Dr. Glenn’s Blog

Courtesy of Validus… 

            Times are difficult. It is easy to spend time focusing on the negative and even easier to forget to be grateful for the blessings we do enjoy. The recent global economic crisis is no doubt affecting most of us financially, but how it affects our well-being is a choice we make. For instance, I know children living in villages in the mountains of Honduras. Their parents have no 401(k) plans, no credit cards, no mortgages and no health insurance premiums. Yet these children are more content and joyful than most any children I have seen. Perhaps having nothing to lose makes them appreciate the little they have. Conversely, with so much to lose we forget to appreciate the things (and people) we have.  
            Expressing gratitude is also therapeutic. Studies have shown that individuals who intentionally express gratitude have a measurably higher well-being. Gratitude and generosity together have been linked with reducing stress, improved coping skills and decreased depression. Expressions of gratitude and generosity even affect those witnessing the act of kindness. Interestingly, women find it easier than men to show (and receive) gratitude.
            Showing expressions of gratitude also changes our perspective on material wealth. In this season where the pressures of material giving are being restrained by financial pressures, consider giving the gift of gratitude to those you care about the most. Perhaps that will allow us to send just a little help to those kids in Honduras, or across town, who have nothing to lose.

Articles of Interest:

• Counting blessings versus burdens: an experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. J Pers Soc Psychol. 2003 Feb;84(2):377-89.
• Gratitude and subjective well-being in early adolescence: Examining gender differences. J Adolesc. 2008 Aug 27.
•  Positive couple interactions and daily cortisol: on the stress-protecting role of intimacy. Psychosom Med. 2008 Oct;70(8):883-9.

Well, for those of you waiting on the edges of your seats, here is my Xterra training log to date.

2/4/08- Decided to do the June 21st Buffalo Creek Xterra race. Having never done a tri before, this is a big shift in training for me. Went to triathlongeek.com to buy a self coaching program ($17.95)

2/5/2008- Started with a walk/run combo for 45 minutes. Managed to cover 3.16 miles. Decided that my running shoes suck and decided to get new ones.

2/6/2008- Kettlebell upper body strength training 4 sets of each:

• Double clean and military press
• Alternating one-arm rows
• Double floor press
• Double snatches
• Multiple 2-minute rounds on the heavy bag (for shoulder endurance)
• Various core exercises

2/7/08- 20 minute run

2/8/08- off

2/9/08- lower body weight training 4 sets of each of the following:

• Barbell squats
• KB step-ups
• Double clean and jerks
• Windmills

2/10/08- off- My legs were really sore and I decided I’m done with barbell squats. From now on it’s kettlebells only. In fact, I listed my power rack and barbells on Craig’s List and got rid of them

2/11/08- Ran 2 miles

2/11/08- off

2/12/08- the bike trainer I orderd online arrives. I set it up in my basement. 15 minutes into riding it I realize that bike trainers suck. I vow never to ride anywhere but outside ever. I do a 15 minute run and call it a day (it took a long time to set up the stupid bike trainer).

2/13/08- 40 minutes on my mountain bike, a 1993 Trek 930. It’s a stell-framed beast. I know I need a new one, but it’s good for training.

2/14/08- bodyweight mobility training.

2/15/08- off.

2/16/08- lower body kettlebell training

Then, I hauled around 600 pounds worth of free weights out of my basement and up to my office to sell. I had to bring most of them out of the window well, over the fence, and into my buddy’s truck.

2/17/08- ran 3.5 miles

2/18/08- off

2/19/08- Rode the mountain bike for 45 minutes. You ight notice I have yet to swim. I’m waiting until I’m 14 weeks out to start swimming.

2/20/08-off

2/21/08- ran hills (2 miles)

2/22/08- upper body lifting (see above)

2/23/08- 30 minute run

2/24/08- lower body kettlebell lifting

2/25,26,27/08- off

2/28/08- The weather’s getting better, so I rode my mountain bike about 7 miles. Got a Garmin GPS training watch from my wife, so now I’ll know exactly how far I’m running and riding. It’s pretty freakin’ cool.

2/29/08- Ran 3.4 miles

3/1/08- Rode the mountain bike 8.47 miles.

3/2/08- off

OK that brings you up to date. See you soon.

Well, for those of you who’ve been following along, I dumped the old blogging platform because it sucked. So here I am, starting again.

I decided not to move the old posts. Sorry if you miss them.

AS you may or may not know, I’m training for my friend/dentist’s Xterra triathlon. It’s the off-road race in Buffalo Creek, Colorado on June 21st, 2008. 1 mile lake swim, 20 mile mountain bike ride and a 5-mile trail run.

Those of you who know understand that this is a big change of training focus for me. I’ve always leaned more towrds the weight lifting side of things. But I’m getting a littile older (39) so I thought that maybe it’s time for a change.

So I’m going to chronicle my training here. I’ll also be sharing my thoughts on whatever I feel like writing about. Don’t worry, I’ll spare you the “Dear Diary” type crap and stick to training, nutrtion, recovery, hydration, stress, etc.

I’ll post my training log to date either later today or in the next few days. It’s gorgeous here in Denver today, and I just got back from a 3-mile run with my wife and our dog.

 Dr. Glenn Hyman