Living a dream and how I learned to FLY a plane.

I have jumped out of a small aircraft strapped to a man upon my back and cycled through the air in a surreal freefall that felt more like I was stuck in a huge wind tunnel rather than rushing to earth at 115 miles an hour for 60 seconds.  It was a rush no doubt. The last thing the pilot said to me before I exited the plane was, “How does it feel to be jumping out of a perfectly good plane?”  That question forced me to agree in mind to the complete lunacy and bravado of the event.  I survived and tell the story.  Would I do it again?  Perhaps after the children are grown.

I enjoyed that experience and understanding that sensation and would never go back and change a thing.  But, it seems anyone CAN jump out of a perfectly good airplane. But not everyone can FLY the plane you jump out of.  I imagined being a pilot to be an elite profession like being a doctor or being a lawyer.  I imagined that if you need X amount of tandem jumps skydiving and an exorbitant amount of cash to invest, surly becoming a pilot would be 10 fold.  Not to mention the knowledge involved in the pursuit.  Are you with me on this?  But my thoughts remained that this would be a much more useful and exciting achievement.  One that I would hope to someday have the opportunity to experience.

Flash forward to about a month ago.  I am wasting time waiting for my child to finish up a ballet lesson and checking out the never-ending ways to spend the money I don’t have on Living Social and there it is.  Flight Lessons regularly $350. Today $150. 45 minutes of instruction and 45 minutes of flight.  OK!!!   Sounds amazing!  Too good to be true!  Oh, and just 2 miles from my doorstep at the Palomar airport!  I hastily buy 2.  I immediately have buyer’s remorse as I paid on a Credit card that I am trying to pay off.  I have been working for years on not being an impulsive buyer.  What’s done is done and I call it a Birthday gift to myself, (my bday is in June and this is January).  I don’t stress out to much about it as I can imagine for $150 it will be more or less a joy ride around North County then a hard sell.  Boy was I surprised!!!

I will begin the story with: It was one of the best days of my life.  I race around on a Sunday getting my kids to a friend’s house for the 3 hours I will need.  I am cutting it close as I pull into the only obvious parking area at the airport, the bar and lounge area and flight school.  No lie.  I consider… I hop out of my car and I am on my way.  I open the only logical door ,that is not the lounge, and enter.  A large kind man greets me by name as if he knows me.   We head up to his office where I have assumed there will be manuals, charts, radio play of the tower, goggles, and the flight log I am supposed to keep.  I am ready to sit down and hit the books for a good 45 minutes of lessonage.  Instead Jason hands me a black leather satchel, grabs another for his self and we proceed to the aircraft.

The plane is a Cessna, 3 seater with a cabin half the size of my Prius.  Think golf cart here.  We throw the bags in the back seat.  The seats and interior are so similar to my 1964 dodge dart with push button transmission it is eerie!  We start the preflight check of the outside of the plane. All looks good to me and I learn quite a bit!  The fuel is blue.  If it were white, that would mean jet fuel and we would blow up in flight after about 6 minutes…. I am assuming it is a rare mistake of the maintenance crew but one worth mentioning?  Jason also informs me that the satchel is a prop to hold my door jimmied open in case we crash.  The bag stuck in the crack of the door will ultimately force the door off the hinges sparing me being crushed or gutted by my own door. Also water is much heavier then fuel. FYI . As we inspect the plane it is clear by the ridiculously bendable and thin aluminum rudder that this plane is super light.  Only weighs about 1200lbs. 

Time to check out our control panel.  I imagined this part would float right over my head.  This would be the part where the nice instructor glosses over the panel, shows me the steering wheel, and big red button. Meanwhile handling all the dirty work himself.   That is NOT at all how this went.  Jason my awesome and stupendous instructor made it clear at that point that I would be taking off, flying, and landing this baby.  I still thought he was joking and working the empowerment angle. But he wasn't!  He made sure I understood the Throttle, the stabilizers, the elevator, and the ailerons and how to control them.  There was also a wheel thingy that had a huge amount of importance.  We went through a systems check as we taxied around. You steer with your feet while the plane is on the ground FYI. We had a very brief delay waiting for the tower to clear us…too brief.  I started to tense up just as we got our go.  As I steered with my feet to the midline of the runway, Jason instructed me to keep my right hand on the throttle and my left on the Steer wheel.  As I pulled the throttle and the plane started to pick up speed, Jason instructed me to pull the steering wheel toward me and in seconds I had taken off the ground and was headed toward the great blue Pacific Ocean.  Holy Shit!  I did it!!! 

