Tag Archives: Chris Frost

Black Keys and Iron Fists

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LPTrendsMusicStory. The Black Keys by Chris Frost. Every rock and roll adventure breeds a story. This one is good timing on the cusp of the release of the film, The Man with the Iron Fists, directed by Quentin Tarantino, laced with The Black Keys music.

***

We have no real earthly idea who these guys are.

Just after locating a window seat, over the wing no less, the least safe seat on the plane, I am accompanied by two gentleman who fall into the middle and aisle seats with that “finality of leaving my feet plop” we all can appreciate. One readily begins commenting “how long is it until we can get a drink” and “hope the guy by the window drinks cause we’re getting him sauced.” I readily smile and acknowledge “sounds like a good idea to me.”

The primary speaker runs by the name of Torpedo and sports a full beard much as Auerbach of the Black Keys does himself. His friend Tim, who definitely appears much worse for wear, hardly acknowledges his friends quip about drinks, but introduces himself before promptly closing his eyes in an attempt to stop the spinning.

But no sooner are buckles snapped when the three of us begin bantering about all things one “shouldn’t” talk about on a plane, with Torpedo leading the way with; guns, meat, streaking and the crème de la crème of attention grabbers (especially on a plane) “TIMEBOMBS.”

Yep, the other passengers were verily breaking their necks every minute trying to keep an eye on the three of us. And I tell you what, I liked these guys instantly; they were straight shooters who weren’t afraid of a good time even if it meant an in-flight felony for terroristic remarks – yep, these were my kind of guys.

As it turned out we were all returning from whirlwind trips to San Diego for much the same reasons 1) visiting friends rarely seen any longer due to our muddled schedules of life and that thing called “responsibilities” and 2) to rock out with The Black Keys who this past year released their seventh album El Camino and were slated to play Valley View Casino Center Thursday night.

So there we sat, whiskey and tonics in hand reminiscing the weekend, but namely the show and its old school charm with electric spot lights panning the stage, giant flash strobes and disco balls descending from the blackened rafters to cast a cacophony of glittering lights over the crowd. It was bedlam, and it rocked.

The boys from Ohio, Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney, who in 2010 won Best New Artist at the MTV awards and in 2011 followed it up with Best Rock Performance, Best Alternative Music Album and Best Recording Package came to play and play it loud, featuring both old and new in what is a stable list from show to show so those who want to be in on the know can.

Compatriot Eric and writer, Chris Frost

For the rest of us, we just order our beers and go along for the ride with Tighten Up, Howling for you, Gold on the ceiling, Strange Times and Lonely Boy stirring the crowd to a frenzy, and their encore including Everlasting Light and I Got Mine.

My compatriot Eric, an accomplished writer working with Chempetitive Group continued the party after the show as we were still pretty fired up, and if you weren’t – then you have issues my friend, real issues, so go see a doctor. And lucky for me I had Friday to recover while staying with Erik, and his wife Krista, their boys Caden and Ryan and dog Lucky, though the poor guy was sporting a cone all weekend which smacked ironic his name. Unfortunately for Tim, he had Friday and apparently Saturday morning as well to continue “rocking the casbah” with Torpedo, which I can readily see is not an easy task though certainly worth-while as their tales were many and hilarious one and all.If you haven’t had the opportunity to see The Black Keys live, by all means make it happen. And for more, check out Quentin Tarantinos new flick “The Man with the Iron Fists” where The Black Keys and The Wu Tang Clan’s producer RZA collaborate to produce the hypnotic roller “Baddest Man Alive” which the guys also made a video for.

And until their next concert packed with all the high energy electric crescendos and thunderous reverberations they bring, I will have to make do with vibrating the windows of my house loose and being oblivious to the sirens sounding behind me while I drive. Well done boys.

Chris Frost is a regular senior feature contributor to LP Magazine.

What was your last greatest live show you attended? Tell us by submitting your story here!

Primally Gained: Boxing’s Real People Impact

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The very ring Chris Frost will be stepping into Sept. 29th, 2012.

 

LPTrendsBody: Frost Primed. Feature writer Christopher Karne Frost wraps up his amazing journey with Prime Time Boxing. Watch the full transformation in the 4th and Final video here. Three months, 23 pounds, 4 ½ inches, and a lifetime worth of fighter discipline acquired. They say it is not the end that justifies the means; rather it is the journey that justifies the end, for how well you travel is always better than the actual destination.

