Who do you believe in...?

We're told by most coaches that, sports are metaphors for life.  Every lesson you learn in sports can be translated into the adult world. 

I believe this to be true, but my issue is why then are parents encouraging their kids to aspire to be someone else?

When we see someone imitating another individual, our comments tend to be anything less than reassuring. 

If this is the case, why would you encourage your kids to look up to someone else when they can be taught at an early age (and its a great life lesson) that eventually, at some point, they will only have themselves to lean on.

Any sport I played, I KNEW that my favorite player wasn't able to help me...at all!  In all honesty my favorite player could have been a dirtbag.

Stop enabling your athlete and start building them up to be self reliant and efficient...

Seriously, think about that.

Top 5 Reasons Why You Don't Play

1. You don't want it
2. You don't put in "enough" work
3. You talk too much
4. You don't believe in yourself
5. Your content where you're at

If you wanted it, you'd take it.

How much is enough? Only YOU can a answer that.

Shut up and play.

If you don't believe in yourself, why would your Coach?

Misery loves company. The bench is FULL of miserable people.

Scientist have found the gates of Hell...

Apparently, this link will take you to the article ---> http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2302755/Gate-Hell-Turkey-Hierapolis-temple-doorway-matches-mythical-portal-underworld.html



I can't help but call BS on this. I've been through the gates of hell and came out smelling like roses.

Actually, many of us have been through those gates and it looked NOTHING like the article's picture...

It actually looks like this

How much do you need...?

What is H.E.A.R.T? I define it as Having Enough Attitude Resilience & Toughness. Seems pretty straight forward. But the most important part of this definition is the "Enough" part.

What's enough for me may not be enough for you and vice versa. We all need to evaluate ourselves correctly and realize just what is enough for us.

Don't worry about anyone else, worry about you. Get through your day, game, practice, work schedule, homework, etc.

Be the best you can be. You do this by continuously moving forward and playing with H.E.A.R.T!

While you where relaxing...

There is somebody out there working their ass off to take your spot, or keep theirs.

Whether they're getting up 10 minutes earlier to start their day, getting in an extra rep, shooting another free throw, running another gasser, watching more game film...doesn't matter. Somebody out there is working harder than YOU at this moment RIGHT NOW!

My question to you is, "what are you going to do about this"?

Lazy but Talented...

If you look at this shirt...I mean REALLY look at this shirt, it should piss you off.  It does for me.  I look at this shirt and it makes me sick to my stomach.

There are several reasons why this shirt bothers me, and I'm going to try and explain...

1. "Lazy but Talented"...what is the moral behind this phrase?  What/where is the motivation?  You're talented, ok, there are a ton of people with talent.  But you have the audacity to tell me that you're lazy as well?  Stupid...plain stupid.

2. I WAS the lazy but talented kid.  I look back at the talent that I wasted not working as hard as I should have been.  My college career was cut short because I was too lazy to go to class.  I look at this shirt and NIKE wants kids to think that it's cool to half-ass things...?  Stupid...

3. While you think it's cool to coast and not work hard, there is some kid out there (with probably less talent than you and a much bigger H.E.A.R.T) working his/her ass off to make you look like the lazy bastard you were all off-season.

4. This shirt was made for a professional football player.  What a great item to make for the youth to want to wear and emulate.  Do you really want your kid looking up to a Pro who endorses this type of sentiment?  Is this what you want your kid to strive for?

5. This shirt should now piss you off.

What does it take to complete a triathlon...

Well physically, I don't KNOW what it entails, I mean, I KNOW, but I've never had to do it myself.  I know (from watching and participating in its events individually on a recreational basis, but I digress...) from watching them on television and watching my good friend Chad B. Davis in real time complete one.  I know it is physically and mentally demanding and the only way to get through is to not give up.

Not giving up isn't necessarily a mental thing, but in my opinion more of a H.E.A.R.T thing.  Having enough attitude, resilience and toughness.  I've know Chad for over four years now and if anyone embraces these terms it's him...

I actually just got off the phone with him a couple of hours ago and he reminded me that he's participating in another Tri in Kansas City this weekend.  And that brought back a flood of memories of when he worked his tail off training for his very first one.

Chad is a great cyclist, awesome runner and was a decent swimmer (after the first Tri, he trained harder to bring his swim up).  With those components you would think that a Tri would be a piece of cake.  Well, you have to also realize that you are not only competing with others and the clock...you're also competing against yourself as well.

