30 Tuesday Apr 2019
Tags
Alain de Botton, Caste System, Labels, Loser, Meritocracy, Philosophy of Success, Success, Ted Talk, Winner
Photo Credit: Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Enjoy today’s Ted Talk, presented by Alain De Botton, who prescribes that each of us has our own definition of success. We should pursue that, not what society (advertisers and marketers) describes. Success should be your own, not someone else’s definition.
Have a great Tuesday!
Until next time…
Dave
30 Tuesday Apr 2019
Posted in Workout Routine
Tags
Butterfly, Chest Press, Lateral Raises, Lying Triceps Extensions, Planet Fitness, Tricep Pushdowns
AM:
Good workout this morning. I was in and out. Today, I went to Planet Fitness. They have just added 4 stair stepper machines. I may give one of these a whirl on my cardio day. That’s it for today, folks!
See you at the finish line!
Dave
29 Monday Apr 2019
Posted in Workout Routine
AM:
Today, was a cardio-only day. There are a few days like this in Lee Labrada’s 12-week Transformation program, because it is a daily workout for 84 days. If you are interested where to find workouts like these, look at Bodybuilding.com. They have an accompanying app called BodySpace, where you can track your workouts, post them to a log with millions of other bodybuilding enthusiasts and track your progress. Each time you open up the app, it will tell you what workout is due today and will record your progress throughout the workout. This is helpful because it will tell you what weights you used for a previous workout so you can make adjustments to the weight you work with on a particular exercise without trying to write it in a notebook or some other tracking mechanism.
Here are more helpful apps I use:
BodySpace in the Apple App Store (follow programs, find workouts, track your progress). Note: This one requires BodyBuilding.com’s full access membership, which will run you 8.99/month. It’s worth it.
Carb Manager in the Apple App Store (specific for Keto diet followers). Note: This one runs 8.49/month or 39.99/year. Use this app if you are following a Keto diet. It is not worth the money if you are not following Keto.
Spotify is a music app I have been using forever. It is also in the Apple App store and Google play if you use a Google phone (Samsung, etc.). Note: This one will run you 9.99/month. I’ve tried Amazon Music, Apple Music, and Microsoft’s Groove and this one is the best for my needs.
That’s it for today, folks!
See you at the finish line…
Dave
29 Monday Apr 2019
Posted in Motivation Monday
Tags
Achievement, Goals, Google Sheets, Hack, motivation, Planning, rituals, Technique, Time Tracking, Trick
“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” – Zig Ziglar
Image by Free Photos on Pixabay
It’s another Monday folks, and it’s time to get to work. What are you looking to do today? Are you on track to achieving your goals?
Today, I wanted to discuss a great way to track your day. I just started this last week. It is merely a way to watch how you use your time. Some recommend tracking every 5-minute chunk. I think this is a little over the top. Instead, I use a time tracker to log when I start a task and then put another time at the end of the task. Then I create a simple formula (time end – time start = time used). This formula, my title of the task I am doing and the category of what that task is related to are all in a Google Sheet. Each day I add a new tab labeled by the month and day the time is tracked. What I’ve discovered is that my ability to monotask has increased tremendously.
Why is monotasking important? First, let’s discuss what monotasking is. Monotasking is the opposite of multitasking. Monotasking is doing one thing and one thing only. By adding a time tracking task, I avoid multitasking, which is a horrible habit to get into. It is easy on a computer to do this because there are so many things grasping for our attention, but if you monitor the time you spend doing something, it can really benefit you. Stick to one task at a time, monitor the time you spend doing it (start time and end time) and after a while you’ll have some data about what you do, how long you do it, and when you do it.
I want to come up with a day that aligns well with my habits. I have discovered further efficiency by doing like things at like times. For example, I workout first thing in the morning. Then, I do my journaling. Then, I do my blogging, which I’m doing right now. This is followed by my book writing. After my writing is completed, I’ll take a break and do an hour of meditation, eat some breakfast, then move into my course work (online learning). Once all of my learning is completed, I do some administrative tasks like check email, check social media, review the news (Google News and Flipboard), then I get into my reading. If I have some today-only tasks, I will knock them out after I have done all of my “administrative” tasks. Reading is the final thing I do all the way until 4 PM. So whatever time I have left after courses and I dedicate the rest of my day to my reading.
4 PM is when I stop working and enjoy the rest of my afternoon and evening relaxing, playing some video games, and watching a few shows on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, or Vudu. That’s my day in a nutshell. Recently, I changed my sleep schedule to heading to bed around 10 pm, so I get enough rest for my wake up at 5 am. It’s terrific to get to the gym this early because the gym is so empty. I love an empty gym. I get in, get my workout done, and get out before the morning crew shows up.
These kinds of changes occur when you seriously tackle the goals you have set for yourself. You will see new areas to adapt to for efficiency’s sake. I really enjoy the journey toward goals. Meeting a goal is fun, but literally opens new doors for new goals and achievements. I hope all of you have a great Monday and are ready to attack the week. If you have any “tricks” or “hacks” to offer, provide them in the comments below.
Until next time…
Dave
28 Sunday Apr 2019
Posted in Workout Routine
Tags
Cardio, Cascading Hill Program, Concentration Curls, Hyperextensions, Lat Pull Downs, Preacher Curls, Seated Cable Rows, Treadmill
AM:
Today my workout was at Cutting Edge. My other gym, Planet Fitness has been closed. They are putting in stair stepping machines. Anyway, the rest of my day is unscheduled. Today is my “do nothing day”, which means my day is free with no commitments.