My nose was headed up and my speed was pressing forward. I couldn't see anything through the windshield but blue sky. 

For the nest 45 minutes Jason effortlessly and thoughtful taught me how to turn the plane, ascend and descend, deal with winds and make adjustments, make an annoying passenger sick, perform an emergency landing, and most importantly how to relax.  I was able to enjoy the gift of flight in such a basic and pure state that I felt such elation and joy beyond measure.  My breath was lost, my heart was full, and I could not hope for a better miracle than that very moment. 

As we started to head back, I still didn't believe that Jason would allow me to land this vessel. How could he trust me to land this plane?  He had never seen me drive a car or ride a bike.  For god sakes it would take me several session to skydive alone if I had wanted to. What the H? Go for it land my plane and potentially take my life.  His confidence was infectious.  OK, if you say so Jason.  I will give it my best.  As we start to descend in our final approach he keeps barking instructions. Push in the throttle ,stay center, wings down, drop landing gear, slow down, pull up on the steering wheel, PULL UP< PULL UP <PUUULLL UP!!!! And we have landed!   I was beyond myself completely and he taxied us off the center of the runway. Then he immediately gave me instruction to go park the plane.

As he pushed the plane to its parking space I was lost for words as I grabbed the wood chunk that goes behind the tire to secure the plane.  I am finally able to sputter, “You really didn't help me land the plane!  I didn't feel you helping me at all with the steering wheel!!!”  To this Jason the best instructor in the world replied,” You didn't need any help or I would of. Besides, I hate to fly!  Did you think I was going to take you for a nice little joy ride today? You came here to fly a plane and that is exactly what you did.”

Thank you for making my dream come true Jason.  Thank you for teaching me to <FLY>

Biting off just the right amount in Life!

 I am pretty active.  I follow the SEALFIT fitness code for the most part which keeps my fitness very functional and always changing.  Part of that code is CROSSFIT.  I am a level 1 certified coach of almost 2 years with several other personal training and coaching certifications.  I have spent a good amount of time mapping out how to create optimal fitness.  Here is what I do.


My week of fitness lines up like this:
3 days of short ( 30-40 min) high intensity, interval Crossfit WODS (Workouts Of the Day).
2 Days of longer period exercise like surfing for 2 hours, running distance, or doing a 2 hour SEALFIT workout.
2 Days of weight training and skill development. Skill development might be gymnastics, Olympic weight lifting, or fight training... jujitsu, combat, Qi Gong. ( couple this with the High Intensity once a week)
1 Full Day of Rest

 I also sprinkle in playing catch with the kids, handstands on the beach, yoga every morning, dancing, and other fun stuff.



My fitness programming is so great for my purposes.  I don't intend to be competitive at this stage in the game but love to learn new things.

So maybe this is SOOOOO not up your alley of interest.  I wanted to give you a brief outline of what this aspect of my life looks like because I am now learning to PROGRAM in a similar fashion my work, home life, and even education.



Basically I have a series of short, medium, and long workouts.  They are either high intensity, skill, or endurance based.



If I took my parenting moments into this concept for a week , it could look like this :

3 days of:  Morning ( HIGH INTENSITY) moving to get the kids ready for school.  This is getting dressed, breakfast, gathering your things to leave.  You can add in some music or a splash to your breakfast here to keep it lively and enjoyable!
Then a medium length, medium intensity evening with "Skill Development". This might be the time when you help them develop there reading skills, homework, or even artistic skill.  A great opportunity to spend quality time and give them that extra attention they need from you.

2 Days of : Morning ( HIGH INTENSITY) moving to get the kids ready for school.
Then "Endurance" mixed with "Skill" through the extra curricular activities that you get them too and from... dance , soccer, hockey, baseball, piano...etc.
Back home for the cool down of a (MEDIUM INTENSITY) dinner, homework, and bedtime.

2 Days, AKA the weekend, you get your kids for the KIDDY KOKORO ( which is a mix of all time and intensity domains with extra fun thrown in:)  Enjoying trips, sleepovers, good food, family time, movies,pillow fights and relaxation.



Seems like you have all your bases filled  and boxes checked in the "Good Parenting" category operating on this level right?  Well, things happen and it isn't always so peachy but it is a great schedule to strive for.  The intent is to have great, full, loving, and fun moments with manageability.

Repeat for your career/ work environment.

It seems obvious that we would do this and some of us DO schedule and plan to nauseum ! I think the better the plan the EASIER it is to cut the strings and have fun in the moments! Shoot driving my kids is always a GREAT time. We listen to favorite music and talk about the day spent apart from each other... unless someone got in trouble in school. Then it turns into  Lecture- Q-tion time ( as my son calls it). HAAA

Have a great time out there and PLAN to succeed in having great happiness.

