Hi Everyone,This is David's wife, Aleeza. I have only ever posted David's health updates on here but I feel that I need to. So many of you read David's blogs and take them completely out of context! David is a man that hates to do these things, that is a fact. Another fact is that...yes...he does do them alone. Myself and many others support David in his races, however, he is always alone. He is talking about his mind, the thoughts, the miles he has to complete. He is not speaking of physically being alone, or spiritually for that matter. He is saying that when you are on mile 50 or you are at work and have a horrible day, no one can help you get past that in your mind. You can get encouragement and love and support all day, but the bottom line is...if you don't push through it mentally, you will never complete your mission.
And to those of you who post that David is selfish... David gives his life doing these things to help others and is the most grateful guy you will ever meet...but I'm sure you've never had a conversation with him have you? I have seen this man go through extreme pain and suffering because it may put just one more kid through college. I watched him break the bones in his feet during his first 100 mile race and I watched him piss blood on the kitchen floor after I drug him up the stairs and he passed out. Don't talk to me about him being selfish. I witnessed him run 24 hours, tear his quad and then keep going for another 24 because people had promised to donate money if he completed 200 miles in 48 hours. My husband is an old school man, many of which don't exist anymore.
Many of you that read this blog understand that David is not the average guy. Most people would not choose to put themselves through pain to raise money, but David knows that is what gains attention. He hates being on magazines, hates doing interviews, but he does it because he knows that it will help the foundation. Trust me, you won't see him much after the RAAM. This will be his last race. He has had a goal in mind of how much money he has wanted to raise for the foundation and that mission will be complete when he crosses that finish line.
Everyone seems to think that David is a paid athlete; I'm here to tell you he is not. He is a hard working military man that works well over full time hours and gets a paycheck every two weeks just like everyone else. We as a family have spent thousands of dollars in order to raise money for the foundation. I'm not writing this blog to give you our life story, I'm writing because I have seen several posts on the Internet and this blog lately that talks about David being selfish and that his wife mush hate him. The truth of the matter is... I couldn't be more proud of this man. He is a true warrior and takes that spirit into his life everyday.
David blogs to try and help people take on the challenges in their lives. Obviously some of you think that life should be fun and lived that way. David believes that if he isn't pushing himself to become a stronger human being, that he isn't living.
Those of you who take offense to what David says, shouldn't be on his blog. Maybe you will all understand when David finishes the RAAM and you don't see or hear about him again. And you sure as hell won't have to worry about him upsetting you by his blog posts. He has dedicated his life for the last several years to this foundation to raise a million dollars. Not for himself, but for the guys who died for this country that allow him the ability to do what he does in his everyday life.
Until you have witnessed David suffer through some of the pain that I have witnessed, you will never truly know what all he has done for others.
Instead of assuming how David's family life is...please feel free to ask questions. I'm more than happy to answer. And I don't mean what he eats for breakfast.
It's funny how people seem to think this is all a game. David has told you why he does it...to raise money, and test his limits. When you read his blog, a lot of you get what he has learned and are taking it on yourselves and becoming better people who have pushed to get outside of there comfort zone. Others just get upset.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Get back up
I know that some of you would like me to post more often, but the truth is...I can't. Nor do I want to when I have nothing to say that won't get you out of your everyday mentality. I am writing today because my life again has given me some things to overcome. As you all know I was going back in for another check up on my heart in December. Well, unfortunately the surgery didn't do what we had hoped that it would do. I still have a hole in my heart and will eventually be going back in for another surgery. But... Not until I complete my mission. I am still in pursuit of the 2010 Race Across America starting June 9th. It will only be God or death that keeps me from it.
All that being said, I am not referring to my heart when I talk about the things I must overcome. All my life I have been tested. Mentally, and physically. I can't say emotionally because I honestly don't think I have many emotions left. Most of you can relate to what I am about to talk about. It seems sometimes that no matter how hard you work things or people continuously get in your way. I want to answer some questions that I have gotten over the last several months. People seem to assume that my job in the SEALs is to be an athlete. That is not the case at all. While I have a few, or should I say, very few, people that support my personal goals such as RAAM, the truth is that I work a full time job. In order to train for these events I do it on my own time. I generally wake up around 3 am to get a ride in before work, and then will ride to and from work during the week, followed by extra miles on my way home. Without giving away my full training schedule, let's just say, I don't sleep much, definitely don't eat enough, and any free time I may think I'm going to have is spent on the bike. I'm telling you this because it is not easy to achieve anything personally or professionally by depending on other people. Nine times out of ten, you are alone. Alone in your mind, alone at your desk, alone in your wants and needs. People are not going to understand your goals because they have separate goals. It's not easy to do things alone. You must deviate from the crowd. This is why it is easier to go for a run with people. It's much easier when you know that someone is out there suffering with you. You can't look over and see that when you are suffering alone. But let me tell you... you are alone. You are alone when you cross the finish line, you are alone when you do extra miles, you are alone when you don't get the promotion at work. You are alone. When you can learn to deal with being alone and not depend on the support of others, you become a stronger human being. I have always been alone in the things I've done. You have to expect failure, if you don't when I comes your way, you will not be able to get back up.
