It's okay if it's hard

I love wrestling.  A lot.  I love coaching and seeing things progress through a training plan.  I'm an extrovert and love being around people.  Especially people that I like and are interested in the same things that I am.  I also love a good challenge and working hard (although, that looks different at this age).  I enjoy creating things and building programs for athletes that work out in the end.  I love the process over the outcome, but I still really love winning.

But, sometimes it's hard to go to practice, even though I love it.  Sometimes, I need a break or some space, and that's okay.

If you've been following us this month, you're aware that we've started a challenge for our athletes to "Journal the Journey" and write in their notebook/journal every day.  I told them I'd lead by example and post my journal online daily.  I really love writing and sharing my options, but sometimes that's hard, too.  Or I just don't have the time for it.

Take a peak at Precious Wieser's online journal as she shares a few of the ideas above in an eloquent way.  She's writing a short series this week as part of her "Journal the Journey" experience.

It's okay if it's hard because often times, it's supposed to be.  Practice should be hard.  Breaking out of our shell should be hard.  Pursuing excellence is hard.  Wrestling, by nature should be hard.  It's great fun and brings me a lot of joy, but sometimes precisely because it's hard.

The reason I'm writing this is because tonight at practice one of our athletes shared that it's actually okay to grit your teeth and plow through the hard times, or the times you don't want to be at practice, or the times you're not having fun because that's just how it goes.  We love what we're doing, but sometimes we have a bad day or bad practice or practice is harder than we anticipated.  It was nice to hear from an athlete.

Following a plan and routine is worthwhile even if we have to embrace some suck along the way.  Showing up and pushing (or dragging) through is as important as showing up with excitement and vigor and dominating.

I had an athlete on the cusp of doing something no one had ever done in our sport at the highest level possible.  She committed to the program and dedicated her entire being to the process.  It was hard and pushed her to a breaking point.  She wanted to flat out quit and she asked me if I'd still accept her (the answer was yes).  She needed to disappear for a moment and collect her thoughts.  Then she spoke to another athlete who had done things that had never been done in her sport and she said if you never get to the point that you want out, want to quit, aren't enjoying things, then you're not giving everything you can to the goal.

That has stuck with me and shifted my perspective on everything, especially elite sports.  There's no judgement when you give everything you have to a single endeavor and get overwhelmed and want out.  If you don't get to that point, you're not giving everything you can.  It would mean there's more to give and a deeper commitment out there.  It's okay if it's hard.

We need people around us who recognize the difference between giving up/quitting when there's much more in the tank and the person who wants out because they've given everything.  Those are significantly different things.  Great coaches and teammates, friends and spouses, and others can step in and help us keep things in perspective.

It's okay if it's hard.

Book Recommendations for Summer Leaders

We built individual training plans this summer for a handful of athletes that included everything from nutrition, strength training, mental skills work, daily habits, etc. to wrestling.  Some of them are pretty in depth while others are fairly surface level.  Most of them include reading a book over the summer.

Schedules are jam packed, especially for most high achievers, so carving out time for important routines and staying committed and consistent over time is how you develop new habits.  Reading doesn't seem to be on the minds of many of the athletes we work with.

I've been able to have a few good conversations with kids about choosing the right kind of book.  Some of the heavy hitters that seem like good options are just too much for most high school kids.  For example, there are a lot of former Navy SEALS with books that are complete game changers, but a young high school wrestler might not be ready for them.  There are some very basic daily routine books out there that are essential to building a base, but some kids might need something that is higher stakes.  

So, considering this, I put together a small list of recommendations with these wrestlers in mind.  I left some obvious ones off the list while including some that are on the list every summer and most of our athletes have read in the past.

If you have any recommendations, please let us know.

Little Warriors Camp - Day 1

 Our first youth wrestling opportunity of the year was today.  We had a decent turnout and drank a lot of water throughout the day.  I like a hot and humid wrestling room, even for our little kids.

We spent some quality time on double leg attack variations plus different set-ups and finishes.  We did some live wrestling, fun combat games, and took a nice walk outside in the sprinkling rain.

I'm sure we'll have some sore and tired kids tomorrow for day 2.  We'll follow-up the Little Warriors Camp tomorrow with our first Summer School class on Wednesday then straight into an our Girl's Basic Skills Camp.  It'll be a full week.

Count Your Blessings

I've had a few topics in my mind that are ready to post on this blog, but I'm taking the moment to "count my blessings."

I was on my way to practice today after dropping my youngest off at church as he heads to camp for a week when one of our athletes called.  It was only 35 minutes from the start of practice, so I answered right away expecting it to be about practice attendance.  On the other end, he let me know he wasn't going to make it to practice because he was in an accident.  I asked if he was okay and he said he was in the ambulance on his way to the hospital.  Long story short, his car is done, but he went home soon after the accident and is sore with a minor injury and some bumps and bruises.

