This weekend, John and Grant competed together in Ironman 70.3 Chattanooga… and honestly, I can’t stop thinking about it. The picture below was taken years ago at one of John’s triathlons. Grant was just a little boy then. We had no idea in that moment that one day he’d grow up to stand beside John at the finish line of a Half Ironman himself.
Last May, after coming with me to support John at a race in Florida, he looked at me during the race and said, “I am going to do one of these.” Over the past year, I’ve watched something really incredible unfold. He started meal prepping on his own. He started running, swimming, biking and training. He signed up for a sprint triathlon, then a few half marathons.
And then… he did it.
On Sunday, watching the two of them cross that finish line together was emotional in the very best way. Because it reminded me of something I’ve heard for years:
Our kids don’t do what we say.
They do what we do.
They are watching us. Whether we prioritize movement, health, rest, nutrition, challenge, growth. They’re watching us show up.
I think sometimes as parents, we feel guilty investing time into ourselves. We think going to the gym, training for something hard, meal prepping, walking every morning, signing up for a 5K, joining yoga, trying tennis, prioritizing strength training… is somehow selfish.
But what if it’s one of the most powerful things we can do for our kids?
Because when our kids grow up seeing health modeled as a normal part of life…
They carry that with them. Not perfectly. Not immediately. But they are watching.
So if you need encouragement today, let this be it:
Keep showing up for yourself.
Not just because of what it does for you…
But because little eyes are watching and learning what it looks like to care for your body, pursue growth, and live a healthy life.
And one day, you may look beside you and realize they became exactly what they saw modeled all along.
