Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Amazon, Books, Diet, Exercise, Netflix, Plato, Reading, Writing

“Thinking: the talking of the soul with itself.” – Plato

Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/thinking

I’ve really begun to enjoy my reading sessions each day. Sometimes I pick out a string of books that are just not that great, but the last few months I’ve been getting my hands on some terrific ones—books you look forward to reading each day. Have you ever read a book that you enjoyed so much that you took your time reading it to expand the time you could enjoy it? That’s what it has been like with the books I’ve been reading. Kobo and Uncle Tom’s Cabin are two books that I’m enjoying tremendously.

I just started the Mindshift course a while ago. It is a lot of fun. The teachers are the same as my previous course – Learning how to Learn. This course is about different techniques for learning new things, like a language or picking up a skill you do not have any experience with. It is terrific!

One of the things I’ve learned about low-carb diets is my energy level. It is easier to do endurance work, but lifting weights is much tougher than it was when I was eating a decent amount of carbs. I have been getting comments about my trimming down, which always feels good. I’ve adjusted my workout routine to every other day to adjust to this diet. This is a temporary adjustment, but one that should expedite my body’s adaptation to this new eating pattern.

I hope everyone is having a great week so far. Feel free to comment below with any of the things you are doing well, any goals you have set or accomplished, and even course or book recommendations. I’m always on the lookout for the next great online course or book.

Books:

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp – Just finished this book yesterday. Boy, what a collection of exercises that can help solve some of life’s little challenges.

Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War, Herbert Strang

The Thirty Years’ War 1618 – 1648, Samuel Rawson Gardner – Religious differences and intolerance, coupled with greed and vanity and you get 30 years of conflict along with the civilian suffering that followed. Very interesting read if you would like to learn about the 30 years’ war.

Classes:

Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential

Public Policy, Hillsdale College

Mini-Habits Course, Udemy

Documentaries:

I’m a Killer (Netflix)

Movies:

Ready Player One (Amazon Prime) – I haven’t watched this yet. My sister recommended it and it is on my hit list.

Fun:

The West Wing (Currently on Netflix)

Keep pushing, only today and tomorrow before the weekend!!

Until next time…

Dave

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Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

15x Exercise, Blogging, Learning, Reading, Writing

This week has been a good one so far. I enrolled in two courses (Mindshift and Mini-Habits), continuing my workout routine and diet, and focusing on knocking off a book or two from my list. This week I’m focused on the Spiritual Exercises of ECK and The Thirty Year’s War. Both are terrific books!

I’ve also been doing a lot of reading online, particularly some articles that have been recommended in Pocket (the app). I like to focus on my self-improvement along the lines of character development. To do this I use a simple exercise called the 15x exercise. This exercise requires the writing down of a statement starting with “I am” 15 times. My focus now is on compassion, discipline, and patience. So, the statement I hand write is: I am compassionate, disciplined, and patient. I’ll keep you apprised of my progress.

I haven’t been doing a lot of Netflix watching, but do catch a few episodes of Netflix. I really want to accomplish my goal of 36 books this year. I have not set a number for the courses I will take, but once I am done with them this year, I’ll take a tally and make a goal of so many courses for next year. For now, the pace of courses is leisurely because I have so many other things on the table (workouts, writing, blogging, and reading).

I hope everyone is having a great week!!!

Books:

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp

Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War, Herbert Strang

The Thirty Years’ War 1618 – 1648, Samuel Rawson Gardner

Classes:

Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential

Public Policy, Hillsdale College

Mini-Habits Course, Udemy

Documentaries:

None are on my hit list this week.

Movies:

None are on my hit list this week.

Fun:

The West Wing (Currently on Netflix)

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Books, Exercise, Movies, Series, Writing

I am making great progress on my book projects. The outline and topics are almost completed for my nonfiction book on technical recruiting and the story I am fleshing out for my fiction book is also coming along nicely.

This week I’m focusing on a book about the Thirty Years’ War. I have never really understood this conflict, so I wanted to learn more about it. The book is on my list below and is free on Amazon.

I’m headed off to the gym. Have a great Thursday everyone!

