A Couple of Lessons from the Saddle

I don't exactly know what it was about today that drew me to the keyboard, but as I begin to type it feels good. It feels really good. I thought it would be fair to spend some time discussing what has been a major source of inspiration for me over the last two years and some lessons that I have learned (or relearned) along the way. 

My source of inspiration is The Handle Bar (for a brief description of the Handle Bar see paragraph 3 of my previous blog entry). I have been riding at the Handle Bar for two years and have been an instructor at the Handle Bar for the past year.

I teach a Saturday morning class at 7:25am  so I typically go to bed at 10pm on Friday nights after watching some very relevant Netflix or HBO programming (think season 6 of the Sopranos or season 1 of Orange is the New Black). I wake up around 5:45am to have some coffee, stretch, and listen/dance to a few of the tunes on my morning playlist.

I leave my apartment and walk to the studio around 6:45am. Each week as I walk to the studio, I find myself smiling. I find myself smiling because I am excited that I have the awesome opportunity to share 45 minutes with a group of amazing individuals.  Lesson 1: Surround yourself with amazing people.

Throughout class today (basically during every class) there are moments when you look out into the bike room and you see individuals pushing through discomfort to challenge themselves to be better and stronger. Seeing that inspires me in ways that I am not sure that I can properly describe. The cumulative effect of all of this hard work is a palpable electricity that everyone in the room gets to share. Lesson 2: Without even knowing it, your hard work can inspire others.

I am so happy that I get to start every weekend off with a dose of positivity and hard work.  I don't know what you weekend, week, or month has in store for you, but during that time my hope is that everyone who reads this takes the opportunity to work hard and surround themselves with amazing people.

Gear Up

It is a familiar story that is often told in slightly different way: Sisyphus rolls the ball to the top of the hill, to then be forced to repeat the process, Bill Murray's character in the movie Groundhog Day wakes up each day to the sound of Sonny and Cher's, "I got you babe" and is forced to relieve the day over and over again, or my currently reality that Boston is hit with another major snow storm crushing the transportation system as well as the soul of cities many delightful citizens.

As a result of the major amount of snow, a few things have been happening for me the last two weeks. First, I have a lot of people saying things to me when I am running like: "That takes dedication" or "You're crazy".  Both of which are kind of fun to hear.  I also have been forced into many flying leaps while running as I reach a street corner and there is a giant ice puddle. This has led me to an additional realization that my leaps are somewhere in between a swift cheetah pouncing on its prey and a ballerina that was scared mid-leap by a little mouse.

Also, I have taken the time to supplement my snow running with spin classes at The Handle Bar, which is rising the charts as one of my favorite places in Boston. It is basically a bad ass workout dance party which is also a nice supplement to the solo dance parties I have in the mirror most most mornings before work.  During class, the instructors push everyone to "gear up". I couldn't imagine a better phrase or idea. Take a moment to focus on becoming a better version of yourself.  It is never easy, but it is always worth it.

It is also seems that I have been shoveling out my car for about 2 weeks straight which seems like it could be the most difficult aspect to accept of this winter, but then I remind myself of the purpose of shoveling out my car. I shovel my car so that I can get to work and teach students algebra and how to be awesome. Shoveling a car is a bit easier with that lens. I encourage everyone to choose using the  the positive lens.

Knowing that more snow may be approaching for the upcoming weekend, my thoughts are drawn back to an inspiring college professor and the lesson that Nietzsche would want us to take away from Sisyphus. We have to imagine Sisyphus happy.

 Imagine yourself happy!

Reflections on January 2015

      2015 began without a sweeping resolution, but instead would be centered on a theme, a positive force of nature. The goal would be to consistently push myself to be better and to get others to join in on the fun. January would have a specific set of goals that would start the year in the proper direction.

     The list of January goals was written on a piece of white printer paper that I taped to the side of the dresser in the guest room next to my desk. Every night, I would take the opportunity to revisit my goals for the month and think about the actions that I was taking to achieve my goals. 

