Sacramento is a sleepy town on a Saturday.
I was pretty wiped yesterday and fell asleep literally minutes after having sent last night’s post. I slept a whopping ten hours (unheard of!) and woke at 5 am, local time, bright eyed and bushy tailed.
Of course, my twenty something hosts were fast asleep, so I quietly showered, shaved and slipped out. I found my way to the gym, parked my rental car and set out in search of a coffee shop.
Thanks to the two hour time difference I was able to consult with my good friend John Paul and resolve my wifi issue. Thanks again, John Paul.
Then I just strolled the midtown area seeing what I could see. Sacramento is flat. That’s one of the things that reminds me of St. Pete. It has has tons of trees, more even than Birmingham, and cool trees, too–stuff that we can’t grow, giant palms, birch trees and other stuff I don’t even know the names of. It gives the entire area a really nice green glow.
We started around 10 am (sheesh, Californians) and did a mix of mobility, powerlifting and Olympic lifting heavily peppered with Chip’s historical commentary. It was way cool and I learned a lot, and that’s all you get to know. If you’re curious, if you want a piece of this smorgasbord of information you’ll have to come to the workshop in July.
What’s so cool about these types of events and what is so cool about this one and what will be so cool about the one in July is that they’re so unique. The information is good, of course, it’s valuable and the way Chip and his top trainer Allyson present it is unique to their way of doing things, but it’s also available through their books and DVDs and a million other resources. If you want the information it’s out there.
No, what makes these events so cool is the confluence of people they draw together and the synergy that’s created between the presenters and the people learning.
Chip and I talked about this yesterday. He says he doesn’t want to be a leader. I know I don’t want to be a leader. A leader is constantly looking over his shoulder, making sure his followers are behind him. How can you move forward when all of your attention is on the people behind you?
I’m way too selfish for that. I want to move forward, but I would like some company along the way.
I like to think of Dax Moy’s concept of guru. One who just sheds his own light and lets those who are attracted come to it, or not.
Chip wants a tribe. And I admit, it is an attractive concept. He wants to teach (i.e. shed his light) to attract students and peers, to share what he thinks is cool and empower those around him to do what he does–move, play, explore.
In a few minutes I’m meeting Chip and some more members of his Tribe to go play by the river. After that we’ll go to dinner and tomorrow we’ll do more playing and moving and exploring.
You don’t have to just get this vicariously through me. There’s an opportunity coming, just outside your front door. I’m bringing Chip to Birmingham because we need a taste of Sacramento. We need an opportunity to get outside ourselves, to drop our obsessions with appearance and unmerciful WODs and learn how to have fun again.
Chip mentioned a man named Stuart Brown. Stuart studies play for a living. He’s found that the absence of play is linked to sociopathic behavior. So take this lesson, play is an essential component of your humanity. Forget how to play and you forget how to be human.
So there you have it. Come to our workshop or be the cause of the demise of the human race. It’s your choice, no pressure or anything.
If you want to be reminded of the details, Chip Conrad, of Bodytribe, from beautiful, green and very laid back Sacramento, California, will be in Birmingham, Alabama July 28th and 29th. Both days will be full of empowering movement, talk and exploration designed to push your notions of the gym, physical culture and what working out is really all about. Come stand in Chip’s light for a while. I think you’ll like it.
To sign up for the two day workshop click HERE.
To sign up for my newsletter and to enjoy more of my light, click HERE.
Agoge Fitness Systems 