Books:

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp

Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War, Herbert Strang

The Dual Between France and Germany, Charles Sumner – This was an interesting book. I thought it would be more specific to the war aspects but was more of a report by Charles Sumner to President Grant about the war and the recommendations he is making to him. I enjoyed the read.

The Thirty Years’ War 1618 – 1648, Samuel Rawson Gardner

Classes:

Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential

Public Policy, Hillsdale College

Learning how to Learn, Coursera – Just finished this course. Wow! It was terrific learning about the brain, test-taking tips and tricks, and the best ways to learn new material. I highly recommend this one!

Mini-Habits Course, Udemy (putting this one on hold until August)

Documentaries:

None are on my hit list this week.

Movies:

None are on my hit list this week.

Fun:

The West Wing (Currently on Netflix)

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Books, Coursera, Courses, Hillsdale College, Movies, Netflix, Reading, Udemy, Weightlifting, Writing

I don’t know about you folks, but weightlifting is therapeutic for me. It relaxes me, helps me build on my focus, and I just feel so accomplished when I walk out of the gym. Currently, I am doing a full body workout. Here’s what it looks like:

Exercises are all 3 sets of 10. Since I am working out every day I am not working to failure, simply burning off energy and stimulating the muscles. It’s working quite well. I’ll provide you with weigh-in results on Monday.

• Leg Press
• Standing Leg Curl
• Leverage ISO Row
• Seated Back Extension
• Leverage High Row
• Machine Bench Press
• Machine Shoulder Press
• Leverage Shrug
• Dip Machine
• Machine Preacher Curls
• Calf Press on the Leg Press Machine
• Ab Crunch Machine
• Elliptical Trainer (25 minutes)

I also got a good start on my book. I’m currently working through content ideas using an online app called Asana. It works well. I’m going to keep plugging away on the content headings, ideas of what I want to talk about and continue organizing. The goal is to get this skeletal outline completed by the end of the month. In August, I begin the actual writing.

I hope everyone is having a great week!

Books:

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell

The Orion Plague, David Vandyke – Finished. This is a book in a series. If you are interested, check out David’s books on Amazon. He’s terrific!

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

The Science of Getting Rich, Wallace D. Wattles – Just finished this one. It is old but has some interesting points in it.

The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp

In My Time, Dick Cheney – Enjoyed this book. I like memoirs and things, particularly when I served under this guy as the Secretary of Defense and the Vice President.

Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War, Herbert Strang

The Dual Between France and Germany, Charles Sumner

Classes:

Public Policy, Hillsdale College

Learning how to Learn, Coursera

Mini-Habits Course, Udemy (putting this one on hold until August)

Documentaries:

The Staircase, (Netflix Currently) – Just finished this one. This is worth a watch if you like a courtroom drama.

Movies:

None are on my hit list this week.

Fun:

Hell on Wheels (Currently on Netflix) – Finished. This is one heck of a ride. If you like a lot of plot twists and enjoy a good Western, I highly recommend.

The Hollow (Currently on Netflix)

The West Wing (Currently on Netflix)

Workout Routines and Other Weightlifting Knowledge:

https://www.bodybuilding.com/

For access to every supplement on the market, access to the top trainers in the world, and gain access to their training routines, this is the one-stop, shop for anything related to fitness. This one will cost you if you want access to the trainers and their workout routines. It runs me about $8.99 per month.

Well, that’s it for this week folks! I hope some of this information has been helpful to you.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Amazon Prime, Books, Movies, Netflix, Weight Loss

It’s another Thinking Thursday!

Already crushed my Back and Biceps workout today, along with 26 minutes of Cardio. I’ll do another session later today. My eating is on track and I’ll be updating my weight on Sunday. Currently, I’m at 221 lbs. I’m tracking my macros diligently as carbs will always throw off my diet. I’m trying to minimize my carb intake to 50 grams a day. It seems like a minimal amount, but if you stick with green leafy vegetables, you can eat quite a lot of volume without spiking blood sugar. I am avoiding all grains for now—they kill my weight loss, even when I work with the complex carbs.

I hope everyone is enjoying their week and crushing their goals. I’ll update you again on my progress next week.