You can view Chris’s 3 videos and his first three articles chronicling his experience with extreme boxing at the links below this piece. We can’t thank Prime Time Boxing enough for the opportunity to prove how a single human being can in fact change the world by changing himself in pursuit of excellence and discovery. Let’s get ready to rumble one last time.

______________________________

Chris Frost at Week 8

My final days at Prime Time Boxing are wrapping up and I’ve never felt better, never felt more alive.

The training comes easier only because my body is tuned up after nearly three months of diligently working out at a furious pace.

For I always aim to leave it all on the floor, putting everything I have into each training session. My ideology being “the harder I work today, the easier tomorrow will be.”

For all the classes, all the work shadow boxing and working the speed and heavy bags, I have come to one certain realization: if you truly want to learn and know something of boxing and yourself, there is only one place you can find it, there is one place you must go, one place where all your sweat, hard work, skills and inner fires will be tested – and that’s between the ropes, in the modern day gladiatorial sands of the arena – in the squared circle simply known as “The Ring.”

Chris Week 1

Chris Week 12

I remember my first class and how nervous I was at even stepping onto the floor, seemingly being the only “newbie” in class, with everyone about me ready to rock as they cajoled one another, or lightly jumped rope as they primed themselves for the initial ding of the bell. Yet ever in the background loomed The Ring, intimidating me with its presence, its inevitable invitation drawing my eyes daily as I wondered what would transpire, and not if, but when I finally stepped inside.

Cary and Angelo, my trainers, and Andre, Tyler, Marina and Nick, along with my classmates—I will be forever thankful to all of them for preparing me so, as well as thankful for their ever encouraging words and positive influences. A well-placed “good Job” or “atta boy” can go a long way in building what may be the singularly most powerful tool any of us can possess – a positive attitude.

Chris week 1

Chris week 12

I have discovered with a healthy mind and healthy body comes a great many intangibles that many people simply miss out on, unaware that they even exist. You gain a higher aptitude for reasoning, processing information, and for game planning and strategizing than you ever could have without seasoned training and pushing your limits.

And just as your hands are given life, experience and feeling by the nerves and veins that feed them to accomplish their daily tasks of typing, manipulating a scalpel or gently holding a baby, so too is your mind and body fed and nurtured by opening the channels to your inner fires, your very soul, through vigorous and challenging workouts.

I have discovered that every challenge available for testing us is made available in that ring. In the end, it’s up to you to push yourself; it’s up to you to go the extra mile and seek out the limits of your capabilities. And I did as I headed into sparring in real time and space.

Chris Frost, body by Prime Time!

I began sparring with Yoshi and Raoul who then sent me into the world of Ben and the one we call “Maestro” or Thunder and Lightning, as I like to refer to them. Ben hammered me with solid blows and a sound defense, replicated by Maestro, stinging me from all angles, like a viper, and as elusive as the mongoose “Ricki-Tiki-Tavi” was to the snakes he eventually devoured. A man humbled I was after my first outing with these two.

I recall sharing with my friends (many of them fans of The Discovery Channel) that I now had a very clear vision of how the seal must feel after being caught in open waters by a couple of young Killer Whales. It was awesome, awe inspiring, and though I pretty well had my ass handed to me, I was still able to recognize not only the many mistakes I was making, but how correctly everything they were doing was keeping them for the most part –safe from harm. I remember feeling an experience in that moment of actually being a threat to another in the ring like I had passed a rite of passage, and set a new bar with new goals. I couldn’t wait to get back in the ring.

Now as I head down the home stretch of my twelfth week, I feel the rush, the challenge, the call of the ring and I hearken its revelry if only to make a better accounting of myself for I know I can do better and will.

Christopher Karne Frost, human being.

And I think about Maestro. He is my role model, this kid, all of 19 years old, who has a seemingly endless fuel tank and awesome skill set. His lightning quick hands and the nimbleness of foot are graceful. But what may be more impressive is the fact that he shows up to every class with a smile for everyone, a gracious hello and a laugh, and leaves the same way—a friendly, respectful, charismatic young man with what I believe is a bright future ahead of him.

What he does between arrival and departure is something else entirely. He puts it all out there, leaving it all on the floor, be it rope work, squats, speed bag, crunches or the heavy bag. He doesn’t take a minute off and his hard work has chiseled a fine young man into a young warrior with his own challenges, aspirations and mountains to conquer. He has shown me how to accept the challenges I face in and out of the ring.

