Month: October 2017

I am a big fan of the materials that come from Renaissance Periodization (https://renaissanceperiodization.com/).  While I have not used the diet and training templates (Let’s be truthful.  I am just not motivated enough to diet the way I would need to get really lean.), they are effective.  I am, however, a regular consumer of their e-books and Facebook materials.  The latest book, How Much Should I Train?, by Drs. Mike Israetel and James Hoffman, does not disappoint.

The company is science-based.  Everything they say or write is backed by science.  If they are speculating, they say so and base their inferences on the available science and a wealth of experience.

Central to the theme of the book are concepts such as “maximum recoverable volume” (MRV), “minimum effective volume” (MEV), and “maximum adaptive volume” (MAV).  These are concepts anyone who is training to make gains (and why would you not want to make gains?) needs to understand and apply.  The authors consider the effects of genetics, gender, muscle fiber type, goals, and the like on the appropriate training volume.

My only disappointment with the book is that “opportunity costs” is not mentioned explicitly.  (I am kidding here, of course.)  The idea, however, runs throughout the book.  Dr. Israetel inspired my use—my students might say “overuse”—or the phrase, though he has never stated it explicitly.

No matter who we are, we battle with managing time to train and recover.  For the coach, athlete, and anyone who wants to get the most out of their exercise, this is a must-read.  Training is not as simple as showing up to the gym for a prescribed “WOD”.  Effective exercise is highly individualized.  Personally, I don’t have time to waste.

Check out How Much Should I Train, available on the Renaissance Periodization website (linked above) for $27 (hurry while it is still at this reduced rate!).  It is science-based, but the writing style is relaxed and accessible for even the beginning lifter.  Chances are that you are not exercising as effectively as you can (at your MAV).  You owe it to yourself to get the most out of your exercise.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow!

Carpe momento!

“There’s more practice time in wrestling than a lifetime of matches. Repetition is what wrestlers do — what you do best, you have to keep redoing. That’s what all the drilling is for — to make difficult moves look easy, to make learned responses look natural.”—John Irving

I have learned some of life’s greatest lessons for wrestling.  Legendary wrestler and coach, Dan Gable, has said “once you’ve wrested, everything else in life is easy.”  John Irving (a wrestler himself, by the way) is right in saying that “what you do best, you keep doing”.  We succeed by trying and trying again (and again) until we get it right.  Life is repetition and drilling until we get it right (assuming we ever do).

Irving is quoted in saying that “If I have more stamina for revision than a lot of writers, I give the credit for that to wrestling. Every wrestler understands rewriting — they do it every practice.”  That’s a great thing about life.  We rewrite ourselves every day, if we choose to do so.  We shoot, we miss.  We shoot again.  Keep shooting and, eventually, we score.

Life and wrestling is about stamina.  One of my favorite Gable quotes is: “The 1st period is won by the best technician. The 2nd period is won by the kid in the best shape. The 3rd period is won by the kid with the biggest heart.”  Life is won by gaining knowledge, hard work, and desire.  Travis Bradberry wrote: “Grit is that ‘extra something’ that separates the most successful people from the rest. It’s the passion, perseverance, and stamina that we must channel in order to stick with our dreams until they become a reality.”  The wrestler knows this.

Life is not easy, but it is worth every challenging moment.  Keep working.  Make the difficult look easy.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow!

Carpe momento!

I like ties.  My dad was a management consultant and wore a suit every working day.  So, I grew up with the example of “two plains and a fancy”.  I teach in a tie where most dress extremely casual.  I like what the touch of formality brings to the classroom, but, moreover, I like that mixing and matching can magnify one’s wardrobe.  Ties make this much easier.

I think I now have in excess of 50 ties.  Teaching for days a week in a 10-week term, this gives me more than enough to not wear the same tie twice in a term.  Having a variety of shirts and several colors of slacks allows me to possible go the entire year without wearing the same combination twice.  I have never run the numbers on the possible combinations, but, if I am willing to go with some less than perfect combos, the possibilities are quite extensive.

I hope to have some impact on my students’ professional dress.  I have a couple of rules:

Have a color scheme.  I prefer greens, golds, and blues.  The ties I have can go with most any shirt or slacks I have.  I call this my “Garanimal” approach—like the children’s clothing.  Some term, I will randomly select my combos and see what happens.

