Unknown Number, 2-Hour Learning & Workout Safety

3 Things I'm Loving, Reading, Watching or Doing

1. Why Do It?
Nike released a brilliant new commercial, and I’ll be sharing it with my kids as another reminder to take risks and get busy living. In the screenager/anxious generation, this matters more than ever.

2. Netflix Documentary – Unknown Number: The High School Catfish
Umm . . . well . . . ah. What in the actual hell? I just kept going, “Is this thing real?” Apparently it was/is, and it’s pretty wild. On one hand, I was like, “See kids, we’re doing okay as parents, right?!” But I was also like, “Wow, this is so sad. Some of these people need serious therapy STAT.” Worth a watch, if only as a cautionary tale about the wild, wild west that is our digital world.

3. The Future of Schools?
I’ve been keeping up with MacKenzie Price and her Alpha School “2-hour learning” model for a while, and it’s fascinating to see how AI is becoming a bigger part of the picture.

At Alpha School, teachers shift from traditional roles like grading and writing lesson plans to supporting students’ emotional and motivational needs while teaching life skills. This frees them up to mentor, motivate, and coach students to become self-driven learners.

The bigger question: how long can the current public school model hold up? In many places, our system is as much about childcare and food security as it is about academics, so even if there’s a “better way,” change won’t be fast. But it’s coming.

2 Quotes Worth Pondering

“Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live.” — Jim Rohn

“If you don’t make time for your wellness, you will be forced to make time for your illness.” — Joyce Sunada

1 Big Dad Idea

Workout Stress

Sometimes we walk into a workout carrying more than just our gym bag. Fatigue, soreness, or even stress can weigh us down and affect both performance and safety. That’s why at FitWit, we use the acronym TRASHED to help members decide what intensity they should bring into a workout.

Recently, I realized the “S” in TRASHED, which stands for severe soreness, could just as easily stand for Stress.

Stress sneaks into our workouts more often than we realize. The last few weeks for me have been a bit more stressful than usual: running a business, five kids starting school and sports, and roughly 147 teacher emails hitting my inbox. Nothing major on its own, but it all adds up.

When stress is high, I notice it in the gym. I ask my body for more watts on the bike, and it basically says, “Nah.” Everything feels harder. Motivation lags. Not much in the willpower tank.

In my younger years, I would have pushed through, searching for answers, even beating myself up about it. Now? I simply show up, sweat a little, and thank my body for doing something.

This funk might last a few days or a few weeks, but eventually, I get back on track. If it lasts months, there’s probably a different culprit other than stress.

So next time stress is heavy, give yourself some grace. Keep moving, keep showing up, and remember that not every workout has to be a PR to make you healthier.