for a follow up on yesterdays post, I thought to write about changes again, as its the time of the year to think about what we want to achieve before the Xmas presents come out. So often one of my athletes, or someone I hardly know (they tend to find me lately), will ask me how to make changes in their lives that stick, as they seem to wander off track so often.

Now that you have the Cheatsheet, how do we go about practical examples?

Part of living in a one stop, instant satisfaction society is that we expect everything NOW. Our perception of patience, is as such, a little warped. We expect that if we make a change today, it should last forever, but in reality, we need to reinforce these changes every day.

For me there are a few key factors that I need to make effort on, on a daily basis, for at least a few weeks, when I want to make a change in my life. Here are some constructive real world examples:

1. A while ago I wanted to lose 7kg in 7 weeks. I had to talk to myself every time I wanted something sugary, or something full of wheat, which meant that at least 10 times a day for the first 4 weeks, I had to make the hard decision to NOT go for the short term satisfaction. The result; people tell me I am too skinny now, which means I am right on track. For the record, I am still under my Ironman race weight and nowhere near MTB race weight.

2. I wanted to make the change to becoming a better cyclist (point 1 is a part of this), as it was, and still is, the weak link in my triathlon armor. So I undertook a 3 year plan. Yes, not a 12 week fix, but a 3 year plan. This is year 2 at the moment, and the big changes came in year one. Now, to get to where I want to with cycling, I have reinforced training and committed to challenges (like Cape Epic) that will give me a boost in year 2, and hopefully, in year 3, I will have that breakthrough performance. My aim was to make my cycling up by 14%, but to get there, I would have to spend 3 years working at it, so that my run could stay the same.

Yes, I could probably go and ride what I want to now, but I would walk half the marathon in an Ironman afterward, which is not the way to make the lasting change. Once I am at this new level, it will be almost impossible to go back, because I have done it in the right way. Here I am talking about a realistic plan. Set out a long term plan and constantly benchmark is along the way, as you might need to back up, or slow down a little, to meet the plan’s goals and objectives.

3. I wanted to find more time in my life. I had to take a very real outlook at the long term application of how I was going about my daily days. I found that I spent loads of time doing things which were not of any productive value. I set out my day into 30min slots and found SO many of them to be useless. So I started cutting out 30min slots, until I had a few more hours a day. When it still wasn’t enough, I took the change to start my own business, so that I could have more productive time. I cut out alot of “mental junk food” and now, I have time, every single day, to sit and think. I also have around 30min to sit and do nothing, think about nothing, and in essence, reboot my mind. But I had to slow my life down to get there. Going slowly, is the first step to going really fast.

Hope that all makes just a smidgen of sense to you today. Its merely a follow up on that amazing post yesterday.

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Original was written here and as always, Leo has outdone himself, again. Man, my goal is life is to become as wise as this guy, he is such an inspiration to me and I use so much of his writing on my own blog, as I find the practical application of his work so easy to deal with. I know you are going to love this.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. – Aristotle

Our daily lives are often a series of habits played out through the day, a trammeled existence fettered by the slow accretion of our previous actions.

But habits can be changed, as difficult as that may seem sometimes.

I’m a living example: in tiny, almost infinitesimal steps, I’ve changed a laundry list of habits. Quit smoking, stopped impulse spending, got out of debt, began running and waking early and eating healthier and becoming frugal and simplifying my life and becoming organized and focused and productive, ran three marathons and a couple of triathlons, started a few successful blogs, eliminated my debt … you get the picture.

It’s possible.

And while I’ve written about habit change many times over the course of the life of Zen Habits, today I thought I’d put the best tips all together in one cheatsheet, for those new to the blog and for those who could use the reminders.

Keep it simple
Habit change is not that complicated. While the tips below will seem overwhelming, there’s really only a few things you need to know. Everything else is just helping these to become reality.

The simple steps of habit change:

1. Write down your plan.

2. Identify your triggers and replacement habits.

3. Focus on doing the replacement habits every single time the triggers happen, for about 30 days.

That’s it. We’ll talk more about each of these steps, and much more, in the cheatsheet below.

The Habit Change Cheatsheet

The following is a compilation of tips to help you change a habit. Don’t be overwhelmed — always remember the simple steps above. The rest are different ways to help you become more successful in your habit change.

1. Do just one habit at a time. Extremely important. Habit change is difficult, even with just one habit. If you do more than one habit at a time, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Keep it simple, allow yourself to focus, and give yourself the best chance for success. Btw, this is why New Year’s resolutions often fail — people try to tackle more than one change at a time.