In my final sparring session, the final week of my three month journey with Prime Time, fate would deal me a hand that only fate could, for though only two others showed for sparring, Maestro was one of them. And I have to admit; I had something to prove, not necessarily to him, but certainly to myself. Nick was our trainer that night and we probably stressed him out as we moved around the ring more like a typhoon than the lumbering crossed feet of a rookie I was before.

Strong body and pen.

I had come to fight, and meant to make a better accounting of myself. All the coaching and tips the trainers had been grilling into us over these past weeks were being put to test. Maestro did in fact get the better of me, but this time he at least had to work for it this time, or so I tell myself. We pushed the limits that night and I felt more alive than I ever have; experiencing something I can’t recall ever having experienced before.

Somewhere along the way I had developed an animal instinct and I heard myself growl. I did. Something primal was attained; something deep and restive for far too long in me had finally been awakened, finally feeling like the predator – and not the prey. I would later thank Nick for his tutelage, and shake Maestro’s hand, for he helped me learn through trial by fire that deep within me a fighter resides.

And after all was said and done I lost a total of 23 pounds and 4 ½ inches around the mid-rift, not bad at all. Yep, I made it. And looking back, the weight seems trivial to me now. For what I gained for my life through the time spent with Prime Time is much more than I ever could have imagined. I feel great and look a whole lot better, more chiseled than round, lean than fat and stronger by a long shot, and not just physically but mentally and spiritually.

Prime Time Boxing

Few people in this world do I hold in higher regard than the new friends I have made at Prime Time. I can’t thank you enough, for your encouraging words and smiles, and all the expert advice and tutelage. You are doing great things in helping people to be better. It certainly worked for me.

 

P.S.

Cary has invited me to try something new, one more test if you will, inviting me to partake in “The Challenge”—an event held between gyms where those who came to fight get what they asked for and step into the squared circle for a shot at the real thing. I fight September 29th. I’ll be back to share some photos from my final bout experience. Remembering that if I can do it, so can you.

I couldn’t say no. Right? Not a chance.

And so the training continues.

Part I

YouTube Video 1

Part II

YouTube 2 

Part III

You Tube 3 

Final Video Showcasing The Whole Transformation

The Twelfth Week

To God or Not to God

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Christopher Karne Frost, human being.

LPTrendsNaughtyEnlightenment. Reader beware. The following contains some sexual reference and unusual exploration of spirituality (or the absence of a belief in a God) by way of one of the worst fears every child buries deep inside: finding Mom and Dad in coitus and that image burned forever into one’s psyche. It may seem like tongue-in-cheek, but really it is only the biting wit of Christopher Frost.

Because we always consider every side of the fence.

________________________________

You lay in bed, nearly asleep, your eyes closing, drifting to a place of dreams, a place of rest, when distantly, faintly, a cry reaches your ear, a plea it sounds again “God, oh God!”

It is far past bed time, and no one should be awake; all have retired to their rooms for the night until morning. Yet suddenly you are alarmed for you recognize the cries being your mother’s, and you jump from your bed, sprinting down the hallway, the cries growing louder, more insistent; you think perhaps you should have grabbed your Louisville slugger for surely your mother is in danger.

Your parent’s door is slightly ajar, and there, crying out to God above is your mother, though her cries are not of anguish, and she is surely not in harms way, but instead spread wide upon her pillows with your father humping away.

As you slink backwards, you silently pray to him above that your presence goes unnoticed and equally curse him allowing your father his way with your mother, and more so your eyes bearing witness this cruel act. Your mother, the Saint of all moms, sluicing and slurping, moaning and writhing as the hot-chicks on the cable channel your parents think you have no access too.

Damn you God, DAMN YOU!

But who would you curse or call upon if you had no belief in God or Gods? Would you smite your father with harsh words and call it a day? Or hide in the corner
never to make eye contact with your parents again, instead seeing them as sex perverts out to torture your sanity.

In this scenario it may be easier if the child had no belief in God or Gods at all, which would make him an Atheist, believing only in man and their capricious ways. There would be no God or higher power, no Almighty or Pantheon of Gods residing above listening for your mother’s wailings.

Man’s victories and failures being of his own making and without any spiritual assistance, or meddling in this case. For what god would allow a child’s virgin eyes to capture such a sight? Perhaps Loki, the practical joker of Norse Mythology would, but certainly not a God of Christianity. And instead you would believe men rise and fall and nurture sin of their own individual whim without any “goading” by unseen powers above. So your dad is a bastard and your mom a whore, now back to bed.