Books:

• The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell
• Andersonville: A story of rebel military prisons, John McElroy: Finished this yesterday. What a horrific story. If you are interested in learning about the atrocities committed against Union POWs during the Civil War, this is a must-read.
• The Orion Plague, David Vandyke
• Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe
• The Science of Getting Rich, Wallace D. Wattles
• The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp
• In My Time, Dick Cheney
• Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War, Herbert Strang
• The Dual Between France and Germany, Charles Sumner

Classes:

• Public Policy, Hillsdale College
• Learning how to Learn, Coursera
• Mini-Habits Course, Udemy (putting this one on hold until August)

Documentaries:

• The Civil War, Ken Burns (Netflix currently) – Finished. Great documentary from Mr. Burns. Very informative and told from the viewpoint of soldiers who were involved in the conflict.
• The West, Ken Burns (Netflix currently) – Finished. Great documentary. I really learned a lot of new things in this one. Our treatment of the American Indian was horrific at best.
• Vietnam, Ken Burns (Netflix currently) – Finished. Another heart-breaking documentary about the Vietnam War. The insightful pieces of this documentary relate to the many opportunities all of the parties had to avoid the conflict altogether. Alas, we missed these opportunities.
• The Staircase, (Netflix Currently) – Just started this one.

Movies:

Fun:

• Hell on Wheels (Currently on Netflix)
• The Hollow (Currently on Netflix)
• Wimbledon and World Cup Soccer

Workout Routines and Other Weightlifting Knowledge:

https://www.bodybuilding.com/

For access to every supplement on the market, access to the top trainers in the world, and gain access to their training routines, this is the one-stop, shop for anything related to fitness. This one will cost you if you want access to the trainers and their workout routines. It runs me about $8.99 per month.

Well, that’s it for this week folks! I hope some of this information has been helpful to you.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Amazon Prime Video, Books, Labrada Trainer, Movies, Netflix, Netflix Series, Online Classes

Well, I started the 12-week Labrada Trainer and it is good so far. It’s a 7-day workout, with a little less cardio then my previous workout routine (1 session a day) but has a 2 day on and 1 day off schedule. The split looks like this: Back and Biceps, Chest, Triceps, and Shoulders, Legs and Abs. Again, the goal is to lose between 1 and 2 pounds per week, resulting in about 12 – 24 pounds of weight loss.

Books:

• The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell
• Turn your passion into a thriving business, Gundi Gabrielle: I finished this one last week. It has some great ideas on how to monetize your passion, including writing a book, creating and managing a blog, affiliate programs, networking, and all the rest. It was a pretty good read with lots of links to training videos provided by some of the best marketers/bloggers in the business.
• Andersonville: A story of rebel military prisons, John McElroy
• The Orion Plague, David Vandyke
• Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe
• The Science of Getting Rich, Wallace D. Wattles
• The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp

Classes:

• Public Policy, Hillsdale College
• Learning how to Learn, Coursera
• Mini-Habits Course, Udemy (putting this one on hold until August)

Documentaries:

• The Civil War, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)
• The West, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)
• Vietnam, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)

Movies:

I went to the show to watch the movie SOLO and it was a lot better in my opinion than what the critics were saying. I’m a big Star Wars fan, so this was a no-brainer for me. I also watched The Last Jedi on Netflix and it was again a big surprise. The story was terrific! I won’t give you any spoilers, but if you are a Star Wars fan, both movies were great.

Fun:

• Hell on Wheels (Currently on Netflix)
• The Hollow (Currently on Netflix)
• Goliath (Currently on Amazon Prime) – Finished Season 2. Wow! If you had the opportunity to watch Goliath Season 1, you’ll enjoy this one as well. They did a great job and the story was full of twists and turns. I don’t want to spoil this one for everybody, but it’s worth a look if you are a fan of the first season.

Workout Routines and Other Weightlifting Knowledge:

https://www.bodybuilding.com/

For access to every supplement on the market, access to the top trainers in the world, and gain access to their training routines, this is the one-stop, shop for anything related to fitness. This one will cost you if you want access to the trainers and their workout routines. It runs me about $8.99 per month.

Well, that’s it for this week folks! I hope some of this information has been helpful to you.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Books, Documentaries, Keto, Learning, Movies, Netflix, Weightlifting

This week is a holdover week for weightlifting. I’m continuing to hit weights and two-a-day cardio sessions but have made some adjustments. My cardio will be executed this time around on the elliptical.

