“A certain naïveté is prerequisite to all learning. A certain optimism is prerequisite to all action.” — George Leonard Beginning a new learning journey can be exciting. Beginnings are full of hope and possibilities. Starting something new can give us a glimpse of what could be if we stick with…

How I became the type of person who can stick with challenges through all the inevitable ups and downs — The other day, my friend gave me one of the biggest compliments of my life: “Krista, you’re one of the grittiest people I know.” My friend, who also happens to be a psychologist, knows a thing or two about grit, the term coined by Angela Duckworth that means passion and…

If your social media feed is anything like mine, it’s filled with advice for weathering out times of uncertainty. Everyone I know seems to be going through something right now, whether they’re questioning their career, relationship, or general life direction. The mid-life (or quarter-life) crisis seems to be the norm…

I’ve been a fitness industry professional for over a decade, and I see this pattern happen again and again. It breaks my heart every time for one main reason: it just doesn’t have to be this way. — I see it happen every year: an influx of new members arrive at the gym on January 1st, only to disappear again by the end of the month. Maybe it’s even happened to you: you start the year full of motivation, determined that this is the year you’re finally going…

I’ve started from scratch in countless pursuits. There are proven ways to get past the awkward beginner stage and shorten the learning curve. — “Oof.” I let out an involuntary noise as my opponent, a nameless guy at least fifty pounds heavier than me, slams my legs down, baseball slides his hips to the opposite side, and pins me to the mat. The last of the air in my chest releases as he does…

How I learned to strive for a less ambitious 1% improvement—and its surprising power — Recently, at my jiu-jitsu academy, the instructor began the class like this: “I know you all want to be great. You want to make progress, fast. But always aiming for big gains is a mistake. They’re not going to happen very often. Instead, aim to get one percent better —…

I’ve been training jiu-jitsu for about four months now. There’s still so much to learn, and I almost always leave each class feeling more tired mentally than physically. Recently, I went to my first official no-gi jiu-jitsu class. So far, I’ve been training only gi — the official jiu-jitsu uniform…

“It’s a three-sport day,” my dad tells me on the phone. “The best kind of day.” His voice is brimming with enthusiasm as he recounts his day. He started out skiing the double black diamond slopes of Mt. Bachelor, arriving as the lifts opened at 9 am. After a few…

Three months ago, after years of not understanding what the hype was about, I turned up at my first Brazilian jiu-jitsu class. I quickly became hooked. I’m not alone in my experience — people who train jiu-jitsu often become fanatics about it. Many end up training for years, decades even…