By: Derek Wellock

Back with another blog post.  Now that I am tasked with producing these once a month, it seems the turn around is fast.  So because you have to be subjected to my thoughts more often, I will try to keep shorter and to the point.   Haha. not. I can’t help it. Typing for me is therapy, and when my blogs are lengthy it is because I am passionate and fired up about it!  There is nothing more important to me then taking you on the journey with me!    

Reps of Discipline challenges started because a member asking me to make my 10,000 push-up challenge open to the gym.  They wanted a leaderboard for it. So to run a leaderboard, there had to be a charge because it cost money to run those things.  But the little bit that was left over, we sent to charity. I could care less about the money, the goal with Reps Of Discipline is simply to get people taking daily action to have a positive effect on their lives and those around you.  So, all those who have completed them so far, I have seen a great improvement in their life, health, and fitness.   

Some of what I have been doing on Instagram, particularly 50 burpees before 5am and not drinking alcohol, I heard is making some Double Edge members uncomfortable.  I guess some believe that if you aren’t doing these things with me, I think I am superior to you and I think less of you. Well, let’s put that to rest right now. Simply not true.  Now, I can’t control people’s emotional reaction to what I do, but I can make sure you fully have to knowledge of what I am doing and why.  

My journey the last year has been 100% about me, and me fixing me.  I had made mistakes, I have taken my health for granted, I have fallen short as a leader in my family and my business.  These are the facts. I had to fix them. So, to fix them, my first step was committing to a minimum of a year of not drinking alcohol.  I had to prove to myself and those I love that I can control it and not let it control me. 30,60,90 days is not hard in my book, but a year across multiple events, weather changes, holidays, etc has been very hard.   So it has proven my discipline and my respect and love to my family that they are first in my book and my health is a priority. It is that simple. It has nothing to do with anyone but me. Don’t take it the wrong way, as I know my journey has inspired many others to look and why they do things too, and for that I am grateful.  I am not going to pretend I am not happy when I hear someone say they are giving up alcohol because of my journey. At the end of the day, alcohol is poison to the body, and that is a simple truth. Some are affected by it more than others, but there is not one single positive metabolic reaction that takes place from consuming alcohol.  Not one. So, to fix my health and my mindset, it started with that first.  

Since then, I have owned every aspect of my nutrition too.  I have dug deep into the science and learned how my body responds, recovery and performs based on what goes into my mouth.  This has been in great detail for the last 6 months. Not weighing and measuring, but learning and eating intuitively based on knowledge and testing in the gym.  To test a race car you have to get in on the race track, that is how you can tell if the fuel is good and the engine is finely tuned. The gym and my fitness is my race track.  It is the single most important metric I use to tell if my body is working optimally. So, as my health progressed over the last year, surprise, surprise so has my fitness performance and my physique progressed.  On Instagram, and in the gym you are seeing me perform at a level I had never been at in my life. But I am also fueling my body with a chasing perfection level that I had never done before in my life too. One simply didn’t happen without the other.  Right, now, today I am doing 2 workouts a day, 7 days a week. I have exercised every single day with zero traditional rest days since February 2, 2019, when I started my push-up challenge. Because of the efforts, I have put into my health, my body is recovering in less than 12 hours between workouts.  

I am intentionally not hitting max performance every day.  Probably 2 times per week, I put near maximal effort into a class workout, but that is because I am intentionally training my energy systems while learning and understanding what it takes for my body to recover from each training session. 

So, back to Reps of Discipline.  Again, fitness is my tool to help you develop your mind to dominate life.  It is that simple. If you did complete the 50 burpees before 5am, I can promise you a couple of things.  Burpees would no longer be a weakness, you would be fitter, you would be attacking your day with major focus, and you will have a whole new level of confidence.  Maybe burpees are easy for you, but waking up at 4:30am to do them death is death to you, or maybe waking up early is easy but 50 burpees shoulds like swallowing nails to you.  Either way, you would have to overcome your mind to complete this for 28 days straight. When you are reading this blog, chance are I just finished my burpees. Last day for me is 6/28/2019.  I hate burpees and to them, that early, especially when traveling was one of the hardest mental things I have ever done. At the end of the day, it took me nearly a year to get to that point I could even consider taking that on.  So it was unfair to think anyone was going to jump on that with me when they had not been with me the entire time. Truth is, no one did it. That means I failed to lead people so they could do it. That is my fault. Time to fix it.  

I am taking Reps of Discipline back to day one.  If you stick to the Reps of Discipline challenge from July, 1st for a year, you will be a completely new human in a year.  I would say I will offer you a 100% money back guarantee for this, but money is no longer involved. No leaderboard. It is about you putting in the work, to become the best version of yourself.   So starting July, 1st, and to be clear you can start this journey and jump in at any time you want. I start on the first of each month and do 28 days straight. My break is the 29th to end of the month.  Right into the next one. We are going to start with your mind. It will be 10 minutes of mindful meditation per day, with one action item you have to take action on every single day for 28 days straight. 

Here is how it will work!  

July Reps of Discipline Challange. 100% for everyone, and possibly the most important step in mastering your journey. Fitness is a tool I use to master my mind. That is why I do things like marathon rows, barbell triathlons, and Half Dome for time, burpees at odd hours. I have overlooked one of the most important aspects of how I figured out my purpose during this past year.

For me, meditation is prayer. But regardless of your personal beliefs, you can still meditate and reflect on your soul, your inner demons, and start to confront the things that are holding you back. That is what July is about. Taking intentional time each day to reflect and work on identifying what is holding you back, then taking a single intentional action each day to move you forward.

Rule of Engagement.

1. Find a silent time each day to reflect for a minimum of 10 minutes, this can be sitting, walking, anything, but must be silent with your own thoughts.
2. Write down one action item you know will move you closer to your goals that you discovered during your 10 minutes.
3. Take action on that one item before bed.

Tips for greater success.

1. Wake up one hour before you normally would. Start your day with intentional focus and win the day. Also, having to wake up earlier will help you prioritize your previous day and make sure you make sleep a priority.
2. Make your action item public either to a friend or social media and tag #repsofdiscipline . If you haven’t noticed I use Instagram to hold myself accountable. But using a friend can do the same thing. Accountability is the key to success.

If you have questions or concerns about this, let me know. I am looking forward to seeing everyone make great progress and personal growth during the month of July. 

Follow me and connect with me on Instagram @Decoach_Derek, email [email protected] or in person anytime you see me bouncing between gyms.  

Let us all starting winning each day by winning our own mind.  Let me know how I can help!