2. Start small. The smaller the better, because habit change is difficult, and trying to take on too much is a recipe for disaster. Want to exercise? Start with just 5-10 minutes. Want to wake up earlier? Try just 10 minutes earlier for now. Or consider half habits.

3. Do a 30-day Challenge. In my experience, it takes about 30 days to change a habit, if you’re focused and consistent. This is a round number and will vary from person to person and habit to habit. Often you’ll read a magical “21 days” to change a habit, but this is a myth with no evidence. Seriously — try to find the evidence from a scientific study for this. A more recent study shows that 66 days is a better number (read more). But 30 days is a good number to get you started. Your challenge: stick with a habit every day for 30 days, and post your daily progress updates to a forum.

4. Write it down. Just saying you’re going to change the habit is not enough of a commitment. You need to actually write it down, on paper. Write what habit you’re going to change.

5. Make a plan. While you’re writing, also write down a plan. This will ensure you’re really prepared. The plan should include your reasons (motivations) for changing, obstacles, triggers, support buddies, and other ways you’re going to make this a success. More on each of these below.

6. Know your motivations, and be sure they’re strong. Write them down in your plan. You have to be very clear why you’re doing this, and the benefits of doing it need to be clear in your head. If you’re just doing it for vanity, while that can be a good motivator, it’s not usually enough. We need something stronger. For me, I quit smoking for my wife and kids. I made a promise to them. I knew if I didn’t smoke, not only would they be without a husband and father, but they’d be more likely to smoke themselves (my wife was a smoker and quit with me).

7. Don’t start right away. In your plan, write down a start date. Maybe a week or two from the date you start writing out the plan. When you start right away (like today), you are not giving the plan the seriousness it deserves. When you have a “Quit Date” or “Start Date”, it gives that date an air of significance. Tell everyone about your quit date (or start date). Put it up on your wall or computer desktop. Make this a Big Day. It builds up anticipation and excitement, and helps you to prepare.

8. Write down all your obstacles. If you’ve tried this habit change before (odds are you have), you’ve likely failed. Reflect on those failures, and figure out what stopped you from succeeding. Write down every obstacle that’s happened to you, and others that are likely to happen. Then write down how you plan to overcome them. That’s the key: write down your solution before the obstacles arrive, so you’re prepared.

9. Identify your triggers. What situations trigger your current habit? For the smoking habit, for example, triggers might include waking in the morning, having coffee, drinking alcohol, stressful meetings, going out with friends, driving, etc. Most habits have multiple triggers. Identify all of them and write them in your plan.

10. For every single trigger, identify a positive habit you’re going to do instead. When you first wake in the morning, instead of smoking, what will you do? What about when you get stressed? When you go out with friends? Some positive habits could include: exercise, meditation, deep breathing, organizing, decluttering, and more.

“Habit is habit, and not to be flung out of the window by any man, but coaxed downstairs a step at a time.” – Mark Twain

11. Plan a support system. Who will you turn to when you have a strong urge? Write these people into your plan. Support forums online are a great tool as well — I used a smoking cessation forum on about.com when I quit smoking, and it really helped. Don’t underestimate the power of support — it’s really important.

12. Ask for help. Get your family and friends and co-workers to support you. Ask them for their help, and let them know how important this is. Find an AA group in your area. Join online forums where people are trying to quit. When you have really strong urges or a really difficult time, call on your support network for help. Don’t smoke a cigarette, for example, without posting to your online quit forum. Don’t have a drop of alcohol before calling your AA buddy.

13. Become aware of self-talk. You talk to yourself, in your head, all the time — but often we’re not aware of these thoughts. Start listening. These thoughts can derail any habit change, any goal. Often they’re negative: “I can’t do this. This is too difficult. Why am I putting myself through this? How bad is this for me anyway? I’m not strong enough. I don’t have enough discipline. I suck.” It’s important to know you’re doing this.

14. Stay positive. You will have negative thoughts — the important thing is to realize when you’re having them, and push them out of your head. Squash them like a bug! Then replace them with a positive thought. “I can do this! If Leo can do it, so can I!” :)

15. Have strategies to defeat the urge. Urges are going to come — they’re inevitable, and they’re strong. But they’re also temporary, and beatable. Urges usually last about a minute or two, and they come in waves of varying strength. You just need to ride out the wave, and the urge will go away. Some strategies for making it through the urge: deep breathing, self-massage, eat some frozen grapes, take a walk, exercise, drink a glass of water, call a support buddy, post on a support forum.

