Five for Friday: Vol IV

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Athlete Training Centre, AUS sports, canadian election, canadian politics, competing, cycling, dalhousie tigers, diet, exercise, family, training, weight loss, working out

The calendar says it’s Friday so . . . time for Five for Friday.

It was a particularly Canadian experience heading to the gym this morning. The outside temperature may have said 6C, but I think the wind chill was probably -35. Give or take. I can take the spin room and the suicide runs and the hateful pushups and pullups … but the darkness and cold at 530a really does me in. Being the clever sort, I’ve determined that part of the issue for me is wearing shorts out to the car at that hour. The sensation of November wind whistling up the Under Armour may not inspire a folk song from Gordon Lightfoot, but it’s hard to imagine a more visceral Canadian moment.

Where I sweat: The ATC

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ATC, Athlete Training Centre, AUS Hockey, AUS sports, competing, cycling, teamwork, training, working out

With an assist from my wife and one of my best friends, the Athlete Training Centre probably changed my life. For sure it changed the way I live my life, so. Close enough. This is a true story and if you’ve been thinking about fitness you might want to read it.

This is a long read. Get a coffee. I’ll wait.

I mentioned a few days ago ATC — where I work out — is having an open house later this month (Nov 28, 1p to 5p and more info here). If you live in the west GTA, it might make sense for you to check it out.

The Athlete Training Centre is a gym, not a health club. High-end athletes from numerous sports train here with the goal of maximizing their fitness. Created to service elite pro, national-level amateur and college athletes, ATC now also offers a program for ordinary adults who aren’t elite but want to be fitter.

Sometimes the worlds collide and I’ll find myself sweating on the turf doing sprinter situps next to a member of the Canadian world champion field lacrosse team across from a working mom of three. He thinks nothing of it. And neither do I.

Welcome to ATC.

A reassuring voice will be missed

Tags

AUS Hockey, AUS sports, Bill McLean, dalhousie tigers, hockey

When you first start a family, it is inevitable that someone is going to tell you to enjoy every minute because the years pass in a blink of an eye, or some other cliché. And it’s almost true.

Two decades is 20 years whether you’re sitting on a desert island or enjoying watching your family blossom. Beyond the feeding, clothing, and care, parenting is about making sure your kids are loved and equipped with the skills to go out confidently into the world on their own.

And when that day comes, you hope that the people they meet will look out for them. We are all battle-hardened veterans of parenting wars, and we all regard our kids as fragile cargo.

We have been fairly lucky. Our boys had the luxury and privilege of living in a comfortable, safe, home in a nice town in a great country. They made solid friendships. They got educated. They played sports, learned the value of teamwork and joined social groups. They learned right from wrong. They are confident, smart, fit, handsome and *just* worldly enough.