Buy classic styles.  Don’t fall victim to fashion trends.  The classics remain in style long after they begin to wear.  Avoid ties that are too fat or too skinny.  An old friend once told me that “anyone can be in fashion, but it takes an individual to be in style.”  Have your own style.

Buy quality.  By clothing that is made to last.  With the Garanimal approach, you need fewer items to have an extensive wardrobe.

Avoid items that don’t pair well.  Two plains and a fancy is no longer an absolute in men’s fashion, but some things just don’t pair well.  I try to avoid printed shirts (e.g., stripes).  These often require a plain tie to work well.  Plain ties always look the same.  Colorful ties, on the other hand, can have many personalities when paired with a variety of shirt colors.

Start small and build.  A few shirts and pants can go a long way.  Invest is ties that can make the combinations.  Consider that 10 ties, two shirts, and two pairs of slacks can create 40 potential combinations.

Have fun.  I love the challenge of not wearing the same clothing combinations.  It makes getting ready for work less of a chore.  (But, I am a bit strange, I suppose.)

Personally, I would like to see traditional business dress return.  We are just too casual in the work place.  I like to mix it up by challenging the status quo.  Care to join me?

Carpe momento!

Image: https://pixabay.com/p-2581203/?no_redirect

Small changes make big differences.  When it comes to health and fitness, it is the cumulative effect of persistent little things that is most transformative.

Many of us look in the mirror and see a body that is not what we want to see.  Just like we can’t get in shape overnight, we got out of shape by small, negative lifestyle changes that accumulated over time.  Change—permanent change—takes time.  There are no secrets.  There are no tricks.  Progressive transformation requires persistence and patience.

Baby steps.  I like to preach baby steps.  As we seek change, it will be the little things that matter the most.

When it comes to diet, caloric expenditure is cumulative, and calories-in v. calories-out is half the battle.  Small increases in physical activity and small decreases in food intake add up very quickly. Consider the changes you can make today:

Cutting one sugared pop (soda) a week can potentially result in a 3-4 lb weight loss (assuming nothing replaces it and activity remains stable–**disclaimer** It isn’t always just that precise, but the difference is significant).

Go lighter on the beer.  Cutting alcohol all together is one of the best ways to cut calories fast.  But, if you like your beer, consider the beer’s %ABV (percent alcohol by volume).  Each percentage point is equal to 30 kcal for each 12-ounce beer (e.g., a 6% ABV IPA has 180 kcal—240 kcal in a pint!).  If one drinks an average of one beer a day (365/year), cutting the alcohol content 1% ABV is equivalent to 10,950 kcal per year (at 3500 kcal per pound, that is roughly 3 pounds gained or lost per year!

Cut some fat.  A serving of fat is roughly 100 kcal.  The difference between a serving of whole milk and 2% milk is 146 kcal v. 122 kcal (24 kcal per cup).  Skim has only 86 kcal.

Cut some carbs.  Look for foods that are less calorie dense—e.g., less sugary.  Eat foods that fill you up and leave you satisfied.  Low carb/low fat foods aren’t necessarily better for you than higher calorie foods, if they leave you hungry.

Activity can be added in so many ways: taking the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator, walking short trips instead of driving, walking the dog, etc.  Parking an extra 100 yards away from the store or office results in an extra 12 kcal or so–added up over the course of the year, this is significant.  Consider the rule of thumb that states the on average, whether your walk, jog, or run, one expends approximately 100 kcal per mile.  Walking a little more here and there begins to add up.   (Consider, 365 miles in a year—one mile a day—results in roughly 36,500 kcal burned or more than 10 lb lost!!)

The list can be extensive.  It is not my intent to create a list of the “10 foods you should stop eating now” or the “5 exercises you should be doing every day”.  You have your own opportunities.  Practice stacking–progressively adding small changes–and bam!  In a blink of an eye, you can be on track to a steady sustainable fat loss (remember, we don’t want to talk in terms of scale weight).  As you reach your goal, small things can be added back in.  The choices are yours to make.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow!

Carpe momento!