I have read countless blogs, articles, and talked to several people who don't think I really hate doing the things I do. And to be blunt about it... It pisses me off. I have never taken the easy way. I have had to fail several times before I succeed at something, and sometimes it was at no fault of my own. But I run, bike, all of the above because I hate it. By hating it and doing it I grow. I know that people will never understand that, but that is the way I live my life. Why choose something you like to do? Because it's fun? How do you grow as a person by doing fun things? You grow by testing yourself, by testing your mind to go where it doesn't want to go. If you take the easy road, you get easy results. You don't expect anything out of yourself. If you take the hard road,and you make yourself get through it, you will expect more out of your everyday life. If you don't achieve and let people keep you down, you will stay down. Not me... I choose to get back up. I choose to look the unwanted in the face. I choose to go after the unwanted with a smile. I choose to suffer. And from suffering I grow.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying don't have any fun. But this blog and what I say has nothing to do with fitness, has nothing to do with obesity, has nothing to do with winning, has nothing to do with running or biking. It's about life. The bottom line is this, when you get knocked down and when life comes at you from all different angles, take time to reset get back up and smile. Life doesn't like when it can't keep you down, especially when you smile back at it.
All that being said, I am not referring to my heart when I talk about the things I must overcome. All my life I have been tested. Mentally, and physically. I can't say emotionally because I honestly don't think I have many emotions left. Most of you can relate to what I am about to talk about. It seems sometimes that no matter how hard you work things or people continuously get in your way. I want to answer some questions that I have gotten over the last several months. People seem to assume that my job in the SEALs is to be an athlete. That is not the case at all. While I have a few, or should I say, very few, people that support my personal goals such as RAAM, the truth is that I work a full time job. In order to train for these events I do it on my own time. I generally wake up around 3 am to get a ride in before work, and then will ride to and from work during the week, followed by extra miles on my way home. Without giving away my full training schedule, let's just say, I don't sleep much, definitely don't eat enough, and any free time I may think I'm going to have is spent on the bike. I'm telling you this because it is not easy to achieve anything personally or professionally by depending on other people. Nine times out of ten, you are alone. Alone in your mind, alone at your desk, alone in your wants and needs. People are not going to understand your goals because they have separate goals. It's not easy to do things alone. You must deviate from the crowd. This is why it is easier to go for a run with people. It's much easier when you know that someone is out there suffering with you. You can't look over and see that when you are suffering alone. But let me tell you... you are alone. You are alone when you cross the finish line, you are alone when you do extra miles, you are alone when you don't get the promotion at work. You are alone. When you can learn to deal with being alone and not depend on the support of others, you become a stronger human being. I have always been alone in the things I've done. You have to expect failure, if you don't when I comes your way, you will not be able to get back up.
I have read countless blogs, articles, and talked to several people who don't think I really hate doing the things I do. And to be blunt about it... It pisses me off. I have never taken the easy way. I have had to fail several times before I succeed at something, and sometimes it was at no fault of my own. But I run, bike, all of the above because I hate it. By hating it and doing it I grow. I know that people will never understand that, but that is the way I live my life. Why choose something you like to do? Because it's fun? How do you grow as a person by doing fun things? You grow by testing yourself, by testing your mind to go where it doesn't want to go. If you take the easy road, you get easy results. You don't expect anything out of yourself. If you take the hard road,and you make yourself get through it, you will expect more out of your everyday life. If you don't achieve and let people keep you down, you will stay down. Not me... I choose to get back up. I choose to look the unwanted in the face. I choose to go after the unwanted with a smile. I choose to suffer. And from suffering I grow.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying don't have any fun. But this blog and what I say has nothing to do with fitness, has nothing to do with obesity, has nothing to do with winning, has nothing to do with running or biking. It's about life. The bottom line is this, when you get knocked down and when life comes at you from all different angles, take time to reset get back up and smile. Life doesn't like when it can't keep you down, especially when you smile back at it.
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