   Here was my list:

1. Sub 30 minute 5 mile Fresh Pond Race (a race held each Saturday around a pond near Boston)

2. Meatless Sunday Dinner through Friday Lunches

3. Finish Advisory Curriculum

4. Be Grateful every day.

5. Be Active with 20 different people. 

and I didn't write it on my list, but I made a commitment to having a drink free January. 

 You might expect at this point that I will be writing about my perfect completion of all of my goals, but that is not the case. I was only able to race Fresh Pond during the 1st two weeks of the months and I was able to race the 5 miles in 31:24 in sub optimal conditions. This goal will be moving onto my February list of goals and I look forward to sharing with you the outcome by the end of February. 

During the month of January there was only one instance that I ate meat during the week. It was at breakfast during a snow day after finishing a great run with a great friend. I ordered a meal that had bacon by accident. It was a delicious mistake!

I wrote a ton of advisory curriculum which was definitely the result of this goal. I still need to write a few more lessons to be done for the year, but I refuse to continue to write about it because it is definitely not a "sexy" goal. The Bay State Test Blog deals mostly with "sexy" goals. 

It is the last three goals that I was most excited about during the month of January and I strongly encourage that anyone who reads beyond this point considers setting some  type of similar goals as the net positive that I obtained as a result of being focused on these goals was something that I felt was worth sharing. 

5. I set a goal of being active with 20 different people. I tracked this in a very basic way with a strip of paper that  I listed each person that I was active with during the month. Next to the person's name I wrote the date and way that I was active with that person. Throughout the month, I  pushed myself to invite people to go for a run, or join me at a spin class, or go to yoga. I was active with people that I had never been active with before and I was able to reconnect with friends that I hadn't seen in a long time doing something extremely positive. I only was able to be active with 19 people, but I will set the same goal for February and plan to have a much better outcome. 

I have been drink free for all of January. My mind is sharp and combined with the adjustments in diet and the absurd amount of shoveling that I did during January I have lost 8 pounds. I wasn't drinking  very much in 2014, but the extra focus that I have gained as a result of this commitment has allowed me to push myself mentally, physically, and spiritually. I feel like a life-ninja. 

Lastly, The goal that  I was most proud of achieving for the month of January was the goal of being grateful every day.  I set an alarm on my phone to buzz at 8:30 pm each day so that I would have a time to reflect and write down one thing that I was grateful for on that day ( no repeats). At the end of the month, I had a list of all of the things that  I was grateful for each day. It was great reminded of all the positive things that have fueled me throughout the month of January. I look forward to doing it again in February. 

I hope that you enjoyed reading this and are feeling positive as a result. I haven't written in a while and I feel a bit rusty. I apologize for any grammar or fluency issues that exist in this entry. I hope you had a wonderful January and I hope you have an even better February.

Smile!

He Awoke...

from his slumber. He was recharged and ready to be a warrior once again.

It isn’t always about the running!

I looked around and I realized that I was surrounded by a pretty amazing group of people.

I was in the process of cooking a fairly epic meal. It would be my last meal in my 20’s and I wanted it to be something noteworthy. I was attempting three of my favorites (tortellini alla vodka, eggplant risotto, and penne carbonara).

I didn’t realize in that moment that I would be spending the last two hours of my 20’s engaged in two very different (but both very exciting) activities. The 1^st was a solo dishwashing dance party. The second was sitting in front of bright 14 inch screen as my fingers moved swiftly across the keys.

I would like to share some excellent realizations that I had during this evening.

1. Ace of Base is probably the best music to listen to while having a solo dance party.

2. I was incredibly happy with the life that I lived thus far. The 20’s were a particularly amazing period of time.

3. It isn’t always about the running. As I looked around at the amazing people that I was with who were sharing great stories, food, and laughter together my mind began to think of all the great friends that I have made along the way and the incredibly family that I was fortunate enough to grow up with and be a part of. Running is such an amazing part of my life and I never take it for granted, but it is incredible to know that if I run a 4:34 for the mile instead of a 4:32 that none of these people are going to think less of me in anyway.

