Health: Our 5-Hour, $10,000 Visit to the ER
Back in August, while on vacation in Idaho, my wife began to experience some stomach pain., but didn’t think much of it. But, on our drive home around 9 pm as we neared Reno, the pain became intolerable. I called 911 and was directed to the emergency room of the Northern Nevada Hospital in Sparks. […]
Read MorePersonal Growth: Am I Having a Mid-life Crisis?
I’ve been pretty darned restless for about six months now and I just haven’t been able to shake the feeling. I wasn’t sure what to make of this unsettled feeling because I’ve got a really good life. Then, I received an email from one of my best friends who now lives in London (I’ve been […]
Read MoreParenting/Technology: Is Your Family’s Relationship with Technology Healthy?
How involved in technology your children are is only half of the equation in its impact on them. The other half, of course, is the degree to which you are savvy in both your understanding and use of technology. The research indicating that children spend, on average, more than 7.5 hours a day in front […]
Read MoreCycling: Motivation to Achieve Your Cycling Goals
Motivation lies at the base of the Prime Cycling pyramid. Without your desire and determination to improve your cycling performances and achieve your riding goals, all of the other mental factors, confidence, intensity, focus, and emotions, are meaningless. To become the best cyclist you can be, you must be motivated to do the work necessary […]
Read MorePersonal Growth: Stop “Trying” to be Happy (Hint: Just Get Rid of Your Angst)
It sure has been a good few decades for happiness. Before, say, the ‘70s, happiness just wasn’t on the radar screens of most people nor had it been a part of the cultural vocabulary in America. Of course, happiness did merit a mention in our Constitution (“life, liberty and the pursuit of…”), so it has […]
Read MorePersonal Growth: The Joys of “Bromance”
I have a confession: I’m having a “bromance.” You may know the term from the movie I Love You, Man; it describes a close, though non-sexual relationship between two men. Yes, my wife knows about and she supports it. My bromance was certainly unexpected. In fact, he (I’ll call him Drew) is probably my first […]
Read MoreParenting: Children’s Immersion in Technology is “Shocking”
What do smoke signals, drums, books, the telegraph, telephone, fax, mobile phones, and the Internet have in common? They have incrementally enabled us to connect with more people and access more information in more rapid, easy, and less costly ways. Each advancement changed our lives in ways manifest and subtle, direct and indirect, predictable and […]
Read MoreLatest News: Interview about Raising Generation Tech on Mom Talk Radio
I was recently interviewed by Mom Talk Radio about my latest parenting book, Raising Generation Tech: Preparing Your Children for a Media-fueled World. You can listen to it here.
Read MoreDeveloping Competitive Routines
Many sports, including baseball, football, tennis golf, track and field, and many others, are comprised of a series of many short performances with breaks of various lengths in between. For these sports, whether between at-bats in baseball, downs in football, or points in tennis, being well-prepared for the first performance is not enough. Competitive routines can be invaluable in ensuring that you are prepared for every performances within a competition. One thing that I found that separates the great athletes from the good ones is their ability to be consistently ready for every performance. By being totally prepared for every performance, you can be sure that you won’t give your opponents “free points” because you weren’t ready.
The time between performances is essential to consistent competitive performance. What you think, feel, and do between performances often dictates how you perform. You must take control of the time between performances to be sure that you’re totally prepared.
I use a four-step competitive routine called the Four R’s. The first R is rest. Immediately after the conclusion of the previous performance, take several slow, deep breaths and let your muscles relax. This is especially important after a long or demanding performance in which you become fatigued and out of breath. It’s also important near the end of a long competition in which you’re tired and need to recover as much as possible to be ready for the next performance. Deep breathing and relaxing also help you center yourself and better prepare you for the next R.
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