I learned that my body is not a big fan of carbs during the last 8-week trainer I just completed. The last week of the program is where I had my big losses, and this is exactly when I was down to very low carb amounts (less than 50 grams a day). Subsequently, I’m looking into KETO and other low-carb diets to see how these will affect my muscle growth. Right now, I’m only interested in maintaining the muscle I have and reducing my body fat from 36% down to about 15%. The KETO diet appears to be a solution to my dilemma.

I’ve also been investigating some local sites who can provide accurate body fat measurements and I found one today! It costs 115.00 for the initial visit and 95.00 for subsequent visits. BINGO!! I’m going to set one of these up next week to get a good baseline before commencing my next transformation routine. The reason for spending some money on this is that my entire meal plan is based on accurate weight and body fat measurements. Without these, I’m just guessing. More to follow on this front, folks.

Books:

• The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell
• Turn your passion into a thriving business, Gundi Gabrielle
• Andersonville: A story of rebel military prisons, John McElroy
• The Orion Plague, David Vandyke
• Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe
• The Science of Getting Rich, Wallace D. Wattles
• The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp

Classes:

• Public Policy, Hillsdale College
• Learning how to Learn, Coursera
• Mini-Habits Course, Udemy (pending for next month)
• How to Write a Non-fiction Book
• I just finished this course and I have to say it was decent for the 11.99 price tag. By the way, when you pay for a course on Udemy.com, you have access to it for life. The course covers topics like researching your topic and investigating other books, determining who your target reader is, and then using various tools to begin outlining the book, writing the book, locating an editor and proofreader, revision processes, and finally getting the book onto the market. If you have aspirations about writing a non-fiction book, this course will be worth your while.

Documentaries:

• The Civil War, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)
• The West, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)
• Vietnam, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)

Fun:

• Hell on Wheels (Currently on Netflix)
• The Hollow (Currently on Netflix)
• Goliath (Currently on Amazon Prime)

Workout Routines and Other Weightlifting Knowledge:

https://www.kagedmuscle.com/

Kaged Muscle is run by CEO Kris Gethin. This website provides workout routines, supplements you’ll need, nutrition advice and a whole lot more. I am currently working through the 8-week hardcore trainer.

https://www.bodybuilding.com/

For access to every supplement on the market, access to the top trainers in the world, and also gain access to their training routines, this is the one-stop, shop for anything related to fitness.

Well, that’s it for this week folks! I hope some of this information has been helpful to you.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday

Tags

Books, Coursera, Hillsdale College, Movies, Netflix, Online Classes, Podcasts, Udemy, Weight Loss, Weightlifting

Hello, all! Welcome to another Thinking Thursday, where I’ll give you an idea of what I’ve learned this week, what I’m watching and reading.

This week has been tough. I’m in week 8 of Kris Gethin’s Hardcore Trainer and have literally lost between 1 and 2 pounds daily since Monday, considering the very restricted carbohydrate intake. Today, I’m only allowed a little over 70 grams. Not much. This is the equivalent of about 10 rice cakes. I’ve started the workout routine at 245 pounds and now weigh 229 lbs, with 3 more days to go.

My body thrives in a very, low carb intake type of diet, so I’m all in. This is the last week, then I’ll take a slight breather, raising my carbs up about 50 grams per day and reducing my cardio sessions from 55 minutes twice a day to 45 minutes twice a day.

I’m heading to my sisters this upcoming weekend to go to a comedy show. I’ll have access to one of the gyms I’m a member of while there, but don’t want to be in the gym the entire time I’m at my sister’s house (that’s no fun for her). Anyway, I’ll be lifting daily and hitting my cardio, but taking it a little easy, as I’ve decided to hit this hardcore trainer for another 8 weeks starting on July 3, 2018, when I’m back home. That’s about it on the weightlifting front.

Books I’m reading:

• The same as last week.

Movies I’ve seen:

• Solo (not a bad movie if you’re a Star Wars fan). They really did a great job with this one. I’m not going to drop any spoilers here because it is still in the movie theater and you may not have had time to see it yet.

