WHY

Gamma Knife & Keto

I was supposed to post this last week but some reality shifting events have taken place and I’ve been feeling paralyzed in how to move forward with anything in life.

My WHY, or my purpose, in life is really clear to me and now it’s magnified and has helped me cope with loosing my younger brother last week and not letting him down.

This post is to share a quick look into my journey with Gamma Knife radio treatment to treat the first 2 tumors I live with today and how 2 additional tumors in my skull led me to KETO.

WHY?

I had to research for a while to find an alternative to the path I was on and create a new outcome for my life. I’m glad I fought for what my intuition was telling me because I found Gamma Knife and a way of eating that’s changed my life in so many ways. It’s what I’m passionate about today and I plan to let the world know what I know.

It also brings to mind that no matter what you’re going through, you’re not alone. Don’t feel embarrassed, angry, alone, or afraid to reach out to chat with someone about what you’re dealing with.

Whether it’s physical or mental, I’ll always do my best to support others as much as I can and there’s plenty more people to talk with. Don’t ever feel so isolated that you think you’re alone and can’t gain support from family, friends, or even a stranger like myself. 💚✌️

-Josh P.

A Clear Vision

I believe a clear vision is what creates the goal, which creates the motivation and the taking of action.

Our reality is a manifestation of our actions we choose to participate in on a daily basis.

The vision is what motivates us to take action every day and is what keeps us going no matter what challenge arise and doesn’t let us give up. 💚✌️

What’s your vision for your life? Are you making choices to take action that leads you closer to your vision?

-Josh P.

What’s In Your Hand?

What would you do if this was your scan result after an MRI following a sports related head injury?

My path to making my dream of becoming a pro bmx athlete come true has never been an easy one.

I know things that are worth having don’t come easily. I have overcome financial instability, injuries, cancer, abuse, heartbreak, and depression. If the things we desire most in life were simple, we’d already have them.

I am a firm believer that it’s not the cards were dealt; rather it’s the way we CHOOSE to play those cards that determine the outcome of our life. 💚✌️

Did you get dealt a shit hand of cards? How are YOU CHOOSING to play them?

3 Keys To Success – Mindset, Nutrition, & Fitness

I believe the single most important factor leading to success is prioritizing your mindset. The mindset was the final piece for me, but I learned that it was the most important piece that should have come first, with nutrition and fitness not far behind. They all play a unique role in strengthening one another, but ultimately it’s the mindset that determines the rate at which you manifest success and if you believe you can.

In terms of setting goals of any nature, understanding the purpose of those goals, or the WHY to those goals is so crucial to determining how we choose to move forward in life, which manifests in a success or “failure”.

When we foster a powerful mindset, optimize our nutrition, adopt a healthy practice of fitness combine it with a Vision, Commitment, a Plan, & the Tenacity to NEVER give up, success is inevitable.

When we neglect our nutrition and fitness, our mind suffers because our brain suffers. Same as when we neglect of mind’s health, we make poor choices within nutrition, fitness, and life overall.

Close behind, if not right there with the mindset, comes your Nutrition. This sets the tone for your gut, which directly correlates to the health and function of your brain and what it’s going to activate or suppress within the body in terms of hormones, inflammation, neurotransmitters, epigenetics (gene expression), mitochondrial biogenesis (growth of new mitochondria- energy powerhouses of every single cell in the body), neuroplasticity (the ability to have a resilient brain), and so much more.

The third key to success with your health, but very much elsewhere like the business and personal life, is fitness. Most people, like myself, in the beginning, think this means muscles and “bulk”, which can’t be further from the truth- if done correctly while corresponding with the mind and nutrition. Exercise is more effective than meds for depression (fact, look it up!), produces the “feel good” hormones, slows down aging, stimulates the growth of new mitochondria, increases insulin sensitivity (leading to burning stored and consumed energy), positively stresses the body to grow stronger, and so much more.

