Welcome to Solutionary Athlete

This day has been a long time in the making.

38 years to be exact.

Come to think of it, sports and I have been intertwined since the very beginning; beginning with the first sounds of my youth on the evening of October 20th, 1982, when World Series baseball echoed throughout the hallways of Columbia Hospital in Milwaukee, WI. I was born right around first pitch of game 7 between the Milwaukee Brewers and the St. Louis Cardinals; a game that, according to rumors and rumblings, my doctor had tickets to attend. Naturally, I assumed the chatter was true so I showed a little hustle in high hopes I could tag along. I sprinted out of the tunnel screaming and yelling for the home team yet, despite my best efforts, I didn’t get to go, the Brewers lost 6-3, I learned how to handle defeat, and my love for sports was up and running.

We’ve been enmeshed ever since.

Fast forward through made-up games in my backyard, parks and rec little league, five-on-five basketball games on the concrete slab behind our house where I played the role of all the players, birthday parties on the campus of Washington State University, middle school sports year-round, freshmen, JV, and varsity athletics throughout high school, intramural sports at Valparaiso University, rec league softball, basketball, and soccer as an adult, and the miles upon miles of running and cycling all over the globe, and we’ve arrived at where we are today, the inaugural launch of Solutionary Athlete.

Like I said, a long time coming.

Complete with pre-game jitters.

The most exciting thing for me is that I know all of you are already out there. You love sports. You care about your communities. You want to make a difference. You want to be your best, to do your best, and to inspire others to do the same.

Time and time again, it has become evidently clear to me that the unique nature of sport and competition can be transformative for the individual as well as the collective. Having watched and participated in athletics for almost four decades, I can confidently say that sports possess the power to build community, inspire forward momentum, and create real, substantial change.

That is, if we do it right. If we see the bigger picture. If we remember that with great power comes great responsibility.

As Solutionary Athletes, we have the opportunity to be the change we want to see in the world. We are presented daily with innumerable opportunities to think, act, and compete as a unified force of positivity in our communities. To be intentional. To create movement. To live sustainably. And to inspire action. Hence our foundation:

Intentional Movement. Sustainable Action.

This starts by incorporating the daily workout into our routine. Inspired by Jimmy Valvano’s (Jimmy V’s) speech at the ESPY’s in 1993, where he said that “every day we should laugh, we should think, and we should cry“, we’ve identified five “E’s” as foundational pillars:

Exercise our bodies (movement)
Engage our minds (critical thinking)
Embrace our emotion (passion)
Explore mystery and wonder (curiosity)
Encourage connection (community)

To continue quoting the late Jimmy V, “That’s a full day. That’s a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, well, you’re gonna have something special.”

The magic of the daily workout is that it’s right there in front of you when you pause long enough to notice your surrounding environment. Moments and opportunities to engage with the world—on a local and global level—are evidently abundant when you are observant, willing, and ready for action.

Let’s consider each one.

Exercising our bodies might be going for a walk, a ride, a run, or a swim. It might be playing on the playground or running around the yard with your dog. It might be lifting, stretching, jumping, or training; shooting, passing, catching, or throwing. You can dance if you want to. The goal is movement.

Engaging our minds is about learning something new, expanding our horizon, stepping out of our comfort zone, and seeking out opportunities to be challenged in thought. Though it may sound simple, like physical training, it takes intentionality, time, hard work, and daily effort to build endurance and stay sharp. The goal is learning. The goal is growth. The goal is, as said for over a decade by Mike and Mike, to improve; to be “back and better than ever“.

Embracing our emotion is being okay with how we feel in the moment, which rarely feels within our control, but absolutely is. There is an illusion of complexity. Sports has brought about every emotion possible for me including joy, frustration, happiness, anger, laughter, tears, pride, jealousy, exuberance, devastation, and the list continues on indefinitely. Sports bring out the best in me. And the worst. The goal is authenticity. The goal is acceptance coupled with, after a deep breath or two of respective celebration or sorrow, mustering the drive to move forward.

Exploring mystery and wonder is paying attention to the things we don’t completely understand or can’t eloquently explain. For some, it’s religion. For others, it’s the cosmos. It’s about being present with nature and living with curiosity. For many of us it involves stories, creativity, and imagination. The goal is to be a part of something bigger than you; to be okay not explaining the unexplainable. The goal is awe.

Encouraging connection is the beauty of sport. If you’ve known me for any length of time, you’ve heard me quote C.S. Lewis’ “The Four Loves” when he says friendship begins with the quote, “Really? You, too? I thought I was the only one!” This realization allows for pick-up games at the local Y. It allows for organized races in support of cancer awareness or seeking an end to domestic violence. It allows for sold-out crowds and victory parades. The goal is unity. The goal is togetherness. The goal is high fives, fist bumps, beast quakes, and post-race after parties.

Solutionary Athletes are, of course, athletes. You are also fans, supporters, parents, guardians, coaches, managers, and anybody else involved with sport in any way, shape, or form.

You are intentional about your choices.

You are striving to live in alignment with your values.

And you are changing the world—creating a more humane world—through sports.

Welcome to the team.