Netflix:

• Still watching Hell on Wheels, The West, and The Hollow

Classes:

• Public Policy Course
• Learning How to Learn (week 3) I finished the Nonfiction Book writing course on Udemy and will be using the process this instructor used to write his book. I wanted to watch this to get some better ideas on how to start and put together the framework of the book, before getting too far into the writing. I’ve already knocked down quite a lot of content this year but wanted to really get a better handle at formulating the book into an order that would be readable. Subsequently, I’ll be kicking off this book project next month.
• Mini Habits Course is in the hopper. I’ll update here when I begin doing this one.

Podcasts:

• The Tim Ferris Show
• The Knowledge and Mileage Podcast

I wanted to add this to my weekly list because I’m a big fan of Tim Ferris and Kris Gethin, who is currently one of the weightlifting trainers I follow on Bodybuilding.com.

Well, this is it for my week thus far. I’m headed to the gym to knock out Lower Back, Upper Abs, and Hamstrings today. Today is Day 53 of the Hardcore Trainer and I’m stoked!!

Until next time…

Dave

 

 

 

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday – #1

Tags

Amazon Prime Series, Books, Courses, Netflix Documentaries, Netflix Series, Weightlifting sites

Thinking Thursday: An Introduction

I felt this would be a better way to serve you, my readers. Instead of solely a book review, I’ll put down the things I’ve learned, the books I’m currently reading, any documentaries I think might be worth your while, and anything else I can think of. I’ll also give an overview of the courses I have completed so you can check them out or at least make a mental note of them, should you ever become interested in learning these things too!

Books:

The Shariyat Ki Sugmad, Paul Twitchell

The Transformer, Kris Gethin

Turn your passion into a thriving business, Gundi Gabrielle

Andersonville: A story of rebel military prisons, John McElroy

The Orion Plague, David Vandyke

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe

The Science of Getting Rich, Wallace D. Wattles

The Spiritual Exercises of ECK, Harold Klemp

Classes:

Public Policy, Hillsdale College

How to write a nonfiction book fast without writer’s block, Udemy

Learning how to Learn, Coursera

The class I recently completed was the Science of Well-being, offered by Yale University on Coursera. All of the Coursera courses are free unless you want a certificate. If you pursue a certificate, it will typically run you about 45.00 and you’ll have to complete some written assignments and do some peer review work. I really don’t want or need a certificate, so I bypass all of this to gather the knowledge. One really cool thing about these courses is all of the references links, Ted Talks, and books they recommend. This is priceless! Anyways, the course shows you how most people pursue the wrong things to find happiness. It then begins providing you with the things that truly give us happiness, peace, and contentment. The course wraps up by providing you with all of the strategies, supported by the research, that will garner wellness in your life. This course has some really surprising information. I won’t spoil this for anyone. If you want to take the course I highly recommend it. Here’s the link to find it: https://www.coursera.org/learn/the-science-of-well-being/home/welcome

Documentaries:

The Civil War, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)

The West, Ken Burns (Netflix currently)

Fun:

Hell on Wheels (Currently on Netflix)

The Hollow (Currently on Netflix)

Goliath (Currently on Amazon Prime)

Workout Routines and Other Weightlifting Knowledge:

https://www.kagedmuscle.com/

Kaged Muscle is run by CEO Kris Gethin. This website provides workout routines, supplements you’ll need, nutrition advice and a whole lot more. I am currently working through the 8-week hardcore trainer.

https://www.bodybuilding.com/

For access to every supplement on the market, access to the top trainers in the world, and also gain access to their training routines, this is the one-stop, shop for anything related to fitness.

Well, that’s it for this week folks! I hope some of this information has been helpful to you.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursdays – Wellness

Tags

Book reviews, Learning, Non-fiction reading, online courses, Thinking

Hey all!

I decided to change my book review Thursday to Thinking Thursdays. I’ll continue to provide book reviews on Thursday, but only after I’ve finished the book :)!

Instead, since I am a huge advocate of life-long learning, I’ll be discussing what I’m learning on various online courses I’m taking. I’ll also provide you with some content surrounding any areas of interest or articles I find that are intriguing (at least to me).

I don’t have any content in this category today, but will have a lot by next Thursday!

If there is anyone that would be interested in specific content, reply here and I’ll get that to you.

Until next time…

Dave