From “Can’t” to “Can” & the story of how she got there.

Special guest post by Gymfinity Pre-School Department Leader Danielle Flaten I would like to share a story about a wonderful little girl who inspired me. I have a 4-year-old girl in one of my Gym-Tykes classes who was born premature. She was brought into this world 8 months early. Yes, that is a 2-month-old baby! Every…

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I (still) Stand by Gymnastics

This is a difficult time for gymnastics. It’s a time that needs to happen and is overdue, but still difficult. In the last few years, gymnastics has taken a black-eye with an Olympic coach being found guilty of owning child pornography, a national team doctor being found guilty of the same, but accused of much…

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On being grateful.

Those of you who know me know that there are 2 holidays that I really love. One is Halloween and one is Thanksgiving. So, tis the season; here is a little parable I learned many years ago. I hope this helps you keep your perspective in this holiday season. There was a man who grew…

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Why we shouldn’t focus on Success

I have a very different definition of success. I have always believed in the oft quoted “Shoot first, what you hit, call the target” philosophy. As a coach, I have guided many athletes to great success by my definition and as defined by other people as well. I have always believed that if we focus…

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A Letter To My Coach: Mickey

J Orkowski Gymfinity

Hey Mick I just wanted to shoot you a note that says Thanks. You’ll never believe where I am. I am writing to you from my office at my own gym. I opened it in 1999, I think you were coaching in California then. It has grown each year and in 2014 we even expanded…

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Feelin pretty OK

Do you have a person (or people) who hold such respect from you that their words carry more weight? Like if they told you that you were “doin’ OK” that you would then feel like you were? I have several people like that. Some are from business, some are teachers, some are coaches, some are…

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Being Reasonably Fit

Being fit as a trend or short term is not healthy, in fact it’s just the opposite. We have to know the reason we maintain a healthy lifestyle. We should be able to have healthy pursuits in a way that our happiness is not impeded. This is exactly why “getting healthy” as a new year’s resolution never works; we obsessively push ourselves to be unhappy out of guilt and shame until we just give up and validate our poor self-image. Sounds odd for me to say, but sometimes chasing a healthy lifestyle is not what people need.

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