Warrior Mother.

Mother Warrior embracing being "The Leader" and "The Support team"!

We are born into this world as THE BOSS.  Our folks must cater to our every little whim.. THEN-
Bam we succeed through some 12 years of being told exactly what to do.  Wash your hands, shut the door, turn down the music, be home in an hour, do your homework.. so on and so on.

Suddenly, we are in puberty and ready to tell the BOSS what's up.  We suddenly feel that we could potentially survive in the wild without our folks so we proceed to drive them to kick us out of there homes. We have become the BOSS again.

This scenario works out to the more or lesser of extremes for most of us.

We move on to college or the professional world where we either become even more of "the boss" in the college environment .Paying rent, scheduling our lives, eating what we want etc.  Or, we take on a low paying entry level job where we are NOT "the boss".  BTW the college route only buys us a few years of being the BOSS before we get slapped across the face with entry level job AND huge student loan payments.

Finally after many years as the proverbial "Beeitch" we start to move up the ladder.. new "Beeitchs" come under you.  You start to feel stable and good. You meet a special someone and figure out WHEN each of you get to be the "BOSS" and the "Beeitch" in the relationship.

We see some many people struggle with the support role. Some are too overbearing as the Leader role.   I see many people enjoy being led, getting  lazy and let others do the dirty work all the time too. 

When I asked those who had gone before me in KOKORO what I should expect, a few people told me, "You will lead and you will follow and you will overcome together".

As I passed through those 5o some hours, I must say,

many times I was more comfortable following.  Let's face it the hot seat can really suck.  So I transfer that to life.

Leading and being the boss is hard and impossible if you don't have a great team.  Following sucks if you always think you should be the leader.  I believe the more you can enjoy both roles and the opportunity both bring, the happier you will live.

I took an amazing parenting class a year ago.  The main focus of the class was to empower your child.  Even when there is little choice in the matter it is always great to let them lead as much as possible.  This will help them grow up not feeling like they HAVE to be in control because they had NO control as a child.

For example:  My daughter Lilli HAS to go to her ballet rehearsal.  My choice for her is what would she like to do after?  Watch a little TV or stop for a Slurpee??? 

I also try and let them choose there own punishments !  They are so funny giving themselves much harsher punishment then I would have chosen .

Maybe you have gotten into a position in your job or relationship where you are stuck in the lead or as the support.  Time to switch it up.  Give the boss a chance to sit back and see what the big picture looks like while you hold the reigns.   Maybe you need to let the much deserving intern take on the big project and support their efforts.  How about your husband,wife, or partner?  Let your partner plan out the weekend .  Let your spouse schedule the kids for the week.

Here are a few of my own simple rules to LEADING and FOLLOWING( Being in the Support role).

 To Be A Great Leader
1. HAVE A PLAN.. and a good one.
2. Make sure it suits as many teamates as possible.. this can be challenging.
3. Stay in charge and don't give up 
4. Be ready to change the plans/course of action... have a plan B.
5.  Always remain calm and positive.

To Be A Great Support
1. Support the Journey and Leader with positivity!
2. Be Grateful!
3.  Be Ready to take the lead at your leaders request.
4. Enjoy the ride using this time to formulate your plans for when it's your time to lead.
4. Trust your leader has your best intentions.


Remember, it takes a great deal of stress to lead all the time and be in charge.  You are always responsible for the outcome of EVERYTHING> everyone needs the opportunity to sit back and smell the flowers and experience trust in another judgement.
Also Remember how easy it is to follow all the time, no stress, no responsibility but you are also dependant on another all the time.. can be scary.

Go on out there and appreciate your leaders and your team. 

Mother Warrior

Mommified Warrior in ROCK TAPE Class!!

So maybe you've had some success with the fore site planning in the Mornings?  It takes practice!!! THEN you can't oversleep or you  will lose all the benefits  by rushing around to just wash up and eat breakfast.  I've made that mistake before.  Ultimately, I am bringing you to the next step... 6-10 minutes of morning stretching!!  Below you will see a video that will "Encourage " you to move that Sh@# around in the morning.

