- There are two main strategies we can adopt to improve the quality of life. The first is to try making external conditions match our goals. The second is to change how we experience external conditions to make them fit our goals better.Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, 1990I hate training….Let me say it again…I hate training for anything, but I don’t mind PRACTICE.As soon as someone says, “Let’s train for something,” I just shut down. Training sounds like WORK to me. I prefer PRACTICE. In my mind, practice translates into something different. I means that I get to do something over and over again until I get it right. I get lots of times to make mistakes and correct them. I like that. I can readjust, tweak and keep on going. Sounds good to me.Whether you read Outliers by Gladwell or Ericsson’s original study, you may or may not be familiar with the 10,000 hour rule. According to Ericsson, one needs 10,000 hours or 10 yrs of deliberate practice to become an expert in a field of study or to master an instrument. This makes sense. If you do something over and over again with increasing levels of difficulty; you will improve.TranslationBasically, we get good at what we do everyday. If we quit everyday; then we become experts in quitting. If we practice good habits on a daily basis; over time we become good at it. If we smile everyday or 10,000 hours or 10 yrs; we will get better at it. I guess I’d rather practice running, jumping, biking, smiling, etc. than training. I guess we should not be surprised when we see Olympic athletes or virtuosos. They are good at what they do because they have had LOTS of practice. I may never be an elite athlete, but I can practice at being the best ME. I do believe that practice makes perfect. I guess we just have to be careful what we practice.~Stayfitt
On Sunday, I started the Chicago Triathlon. It was one of the largest in the United States. The goal was to complete 1500m in Lake Michigan cycle 24.5 miles and run 6.2 miles in Chicago. I completed this race last year. It was both challenging and fun. This year the outcome was not what I had planned. I started the race surrounded by wonderful people, Some I knew while others were strangers. We all started the race together. Rough waters awaited. Lake Michigan looked menacing. She churned and tossed us from the moment we entered the water. Here I am at the first bouy. My plan was slow and steady since I was not familiar with this type of water. So I swam. I remembered saying to myself, "Slow is fast". I focused on each stroke and thought of little else. I saw a friend swim by me. It made me feel great as I turned to the straightaway toward the finish. I could see the finish through my Rx goggles. I swam and swam. As I sighted for the tall buildings in the distanc
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