Welcome back, world. The video might say Day Five, but this is really Day Six of the Just Do Ten Burpee Challenge. Somewhere between being sick and falling behind on publishing, I lost count. And maybe that’s the first lesson here: the count doesn’t matter as much as the commitment.
The point isn’t a perfect streak. The point is to show up, to move, to stay in the game — even when you’ve miscounted, fallen behind, or hit a wall.
Fighting Through a Shoulder Injury
Since June, my shoulder has been a problem. Eighty percent healed, and then I tweaked it again. Every burpee carried that sharp reminder. I had two choices: give up, or keep moving carefully.
I remembered a video about autophagy, stem cells, and fasting. The man in the video had healed a nagging shoulder injury with a seven-day fast. I’d done a seven-day fast myself in April, and I’m gearing up to do another one soon. The science is fascinating — the body, when rested from constant digestion, starts repairing itself. Cells recycle. Inflammation drops.
Sometimes, healing requires stepping away. Sometimes, healing requires doubling down.
Set One: Starting Anyway
With no water beside me, I went in on set one. Slow, careful, and mindful. Along the way, I threw a question to the community: Who else is fasting?
Veronica just completed a fast before a trip. Dr. Scott is giving it his best. I want to hear more from folks who are exploring fasting not just for weight loss, but for recovery and resilience.
Calling Out the Circle
This challenge is about more than my sets. It’s about connection. On this day, I called out Vicki Crist and Jonathan Carter. Phillip Riley once said Vicki is his favorite person in Tallahassee, and that kind of love deserves to be shared.
I also called on my Florida State family — JC, Coach Kim, Warrick Dunn, and my brother in spirit, Dr. Kendrick Scott. The challenge is for all of us.
Story Time: The Fastest Race I Ever Witnessed in Person
Let me take you back to April 13, 1996 — the Florida Intercollegiate Meet at the University of Florida.
Gun goes off. Warrick Dunn explodes out of the blocks like he was shot out of a cannon. The stadium roars. Jonathan Carter is right there with him. Everyone else? Not even in the picture.
What I saw that day was the fastest one-hundred meters of my life. Both men were under ten seconds — I promise you. But at the seventy-meter mark, the unthinkable happened: the electronic timing system lost power. Somebody pulled the plug. The clock went blank.
Zero-zero-zero-zero. No record. No official time.
The judges had no choice but to order a second final. So later that day, Warrick Dunn lined up again. Jonathan Carter right there beside him. The result? Dunn won handily again, with Carter close, and the official time read 10.30. Fast, but nothing compared to the untimed first race.
I still believe someone out there has that race on film. If so, it would show a moment of pure electricity — a performance erased by circumstance but unforgettable for those of us who witnessed it.
And isn’t that life? Sometimes our best moments don’t make the record books. Sometimes our greatest efforts end with zeros on the board. But they happened. They mattered. And we carry them within us.
Set Two: Legacy in Motion
That same day, while all this unfolded, Phillip Riley was on the phone with the Philadelphia Eagles — being drafted in real time. My brother Robert and my father were in the stands. It was a day of convergence: speed, family, opportunity, history.
As I worked through set two of burpees, I carried that memory like fuel.
Set Three: The Napping Ninja
By set three, twilight in the desert had hit ninety-one degrees. My shirt read The Napping Ninja, a tribute to my younger brother. When he was little, my brother Kareem told him he was going to train him to be a ninja. Before the day was out, he told him he didn’t have the stuff.
But we realized anyone can be a napping ninja. Because rest is resistance. Because recovery is power.
Even in a challenge like this, where sweat and grit take center stage, the ability to rest is just as essential as the ability to move.
Closing the Day
I wrapped the day with sweat on my brow and names on my lips: Vicki Crist. Jonathan Carter. Warrick Dunn. Dr. Kendrick Scott. The challenge continues — not just for me, but for everyone willing to join in.
Tomorrow I’ll be at church with UUFLB in Laguna Beach. Tonight, I leave you with this: just do ten.
Motivational Close
If you’ve ever miscounted, fallen behind, or seen your best efforts erased from the scoreboard — you’re in good company. What matters is persistence.
That race in Gainesville taught me a truth: sometimes the fastest sprint of your life ends with no official time. Sometimes your greatest work is invisible to the world. But it still counts. It still shapes you.
That’s why we show up. That’s why we just do ten.
