I thought that I would take a different direction with my first blog post of the new year and start with somewhat of a testimonial to the benefits of regular exercise and an appreciation of human performance.  I am sitting here at my computer at home, but just spent the past 5 days in Winter Park, Colorado with my family and some friends.  My wife and I snowboard, but we introduced skiing to our 4 year old son.  After 3 days of lessons, it was exhilarating to have him join us on the lift and witness him actually skiing down some green slopes!  This is the start of many family ski trips to come; something that I have dreamed about since I was very young.

Even though my wife and I spent some of the trip worried about our son in the ski program, we were able to enjoy the slopes ourselves and reap the benefits of the regular exercise that we both participate in, here in Saint Louis.  My wife even mentioned that she felt stronger than she had ever felt on the slopes; a testament to the increased training that she has had since the last time we went.  Yes, it is true folks.  Regular exercise DOES improve your performance in other activities and, in this instance,  DOES translate to stronger snowboarding, more time on the slopes, and a fuller, more complete ski trip.

I encourage everyone to take advantage of your body.  Appreciate the capabilities that your body holds.  Play hard, but train even harder.