Recently, for whatever reason, I've started reading like crazy. The more I read, the more I realize there's ever more to read. Crazy, huh.
With all of this uncertainty around our future (when we'll be back together, where we'll live, what job I'll be doing, etc.) and with a desire to maintain and improve my optimistic outlook, I've turned to self-help/ motivational books. Like Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude, the book I'm reading now, says, "motivation is like a fire: unless you continue to add fuel, it will go out."
pic from www.barnesandnoble.com
This is an older book, copyright 1960, written by Napoleon Hill and W. Clement Stone. I'm new to this kind of reading, but apparently Hill has written a number of famous books while Stone built his own insurance company out of $100. As I read through it, I'll pass on some helpful and inspiring notes and quotes. So far, I've found this applicable to every part of my life from job hunting to athletics to simple conversation with folks. Please enjoy!
Introduction
"The greatest secret to success is: there is no secret."
"It's impossible for you to conceive how far up is, except for the limitations of your own mind."
E komo mai or
'welcome' in Hawai'ian. I'm on the ground in this most gorgeous place!
Having been here a week, I'm starting to settle in
a bit. But, not too settled, I don't have a job yet! I had my
interview with one person last week and it went well, but one of the decision
makers was sick, so I'll have another interview this week. Fingers
crossed!
Most of my time here has been spent prepping for
interviews, but I've also been checking out the city. Waikiki is
obviously the tourist paradise that you imagine. The business district is
15-20mins west of Waikiki by bus and very similar to the downtown of most
cities. The main differences being that here is relatively small and most
business people wear Hawai'ian shirts. Yes, seriously. Business
slacks and Hawai'ian shirts.
I'm staying between Waikiki and downtown (not sure
if people here call it "downtown", but I will) in a very local and
heavy traffic area. It's not a long-term spot, but it's cheap, safe, has a
grocery store, restaurants and the main bus lines nearby.
walking around Kaka'ako
Another place I checked out, which I doubt most
tourists get to, is an area called Kaka'ako. It's kind of the Shoreditch
(London) or Lower East Side (NYC) of Honolulu complete with industrial/
warehouse buildings, street art and of course the relatively recent organic
cafes with great coffee. No hipsters, but it felt very homey. To
top it all off, they have a night market and food trucks at the end of every
month, so hopefully I'm still around.
As for working out, I’ve been running, swimming and
doing strength work down at Ala Moana Beach Park, which is about 15min walk straight
down from my place. It’s a nice beach,
bigger than Waikiki and with less people, so great for swimming. From one end to the other is just over 1km. The water is relatively calm but moves enough
to throw off a mainly pool-bound swimmer like me. It’s incredible to do all this outside for
free!
Ala Moana Beach Park pic from www.hawaiiforvisitors.com
I also popped into a local tri/bike shop and picked
up loads of info on races. I’ve got some
picked out, so let’s hope we’ll be here long term!
We hit 5,000 views! Yay! Thanks so much for following guys.
The last couple weeks have been filled with packing and farewell parties in Japan, a quick trip to Bali (incredible!) and of course a bit of training. I'll fill in all the blanks later, but it's now T minus four hours to takeoff for Hawaii (interview on Wed).
Strange, sad and nervous are all in my head, but so is a lot of excitement. It's strange that my home will no longer be my home, sad to leave friends, awful to be apart with my wife for a bit (we're working on her US visa), and the uncertainty of where our future leads makes me nervous. But overall, we're chasing a dream, and that's just excitingly awesome!
Last week was a nice reminder of why it's good to change up your workout routine every now and then.
I was running on a trail and passed an outdoor workout area with a pull-up bar, so decided to do a quick routine: 5 => 1 => 5 pyramid set of pull-ups with dead lifts in between. Looking around for something to dead lift, all I found was some small rocks, about 3kg each. The weight was really low, so I decided to do 12 reps with each set (i.e. 10 sets x 12 reps).
little outdoor workout area with pull-up bar
During the workout, it felt like nothing, but the next day and the next and the next, you better believe I felt it. I've been doing dead lifts at higher weights in the gym, but the number of reps and sets was a total change.
Moral of the story, change up your workout! Just like medicine, your body builds up a tolerance and ability to handle the same exercises. After a while, your marginal improvement is very little or nothing at all.
For my strength and conditioning work, I like to change the routine about every 15 weeks. For me, this is enough time to see improvement, and it's about the time I start to get bored with a routine.
Most of my workouts come from the sites below or just watching what personal trainers do with their clients at the gym. My 15 weeks is up in about 2 weeks and it's time to change. If it's been a while for you, think about mixing it up.
Every once in a while, CNN.com has a great article about endurance sports around the world. Click HERE for one such treat about great rides all over.
I've had my eye on the Great Divide for a while and recently learned about the Shimanami Kaido which seems like the most basic of all those in the article. Should I get these two out of my system, the others would be next!
The job hunt continues. Everything still rolling with the Hawaii-gig, but no offer yet, so hoping there's a decision either way soon.
As far as training goes, I've settled into a decent routine each week: 1 trail run (10-20k), 2 road runs (10k), 1 or 2 swims (1k) and 4 strength and conditioning sessions. The only thing missing is at least one bike! But, that all ends this week. Wed morning, I'm getting up early and heading out on the bike. The forecast says rain, but I've been making excuses for 5 months, so nothing is going to keep from getting out there.
While I'm enjoying this routine, the lack of clear training goal is frustrating. I can't wait til we find a place and settle, then I can sign up for races and have a few goals. Can't wait!
On the professional triathlon front, the ITU season is underway having finished 4 events with some great races and a few surprises (at least surprising to me). Javier Gomez leads the points for the men while Gwen Jorgensen of the US leads for the women. The surprising thing for me is that Alistair Brownlee, the 2012 London gold medalist, has not finished on the podium in either of the two races he's competed in. I'm sure it'll start going his way at some point in the season, and I can't wait to see those fireworks.
Read more HERE or check out the videos below. If you like all out sprint finishes, I highly recommend the first video.
Switching over to soccer, in case you missed it, Arsenal ended their 9 year trophy draught by taking home the FA Cup trophy last month! This is a totally different and more mature team than in recent years. On several occasions this year, they've gone down early only to charge back and take the victory. The FA Cup was another example of this going down 2 goals in the opening 10mins only to come back for a 3-2 win. Let's hope they carry this into next season!
Finally, with the World Cup around the corner, click HERE for a nice site giving previews of all of the teams. Of course, I'll be rooting for Team USA with a bit of love for Japan too.