This past weekend thanks to my amazing boss and job , I had the opportunity to take a Fascia Movement Taping, (or kinesiology taping) , certification with ROCK TAPE.  If you know anything about this technique you are definitely thinking, "it's all in your head".  Well Yes, Yes it is all in your head, and on your arms, legs, torso, feet , hands and over your whole body!!!  The taping has a wide berth of use from pain management, scar repair, posture correction, and physical performance enhancement to name a few.  Right?!!  Who knew?  My favorite part was a video my instructor Ed played on our Inner Fuzz.  It seems as we sleep at night we  grow a sort of fibrous fuzz that makes you stiff in the morning.  If you don't move it around .. move yourself around .. get some exercise ... you will become more and more stiff and the fuzz will win and make you a slow stiff turtle person.

Watch this video and see what I mean about the fuss.. I think it is like muscle mold!!!!

http://youtu.be/BdRqLrCF_Ys

Is he great or what?

Go jog, run, walk, rehab your hurt spots, take care of your body!!!

If you have a good fitness level, triple the below.  If you have a lot of "Fuzz" modify all movements , find examples on Youtube and be gentle.


5 rounds of :

10 push ups
10 sit ups
10 squats
10 super man's
10 lunges each side

You can do this during your favorite show after the kids are in bed.

Go out there and make yourself proud.

Mother Warrior

OUT THE DOOR WARRIOR

A HUGE Thank You to Everyone Who Visited my first Post!!  I hope to not let you down with motivational and helpful incite.

As we embark on the second half of the school year for many of us parents, the dreaded alarm and mad rush out the door looms but hours away.  For those without children to chauffeur , I know you are in the same boat with the Holidays over getting  back to work on a NORMAL schedule again.

Time to Prepare tonight.  I know it sounds simple and it is...

1. Make the lunches and make them somewhat healthy.. I know how kids are

2. Plan your own lunch, how about some leftover ham and an orange?

3. Get your clothes laid out for you and your kids.. it only takes a few minutes as opposed to rushing around in the dark and cold of morning trying to find the pair of socks that must be worn with those pants ultimately to find them in the dirty clothes.  You could lose 10 minutes here!!!

4.  Get your bag packed.  Throw your workout clothes in a bag, your new ipad, your water bottle, all those things you spend 10 minutes gathering for yourself EVERY am.  Ask your kids to do the same for themselves.

5.  Lastly, and this is important!  Prep your coffee maker so when you wake up you can stumble to the kitchen, press a button, and make breakfast for yourself or kids while that hot pot of instant energy brews baby~!!!!

Guess what?  You now have an extra 10-20 minutes to stretch your muscles, catch the weather report, have breakfast with the kids. 

I promise this will cut down on a ton of stress, arguments, and avoid starting your day off the completely wrong way.  YES your kids can like you in the morning.

So what if your morning were to actually become boring, predictable, and peaceful before you even got out the door? I say perfect. I will catch up on drama in the drop off line and freeway no doubt!

Get some exercise today or you will become seditary with health complications and have a 40% higher chance of dying in 6 years( if you are 50-80)

BTW.. I do not know these children but they must have a great mom!!

.

MotherWarrior

“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
― Viktor E. Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

A Mother Warrior Training with Navy SEALS.

Bear with me while I navigate the realms of blogging.  I enjoy a good blog as well as the next modern person but frankly never thought I would embark on this sort of narrative.  I am here doing this in respect to the many folks I have written to over the last several years as a Crossfit Coach, SEALFIT intern, Mother, and Enthusiast of forging an outstanding life.  I am a single mother in Southern California who receives very little help from my children's father.  I also lack family nearby to assist me, but please don't pity me.  I am here to tell you how I am living to the highest, happiest level possible.  I do not deserve congratulations or expect accolades for performing the duties I set before myself either. To pity a mother is to pity a billionaire in my opinion.  I simply want to help any mom or dad out there with some of the techniques I have discovered , practiced, and have found highly successful .

So why blog now?  In August 2013, I became the 11th woman in the World to graduate through KOKORO 29, SEALFIT's civilian simulation of the Navy SEALS Hellweek.  If you plan to see "Lone Survivor", you will see an opening sequence that is actual Navy footage of the real Hellweek .  My experiance completely changed my life, completed a deep life affirming awareness that has left me full of a KOKORO spirit  that I want to share with anyone who wants to listen. I wish to

help anyone who needs direction, wants to better themselves on a deeper level, and craves to get in touch with their inner WARRIOR!
My, beyond amazing, boss SEAL Commander Mark Divine, had one of his books published this week.  WAY OF THE SEAL.  He asked me to contribute a section of my daily scheduling to his publication.  His book is number 5 on the Wall Street Journals today.  He has taught me so much and is my main source of inspiration for writing this blog. 

My next several Blogs will not be of this nature but more instructional on what to eat , things to focus on, ways to save time, and mostly take care of yourself and family.

I hope you enjoy.