16. Prepare for the sabotagers. There will always be people who are negative, who try to get you to do your old habit. Be ready for them. Confront them, and be direct: you don’t need them to try to sabotage you, you need their support, and if they can’t support you then you don’t want to be around them.

17. Talk to yourself. Be your own cheerleader, give yourself pep talks, repeat your mantra (below), and don’t be afraid to seem crazy to others. We’ll see who’s crazy when you’ve changed your habit and they’re still lazy, unhealthy slobs!

18. Have a mantra. For quitting smoking, mine was “Not One Puff Ever” (I didn’t make this up, but it worked — more on this below). When I wanted to quit my day job, it was “Liberate Yourself”. This is just a way to remind yourself of what you’re trying to do.

19. Use visualization. This is powerful. Vividly picture, in your head, successfully changing your habit. Visualize doing your new habit after each trigger, overcoming urges, and what it will look like when you’re done. This seems new-agey, but it really works.

20. Have rewards. Regular ones. You might see these as bribes, but actually they’re just positive feedback. Put these into your plan, along with the milestones at which you’ll receive them.

21. Take it one urge at a time. Often we’re told to take it one day at a time — which is good advice — but really it’s one urge at a time. Just make it through this urge.

22. Not One Puff Ever (in other words, no exceptions). This seems harsh, but it’s a necessity: when you’re trying to break the bonds between an old habit and a trigger, and form a new bond between the trigger and a new habit, you need to be really consistent. You can’t do it sometimes, or there will be no new bond, or at least it will take a really really long time to form. So, at least for the first 30 days (and preferably 60), you need to have no exceptions. Each time a trigger happens, you need to do the new habit and not the old one. No exceptions, or you’ll have a backslide. If you do mess up, regroup, learn from your mistake, plan for your success, and try again (see the last item on this list).

23. Get rest. Being tired leaves us vulnerable to relapse. Get a lot of rest so you can have the energy to overcome urges.

24. Drink lots of water. Similar to the item above, being dehydrated leaves us open to failure. Stay hydrated!

25. Renew your commitment often. Remind yourself of your commitment hourly, and at the beginning and end of each day. Read your plan. Celebrate your success. Prepare yourself for obstacles and urges.

26. Set up public accountability. Blog about it, post on a forum, email your commitment and daily progress to friend and family, post a chart up at your office, write a column for your local newspaper (I did this when I ran my first marathon). When we make it public — not just the commitment but the progress updates — we don’t want to fail.

27. Engineer it so it’s hard to fail. Create a groove that’s harder to get out of than to stay in: increase positive feedback for sticking with the habit, and increase negative feedback for not doing the habit. Read more on this method.

28. Avoid some situations where you normally do your old habit, at least for awhile, to make it a bit easier on yourself. If you normally drink when you go out with friends, consider not going out for a little while. If you normally go outside your office with co-workers to smoke, avoid going out with them. This applies to any bad habit — whether it be eating junk food or doing drugs, there are some situations you can avoid that are especially difficult for someone trying to change a bad habit. Realize, though, that when you go back to those situations, you will still get the old urges, and when that happens you should be prepared.

29. If you fail, figure out what went wrong, plan for it, and try again. Don’t let failure and guilt stop you. They’re just obstacles, but they can be overcome. In fact, if you learn from each failure, they become stepping stones to your success. Regroup. Let go of guilt. Learn. Plan. And get back on that horse.

Your net worth to the world is usually determined by what remains after your bad habits are subtracted from your good ones. – Benjamin Franklin

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Suunto is proud to offer a new selection of training tips – made for women, by women. Kirsi Valasti, an Olympic runner, accomplished triathlete, mother of two, business woman, occupational therapist and psychotherapist, will provide handy tips to help you make each run more productive than the last. And considering that she’s been a competitive runner for the past 25 years, take our word for it – she knows what she’s talking about.

For more tips, check out Kirsi’s recently published running book for women, currently available in Finnish, called “Naisen Juoksukirja”.

Check out Kirsi’s newest tips on what active women should eat and drink as well as on what to do when you don’t have time to run at the end of this page.

Why is running so popular among women?

For many women the reason to run originates from a desire to lose weight and tone their bodies. Running is indeed one of the most effective ways to burn calories in relation to the time used. It is a very intensive health exercise, since it strengthens at the same time the lung and heart as well as the blood vascular system and skeletal structure of a runner. The most common reason for the popularity of running is simply the fact that you can go running whenever and wherever you want to either alone or with some company. You only need some running clothes and a pair of sneakers. Time is not wasted in packing or travelling to some faraway exercise spot. Running has even a great meditative effect on many women. While running after a hectic work day, your mind can rest and your creativity is given free rein. At least for me the best ideas pop up during running.

