Hey guys.

Hope the weekend was solid.

Here’s what’s on deck:

Let’s get into it.

And if you’re new here, welcome aboard. Glad you found us.

Powered through a long run this weekend in disgusting humidity and had a podcast on.

They were talking about racehorses. Secretariat. Golden Tempo. Horses with insane closing speed. The kind that don’t always look like they’re winning early, but somehow find another gear when it matters.

One fact stood out to me: Secretariat’s heart was estimated to be about 2.5x the size of an average thoroughbred.

No wonder he could find another gear.

It got me thinking about a lot of conversations I’ve had with dads lately.

A lot of us feel behind.

Behind on work. Behind on sleep. Behind on fitness. Behind on whatever version of life we thought we’d have figured out by now.

Then you look around and wonder how everyone else seems to have it figured out. They don’t btw.

But some seasons aren’t about being out front. Some seasons are about staying in it long enough for your heart to show up.

The late push counts. The ugly miles count. The days where you don’t feel sharp but still keep moving count.

Not everything has to look impressive while it’s happening.

Sometimes the win is just finding another gear when your family needs it most.

Ben Bergeron is a gym owner in Natick, Massachusetts, founder of CompTrain, and a dad of four.

And like a lot of driven dads, he’s learned that fatherhood often comes down to what you’re willing to say no to.

For Ben, the hardest part is turning down work and adult obligations so he can say yes to the trampoline or kicking a soccer ball in the backyard. Small stuff, but also the whole thing.

His advice to new dads is simple: kids are kids, not adults. Don’t expect them to see the world the way you do.

The reminder he lives by is this: these are the most meaningful years of your life. Not the easiest, but the ones that matter most. Don’t waste them wishing for something else.

His non-negotiable as a dad says it all: be calm.

As the seas get rougher, the captain gets calmer.

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Push hard, but leave 1–3 reps in the tank. You should finish feeling like you did the work, not like the work did you.

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