I’ve been training consistently for 4 years with these last 2 year the most focused and educated I’ve ever been thanks to Jackie Lauricella (licensed athletic trainer)walking me through ACL prehab for surgery and then recovery/rehab along with Matt Hunter (performance coach) from Athletic Lab in Cary, NC working with me on my goals with Max Aerobic Heart Rate Training, Injury Prevention, and Strength on and off the bike both in the body and mind. I also owe a lot of what I have learned and coach to Mark Sission and his work on the topic of fitness and becoming fat-adaptive.

That being said, I’ve lost size on my waist but stayed about the same weight while gaining a few pounds. I look leaner at the same time, feel lighter and stronger, have a very confident and positive mindset, my digestive system has never been better, my energy levels are very high and stable rather than like a roller coaster of ups and downs, and my performance on and off the bike has gone through the roof.

You may ask “how?”.

muscle weighs more than fat and helps burn fat.
strength doesn’t mean bulk or more muscles. Just means strength in the body and mind. End of story, if done correctly.
Mindset and nutrition are two of the biggest factors in determining if you actually take action towards your goals (fitness, health, business, or personal), the motivation and “willpower” you possess, and how well you feel, perform, prevent illness and disease, make decisions, and think.

The value of implementing all of this into your life is priceless and is a bulletproof plan to success as long as you commit and don’t give up when times get tough. That being said, there is also a thing called the “Emotional Cycle of Change” (ECOC) we all go through when making changes. I believe this is important to note, which in short goes as follows:

Uniformed OptimismThis is when your emotional response to an idea or goal takes over and you feel very optimistic and see no downsides to that idea or goal.
Informed PessimismWhen you learn more about the change that idea or goal requires, you start forming negative emotions and beliefs. The idea or goal doesn’t seem possible and you question if the change is worth it.
Valley of DespairThis is where most of us give up. All the pain of the change gets to us and the idea or goal seems to be further and furtherer away. This leads us to think there must be a quick and easy way to end the pain and discomfort- back to where we started. It is important to have clarity on our goals and our WHY so we can ensure we do not give up or think that success is not for us.
Informed OptimismVision is very important for the Valley of Dispair because it is that Vision that keeps you moving forward while not giving up. That “I will do whatever it takes to accomplish” a goal is fueled by the Vision along with a commitment to not give up and the tools like mindset, nutrition, and fitness. In the informed optimism area, you are back in the positive emotional state and success is much more likely to manifest. The benefits of taking action towards a change for the desired goal is starting to manifest more and more and keeps you going. This is when you must continue and not settle!
Success & FulfillmentSuccess is where we all strive to be and even though it says “success” this doesn’t mean stopping there. I don’t believe in a destination. I believe in loving the process and continuing to grow and progress. This is when we can reflect on the changes we made and the benefits that have taken place. You have likely heard “that was worth it” or something along those lines or “the struggle yesterday made me stronger today”. It’s times of adversity that we sort out who we truly are and our inner strength to move forward. Only when our Vision is clear can we move forward, leave the “victim” mentality behind, and manifest true success in our lives.

To conclude, take care of your body and mind as they work in a uniform reactive relationship to one another. Be pro-active when it comes to your health and goals with your life. Don’t settle for the status quo and then react to negatives. Do what you can to prevent a negative from occurring in the first place. It’s never too early to take action towards your goals and your health. It also never too late if you are reading this.

-Josh P.

Do What You Love Every Day

Don’t make it about money. Don’t make it about “success” or “failure”. Don’t make it about fear. Don’t make it about “what you’re supposed to do”.

Make it about YOU and your true desire. I believe true success comes when we are happy and fulfilled with every aspect of our lives. Not about money, materials, titles/accomplishments, and so on.

If that was the case, why is it so many we see as successful, defined by having money, materials, and titles/accomplishments are unhappy and/or sick? They live a life they don’t believe in or that aligns with their in we desires but we’re told to lead by parents or society.

Although it’s possible to manifest success in your life by doing what others “expect” you to, it’s a hell of a lot easier to lead a life you believe in while maintaining that life.

Nothing is guaranteed so you may as well take a risk on what you dream of. 💚✌️

-Josh P.

Motivation

As a pro #bmx athlete & brain tumor survivor, I’ve gone through many challenges in life. #Motivation has always been the determining factor at overcoming each challenge. I believe this to be true for any person.

What helps?