Prior to Chad's first Tri, he actually broke one of his toes...reread that...He BROKE one of his toes!  Do you know how painful it is to break a bone which the doctors can do absolutely NOTHING for you?  "Wrap it up, here's some Tylenol...".  Gee, thanks.  Well if you think a broken digit was going to stop him, you don't know how big his H.E.A.R.T is!

He continuously trained around his injury by devoting more time to his swim and cycling, while decreasing his time on his feet running.  He ate better, hydrated as best as he could and stayed the course of his training, all while working a full-time job which in my opinion is way more than full-time!

All of his hard work culminated in his participation and completion of his first Tri in Havre de Grace, MD.  I was really proud of him because I knew how hard he had to work to get to where he was at.  He overcame his swim, a broken toe and the terrible...terrible, Maryland humidity!  Below are some of the pictures from his first Tri and I look forward to seeing new pictures from his Tri this weekend in KC.  Go get'm Chad!  Show those three events just how big your H.E.A.R.T is!!!



H.E.A.R.T Athletics is all about YOU....

When I came up with the acronym of H.E.A.R.T, is was an attempt to capture the essence of what I thought was important when it came down to the most basic components of sports.

H-ave
E-nough
A-ttitude
R-esilience
T-oughness

This not only sounded good to me, but it completely made sense.  When we watch watch any sporting event (even if we're too old to play and work in corporate America...) we see individuals who in a sense make us sick.  I'm NOT passing judgement, but we notice individuals who don't necessarily exude the same values we (me and you) have in life as in sports.

We see it every day (during a game or at work).  The player who reluctantly lays down a crappy bunt, refuses to take on a pulling guard, doesn't want to dive on the hardwood or chooses to leave the office early while the rest of the office works overtime to get ish done.

I knew since 2007 that I wanted to start my own business H.E.A.R.T Athletics LLC to cater to those that possessed the same values that I have.  My company is about providing products to individuals who think (or want to) like I do and are tired of the same "cookie cutter" B.S. that is feed to them by BIG BUSINESS.

H.E.A.R.T Athletics LLC is about YOU and how you feel about sports and life.  If you are tired of feeling under appreciated, unwanted and undervalued, you have to stop by the website and take a look around.

We provide clothing and products that put you at the focal point.  Our H.E.A.R.T Athletics LLC Player Card makes your athlete feel like a Superstar with their very on shirt. 

On the front you have your very own picture, with a custom card design and on the back is everything about you to wear around town to show off YOUR accomplishments.  That's what we're about...YOU.

So stop by the FACEBOOK PAGE (and like us!) and follow us on TWITTER.  At the very least post this blog on your Facebook page and spread the word. 

Thank you!  My company would be NOTHING without you guys.

Douglas vs. Hug Varsity Boys Hoops

January 13, 2012

Tonight's game was a good one.  And the funny thing is, I wasn't even going to go to it.  I was going to go the the Wooster game instead for a couple of reasons:
1. It's closer (can't front, sometimes I'm lazy)
2. I've already seen Douglas and Hug play
3.It's closer
moving on....
So being that this was my second trip to Hug High School in about a week, I was privy to their pre-game, pre-warmup routine.  You can watch it here ----->CLICK ME AND WATCH.  If you have never been to Hug, this can be kind of intimidating, and it gets the crowd going.  *BLOGGER NOTE* If you are the visiting team, you always want to get the crowd out of the game, it then basically turns into a neutral court instead an away game...The game started off great for Hug.  Sam Williams owned the paint and Douglas had a hard time defending the 3 point line

The "battle" that I thought would happen between Williams and Meyers never happened.  Meyers never had enough touches to make that happen.  Also Hug went up 19-4 at the end of the 1st quarter.

The funny this is, most teams being down by that many, on the road, would probably start to mail it in.  Douglas kept on fighting to get back in it.  I know, I know, everybody goes on a run in hoops.  True...but how many teams come back against the number 1 ranked team in the area (on the road) to make it a game again?

You had guys driving and kicking out to open shooters....

You had guys turning turnovers into fast break points...

But in the end, the thing that really killed Douglas's chance of winning the huge lead they gave up in the first quarter.  Trying to come back from 15 down on the road is tough.  I can't front on'm though, those boys played their H.E.A.R.T's out, but there is only so much you can do in any situation.  And that's not to take anything away from Hug.  Hug was hot, I mean Hades hot in the 1st quarter!  Both teams played hard and as a former competitor, that's all you really can ask for.  With that being said, below are a few points from the game that are just my opinion.

Point 1

If you are playing a hotly contested game and the score is close, DO NOT give up an alley-oop fast break dunk.  It's not a good look and the crowd will go nuts...