How to get started, when you want to be able to run 10 kilometres one day?

With running there’s no shortcut to happiness and patience is a clear asset, too. Unlike e.g. walking, swimming or cross country skiing, you first need to reach a certain fitness level to be able to run. This is why you have to start with a combination of running and walking by turns. To begin with, you warm up with 10 to 15 minutes of brisk walking. Then you run a couple of minutes at relaxed pace ensuring a nice run. After each dash you walk twice as far as you ran. You should have 2 to 4 of these combined running and walking exercises in a week, and each exercise should last 30 minutes. Once a week for instance during the weekend you should take a longer walk with or without walking poles. Gradually you start running more and walking less so that in the end you are able to run for 30 minutes uninterrupted. Even after this achievement it is probably a good idea to run only during every other training session continuously. You should not run through all exercises, until several weeks have passed. Now and then it is also useful to strengthen the musculature of your middle body, since these muscles keep your running stance correct. It is a common mistake to start running with too much speed and too long distances, which make running seem dull and then you easily give it up altogether.

The most important equipment for distance runners:

Good running shoes that fit well, walking shoes, gym shoes or hiking boots are not suitable for running. Remember that the most supported shoe on the market is not necessarily the best shoe for you. If you have a petite foot then you need neutral shoes. It is also recommended to invest in good running apparel, because lightweight and comfortable apparel will remove moisture from the skin. The so-called ‘technical fabric’ sportswear makes running more enjoyable. Running tights or shorts, a technical t-shirt, a long-sleeved top, seamless socks and a supportive sports bra should all be part of a runner’s basic sports equipment. Of course in wintertime you will need a warm set of underwear, a cap and gloves will protect from the wind, leg warmers to cover your ankles and Achilles tendon and wind blocker trousers with NO cotton lining, as a cotton lining will prevent the leg from lifting freely, and cotton does not breathe well.

What are the advantages of using a heart rate monitor?

Most of us will find several advantages when using a heart rate monitor. It is easier to monitor your training, to see whether it is base running or whether your heart rate goes up to make the exercise effect moderate. This way training will be rhythmic and you are not running too fast. A heart rate monitor will also help you measure progress, e.g. your resting heart rate.

How can you take advantage of the Foot POD?

Many women are afraid of technology – at least I am. We women often just want to enjoy running, and not compete with our neighbour who had the harder run. With help of the Foot POD you can easily see your progress. You may for instance notice that you can run at the same heart rate level and take a longer run than before. It is easy to use when you are travelling and you want to know how far you have run and what your pace is. However it is good to remember that when running uphill the speed will drop. You should not check your speed and distance too often, but have a look at it every 5-10 minutes. If you keep staring at your heart rate monitor or other monitors all the time, it will take the fun out of running.

NEW! – What should an active runner woman eat and drink?

Even if you want to lose weight, you must eat regularly and sufficiently. Often women forego a warm dinner in favour of eating light sandwiches. Eating only sandwiches will not keep the hunger at bay and you will end up eating too much bad fat and unnecessary calories. Often women eat too little and too few proteins, such as fish, chicken, meat or soy.

For a healthy and balanced diet you need meals every 3-4 hours. Snacks are also desirable. Eating only green salad will not take you far and your training will not progress. Fish oil either in fish or as a capsule is important to get enough omega3 fatty acid. Extra vitamin D and calcium is necessary if you do not use milk products. I use extra vitamin D and calcium throughout the year, even though I also consume low-fat milk products.

During a busy working day many of us forget to drink enough water, and in the afternoon you feel tired and stale. We need 2 litres of water every day plus one litre for every hour you have been exercising. Part of the water can be consumed in sports drinks or juice.

NEW! – What can you do when you have no time?

Because you can run whenever you like, it is too easy to skip if you are tired or busy. It is not worth spending time pondering whether to go for a run or not, you should just go! Of course if you are sick or stressed, you cannot run. For some of us it helps if we set a goal, but the goal does not need to be running a marathon. It can also be 10km, a half marathon or a regular jog 2-3 times a week for the next six months. After that you can see what to do next. You should also mark the training times in your calendar, so that you can hold on to it as e.g. to a tennis lesson. You should also tell your friends that you have decided to run to get support from them. For women running can be a social event, a way to keep in touch with friends. What could be better than getting your friends to join you for a run?

for more info, log onto Suunto.com

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Whasp Legend of Suzumebachi the Emishi Warrior
Heian periods (7th10th centuries AD).

