Some of you may have seen this Nike ad...... I think it's incredibly powerful and really rang true with what CFers go through.
But it also reminded me how there is always someone worse off then me.... and I have no excuses to not exercise.
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rilliantly shot by Academy Award-winning director and documentarian Errol Morris, "No Excuses'' makes you feel great, bad, guilty, lucky and encouraged, all at once. Certainly, it's got a familiar set-up for Nike: an athlete shooting baskets on an empty court. We're curious as to who he is, though. At first, I thought the guy must be an NBA or NFL star who will soon be much more famous, because this man delivers his lines like a poet.
He offers a litany of excuses: "I have a headache ... shin splints ... homework." "It's too dark ... too cold ... too dangerous ... not in my genes." "My dog is sick." "I ate too much for breakfast." "I'm bloated." "I got a case of the Mondays" (Tuesdays, Wednesdays).
My personal fave: "My blister hurts."
It's a delicious operetta, the way this dude runs through the drill on a beautifully lit court - "I'm distracted." "It will make me smell bad.'' - while pounding away on the court with two basketballs. I never wanted it to end by the time he offers up the final excuse, "My feet hurt.''
Then the camera pulls back and reveals that he has no use of his legs. The powerful athlete is actually sitting in a wheelchair.
He's Matt Scott, a member of the U.S. Paralympics basketball team, and he just radiates all that's right and upbeat. Obviously, the tone here is a delicate, nuanced thing that's hard to achieve, but it's done perfectly: He's not upset. He's not feeling sorry for himself, and he's certainly not preachy. There's also a subtle visual tie-in to the shock of the message: In the end, Scott deposits the two basketballs on the floor, in front of him, and leaves, which reinforces the absence of his legs.
If there were ever a time to feel ridiculous for making excuses, this is it.
<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA
">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA
</a>
But it also reminded me how there is always someone worse off then me.... and I have no excuses to not exercise.
----------------
rilliantly shot by Academy Award-winning director and documentarian Errol Morris, "No Excuses'' makes you feel great, bad, guilty, lucky and encouraged, all at once. Certainly, it's got a familiar set-up for Nike: an athlete shooting baskets on an empty court. We're curious as to who he is, though. At first, I thought the guy must be an NBA or NFL star who will soon be much more famous, because this man delivers his lines like a poet.
He offers a litany of excuses: "I have a headache ... shin splints ... homework." "It's too dark ... too cold ... too dangerous ... not in my genes." "My dog is sick." "I ate too much for breakfast." "I'm bloated." "I got a case of the Mondays" (Tuesdays, Wednesdays).
My personal fave: "My blister hurts."
It's a delicious operetta, the way this dude runs through the drill on a beautifully lit court - "I'm distracted." "It will make me smell bad.'' - while pounding away on the court with two basketballs. I never wanted it to end by the time he offers up the final excuse, "My feet hurt.''
Then the camera pulls back and reveals that he has no use of his legs. The powerful athlete is actually sitting in a wheelchair.
He's Matt Scott, a member of the U.S. Paralympics basketball team, and he just radiates all that's right and upbeat. Obviously, the tone here is a delicate, nuanced thing that's hard to achieve, but it's done perfectly: He's not upset. He's not feeling sorry for himself, and he's certainly not preachy. There's also a subtle visual tie-in to the shock of the message: In the end, Scott deposits the two basketballs on the floor, in front of him, and leaves, which reinforces the absence of his legs.
If there were ever a time to feel ridiculous for making excuses, this is it.
<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA
">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA
</a>