This belief, or unbelief, system of Atheism has been recorded as far back as the 5th century, though it did not garner much attention until the 15th and 16th centuries when it was commonly known as a slight or insult. And to be labeled an Atheist could cost you your very life, and did for many, even the great Socrates.

The greatest philosopher ever known, fell victim not to spear, old age or disease but Atheism. In his unwavering criticism of the existence of Gods and their manipulating man to their own whims eventually had him labeled an Atheist and sentenced to death. Socrates was given the choice of Banishment, or Death by Hemlock (a poison commonly used at the time to administer death) and chose death, thus making himself a martyr for his cause of enlightenment, which is commonly associated with Sainthood – rather ironic isn’t it.

The Great Socrates is not alone in his ideals either. Philosophers such as Theodorus and Strato of Lampascus, both of the 3rd century, and Ludwig Feuerbach, Sigmund Freud, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles more recently, have all argued that a belief in God is nothing more than a product of man and used by those in power to influence and control the lower classes. For if you “believe” then you give others a means to control and influence you, and your spiritual and moral compasses will be invariably entwined.

As we have a multitude of religions to choose from, so too are their differing Atheisms. We have Implicit, Explicit, Theoretical, Theodician, Axiological, Epistemological and Ontological Atheism to name but a few. Further, there are levels of “belief” within the types of “non-belief” as well, including; weak, strong and pragmatic. It would seem to me, however, that you either believe in God or you do-not believe in God – period, end of story.

There are no take backs, crossing of fingers or I was only kidding. Many types and levels of conviction only confuse me. And where there is intentional confusion being served, there is undoubtedly untruths and trouble. So be stoic in your stance and stand by your choice – whichever it is. But whatever you do, do not allow another to “tell you” what to believe in. Do your homework and come to your own conclusion. After all, it is only your eternal suffering you may be determining.

And in your personal trials discerning where your loyalties lay, please keep this in mind. The next time you walk the halls of your parent’s home, stop for a moment and close your eyes, take a long slow breath, in…. and then out…. relax…. now, listen very closely, for there, trapped in the walls, are the moans and wet noises of your mother’s delights.

Now – are you cursing Me or God above? And if it is Me, then I thank you, for you have set me on a pedestal of Godliness and surely a seat is being prepared above for yours truly. May all worship me soundly. Amen.

If this piece irritated or tickled your fancy, you might also want to explore:

Enlightenment: It’s About Time

Chris Frost (Almost) Finishes in Prime Time

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LPTrendsBody: Chris Frost (Almost) Finishes Prime Time. The 3rd Installment of my extreme boxing adventure. by Christopher Karne Frost.

First before you watch the latest video here – check out the before and afters, and read the latest below.

Um, the great before pic 1

Yeah baby! Week 8 – that’s right….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before…..

8 weeks AFTER!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now to the good stuff…the tale end.

It’s hard to breathe… forcefully pulling the air in through a mouth guard isn’t easy, but you carry on. Spitting out the mouthpiece isn’t an option unless losing teeth is. Spittle flips from your lips as you exhale, the air intake firing up your nose as you drink of it deeply, feeding your lungs. I step left catching a jab, cupping it in my glove as I throw it back with an inner smirk of satisfaction. And just as I think twist left to return my own shot I take a thudding blow from the right just beyond my peripheral vision, the dull sound of a leather wrapped left hook resounds through my head.

“Shit” is all I can think, and just as quickly I get on my toes and bob and weave, throwing my own left and right as I do so, avoiding further damage as I move around my opponent seeking an opening that I may return some airmail their way and right the balance of our sparring session.

It feels like this: The world is in front of you, and it is all about the here and now, the moment; it has never been so poignantly crisp as this. For everything you know, everything you see, is encased in headgear and gloves with a snarling visage coming at you no different as you are at them. Our worlds entwined in the here and now, our existence this moment – and I’ve never felt more alive.

The new me.

Having been an adrenaline junkie for the better part of my life has given me interest in seeking many ways of obtaining “the high” of the moment, with skiing, snowboarding, mountain biking (once doing over 50 mph down a fire road at Jensen Lake, hanging on for dear life with a smile wrapped round my head the whole way), to jumping out of a perfectly good airplane at 13,000 feet and diving with the fishes at -100 feet below sea level.