The story goes…. During the 38 year war somewhere between 774-811AD, Honshu, Japan,in the Tōhoku region a peasant farmer from the Emishi Clan had a near death experience after accidentally stumbling upon a hornets nest.He had got lost in a tropical forest fleeing from magistrates sent to govern their lands and collect taxes.

Searching for food he mistakenly opened a hornet’s nest, thinking that he would find honey in the “bee hive”. He managed to escape the deadly swarm by diving over a cliff into a steam, clutching the nest under his arm.

Once on the riverbank, still hungry, he opened the nest and found thousands of larvae in the nest. In desperate need of energy and stamina he started to eat the larva for survival, carrying the nest with him and replenishing his energy as he ran for miles through the forest looking for a road to take him back to his village.

He managed to find his village 3 days later after travelling more than 200 km inland down the northern bank of the Kitakami River.

When the people in the village asked him what happened to him he told them that he came across a miracle juice secreted by the larvae of what he called, the “Sparrow Bee”. He originally had mistaken the black and orange body of the wasp for a bee and because of the size, 50mm from head to stinger and the 76mm wingspan of the insect reminded him of a sparrow, therefore the reference to “Sparrow Bee” or Suzumebachi in Japanese.

The clan then renamed him Suzumebachi, later becomming the fearless leader Aterui. In the year 789 AD at the Battle of Koromo River (also known as Battle of Sufuse) the Japanese army under Ki no Kosami Seito shogun was defeated by the Isawa Emishi under their general Aterui. A four thousand strong army was attacked as they tried to cross the Kitakami River by a force of a thousand Emishi. The imperial army suffered its most stunning defeat, losing a thousand men, many of whom drowned.

It is believed that the defeat was possible because the 1,000 strong Emishi force ingested the larvae juice of “The Asian Giant Hornet”, Vespa mandarinia, also known as the Japanese hornet, it is the world’s largest hornet, native to temperate and tropical Eastern Asia.

Modern science has identified and isolated the secret behind the Vespa’s near supernatural energy, stamina and power. The adult wasp does not eat this solid food, rather, it receives a liquid secreted by the larvae in a symbiotic relationship called trophallaxis. This potent larvae juice consists of a specific amino acid profile believed to act as an enzyme catalysis to increase the bodies ability to metabolize fat and use it as energy.

The Asian Mandarin Wasp (Vespa mandarina) is one of nature’s most potent endurance animals. This wasp flies between 70-100 KM per day in search of food and carries between up to its entire body weight in food back to the colony to feed to the larvae.
The key to sustaining athletic performance lies in optimizing the body’s ability to metabolize fat. Fortunately, the body has a plentiful and highly concentrated supply of energy in the form of fat. Training for endurance develops mitochondria, large mitochondria, which increases the body’s ability to oxidize fatty acids.

The unique amino acid complex derived from the Vespa mandarinia Wasp works by shifting the muscles to metabolize a higher level of fat during physical activity thus stabilizing and conserving glycogen.

The brain and nervous system have to utilize glucose to function optimally, however, they require very little. Muscle tissue, when using glucose for muscle metabolism, consumes glycogen at an extremely high rate which will eventually result in the commonly experienced state of “bonking” if sugars are not replaced.

By shifting the muscles to metabolize a higher percentage of fat as the primary energy source glycogen/glucose levels are stabilized and conserved so the brain and nervous system can function optimally resulting in greater mental clarity/focus and optimal motor skills/coordination over a greater period of time.

Whasp Endurance Energy went a few steps further in selecting only those Amino Acids in the natural profile which are beneficial for human psychology and which have the scientific backing to prove the results.

The specific Amino Acid Complex has been carefully selected to form a synergistic matrix for optimum results. The formula has been developed to help;
- increase your physical endurance
- reduce lactic acid build-up in your muscles
- transforms reserves of body fat into long lasting energy
- lose body fat when exercising/training (Helps transfer fat into energy)
- enables the body to use the reserve glycogen as energy
- reduce muscle fatigue and cramping and after events

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I found this article on PP Fitness, a Urban Ninja Ambassador project, and thought to share it. People ask me all the time about recovery. Obviously, nutrition plays a key part in recovery, but the one thing I could not live without is my compression gear.

Rockets Compression Gear was designed and introduced to the South African market by Peak Performance Fitness. These garments are exclusively invented to improve performance by speeding up one’s recovery rate. This concept has been scientifically tested & proven.

