY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIFE OF AT LEAST ONE OTHER PERSON.