Yeah, done all of these things, and enjoyed each immensely, but none of them compared to my first moment in the ring; throwing punches, dodging and taking shots, and always thinking, always seeking an angle too land my own blows and take the fight to my opposition.

Your world becomes a thing surreal in that there is no one else, just you and your opponent, and they seem a thing unreal, too, a thing bent on your destruction, not really a person.

There are so many comparisons to life and its daily struggles that played out to me in that first morning of sparring when I began this boxing journey it is difficult to replay them now, for it is something you need to experience yourself.

Your mind becomes so singularly focused on only that which is in front of you, for there is nothing else; your eyes locked onto your opponent, and there is no one else; your goal is their dismantling. Simple and straight forward, your fight or flee button is non-existent for there is nowhere to go – and nowhere you would rather be.

This is the second to my last story of my twelve-week journey – and this video – the 3rd and final cut – was shot 8 weeks in with only 4 weeks to go. We have been working more on technique and defense, which certainly can’t hurt, right? I have come full circle with our regiment of training, giving me an entirely new skill set and physique to continue my journey into this life of mine.

I lost another 6 pounds this past 4 weeks, bringing my total weight loss to 16 pounds (23 at the end) – not bad at all.

And with one frustrating realization, which Angelo made abundantly clear to me, in my night -time snack consumption. It was the “fruit” I told him. Angelo looked at me and just shook his head and I knew “shit.” Had I blown it?

You see I was knocking back the watermelon and cantaloupe as my evening snacks for nearly 3 weeks, not realizing the sugar count was completely counter-productive to my goals. I was still living in the mindset that fruits are good, eat all you want, and I couldn’t have been more wrong. But due to hard work and consistently making it to the gym, the damage was minimalized and thus weight came off.

Angelo and Cary, my guides at Prime Time Boxing, have been an endless source of motivation and resources (both dietary and boxing for the ring), and I have no doubt that had I set out on this journey on my own without their guidance and advice, I would never have met the successes I have thus far. Thank you so much Cary and Angelo, your knowledge, willingness to listen, share and offer advice have been priceless.

Chris Frost – product of great training and expert guidance at Prime Time Boxing!

Tyler, another priceless guide, worked our sparring session that morning, and with many a word of advice he too helped me keep my head on its shoulders where it belonged. And getting the opportunity to spar with Yoshi and Justin is something I will always remember and be ever thankful for the experience.

Just as we have preached so much about getting up and doing it, in this place of possibility, getting up and living, in this life we call our own, the many great memories and new experiences I have lived through Prime Time Boxing, Inc. have been both a rush, and a joy, creating lifelong memories for me and new behaviors of success.

Thanks Prime Time for the all-natural-high. I have 4 weeks to go with you and plan to make it count. I am nearly finished, at this leg of the journey anyway!

For more about Prime Time Boxing go to:

http://www.primetimeboxing.com/

For the first installments of Chris’s journey:

Chris Frost Goes Prime Time 1

Chris Frost Goes Prime Time 2

To Here and Now: Why Frost Writes

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Christopher Karne Frost, writer

LPTrendsCareer: Chris Frost The Writer. This is the story of our own Chris Frost, resident feature writer and wordsmith. Sharing because that’s what we do.

If you knew the road before you would include an array of scattered beer bottles, hung-over mornings, the mewling of many women’s delight and a kamikaze like nose dive of financial woe, would you take the road? I did, and it was a hell of a ride. In this essay I will share with you some of the moments in my not always so glorious, though mostly enjoyable, life that have brought me to where I am now; as in life, as in today, as in the here and now.

The wild times began in junior high school and ran for years on after graduating, and it all commenced with the separation of my parents. And with me being the middle kid to a younger brother and older sister, the attention on me was less than what was required. So, much as a fox runs free in a hen house if the cage door is left open, so too did I run through my youth. Luckily, I was blessed with a large group of friends, wily smarts, and a friendly nature – all of which contributed to saving my ass more than once.

I have always possessed the uncanny ability to convince others to do my bidding and forgive my transgressions after shaving off their eyebrows or painting them as a giant penis covered poster child for some funhouse movie. I became known as the Chief Master, with “Chiefing” being what we referred to when someone passes out and then were written on, shaved or covered in food or lotions at the Chiefers whim – whatever that may be.

Those who bore witness loved the spectacle, and those who were the target; well they were in for a lengthy clean-up and boisterous ridicule, many for years to come, some even until today.