Compression Garments will improve your performance and recovery by:
• Increasing oxygen transport and delivery to the working muscles
• Assisting in removal of lactic acid from working muscles
• Accelerating venous return to the heart
• Ensuring greater mechanical efficiency by allowing less muscle vibration
• Assisting with temperature control

RCGs can be worn during exercise to improve performance, after exercise to assist with recovery, during rehabilitation to reduce swelling and assist with recovery, and finally, during long distance travel or periods of inactivity to reduce blood pooling or the onset of Deep Vein Thrombosis.

Lance Armstrong is always a well-dressed guy, but recently I’ve been getting questions about one of his newest fashion accessories: compression socks. Plenty of people have seen Lance wearing black knee-high socks on the bus after stages at the Tour de France, and he also wore them on the plane ride a few days ago during a transfer. His friend, comedian Robin Williams, also gave him a little grief about them in a video. So, what’s the deal with compression?

Well, compression technology is the latest recovery aid to hit the endurance sports world. The idea behind it is that compression around the legs improves recovery by assisting your body in the process of circulating blood and lymph fluids through fatigued muscles. People with circulation issues have used compression socks and stockings for many years, mainly to combat deep vein thrombosis (blood clots in veins deep within the lower leg) and varicose veins (veins with faulty valves that allow blood to pool in the veins instead of being rapidly returned to the heart). Their use in healthy populations – especially athletes – is relatively new, and there’s still a lot of research to be done to truly determine the impact they have on performance and recovery.

Last winter, CTS sports scientist Dean Golich started working with a pair of Normatec MVP compression boots. This piece of equipment, also used by the Garmin-Slipstream team, uses a pneumatic pump to apply compression to the legs and then release that pressure over and over again. The idea is to simulate the normal blood and lymph fluid pumping action that working muscles provide when you’re walking or cycling – but to do that while the athlete is resting.

Lance used the Normatec boots during his comeback training, and we had him wear them while lying down after rides. Overall, Lance’s response was good; his legs felt fresher and less sore the following day. Now, if you’re one of those people who needs proof and numbers before you believe that something works, I don’t have a whole lot to tell you. The Normatec boots are a new product, and the use of compression technology for enhancing performance and recovery is a relatively new technique. I think it’s a promising technology, and even if more research is needed to fully understand how it works, athletes are successfully using it already.

The compression socks that everyone sees Lance wearing at the Tour de France don’t work exactly the same way as the Normatec boots, in that they don’t have a pneumatic pump applying pressure to his legs. They are, however, smaller and much easier to put on in the bus, and you can walk around in them. Depending on the distance between the finish line and the team’s hotel, the trip back from the race can be quite long. When athletes sit for long periods of time after finishing a strenuous bout of exercise, they often experience some swelling in their legs and feet. No doubt many of you have had the same experience driving home from a race or century ride (cankles, anyone?). The compression socks seem to prevent some of his swelling, and that helps speed up the recovery process.

While wearing the compression socks and using compression boots after exercise appears to be effective for enhancing recovery, don’t expect to see Lance wearing compression socks on the bike. During exercise – at least during cycling – there doesn’t appear to be much, if any, benefit. Some runners and triathletes have reported benefits from using them during exercise, but like so much about compression technology, the research is still being developed. If there is a benefit to runners that doesn’t translate to cyclists, it may be due to the fact that the muscles in the lower legs are far more important for optimizing running performance. In cycling, the calves don’t add much in the way of power; they’re primary role is to stabilize the ankle and provide a stable platform to transfer the power generated by the upper leg and buttocks.

Training and recovery technologies come and go, but this one appears to have legs (pun intended). It will take a bit longer to sort out the science, but riders are experiencing good results from wearing them, and any little thing that can improve your recovery from one stage to the next is worth trying. And the best part is, compression socks and Normatec boots are simple and can be used while the athlete is doing exactly what they would normally be doing after a long race or training ride: relaxing.

If you are not using some form of Compression Gear, you are missing out on a vital piece of equipment in your arsenal. I choose Rockets because local is lekker, and because their product makes a HUGE difference to me in my training. Their pricing, by the way, is also phenomenal. Surf over to their website and check it out.

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Today, on my Twitter account, I asked what people wanted to hear about on this blog. The response was varied, so I thought to ask the question here again.

What do you want to hear about? What do you want me to answer for you?

I am happy to do research (which I do every day on this blog) for you, and get you the best answer, for your question.

Shoot Away…

What do I want?

I want a set of shoes with my name on, like these:

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Nice. Now go back to work.

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Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Mary Jaksch of Goodlife Zen and I read it first on Zenhabits

Are you anxious at times? I am. Let’s face it, there’s plenty of anxiety to go around: lay-offs, relationship crises, pandemics, violence – and that’s just for starters.