4. We can never necessarily predict the direction that life will take us, but the more often we practice being the best version of ourselves the easier it is to smile back at the road that we travel on and help others smile as our paths cross along the way.

5. Chumbawamba is also pretty amazing for solo dance parties.

I hope that whatever circumstance that has led you to reading this blog entry makes you think about where you are in this very moment and all the things, people, and events that have led you to where you are. I hope that in reflecting on all those things you have a great big smile. I hope that you take the time to say something kind to someone who has made you a better you along the way.

Thank you to everyone that shared my last meal of my 20’s with me and anyone that I have ever shared a meal, drink, smile, or a laugh with!

Stay Current

I realized how absurd I must look: a sweaty white guy sitting alone in his car in an empty school parking lot in Roxbury eating room temperature mac and cheese mixed with chili.

My mind flashed to the thought of how important it was to live in a way where you Stay Current.

I think that we live in a culture where we can expect to fall behind and easily catch back up. I came to this realization when I went to watch a tv show On-Demand and it was not available (It wasn’t available because I recently took the exciting step to downgrading to basic tv). I realized that I no longer had the safety net of On- Demand and that the only way for me to know what was going on with Parks and Rec or the Real House Wives of Beverly Hills that I would need to Stay Current.

I realized that I probably wouldn’t be able to Stay Current on these shows ( particularly because I wouldn’t even have access to any fantastic Bravo programming), but then I realized that I was excited about this prospect and how I might be able to challenge myself and others to Stay Current on being the best version of ourselves.

Back to my mac and cheese/chili.

I had just finished an easy 12 mile run after school and my body was craving the immediate intake of protein and carbs. I was really excited that I had the opportunity to satisfy this need with my delicious blend of carbs and protein. I was happy that could Stay Current on some of the needs that would aid my recovery from this run ( I surely could have driven home and wait 25 minutes before eating, but I think having the immediate intake of the mac, cheese, and chili was much more beneficial).

So I challenge people to think of how they can Stay Current on things that will make their life better in a few small ways

- Stay Current ( on your health) and do a set of sit up and push-ups after reading this line. And maybe drink an extra glass of water

- -Stay Current ( on being positive) and tell someone how they impressed you in some way today.

- Stay Current ( on your relationships) and call someone you haven’t spoken to in a while that lives far away

Feel free to add any additional ways to Stay Current on being better versions of ourselves.

Resolve Constantly

If there was one action that I could encourage people to take in 2012, it would be to Resolve Constantly!

I looked at my last blog post and was a little bit upset that my last post was on November 27^th. I was three days and 29 miles from hitting my November Goal of 240 miles for the month. It was ambitious and I am sure that people may have wondered if I hit my goal. Did his resolve wane? Is that why he hasn’t blogged in so long?

I am very happy to report that since my last entry, my resolve has grown even stronger and I am back on a familiar path of pushing myself and others to be the best versions of themselves.

I resolved three things for December and I achieved all of these resolutions.

- I ran with 25 different people for the month

- I ran a sub 4:40 mile.

- I ran 255 miles for the month.

I am resolving for a January filled with:

- 265 miles

- Only 3 days of pizza eating

- a Sub 4:33 mile.

As we make our way into the New Year, I would hope that people take time out of each month, week, and day to resolve something.

Resolve constantly, and push yourself to be a much better version of yourself.

Resolve constantly, and share your mini-resolutions with the people around you so that they can hold you accountable for being that better version of yourself.

Resolve constantly, and encourage others to resolve constantly to make themselves better version of themselves.

Everyone deserves to be a better version of themselves today than they were yesterday. Everyone deserves to be a better version of yourself tomorrow than you are today.

This does not happen by chance.

Resolve Constantly and Constantly Create a Better Version of Yourself!