We texted a bit later tonight and he's beat up, but overall healthy.  We agreed it was a bit worse than a 60-minutes live go with me.  I told him to count his blessings!  Scary moments like that give us immediate pause to take inventory of things we're grateful for.

So, that's what I'm doing the rest of the evening.  Obviously, a lot of gratitude for his health (and simply being alive).  The pictures of the wreck look awful.

Take a few moments right now to account some things you're grateful for.

State Track 2026

Wow, it was a great weekend as a family as we were able to spend a night camping in LaCrosse and attending the WIAA State Track & Field Championships.  There were some incredible individual and team performances, especially some incredible female runners from Northwest Wisconsin.  

I sent a congratulation message to the father of my vote for the top performance of the meet.  He replied and said that we "saw a lot of hard work and dedication cross that finish line."  That's spot on coming from someone who saw the behind-the-scenes footage that led to a blazing fast highlight reel.  It's the same recipe across all of sports.

What struck me in that Division 2 Girls 100 Meter Hurdles race is, to me, it looked like it was a nearly perfect race.  It was her fourth consecutive title in the event and she set a state record.  Those are incredible feats, however, what I saw was competing at the highest levels like is more about mastery of a craft, flawless execution, hard work, and dedication than it is about the medal or record.  It's process over outcome.

I've only been to a handful of state track meets and I'm stats junky and history buff, so I saw quite a few athletes in the stands who are now in their 20's, 30's, and 40's who had won multiple state titles and set state records.  Truth be told, I sat right next to my wife and she collected 16 titles in track and cross country, including team golds, several years ago.  All of the medals are exciting, but the ones who get the most of them are concerned about them the least.

The pursuit of excellence is more about owning a performance than it is about winning a race.  And fortunately, when you have the recipe and put together all of the pieces to own the performance, you end up winning, too.

Summer Camp Season

 We finished our first camp of the summer this morning.  Our Women’s Senior Mini Camp had nearly 20 females from the area in an intense setting.  We combined top high school wrestlers, college girls and women’s national team members over 5 days.  They started our “Journal the Journey” summer challenge.

Next week we have a few more exciting camps covering all ages.  On Monday and Tuesday, we host our first Little Warriors Camp for wrestlers ages 9-13.  Wednesday is our first Summer School day and on Thursday and Friday we’ll have our annual Girls Basic Skills Camp.

These camps coincide with the beginning of our summer training programs.  We have two options for middle school and high school boys (combined practices).  They’ll go on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.  The first practice is Folkstyle and the second is a detailed freestyle practice for our elite/Fargo going wrestlers.  We also start the girls summer training program.  They will practice on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Needless to say, we hit the ground running this week and we’re excited and optimistic about this summer.  We had a great group of parents help prepare the room for the summer swell.  We replaced ceiling tiles, fixed the floor under the mats and tidied up the place.

Thank you to those who gave several hours of their free time to help make this summer memorable.  We appreciate everyone’s support and pursuit of excellence. 

Podcasts for Summer 2026

Going into the summer, one thing I'm trying to challenge some of our athletes to do is listen to some podcasts.  There are so many "easy" ways to level up.  Working hard matters, but so does working easy.  Listening to experts in their field, those with inspiring and motivational stories, and just learning how to ask good questions and be curious can have a positive impact on the wrestling journey.  Learning how to learn and thinking how to think are skills that seem to be shrinking within each age group.

So, here is a list of podcasts that I've incorporated into my down time, sauna sessions, lawn mowing, long drives, etc.:

• The Morning Mindset: Christian Daily Devotional (by Carey Green)
• 5 Good News Stories (Caloroga Shark Media)
• History Daily (by Lindsay Graham with Noiser)
• The Shawn Ryan Show
• The Curiosity Shop with Brene Brown and Adam Grant
• Passion City Church Podcast (sermons)
• History That Doesn't Suck (with Professor Greg Jackson)
• Climbing Gold with Alex Honnold
• 99% Invisible (host Roman Mars)
• The Running Effect (with Dominic Schlueter)

These are the 10 most recent podcasts that I've listened to.  There are so many more that weren't listed that are regulars for me, including Motivation Daily by Motiversity and all of the wrestling podcasts out there.  I also subscribe to a handful of churches and stay current with their sermon releases.  I'm a history fan so have a few of those, too.  Oddly, I don't listen to regular sports programs, even though I was an avid listener to some sports talk radio shows when I was in college.  I still get plenty of sports information.  I like the crime series podcasts, but I've found the entertainment shows aren't the best use of my listening time.

Among my demographic (I'm 46 years old), there has been a rise in interest in long form podcasts because they provide time and space for meaningful conversations, however, I worry that a 3-hour conversation might be difficult for teenagers to jump into, so some short ones like TED Talks Daily or Motivation Daily are a good places to start.

Do you have any go-to podcasts you'd like to recommend to our athletes this summer?  What platform do you find it best to listen on?  When do you find time to listen?