Actually, anxiety is a natural alarm system that keeps us safe and productive. But it can become a chronic mindset. When that happens, it can deaden joy and stifle creativity.

How to tackle anxiety
In my life it’s not so much the big-ticket items like the current influenza or the economic meltdown that make me anxious, it’s the fact that I tend to over-commit myself. The result is that I’m always a bit behind schedule. Anyone else feel like that?

One way to deal with overload is to pare down commitments, as Leo Babauta describes in his beautiful post, How to be less busy in a busy, busy world. Another way is to change our ingrained thought patterns and emotional responses.

Luckily there are some wonderful techniques that can help us to stay relaxed, focused, grounded, and cheerful – even under pressure. After all, anxiety is not produced by something external. It’s an internal response to stress. We can train the mind to respond in a more skillful way.

I want to share with you how I stay reasonably sane, grounded, and creative in the midst of a full life. But first let’s take a closer look at anxiety.

Fight-flight-freeze: three responses to anxiety
Anxiety is a low-grade fear. It’s difficult to pinpoint the exact cause of one’s anxiety. That’s because anxiety is pervasive, whereas fear has a clear target.

We are hardwired to respond in three different ways when faced with danger: fight, flight, or freeze.

Imagine that you are hiking in a National Park. Suddenly you spot a bear. Faced with immediate danger, you instinctively choose one of three options: you either try to scare off the bear by making yourself look big, or by shouting (that’s the ‘fight’ response). Or you immediately turn and run to safety (that’s the flight response). Or you stand very still in the hope that the bear won’t notice you (that’s the ‘freeze’ response).

Let’s look at how these responses play out in everyday life:

1. Fight: When we’re anxious, we tend to be irritable. This is the ‘fight’ response. Because anxiety is pervasive and doesn’t have a clear target, we tend to snap at those around us.

2. Flight: Sometimes we try to avoid what makes us anxious. People who suffer from severe anxiety even avoid stepping outside their home.

3. Freeze: The freeze response produces procrastination and stage fright. I certainly know about these two. You too?

Note that I’m talking about ordinary anxiety, and not about anxiety disorders. If you suffer from panic attacks or phobias, read this useful article, or get professional help.

Anxiety is an emotion that sends our mind into the future. After all, nobody is anxious about the past, right? As human beings we tend to think in stories that are like mind-movies. Anxious mind-movies usually have a ‘what if?’ scenario.

So what winds us up into anxiety are particular thought patterns and stories. Take a look at the following list and see if any points seem familiar:

1. Self-doubts: Do you doubt your ability? Do you think you haven’t got what it takes, in order to succeed?

2. Wanting Control of the future: Do you want to want to control what happens in future? The truth is that even if we lay great plans, the unexpected can happen. And life has inescapable tides: we age and finally die.

3. High self-expectations: Sometimes we become our own slave-driver. I must admit, that’s definitely a weakness of mine. It’s good to step back at times and check out whether our expectations are realistic – and kindly.

4. Fear of failure: Are you afraid to fail? The truth is that all learning entails failure. Prof. Tal Ben-Shahar, an exponent of the Positive Psychology movement says, “Learn to fail, or fail to learn.”

5. Not being present: This is a key factor of anxiety. When our thoughts dwell on the future, and we stop being truly present, that’s when we can become anxious.

As you can see in the list above, all these internal factors are mental habits that we can change in order to alleviate and transform anxiety. And it’s the last one – being present – that’s the key to inspiration.

Inspiration lives in the present
There is an amazing short video with Brother David Steindle-Rast – a Christian monk. As a boy, he experienced the last years of World War II in Germany. He tells of great hardships: never knowing where the next meal would come from, having to queue for hours for a small pitcher of water, and seeing bombs fall all around him.

Would you be anxious in a situation like this?

Surprisingly, Brother David wasn’t anxious – his experience was completely the opposite: it was one of the happiest times in his life! How could that be? His explanation is quite simple. Because there seemed no possibility of survival and no hope for the future, all he could do was to be in the present moment. This created a deep sense of happiness – in the midst of all that suffering.

Moments of inspiration – like watching the video of Brother David – remind us of our life purpose. We feel uplifted, excited, and yet grounded. I think the reason why moments of inspiration touch us so keenly, is because they remind us of our deepest aspirations.

Sometimes we confuse aspirations with personal goals, but they are completely different. Aspirations are the answer to the question: “What do I want to give the world?” Whereas personal goals are the answer to the question, “What do I want the world to give me?”