After high school I attended American River College for a short time, but unfortunately dropped out in short order as my true interests were women and partying, not necessarily in that order, but definitely always together.

I had good people skills and a happy smile, both for which helped me obtain good jobs most of my life, often in management of others – go figure. But my as yet undiscovered interests were beginning to show through – that being writing, creating and reading. My father turned me on to books at a young age and even through all the beer and fun, I still found time to disappear with a good book.

And I recall in high school my friends would always call on me to write the invitation to parties or events as I was sure to add some flare, funny or rhyme that would catch everyone’s eye. And so I did, happily.

The years went by and more and more friends were married off or having kids; the group dwindled away, as fate will have it. We all keep in touch, but the times aren’t the same, and that is a good thing, lest we all end up on America’s Most Wanted. As for me I continued partying for a good while and can to this day tie one on with the best of them and still walk away with both eyebrows and nary a penciled penis drawn upon me.

As we come into my early 30′s significant changes are taking place. I have noticed I have a great deal of debt and the market I am working in is floundering – that being the mortgage business. My 2 year plan for financial freedom is doomed to come up short and does – miserably. I fall to the economic woes of our nation and end up bankrupt and in debt to the government – figure that one out.

After a 2 year struggle trying to climb out of the seemingly bottomless pit I have fallen, a dream comes to me one waking morning. I dream of all things – condoms. Maybe I was dreaming how fortunate my situation that I do not have a child in tow, or something else I am not sure. But upon waking that morning I verily ran to the coffee table where I laid out a
tablet of paper and story boarded my dream which is silly and brilliantly funny to me. I have shared it with a few friends who have laughed aloud, and a couple who just look at me and wonder what that hell is going on behind his eyes.

Yes, I get that a lot. No sooner had I finished the story did a commercial for a local for-profit college appear on the screen for which I awaited eerie music to sound from the background, but it did not. So I signed up and as luck, fortune or just paying attention would have it, ended up finding my love for writing while at school and now working with and for my English teacher from the to be un-named school. And as cliché as the story may sound, this is the truth of my road traveled here today, though leaving out much detail for which some will ask about later, and others will snicker silently to themselves.

One thing you may have noticed never mentioned in the paragraphs here before, was any mention of a goal. This is not by accident, but because I never had one, not beyond the day I was in. With the separation of my parents, the world did hold little of interest to me, and so a young innocent child did lose himself in booze, women and dreams of other places where things are alright, and mom and dad are home to guide you and show you the way.

So what was fun to many, and merry to me, was really nothing more than a shield, a façade, built to protect me from the realities of my world gone upside down. Yet here I am, and life goes on.

This is my story.

Chris Frost Goes Prime Time – Part I

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Chris Frost Before of LeadingPossibilities Magazine

LPTrendsBody: Part I of Chris Frost’s journey from just another busy guy with a growing beer profile to healthy, fit, and powerful warrior who wanted to prove to himself and you he could do it. In just 3 months, through an extreme boxing transformation thanks to Prime Time Boxing of Sacramento, California, Chris shares his first day in video (ouch), his first impressions and the before photos.

***

by Chris Frost …Before we start, let’s review a bit of my youth. There are two things I often recall from spending time with my dad–watching Cheers comedy night and boxing.

In my earlier days I was a true aficionado of both, from the sarcasm and witty repartee of the serial comedy Cheers to the ding of the bell with the likes of Pryor, Arguello, Hearns, Hagler, Chavez, Duran and Sugar Ray, all battling it out for the coveted title of World Champion in their respective weight classes. And between the pugilists mentioned here is a timeline, a history, of some of the best fighters and years the boxing world has ever known, and not likely to ever be repeated – not by a long shot.

These guys were tough as nails, yet graceful, and talented to the nines while keeping it real. When Duran and Leonard fought you knew the rivalry had nothing to do with money and everything to do with winning the fight. Hagler and Hearns may have been two of the meanest, most intimidating men to ever enter the ring, and their legendary collision still marks history as one of the best fights EVER. Check it out if you don’t believe me; and look up any of the fighters mentioned and you will be in for hours of entertainment.

Chris Frost Before Boxing Transformation

Turning 41 in a matter of a month and weighing in at 192 pounds with a 41 ½ waist (measured around the belly button boys as it should be) and standing 5’9 – these stats tell me it’s now or never, time to get in shape and drop the extra pounds, improve my cardio and hopefully gain some muscle in the process.