Point 2

Number 10 for Douglas was doing work and getting buckets...we should probably give him the ball more.  He's a bigger guy, running the breaks, grabbing boards and defending a dude at least 6 inches taller than he is.  Throw him a bone and hope he gets to the freebie line.

Point 3

My man Nate can score...so Nate...SCORE.  Don't wait 'till the end of the game to go get buckets...

Point 4

Sometimes you're the hammer...and sometimes you're the nail.  If the Big Man is on, and tonight he was (in the paint defensively) there is NOTHING wrong with settling for a jumper...just saying.

All in all, I'm glad that Nate convinced me to come to this game.  A simple box score would have done this game absolutely NO justice.  This was one you had to see yourself.  Douglas came back from a 15 point deficit to tie the score in the 4th quarter, only to claim defeat in the end.  But it's not the end of the world.  They can take it as a learning experience, while Hug can take from it that they can't let off the gas pedal when they're hot.  But I'm glad I was there to see it for myself.  Both teams played hard and played with H.E.A.R.T.

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Hug vs. Reno Varsity Wrestling

January 11, 2012

In the sports hierarchy, wrestling doesn't get a lot of love.  If you ask most people, it ranks behind Football, Hoops, Baseball and in some parts of the States, Soccer.  But if you have ever been to a wrestling match, you can tell that wrestler's could care less if there's a full house, just parents or absolutely nobody watching.  I went to go watch Hug High wrestle against Reno High tonight at Reno High School.  I came away impressed by how hard the kids wrestled, the intensity of every match and the sportsmanship between both teams.  I didn't have a roster of either team, but Adrian Rodriguez (Hug High Wrestler) was cool enough to talk to me afterwards.  And after talking to him, these are just my thoughts on the nights matches.

These first two pictures are from the very first match I saw.  The Hug wrestler (in Green) was aggressive as was the Reno wrestler.  The Hug wrestler kind of faded in the third period while the Reno wrestler still had a high motor going.  Some kids would quit, get frustrated and do something reckless if they thought they were going to lose.  The Hug wrestler just kept on fighting.  I could tell he was gassed, but he continued to wrestle his ass off.  He lost the match, but he went down fighting.  Can't be mad at that....kid definitely has H.E.A.R.T.

The very next match was Adrian Rodriguezs' (Hug wrestler).  This kid has a very high motor and controlled his match from start to finish.  He was aggressive, kept moving and was in control in every situation.  Since this was my first wrestling meet I've ever been to, I found myself watching more than taking pictures, but he was a very technical wrestler who knew what he was doing.  He won his match.

The match that really sticks out in my mind is this one (the four pictures that you see preceding this paragraph).  It was hard fought on both sides.  The Hug wrestler was doing work and the Reno wrestler was too.  The thing that really stood out in my eyes was the Reno wrestler had head gear that kept slipping down over his face, restricting his vision.  At no time during the match did he try to stop or complain the refs about it though, he just kept trooping on like nothing happened!  I mean the kid was straight up G!!!!  You can even see in the last picture that he's about to get pinned with eyes covered.  Not ONCE did he say a word (and I would know, I was only 10-15 ft away when this was going down).

Both of the teams tonight (Hug High and Reno High) wrestled their asses off and did so with a ton of H.E.A.R.T.  Regardless of the outcome, both teams wrestled clean and with respect to their opponents.  I was highly impressed how they conducted themselves and hyped each other up before each match.  These kids weren't wrestling for the people in the stands, they were wrestling out of love for the sport and for each other.

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Douglas vs. Reed Varsity Boys Hoops

January 6th, 2012, I went to a High School Boys Varsity Basketball game in Sparks, NV.  Being from New Jersey/Maryland, I have no background in Nevada High School hoops.  I don't know who's good, who sucks and who is just having a good/great/crappy year.  I am COMPLETELY out of the loop.

This is where my man Nate Vonahsen, makes his very first appearance.  As I try to spread the word about H.E.A.R.T Athletics (the company that I own and run), my goal is to contact student athletes that I feel embody the characteristics of the values that are dear to me and my company.  Being that H.E.A.R.T Athletics is still a "start up" company, we are happy to provide FREE products to the public representing our gear.  This is one of the reasons why I attend the Douglas vs. Reed game, to give Nate his shirts and to see what Nevada hoops is all about..

So I show up to the Varsity Boys game on Friday not knowing what to expect.  All I know is that after the first quarter of play, the visiting team (Nate's team Douglas) is down 21-8.  And to put it nicely, this was not an easy 13 point deficit to overcome.  Reed H.S. had not only hit a variety of 3 pointers, but they were harassing the hell out of the ball and putting on a 3/4 press as well.  In all honesty, it DID NOT look good for the Douglas Tigers.