 

“The superior man acquaints himself with many sayings of antiquity and many deeds of the past, in order to strengthen his character thereby.”—John Milton

Confucius said: “Only the wisest and stupidest of men never change.”  Thus, one should be in constant pursuit of wisdom.  Confucius also said that ““The object of the superior man is truth.”  One should seek to become a superior man/woman.  Without elaboration, I share the sayings of Confucius on the “superior man”:

“A superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.”

“The superior man thinks always of virtue; the common man thinks of comfort.”

“The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.”

“The superior man acts before he speaks, and afterwards speaks according to his action.”

“The superior man is distressed by the limitations of his ability; he is not distressed by the fact that men do not recognize the ability that he has.”

“The superior man is distressed by the limitations of his ability; he is not distressed by the fact that men do not recognize the ability that he has.”

“The superior man blames himself. The inferior man blames others.”

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!

“The superior man is the providence of the inferior. He is eyes for the blind, strength for the weak, and a shield for the defenseless. He stands erect by bending above the fallen. He rises by lifting others.”—Robert Green Ingersol

 

Sunday our Pastor spoke on winning at life and related a story about how winning isn’t always about coming in first.  That story was, of course, Lightning McQueen, from the movie Cars (in case you haven’t seen it), when McQueen sacrifices his sure victory to help The King cross the finish line in his final race.  It was an effective reminder that “I am third.”

Cars is McQueen’s path from self-centered to selfless.  It is a movie about what it means to win at being third.  It is a movie about our lives.

It is hard to be third.  There is a popular Christian movement that has popularized the phrase “I am second”.  I get it, and I am moved by the videos they produce.  I just believe that our Spiritual quest requires that we fall back into third place.

I am Third is the autobiography of Gale Sayers (and is the inspiration for the movie, Brian’s Song).  The title comes from a quote from Sayer’s track coach at the University of Kansas: “My Lord is first, my family is second, and I am third.”  I have an autographed copy of the book that I have treasured since my childhood.

I strive to live “I am third” (I extend the quote to include friends—i.e., neighbors/community—as in “my Lord is first, my family and friends are second, and I am third”), but fail on a daily basis.  But, if Vince Lombardi is correct, “perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.”

Life is about winning.  The great coach, Chuck Noll, said: “The key to a winning season is focusing on one opponent at a time. Winning one week at a time. Never look back and never look ahead.”  Winning requires daily effort.

Lightning McQueen teaches us that sometimes winning come when we come in third.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow!

Carpe momento!

Image: https://www.pixar-planet.fr/dossiers/repliques/capture/cars/24.j

“Those who have accomplished great things in the world have been, as a rule, bold, aggressive, and self-confident. They dared to step out from the crowd and act in an original way. They were not afraid to be generals.”—Orison Swett Marden

I have been writing the word “extraordinary” with an emphasis on “extra” (i.e., “(extra)ordinary”) for some time.  I do so for a reason.  Most of us live rather ordinary lives.  We are not famous.  We are not celebrities or world leaders.  We go about our ordinary lives believing that we have very little impact in the world.  Our impact may not be great—but only if seek to remain ordinary.

(Extra)ordinary is daring to “step out from the crowd and act in an original way” within our sphere of influence.  We are all capable of doing this.  The bible teaches us that in “whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.”  This is universal.  This is what I mean by “be your best today; be better tomorrow.”

There is no career or station in life that has a monopoly in (extra)ordinary.  Our impact can be universal, if we live intentionally.

Let us go into the world, today, “bold, aggressive, and self-confident”.  Carpe momento!!

 

As parents, we want the best for our children.  We want to do for them the things that will help give them a leg up in life.  Sports is one such avenue.

There are countless benefits to youth sports.  Sports are a beginning on the path to “well-centeredness”—Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Emotional, and Social wellness.  I am of the belief that sports participation should be encouraged from an early age.  I favor multiple sports and discourage sports specialization for as long as possible.  Sports participation should, however, be driven by the child and not the parent(s).  Let the child try as many sports (and activities, in general—including music and the arts) as they desire—even if they seem a bit all over the place—until they settle on the sport(s) and/or creative avenues they like and find success in.

In nearly every childhood, there will be times when they are just not enjoying the activity in which they are participating.  This may be boredom, frustration, a lack of success, or simply the realization that it is not what they enjoy.  Childhood is a time of growth and exploration, and sports should be fun!  If the child is not enjoying what they are doing, what is the point of doing it?