And as fortune would have it a deal came across my computer for an introductory boxing and fitness class at Prime Time Boxing, Inc., so I leapt at the opportunity to check it out. Having taken the introductory, which gets you set with what you need to really get started by going over the basics, I was hooked and knew – this is it; this is the route I am going to take for my transformation! And the ironic thing is, I have a gym membership. I just lack the mental fortitude to push myself as I know I need be pushed. The idea to join a class environment where you do what you’re told rang true as the path for me.

And now, here I sit, tiger balm rubbed deeply into one shoulder, my hand-wraps hung out to dry and a dizzy smile on my face having survived Day 1 and the first few weeks of – “Project Transformation.”

First Day Story

Co-Founder and CEO of Prime Time Boxing, Inc., Cary Williams-Nunez, greeted us (my wingman Michael Wilson of icucreative group and my video man) at the door and with a knowing smile and words of encouragement. She directed us deeper into the building, toward the sounds of preparation resounding off the walls from my soon to be classmates and the patient stare of Tyler, my trainer.

We hit it hard right out of the gates with Tyler starting us out with jumping rope (for which I wore my rope more often as a necklace than anything else) and then moving the class into forms and working combinations, all designed to loosen us up and get our blood moving – and boy did it. Heavy bag work followed with several rounds played out and a serious sweat dripping from everyone on the mat; but with not one complaint, not one quitter, not one person bowing out. We were all in this together and together we would get it done.

After the heavy bag work we moved out to the parking lot where things didn’t get any easier as the bar was raised and cardio and legs came to be the focus. The idea any of us will not be better off after this workout is sheer foolishness, though at the time this is difficult to keep in mind – but Tyler kept us motivated and moving through our drills.

Now I have to admit I am not a cardio guy – never have been, so this was a challenge for me. And being 40 may have a little to do with it too, but you know what, I wasn’t even the oldest person in the class, so no excuses.

Our family, which I can see is what everyone is quickly becoming through our trial by fire, stuck it out and completed rigorous sets of burpees, sprints, lunges, crunches, squats and push-ups.

And though my burpees looked more like hiccups, my sprints were more jog walks, and my lunges lacked any depth, the exercises were completed with everyone breathing as the bellows of some past gods seemed to fill the room. No one quit, no one bowed out and everyone survived – good job one and all.

And so the journey has begun and I mean to see it through and finish strong.

As a teaser that you too may witness; the sweat, pain and drive for the finish line and my goal of dropping twenty pounds, my friend and co-conspirator here at “The Possibility Place,” Michael Wilson, took time out of his busy schedule to video “Day 1.”

Day 1: Chris Frost @ Prime Time Boxing Begins His Journey on YouTube

There will be more to follow in the weeks to come, as this journey is set for 3 months with written updates and video to be shared along the way – so that you too can see what can be accomplished if you just get up and do it, just get up and move, and dedicate the time to improving your body so you can also improve your mind.

Find out more at www.primetimeboxing.com. Hope to see you all get out there and challenge yourselves, live for the day as they say, live for today.

Wish us luck, for Day 2 and the mid way point is just around the corner and, trainers Adrian, Tyler, Marina and Nick – The 4 Trainers of the Apocalypse – are surely devising new ways to make us pay.

About Prime Time Boxing

Prime Time Boxing was the creator of the “boxing class.” Founders Angelo Nunez and wife Cary Williams-Nunez opened the first Prime Time Boxing in 1998. This new, 45 minute fitness concept combined cardiovascular conditioning, boxing technique and some strength training within a safe, effective, progressive and systematic program. Realizing that people really enjoyed the personalized, small group training, Angelo and Cary kept their class/camp sizes small. This allowed Prime Time Boxing to know every member’s name and yell it out as soon as that member walked through the door.

Today, founders Angelo and Cary are considered the innovators of the boxing camp workout and bringing boxing classes to traditional boxing gyms. Prime Time Boxing was first talked about in Shape magazine and Fitness magazine back in 1998 and 1999 about the difference between Tae Bo and the Prime Time Boxing workout. Since then, they have been written about and featured in national media and press including, Entrepreneur, USA Today, New York Times, Men’s Fitness, FHM, Muscle & Fitness HERS, Oxygen, and many television and radio segments. 

preparation: duh

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From Chris’ desk…

Opportunity is knocking…loudly… I am ready to answer the door. Events continue to unfold before me at an ever-quickening pace, and again, I am ready for them, anxious to answer their call. But not so long ago this would not have been the case, for I would not have been ready or prepared In all fairness, due to my lack of ‘sight.’

