Remembering Chris Moore and Understanding the Why

Last weekend to grab the “Mash Program Sampler 2” for Only $29! Prices going up on Monday! Check it out now: ==> Mash Program Sampler 2

Remembering Chris Moore and Understanding the Why

It has been over a year since my friend, Chris Moore passed away. His passing was abrupt, and left me focused on one of the most real truths in this life that all of us ponder from time to time: “life is truly short”. All of us repeat this phrase when we hear of a friend tragically passing, but do we really understand how precious every moment of this life really is?

Let’s take a deeper look at just how short this life really is. If I live to be 80-years-old, I will die in the year 2053. My life span will equate for .38% of A.D. years, which stands for Anno Domini, which is Latin for “year of our Lord,” and it means the number of years since the birth of Jesus Christ. When you take into account all the years B.C., really life is literally a blink. I am not saying all of this to depress you. I am just giving you a dose of reality.

Really when you think about it, whether you life to be 80 or 30 in the big scheme of things it is about the same blink. Now that we have clarified that life is but a blink, or maybe even shorter than a blink, the question really is, “What are you going to do with it?” I am not preaching to you right now. This is meant for me as much as you so let me explain the trigger of these thoughts.

When Chris Moore and I had the chance to hang out, the conversation always turned to the real meaning of life. Chris and I agreed that family and friends were the most important things in life. We talked about our desires to help others, but I am not just talking about helping others with fitness and strength. We wanted to help others with their journey through life. We wanted a simplistic approach to dramatically changing the lives of others.

This evening I was walking around the family farm with my wife and child. We were looking at blueberries, and watching Rock’s Poppy mowing one of the pastures. I took the time to feel the cool wind blow, smell the fresh cut grass, and listen to the laughs of my two-year-old. There was no cell phone and no other distractions. There was only that moment, and took the time to experience it; all of it.

How many of you take the time to experience the loved ones around you without grabbing your cell phone and without being distracted by all the technology around you? How many of you workout without checking Instagram or thinking about getting the perfect video for your followers? How many of you get lost deep within your training session? By experiencing, I mean actually experiencing the movement and feeling your body move through space.

I remember the days of training before social media. I trained because I loved the sport not because I wanted to get the perfect video or picture for my followers. I was able to experience the response of my body from tough training. I approached my training sessions with excitement in anticipation of what the future might hold. I remember driving to workouts with my training partner Chris “Ox” Mason. Those rides to the gym where filled with excitement. I couldn’t wait to feel the weight in my hands or on my back. Would I be stronger than the day before? Would I move better than the day before? Would the workout leave my muscles filled with blood, my body drenched with sweat, and heart quenched with a feeling of a job well done?

I remember sitting around after a training session at Jack King’s Gym in Winston-Salem. There was a group of us simply talking about our love of training. I remember my legs feeling like they might burst from the massive pump that I received from the squat workout that Ox and I had just performed. I remember tearing up as I talked about my love of the iron with my training buddies. Can you imagine that? I was a grown man crying from simply talking about my love for training.

It’s just that training meant so much more to me than Instagram videos. It was the one thing that I could control in a life filled with so many uncertainties. I couldn’t control the number of times my mother was married or how many times we moved, but I could control my actions in the weight room. The barbell was going to be there day in and day out. Training allowed me to transform into the athlete that I desired to be. The barbell opened me up to the world as I competed in International competitions. The barbell took a boy out of the mountains of North Carolina and opened him up to a world filled with endless possibilities.

The farm is the perfect place to search one’s soul. There are no loud noises or flashing lights. There is just a tranquil setting perfect for looking deep within one’s own self. I mean really deep not this surface mess that I see so much on Instagram. I mean looking deep within and understanding the “why” behind what you are doing. If you can’t understand the ‘why’, maybe it’s time to find something new.

I am so excited to invite some of you to hangout on the farm. Chris and I talked about this during the “Strength Spectacular” in 2015. I want a small group of men and women to train together, cook together, recover together, and to discuss life together. I am not talking about some scripted mastermind bull crap that gets you fired up to continue doing exactly what you are already doing in the same way that you are already doing it.

I am talking about understanding what’s important. I am talking about understanding really what you want to do. I am talking about figuring out how to get there. I have been so blessed to have the most amazing mentors like: Zach Even-Esh, Mike Bledsoe, Chris Moore, Louie Simmons, Congressman Ted Budd, Rick Taylor (my fater-in-law), and my Pastor Carey Hardy. So many more of you have influenced me in ways that you will never know.

This will be one of the ways that I give back during my precious time one this earth. If I can help just one of you either figure out your path in life or perfect the one you are on, then man my short time on this earth will be well spent. I use to think that I wanted to own a billion dollar company, and I was willing to work a billion hours to get there. To me I would be sacrificing time with my children so I could give them a better life. After really analyzing my heart, I wanted more time with my family right now. Since realizing this fact over a year ago, our company has grown almost four times bigger than it was and I am spending more time than ever with my family. I am still coaching my athletes, helping all of you, and loving on my family. I just had to understand the ‘why’ a little better, and then my path was clear. Hopefully I can do the same for all of you.

The times that I had with Chris Moore were truly eye-opening moments. He would listen to me with such intent, and then his responses were always from the heart. He loved his family too. Maybe that’s why we were so close. We appear to be such complex people, but at the core we were just men that loved our family, loved training, and loved helping other people. That’s it! Maybe our simplicity was the very thing that made us seem so complicated in a world filled with distractions and complications. All I know is that I am ready to do what Chris and I talked about in a simple way with hopefully life altering results.

If this is something that you would be interested in, please comment below and let me know. I am also open to ideas on how to make such an event the perfect experience for you guys. Thanks and I will hopefully see you on the farm.

===========================================
For now you guys can check out the “Mash Strength Spectacular” that is going down on Labor Day. We are having Olympic weightlifting, powerlifting, and strongman, and there will be a lot of just hanging out the night before and the night afterwards. The best part is that it will be taking place on the family farm!!!! Check it out below:

Mash Strength Spectacular September 2nd