Ep. 62: Ryan Zimmerman - A Day In The Life of A Baseball Hero - Washington Nationals
Ryan Zimmerman’s nickname is Mr. National. He has been breaking records and playing professional baseball for the Washington Nationals for fifteen years. Last year, Zimmerman helped lead the team to their first ever World Series win and is truly a hometown hero.
In this interview Ryan tells us about growing up with athletic parents who pushed him to constantly play outdoors. As a teenager, he found himself learning to cook and help around the house, as is mother was diagnosed with M.S. and confined to a wheelchair.
Now, with his own experience as a parent under is belt, he explains that good parenting is really about good listening and showing up daily for your kids in thick and thin. He hopes to show his children that baseball is a great sport because it teaches you that life is not perfect (even though Instagram and Facebook make it seem like that). Failure is an opportunity, he explains.
Listen in to learn what a day in the life of a major league baseball hero feels like and why luck happens to those who get out of the backseat, stop blaming people and simply prepare for upcoming opportunities in life.
More From Ryan Zimmerman
Foundation Website: https://zimsfoundation.org
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Instagram: @ryanzimmerman11
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Show Notes
[02:17] Both of my parents never let me and my brother be inside. So we were always outside doing something.
[05:49] You have to continue to have fun and enjoy it. But at the same time, you do have to work hard. And just like anything else, if you don't work hard and perform, then someone else is going to take your job.
[06:11] Baseball is a huge mental game. … Just pure talent doesn't carry you all the way.
[08:09] The biggest thing I've changed over the last five years is probably food. And just being more aware of sleep, prioritizing how many things you say yes.
[08:30] Know what you need to do to take care of yourself.
[10:31] Parenting, is the greatest challenge I'll ever have, I think.
[16:24] The foundation is a lot about finding a cure, but we also do stuff with caregivers or helping people try and enhance their situation for everyday life.
[21:56] The easiest part of the day for me now is playing the game. The hardest part is preparing yourself to play the game.
[26:54] So when I talked to kids, I always tell them baseball is such a great sport to play because it teaches you how to fail - because life is about failure. I mean, I think in this day and age with social media and Instagram, like everything's perfect. Everything that people post is perfect, and I think that's the challenge with younger kids is they think everyone's life is perfect and failure is like probably the most important part of life because that's when you learn. You know, obviously who you are as yourself, but also how to react to that kind of stuff.
[31:15] My mom and dad, they always told me and my brother to work the hardest when no one is watching, because I think that's what kind of separates you. And it's not just in sports, it's in anything that you do. If you're at the office, everyone's going to work hard when their boss is there. Maybe you're in your cubicle or wherever and nobody's watching when you really grind it out. You know, if you want to get ahead in life, you gotta work harder than people. Nothing's given to you. Everyone's going to work hard when they're supposed to on the spot.
[31:44] My dad would always say luck is preparation met by opportunity. So everyone says all you're lucky or you're unlucky. And it's like obviously there's lucky things that happen like a scratch off ticket. It's lucky that you win. I can't prepare to win a scratch off ticket. But everyone says, oh, well, you know, look at this guy and his career. Everything is gone his way. Well, I think you kind of make your own luck. I mean, if you work hard and prepare, you might not know what you're preparing for at the time, but if you're out there working hard and you're doing things and you're making yourself better. When the opportunity arises, you don't know what the opportunity is, but you're gonna be ready for it. And it's because you've worked hard. You weren't lazy. You weren't sitting around waiting for something good to happen. You were preparing for it. You know, at the time you didn't know what you're preparing for. I think, you know, you're either gonna go attack life or you're gonna sit back. And those are the unlucky people. I'm just gonna sit back and wait for something.
[32:52] Stop blaming other people. Get going. You know, you got to be ready to take advantage of opportunities - you only get so many.
Thank you for joining us on HealthGig. We loved having you with us. We hope you'll tune in again next week. In the meantime, be sure to like and subscribe to this podcast, and follow us on healthgigpod.com.
“Both of my parents never let me and my brother be inside. So we were always outside doing something.” - Ryan Zimmerman
“Baseball is a huge mental game… Just pure talent doesn't carry you all the way.” - Ryan Zimmerman
“The easiest part of the day for me now is playing the game. The hardest part is preparing yourself to play the game.” - Ryan Zimmerman
“My dad would always say luck is preparation met by opportunity.” - Ryan Zimmerman“I think and it's that everyone has a right to live within a 10 minute walk of some green space. Florence Williams
“Even five minutes in nature can start to make a difference. Even a view of trees or a lawn or just greenery outside our window can make a difference.” Florence Williams
Keywords
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