But now, sitting here typing at 4:08 a.m., mentally tearing at the bit in my angst to be set loose, set free to run as I never dreamed I could run before, my mind salivates over the possibilities unfolding in my life – and all due largely in part to simply being prepared to greet them. For with preparation and practice, working at something I hold dear to improve my skills and knowledge has made possible this path. I came to it; it didn’t come to me. This journey will be continued. This life is being made anew and it is all due to preparation.

Much as the gun enthusiast in a state of paranoia might say: “I would rather have my gun and not need it, than need my gun and not have it.” So too do I have my weapon of choice in the pen – and I know how to use it. Where before I had “it,” but only scratched at the surface, not knowing what could truthfully be stricken upon page and screen, soul and mind. But now I know, and am acting upon that knowledge as you read here.

“Preparation” is defined as:  1) the act or process of making something ready for use or service or of getting ready for some occasion, test or duty. 2) a state of being prepared – READINESS. (Good old MW dictionary). I can now include this noun in my personal resume’ – my resume’ of life and who I am, and what I am capable of. So can you.

Learn your personal voodoo, your practice, your art that you too might be prepared when opportunity knocks, that you may gather up your sword, pen or brush, wits, compassion and guile, and that you too may answer the door with confidence and a fire in your eye. Find the burning in your soul and connect that with your preparedness, eagerly chomping at the bit to be set free, set free to run as lightning across the sands, or the wind across the waters, for you are prepared. And nobody ever died from being prepared.

They may have never lived though…

What is your plan of preparation?

 

The Great Golf Metaphor (Not Really but…)

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From Chris’ desk…

Explorers, adventurers, seekers of truth and illumination; last week we began a journey to seek Enlightenment. Here now we introduce two paths of music and literature that may take us there. Each of us has our own requirements, our own interests, our own truths to be sought out; music is often an accompaniment to that diversity of options for how we find higher ground. Music may be the singularly most inspiring, emotionally invoking, dream charging energy we play with day to day, thought producing, and soul searching a tool it is, and yet barely understood as a catalyst for opening up doors to deeper understanding in ourselves.

The Opus of Our Life

The correlation of word and sound, entwined as one has moved mountains, shaken the foundations of society and set the world afire. How it happens is dependent on your artist of choice; be it Marilyn Manson’s Antichrist Superstar, the Beatles Yellow Submarine or the chromatic harmony of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – who I listen to now as I type. Wherein would you fit best? Who most would you relate to?

So too do we have the written word, by way of fiction for the sake of this road conversation, a road of the untruth that gives us a way into the truths that are hard to look at unvarnished. Many a tale have we lost ourselves in, wandering alien worlds, finding freedom in a persona not real, finding peace in an idea, a dream, bound with ink and glue. Within the pages of fantasies brought to light, laid bare for your perusal, you are asked only to open your mind, open your soul and walk in the footsteps of the characters so that you might find your own feet.

Many a book have I opened, finding empathy with the characters inside; the good and the bad alike, then pining over ever knowing them as I turned the pages, ever closer to the final page, often reading slower as the story picked up pace, for I alone knew the end was near. Alas, there has never been regret in meeting the heroes and heroines, maligned murderers and lost souls of Clive Barker, R.A. Salvatore and Dean Koontz to name but a very few, for in each of them and their travels are stories not so different from yours and mine, and therefore truths to be learned.

In truth our stories grow shorter every day, as our lives are impermanent—a truth about the path of enlightenment we all ultimately learn, and should someone one day have the opportunity to pick up a book entitled “enter your name here“, would they be engrossed in your tale? Would they share the tale of you with a friend, so engaging is the read?

Enlightenment asks us if we have fully allowed the musical notes of our lives to play at their fullest crescendos and have we lived the pages of our lives so jammed pack and in truth that there is not a square inch of word space left unleveraged.

Have you lived a life to bring tears to the eyes of those who might be inspired by the fullness of your life, whose happiness to soul or enlightenment through your own truths shared and laid bare is made possible? Or perhaps you wasted too much time, never doing the things you only dreamed and read of, listening to another’s music and never making your own.

In your search for that which you seek, will you share how you got to where you are and what you found? Will you stand up always and take the steps to write the best chapter ever – in “enter your name here?”

What would the title of your book or musical opus be?