A Clear Vision for your life with a strong Goal, WHY, or Purpose.
Health: Mindset, Nutrition & Fitness.
Music.

My Cape Cod brother, Tommy Rowland’s music motivates me each and every day. His story and affirmations in his music inspire me to reach further and further for greatness.

Shit is going to happen in life and that’s just reality. What separates people that reach greatness from the norm is motivation to continue when times get time.

I challenge you all to foster a new perspective next time you come across a challenge or hardship. At the end of the day, there are no failures. Just opportunities to learn how to succeed moving forward. That is, if we CHOOSE to see if that way. 💚✌️

-Josh P.

“See lately I’ve been talking shit like two commas is light. And lately the shit I’m talking manifests in my life. Lately I hear they words and it’s a cry of neglection. I never bragged the way I do when it wasn’t the truth.” – Rowlan

📸 @jciake

WHY we do anything is a million times more important than what we do.

WHY is the driving force behind what anyone does, whether they are conscious of it or not. Whether they like what they do or not.

There is a reason WHY they set out for that path and the more conscious we become of our decisions, the more we can navigate to the lives we want.

Find what you want to do in life and be conscious to your WHY. It will help navigate your path to success and keep you motivated in times of doubt. 💚✌️

-Josh P.

Thanks To My Health

Gratitude is, in my opinion, the single most crucial aspect of life.

With the holidays coming, it seems to be the one time of the year everyone, for the most part, agrees on gratitude being so important.

I disagree, though.

Not with celebrating gratitude, or with my first statement, but the fact we dedicate one time a year to be grateful.

It’s great and all, but I believe it’s a facade concealing a business. But that’s a whole other topic.

Back to gratitude. Gratitude has been a game changer for who I am, how I live my life, the relationships I have built, the career I have developed, the health I maintain, how others perceive me, and how I move forward with my life and set goals. See, I used to be ungrateful. Very ungrateful.

Then one day my life was threatened. Then again and again. AND, still.

When you’re 21 and told “you are going to die” if you do not go into risky cranial surgery to remove a massive brain tumor taking up the lef portion of your brain and may die, even so, your perspective on life and what really matters shifts.

Then when it happens two more times, you get serious about this change of perspective. All the petty drama and negativity, we seem to let grab our attention and focus easily, goes right out the window. Why? Because it doesn’t matter at the end of the day and has no real affect on our lives when we stop and give it thought.

Once we shift our perspective in life and focus on the things that matter to us most, our health, family, friends, happiness, fulfillment, etc., gratitude starts to manifest itself every day in new ways. That is precisely what happened to me eight years ago and then again six years ago, and recently earlier this year.

No one thinks they are going to run into major health concerns or even having to face death at an early age. Or at least they don’t consciously think about the possibility. Why? Because we are all so focused on living but, not in this current moment. We are worried about the future and what we are going to do after school, what we are going to do for a career, how much money we “need” to make, what others will think of us, what happens if we take a risk on what we truly want rather than what we are told to want, etc. I was wrapped up in this.

When we are living in this state, it creates dis-ease, which creates “disease.”

Although I was pursuing my dream with massive success, I was still in a state of fear, worry, lack, and judgment. Once I began to shift my perspectives, I saw massive improvements in my life and those around me. This included taking my health into my own hands regarding nutrition, fitness, and mindset, and focusing on doing the things I loved, and what I think is the second most important thing in life, WHY we do anything.

Today I live, ride, train, and coach with 4 brain tumors in my skull and I wouldn’t have it any other way. No, honestly. People say “that’s gotta be the worst thing that ever happened to you.” No way! It changed my life around 180 and all for the best. It took that moment to show me what was important in life and teach me what gratitude truly is. Things could always be worse in our lives, and I don’t think people give that statement the credit it deserves. Don’t agree? Well, the fact that you have an opinion on this backs my statement. YOU ARE ALIVE!

Thanks, to my health, I can continue living my dream, develop new passions, and what I think is the greatest, I can share my experiences, beliefs, love, and support with others around the world in an effort for us all to live as healthy and happy as possible. It starts with gratitude, and it begins with us, then it spreads throughout the lives we lead.

-Josh P.