Four ways to transform anxiety into inspiration
Here are four ways you can start to transform anxiety into inspiration:

1. Simplify your life: The best guide I have seen so far, is Leo Babauta’s lovely new ebook The Simple Guide to a Minimalist Life. He takes you right through the necessary steps to simplify your life. It doesn’t happen overnight, but can definitely decrease anxiety in the long run.

2. Write everything down: Holding too many ideas and plans in one’s head can cause anxiety. A very simple remedy is to record all your ideas, dates, and schedules so that you free up your memory. Buy a simple notebook that you carry with you, or invest in a smart phone that can store appointments and idea.

3. Learn to relax: The anxious body is tense and needs rest and relaxation. There is a good relaxation and sleep hypnosis recording, created by Jon Rhodes. It’s free and you can find it here

4. Practice meditation: If you really want to change the mental habits that keep you ensnared in anxiety, you’ll find meditation a real help.

I know it can be daunting to learn to meditate. And busy people sometimes find it difficult to set time aside to practice meditation. I’ve come up with an easy way to get into meditation. I call it the Three-Breaths meditation. You can do it in one minute or less. It’s a natural way to meditate and doesn’t require you to learn complicated techniques. I’ve created a short video on how to do it. You can watch it here.

The Three-Breaths Meditation entails taking a few moments each day in order to pay tender regard to three breaths as they flow in and out of your body. For best results, keep upright posture so that your body and mind are well balanced. A thoughts come and go, observe them with soft attention and bring your focus gently back to your breath. I suggest practicing this easy micro-meditation a few times during the day. You’ll notice that it brings you right back home to the present moment.

Of course there’s a lot to be said about turning anxiety into inspiration – that’s why I run a Virtual Zen Retreat focused on how to do it. But I hope that you can find something in this post that helps you to start moving away anxiety and towards inspiration.

Learning to guide our mind away from unskillful emotions, like anxiety, fear or anger, and towards kindness and cheerfulness, is a wonderful way to enhance our life and bring about happiness.

If there’s one thing you take away from this post, I hope it’s that ease and inspiration come from experiencing the present moment.
Like. Now.

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This is going to be a stange week indeed. 3 days, then a holiday, then another day. As I have chosen to take Fridays off, in essence, I need to squeeze 4 days of work in 3, which is better than most people this week. How many of you are going to stretch 1 days worth of work to Thursday.

So what is this holiday on Thursday?

Heritage Day is defined as:

n KwaZulu-Natal, the 24th of September was known as Shaka Day, in commemoration of the Zulu King, Shaka. Shaka was the legendary Zulu King that played an important role in uniting disparate zulu clans into a cohesive nation. Contrary to western discourse Shaka was not a ‘chief‘.

The Public Holidays Bill presented to the Parliament of South Africa at the time did not have the 24th of September included on the list of proposed public holidays. As a result of this exclusion, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), a South African political party with a large Zulu membership, objected to the bill. Parliament and the IFP reached a compromise and the day was given its present title and seen as a day

“	…when South Africans celebrate the diverse cultural heritage that makes up a “rainbow nation“. It is the day to celebrate the contribution of all South Africans to the building of South Africa(sic)	”
	— Lowry 21:1995[1]

I wonder how Mr Chuene sleeps at night, after that whole debacle. If you see him on the street, kick him in the shins. Chop.

Ok, so onto something useful, right? Surely I have something useful to show you today.

Fixed Gear Cycling is slowly taking off in South Africa, and for the best local news, you can visit The Daily Fix to catch up on events, etc. But they have a reputation for coming up with some WHACK bikes. Take the following abuse of an amazing Cinelli RAM bar for example:

Not so cool. Here is something, for me, which is much cooler. it comes from this set of pics, a visit to the Trek area where they customise all the cool sh** but I have always been a fan of raw elements in anything, so this raw carbon frame is the shizzle, for me, personally.

Awesome.

As we near the date for Kona have a click on that link for a revisit of the race I went to last year. Am I sad that I am not going this year? OBVIOUSLY. What an amazing race, and an amazing place, and I had such a vibe on that trip with my family. It changed my life man. Should you spend the next few years trying to get there? OBVIOUSLY. It changes your life, in so many ways! There is something about the place, and getting constant Twitter updates from Luke McKenzie, Terenzo Bozzone et al about their training there is driving me up the wall. Hence my own 8 hour training weekends at the moment.

Big picture, right? You have no idea.

Ok, that’s enough weirdness for one day. Have a great week ahead. Work hard, play hard.

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