Day 19
Man, it was fresh out this morning. It’s noticeably
getting lighter later in the morning as the sun didn’t pop over the horizon until I was over
half way through this morning’s 9 miler. Still, it felt nothing but bliss cruising
the river. I always appreciate that first run of the week, especially after
surviving rest day without losing my mind.
This weekend was really good. It’s not that
any other weekends have been bad, it’s just this weekend felt particularly
good. I was super productive, wasting no time on any social media or pointless
internet videos, instead spending down time in deep conversations and/or on walks.
It was a particularly significant weekend for my brother Josh. He had
his first ever Bodybuilding competition, something he’s been working towards
for the best part of 2/3 years. Nothing but hard work and dedication meant he
left the competition with an honorable 2nd place and a place in the
British PCA finals, which will be in two weeks. I’m nothing but stoked for him
as I’ve witnessed firsthand how much graft he puts in. Plus, he’s been (and
continues to be) on a mega strict diet whilst his endurance athlete brother necks
endless apple crumbles and brags about how good his homemade pizzas are.
My brother.
For those that aren’t aware my brother is a bodybuilder, qualified strength and
conditioning coach and personal trainer. As a blood relative, we share a lot of
similar personality traits but choose to use them towards different activities.
We’re both addictive personalities, high functioning minds with obsessive work
ethics and both like ambitious challenges. Josh’s goal is to become a
professional bodybuilder, have a decent online following and to be the best he
possibly can be in the field. The guy dedicates everything towards these goals –
bar a few hours spent on his Xbox (we all need decompression time). He has a decent Instagram
following and has recently started a YouTube channel – definitely subscribe
and follow, if you don’t mind seeing him in his pants every now and then. I
urge the YouTube subscription because some of his vlogs are editing by yours
truly.
As you’d expect with any close family member, Josh and me have done and seen a
lot together. There’s obviously quite the highlight reel but I think we’d both
agree that going to South Africa together has to be one of our most
significant shared story’s. We travelled to Jo’burg to see family that live out there, from
there we headed to the Kruger National Park to have coffee and rusks amongst
the wildlife and we also met a German/Australian couple who had a particular
hatred for ex-president George Bush, the affable politically driven oldies
shared our safari. After the Kruger, we headed to Cape Town, where bad weather
meant that we were unable to do the shark diving and instead went on a wine tour
– we are both non-drinkers. However, on that day we decided to make a one-off exception, safe to say we both felt a little queasy after but due to being much
more food orientated than drink, our inhibitions meant that after a few sips of
wine, biltong and burgers became the biggest priority. It was an epic trip and I
could go into a lot more detail – below is a YouTube video I made from the trip.
Josh and me aren’t just family, we’re mates. I’m proud that I get to say that.
It’s so nice to know that I’ll always have that lifelong friend, no matter what
happens. A brother is so important because it is someone you will share so many
profound moments throughout your life with. He continues to teach me lessons,
and despite being younger, offers me sage advice when I need it. Josh, for the
most part, is a lot calmer than me and has a tendency to be a lot more relaxed
about a lot of the things I can be quite uptight about – he’s very good at calming
me down. SO here’s a shout out to my little brother, I encourage you readers to
go and follow his journey!
Josh’s links:
Instagram = http://instagram.com/gingertraining
Facebook = http://facebook.com/joshgooldfitness
YouTube = https://www.youtube.com/user/MrMass101
Blog number 19 out of 30 for Season 1. Website is still in progress but it will
be up in time for season 2. I’ve got more ideas surrounding some of the goals
on my goal list too. I particularly want to work on the successful online
business and do something for charity goals. Thanks for reading, as always.
Peace & love.
BG
benedict. 