This is why I'm not a Basketball coach
                                                        End of the 2nd Q
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Beginning of the 4th....

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                                                                                 \/

And by the end of the game.....
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                                                                           \/

                                                                           

The point of the story is this, no matter what your "history" says about you, you are able to change it in one day.  It's all about your attitude.  I still do not have a definitive idea on who Douglas and Reed are when it comes to hoops, but I know that Douglas will NOT give up no matter what.  This may be an outlier, but it could also be who they ARE.  All I know is that I can only go by what I see.  The Douglas Tigers took the Reed Raiders best shot, and still came back for more.  Although Douglas didn't give up, neither did Reed.  Both teams played their H.E.A.R.T's out and I couldn't be more proud of the effort put out by both teams.

Nothing is Impossible

When I was just starting out in sports, I would always doubt myself because I wasn't the biggest or fastest kid on any of my teams.  It never occurred to me that there were other players on other teams that had my same situation.  It wasn't until around 7th or 8th grade that I realized that life and sports are what they are.  Which is sometimes not fair.  But really, what is fair?  Is fair everyone being equal?  If that's the case then there will never be any winners or losers.  Even if a sporting event ends in a tie, there is a team that lost (the team that should have won) and a team that won (they should have lost...and the tie is virtually a win).

It was only when I noticed other players that had my same height and weight limitations that nothing was impossible.  If they could do it, I could do.  And you know what...I could probably do it better.  Most people think that a player that plays with H.E.A.R.T is a player of lesser skill or talent.  This isn't necessarily the case.  H.E.A.R.T is something that is deep inside of you that compels you to play your cheeks off all game long, no matter the outcome or who your opponent is.  Below are a few of the players that helped me (even though they don't know it) find faith in myself as an athlete and showed me week in and week out what playing with H.E.A.R.T truly means.

Mark McMillian played Corner for the Eagles AND Crimson Tide...needless to say, I not only followed his career, but he was a huge inspiration as well.  He wasn't the biggest guy in the world.  But he played his butt off and never let his limitations define who he was.

Mario Bailey played for UW.  Now as a DB, I'm not too fond of WR's but Super Mario was different.  He went hard EVERY play.  His Senior year at Washington, in my opinion played better than Desmond Howard (who won the Heisman).  Not only did he put up ridiculous numbers (over 1000 yards receiving) but in the Rose Bowl when they trounced the Wolverines (Desmond's team)...he scored a TD and did the Heisman pose...awesome.

David Palmer was the first "small" athlete that I watched that let me know anything was possible on the football field (which is why I'm a Bama fan to this day).  He played QB/WR/RB and returned kicks.  He was literally EVERYWHERE on the field.  He made plays and there was no doubt the opposing teams were scared of his skills.

Last but not least...Rohan Marley.  Five foot nothing and full of piss and vinegar.  He started at Miami in the 90's (which speaks volumes) and he did so on a team full of four and five star recruits.  All I have to say about him is "google his ass".  Watch the videos and then make up your own mind.

These are just four of the many athletes that inspired me and let me know that ANYTHING is possible.



There is NO such thing as an Off-Season

Too many people dislike Monday.  Why?  What did Monday do to you?  If you think about it, it's not what Monday did to you...it's what you did to yourself over the "weekend".  I'm sorry to point this out to you, but the weekend is nothing more than a marketing tool to not only let your guard down, but for you to spend money and do other activities which are called "relaxing".  I can't lie, I used to fall into that weekend mode, but working for myself and running my own company, the weekend is just two regular days in my book.  The same can be said in the sports/competition world. 

In any type of sport that is done competitively, there is a season where you compete against others (or yourself) and there is a time a year called the "Off-Season".  The off-season is allegedly the time of year when your rest and recuperate to get ready for the next season.  Just like the weekend, if you let your guard down too much (or at all) it's harder for you to get ready again for the up coming season (or Monday).  This is why some teams and individuals have such a slow start to the season and why Monday's are frowned upon.

By the end of this week, my WEBSITE will be up and running (it's still being worked on, but you can cruise around a little to see what it's like) and my "Off-season" shirt will be ready for public consumption.  This shirt is aimed at keeping you ready and alert, even if you think there really is an off-season (or weekend).  Every day is just another day and you should always stay alert and keep moving.  Taking a day off is fine...taking a season off (or off-season...see how the words are just reversed...?) can be disastrous...You can't move forward by stopping.

John H. Harris II
Owner/CEO
H.E.A.R.T Athletics LLC