I hope all of you have a terrific Sunday!
See you at the finish line…
Dave
27 Saturday Apr 2019
Posted in Workout Routine
Tags
Calf Presses, Crunches, Dead Lifts, healthy living, Leg Lifts, Leg Press, Lying Leg Curls, weight lifting
AM:
It surprised me this morning to find an empty gym. Mind you, I go early (between 5:30 and 5:45 am), but the normal crowd was not there. Then I remembered it was Saturday. Tomorrow will probably be just as empty. Anyway, today’s workout was terrific. After my workout I head to the grocery store to get my day’s food supply. I enjoy shopping daily vs. weekly because my tastes change. I like a huge variety of foods and this allows me to experiment and enjoy different foods throughout the week.
Well, that’s it for today’s installment! Have a great Saturday, folks!
See you in the winners’ circle…
Dave
27 Saturday Apr 2019
Posted in Spiritual Saturday
Tags
24-hour news, Choice, External, Grateful, Gratitude, Happiness, Internal, Needs, social media, Wants
“Happiness comes from within. It is not dependent on external things or on other people. You become vulnerable and can be easily hurt when your feelings of security and happiness depend on the behavior and actions of other people. Never give your power to anyone else.” ― Brian Weiss
Have you ever heard a friend or relative cry out, ‘I just want to be happy!’? People seek happiness in money, travel, relationships, a good job, security, or some other place. The problem with this idea is simply this: Happiness is a choice.
You choose to be happy. If you constantly depend on material things, people, places, or your job to make you happy, you will find out very quickly that this is an untenable position. Why you ask? Because nothing is permanent in this world. Money changes, places change, people change, jobs change, and your health changes. If you depend on outside things to make you happy, you’ll be chasing happiness for the rest of your life.
Happiness is a mindset. It literally is a way of living. You either choose to be happy or you choose to be unhappy. Frankly, I choose to be happy. Being happy is so much easier than being pissed off and afraid. Happiness is calming, peaceful, comfortable. Why would anyone want to be anything but happy?
I find the people that are chasing after happiness are never happy. There’s always one more thing to get, one more friend to have, one more experience to try, one more place to travel to. A common phrase unhappy people use is “if only”. If only I had a wife that loved me. If only I had a nicer home. If only I had a better job, a faster car, a puppy, ad infinitum.
Unfortunately, in the United States, we have a society driven by marketing, sales, and advertising. We’re shown unrealistic pictures of happy people driving around in Ferraris, eating whatever they want, drinking whatever they want, and living the supposed “good life”. We have a 24-hour news cycle constantly berating us with disasters, crime, and tales of doom and gloom. It is never ending and inescapable.
Be informed but remain happy. Buy the things you want and need but be happy. Be grateful for what you have. It is so interesting to hear people talk about what they need and confusing need with want. Most of us have what we need to survive. We have a place to sleep, we have enough food to eat, we have a place protected from the elements. Yet, so many of us are unhappy. We take for granted what we have already and that what we have is enough. I think part of our unhappiness as a society is spurred by social media, advertisers, and the 24-hour new cycle, which focuses on negative, rather than positive stories.
How can you turn all of this around? Avoid it. Stop watching the news. Stop spending hours on social media. You can still be informed by scanning the news for a few minutes in the morning. You can stay in touch with friends by making some postings in the morning and reacting to your feed. Once you’ve done these things–GET OFF OF IT!! Then, focus on the things you want to do for yourself. Work on your goals, work on yourself, do your chores. Read, write, experience. Most importantly, take stock each day of what you are grateful for. Really focus on the things that you have right now. The more you focus on what you have, the less you’ll want something externally.
I hope all of you have a terrific Saturday!
Until next time…
Dave
26 Friday Apr 2019
Posted in Funny Friday
26 Friday Apr 2019
Posted in Workout Routine
AM:
Cardio Treadmill 25-minutes Hill Program
I adjusted my workout routines to an early morning regimen. I start between 5:30 and 6:00 am. I follow a workout routine provided by Bodybuilding.com all access. If you’re interested, you’ll want to look for the Bodyspace app in iTunes app store. It’s a convenient little app and the all access portion runs about $8/month. You can track your workouts, follow one of the many pre-designed workout routines, and have access to one of the best supplement stores anywhere. I’m working through a workout routine provided by Lee Labrada. It’s a daily workout routine that lasts for 12 weeks. I’m on day 3 of the 84 day routine.
I’ve also giving the KETO diet a whirl. I’ve been on this for about a week and want to try it. I’d like to maintain this as a lifestyle, since there are so many products on the market now that support this kind of diet. My body doesn’t do well with carbs and I pile on the weight when I eat too many of them. The first few days of the diet were a little painful, but it’s fine now. One thing I read about recently was how carb consumption spurs more carb consumption. I really didn’t realize until I watched for this. It’s true. At least for me.
Well, that’s it for today, folks! Have a great Friday!
Until next time…
Dave
25 Thursday Apr 2019
Posted in Thankful Thursdays
Tags
Easter weekend, family, Family get together, Friends, Grateful, Gratitude, Thank you, Thankful Thursday
First, thank you to all of my new followers this week! I really enjoy new followers and always interested in what attracts new followers to my blog. For those of you who are new, here’s my posting schedule:
Today, I’m thankful for my family, my health, and my friends. I really enjoy hanging out with friends and family. This last weekend for Easter, my sister came over. It was great fun, going out to eat, hanging out, and watching some shows.
I hope all of you had a terrific time over the Easter weekend.
Until next time…
Dave