Quitting is never an option in my household.  We finish our commitments.  When the season ends, then the child can decide what he or she wants to do next season.  (Sometimes they will vacillate quite a bit in the off-season.)  The important thing for us as parents is not to put pressure on the child.  We certainly should not try to impose our will.  The kid is going to like (or not like) what he likes.  We must let them decide.

The challenge comes when the young athletes gets frustrated during the season.  Sometimes they just need a little encouragement to get them through.  Hopefully, it is just a rough patch, and the desire will return in the off-season.  As parents, we have to first seek to understand what is going on in their developing mind.  We have to realize that children do not all respond the same to our actions.  As parents and coaches, we have to recognize that the child’s motivation is a bit off.  Then, we have to help them figure things out.

I am a believer in Sports Psychologists for adolescents.  Often, they can be better suited than school counselors to deal with emotional and motivational issues—on and off the field.  In some ways, their approach addresses academic issues on which the student-athlete may retreat from parents and school counsellors.  They also provide sports-related strategies that might be more relevant to the struggling student.

It is important for the parent to get to the root of the problem without driving the child further into their shell.  A key is to keep conversations positive.  Let your child talk—or not talk.  Be encouraging.  Sports are to be fun, right?  Make the ride to and from practices and games a pleasant time.  If they had a bad game or practice, don’t push.  Change the subject.  Talk successes.

I trust that most coaches mean only the best for our children.  Sometimes the desire to win can bring out their weaknesses.  As parents, we need to understand, first, that coaches are volunteering their time.  Second, we have to understand that they have to focus on more than just our kid.  We can help by supporting their efforts.  Whatever struggles our athlete is having, we need to make sure that they still show up for practice and games—physically, mentally, and emotionally.  We need to teach our children that they have a responsibility to their teammates and coaches to show up and give their full effort.  This is not easy when the young athlete is not having fun.

Sports are a great learning opportunity for children.  They are very much a microcosm of the world.  Life isn’t always inherently fun.  It is what we choose to make of it.  We won’t always succeed.  Others will cheat.  Bosses will yell.  Co-workers will disrespect you.  Etc.  Life is competitive.  There are winners and losers, and people do keep score.  We need to learn to effectively “deal with it”.  In sports, as in life, we have three choices: accept it, deal with it, or quit.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!

Remember the Waylon Jennings song?  The lyrics, “maybe it’s time we got back to the basics of love”, always seem to come to mind when I consider our social ills.  We, as a society, seem to be dividing along every increasing fault lines.  Race.  Gender.  Religion.  Politics.  Etc.  Why??

We tend to use hash tags and change our profile picture, but do nearly nothing but offend and infuriate.  At the end of the day, we feel like we have done something to right the world and never realize how much more wrong the world is becoming.  Waylon was right.  We need to get back to the basics of love.

One of my daily mantras is “I am third”.  It comes from the Gale Sayers book of the same title and refers to the idea that my God is first, my family and friends are second, and I am third.  This is the approach I try (albeit poorly) to take in my life.  If we all considered this our daily mantra, how much better might the world be?

Now, I know there are some who don’t believe or question the existence of “God”, and I would not be living “I am third” if I did not respect this.  For such people, I ask only that they consider the Judeo-Christian definition of God as “love”.  In other words, love comes before all else.  What effect would this shift have in the world?

Carpe momento!

I still learn a lot from the sport of wrestling.  I saw a meme recently that said: “Rankings do not matter.  Seeding does not matter.  Every match begins 0-0.”  Now on the surface this speaks directly to wrestler—and perhaps other athletes, as well.  There is, however, a life lesson here for all of us.

No matter our status in life, our upbringing, whether we come from privilege or poverty, we all have the opportunity to succeed.  It comes down to will and desire.  Yes, some might have to work harder to achieve, but success nearly always comes to the one who is willing to work harder than the next.  It is easy to become complacent when one is on top, but being the “top seed” puts a mark on one’s back.  The hunger can sometimes be greatest in the underdog.

Today is a new match.  It starts 0-0.  Yesterday has passed.  There should be nothing holding us back from victory.  We cannot enter the day already defeated and expect to succeed.

Don’t consider your “ranking” or “seeding”.  Desire only to be your best today and be better tomorrow!

Carpe momento!