Be a Champion

As I mentioned yesterday, Terry and I had the distinct privilege and honor of meeting UCLA's new head football coach, Jim Mora, last night. As ridiculously dedicated Bruin fans, we love our team no matter what, but it's been a rough few years. So when we also got to hear Coach Mora speak about how he is going to transform our players into champions. He even brought a PowerPoint presentation. This stuff was serious.

But as Coach Mora spoke, I realized that becoming a champion in football is very similar to becoming a champion in any aspect of life, particularly healthy living (oh, come on, you knew I was going to tie it in somehow). One part that really stood out to me was the idea of being a champion all the time. He said (I wish I had taken notes, but it was a dinner thing so it would have been super awkward) something like, "To be a champion you need to act like a champion during the game, after the game, and after that."

YES!

You can't just want it ("it" hereafter shall refer to whatever goal you are trying to achieve, whether it be lose weight, stay healthy, eat better, run a marathon, fit in your skinny jeans, walk a mile, you get the idea) sometimes. You have to want it all the time. Every day, yes, but every hour and every minute, too. You have to breathe it. It has to become your focus. That's what champions do.

Champions don't just think about football at practice and games. They find ways to practice more at home, or to eat the best foods for their bodies, or to study the plays... (maybe I should have asked Terry for some help on the football metaphors). The point is, a champion gives 110% on the field (gym, kitchen, whatever) and everywhere else. Another blogger, Fit Food Junkie, brought up a great point yesterday about how we can't complete a crazy workout and then order a pizza. We need to eat, breathe, sleep, work out, live like champions!

Now, that's not to say that the occasional splurge isn't exactly what a champion needs wants. Tonight, after a great day at work and staying to help with our school's track meet, I sat in traffic and dealt with crazy LA drivers that made me want to cry. What did we do? Threw on our running shoes like champions! And ran four miles in the cold (54 degrees is cold after 8 years of living in LA). And then, going against everything I just said, we ran our little booties all the way to Barney's Gourmet Hamburgers, a delicious burger joint in Brentwood.

Post-run cutie

Beer.

Sweet potato fries - fresh and hot and delicious.

Looking so sweaty and excited about my bacon burger.

Terry's VooDoo burger.

But we are excited to be champions in the future, and I would say that I consciously try to think and act like a champion when it comes to my health. Of course, nights like tonight show me that there is always room for improvement!

Are you a huge fan of a sports team? Where do your loyalties lie? 
We're Bruins through and through, but I also root for the San Francisco Giants and 49ers. I won't mention my husband's baseball team here, and I know that will make my brother and future sister-in-law proud.