Last Saturday I went to the gym to work out.  I turned on my Ipod and found that I must have left it running the last time I had used it. The battery was completely dead.  I always listen to music when working out, so, this was quite disappointing to me!  I stuck my head into the office and asked Colleen, the Fitness Consultant on duty, if she had an Ipod charger.  “Nope”, she said.  Then she said something very cool.  She said, “Hey, I guess you’ll have to listen to your own music in your head!”

I loved that statement!  What a novel idea, listen to the music in your head.  Listen to what is inside of you.  Listen to your thoughts and ideas.  Listen to your soundtrack, not AC  DC, Aerosmith, Kanye West, The Killers or Britney Spears.

I took her advice.  I got on the rowing machine for my standard 10 minute warmup.  I beat my personal distance record for a 10 minute row!  Wow, that’s interesting.  It seemed I was actually more focused on what I was doing when I was listening to myself, listenting to my body.  I hit my weight machine circuit next.  I thrashed ‘em!  I squeezed out  a few more reps on almost every machine and added 5 more pounds to my normal weight lifted on almost all of them. 

Many people will say that listening to music helps “pump them up” for their workouts.  And, I think it can.  But this experience last Saturday made me realize that sometimes we may be too focused on the beat or the words or the memories we have of the first time we ever heard that song, and we take our focus off of the objective:  getting a great workout.

This idea obviously extends into the business world, our personal life, and our spiritual life.  Could we be more effective in these other parts of our life if we listened to our own music in our heads?  Do you even have your own music list in your head, or are you following someone else’s list?  Can you get in touch with your own music?  Try it, you just might find you can get more done when you Listen To Your Own Music!

Thanks Colleen!

The Christmas and New Year holiday season is upon us.  For many people this season turns into one giant, long eating and drinking fest!  Parties at home, parties at school, parties at work, parties at church.  Parties, parties, parties.  Multiple parties in one day.  Some studies have shown that the typical American can gain up to 5-10 pounds during the Holiday Eating Season.

Don’t let this sneak up on you.  Be aware of this, think about it and plan your party season with this knowledge.  Here are some ideas that can help you manage the Holiday Eating Season:

1.  Try to be more active.  Try to squeeze in more workouts or walks or some kind of physical activity.  Wake up 20 minutes earlier and try my “20 Minutes to Success” workout at home if you cannot get your normal workout in.  http://martymercer.com/news/?p=22

2.  Eat something good and healthy before you go to the party.  Don’t go to parties hungry or famished.  Don’t go to parties thinking you will get your normal meal.  If you get to the party having already eaten something, you can reduce the amount of great tasting but high calorie food served at the party.

3.  Manage your alcohol intake at parties.  Many people who don’t normally drink much, use the holiday season to “let loose”.  Be careful!  Alternate a glass of sparkling water or club soda with a lime or lemon twist in between drinks.  Your drink will look like an alcoholic drink, but this trick will help you reduce the amount of alcohol you consume.

4.  Walk around the food table(s) and check out ALL the food first before diving in and filling up your plate.  See what is offered and decide on what you want to eat instead of trying everything!  Use a smaller plate if you can, use a salad or dessert plate and fill it up only three-fourths full.

5.  Choose baked over fried.  Put the sauces on the side, or, don’t get any of the sauces.  Eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables.

6.  Cut the dessert, pies, and cake portions in half.  You will still get the great taste and treat, but only half the calories of the normal serving.

7.  Stand and socialize and talk during the party instead of sitting down and not moving.  Standing and talking at a party burns 125 calories in one hour.

8.  Drink water, drink water, drink water.  Water can help give you a “full” feeling, helping reduce the amount you eat.  Drinking water helps you manage your alcohol intake.  And, for the most part, most people never drink enough water on a daily basis.  So, during the holidays, work even harder to drink water.

9.  Get 7-8 hours of sleep every night.  This is true all the time, but especially true at the Holiday season when your schedule gets tighter, your to do list gets longer and your stress levels can increase. 

10.  Lastly, have fun, enjoy the holidays, enjoy your family, smile!  If you overindulge one day, work even harder the next day to get back on track, but don’t beat yourself up over it.  Put that “bad” day in the past, forget it, ignore it, and focus on the next day.  Don’t let one bad day or night turn into four or five, limit your mistakes.

This past Friday night I attended a high school football game.  Our team should have won big, but 6 fumbles and too many penalties left us tied with just under a minute to play.  However, we worked the ball down to our 37 yard line and set up for a late game field goal that would win the game.

This would create a 54 yard field goal.  For most high school teams and perhaps for many college or even pro teams, this is a very long field goal.  But our team is blessed with a young man with a great and accurate leg, who had already kicked a 51 yard field goal earlier in the season.  So, the fans and the team had every confidence that he would make this kick and we would win our Homecoming game.

However, the snap to the holder was a bit high and tight, and the kicker pushed the ball wide left.  The crowd let out a collective groan, assuming we were headed to overtime, figuring we would hold the other team who had about 40 seconds left to play.

Well, another surprise.  The opposing team chose to push the ball up the field by passing, instead of running out the clock and playing for overtime.  On their second play, we intercepted the pass attempt, ran a couple of running plays and put our kicker back in position for a 37 yard field goal.  With zero seconds showing on the clock, his kick sailed through the uprights, the fans went nuts, his teammates mobbed him and then shook hands with their stunned and dejected opponent.  We had our Homecoming victory!

It is easy to get dejected, to hang your head and consider quitting when your big chance does not turn out well.  Especially with getting back into shape, losing weight, getting fit, or improving your diet.  But here is the beauty of your personal health and fitness compared to a sporting event:  while our clock IS ticking, the game does not have a set ending.  Football ends after 60 minutes of play.  So without that interception, our kicker would not have gotten his second chance. 

But if you start a new fitness routine and then hit the wall, have a bad weekend of eating, miss working out for several days in a row, THE GAME IS NOT OVER!  Just put that bad episode behind you, like our kicker did, and know that you actually have second, third and fourth chances.  Ignore your mistakes and start fresh.  If you give up, you will NEVER succeed.  You WILL succeed by staying persistent, keeping your head up and focusing on your long term goal.

Do not let a short term mistake create a long term loss.  If our kicker had taken that perspective, he would not have made his second kick.  If our team had taken that perspective, the defense would not have been hawking the ball so tightly, and would not have intercepted the pass.  The defense knew that if they got the ball back, our kicker would not miss on his second chance.

Give yourself the same chance, keep coming back after small failures.  You might miss the 54 yard dramatic kick, but you will make the 37 yarder to win the game!

My wife Karen (someone strongly suggested I use Karen’s name in this blog instead of the invisible “my wife”) and I and two other couples went to Chastain Park Saturday night, an outdoor ampitheatre, to see Kool and the Gang and KC and The Sunshine Band!  I know, I know, a bunch of middle agers reliving the sounds of their youth.  We even stayed through a huge rain storm and thunderstorm and stood in the rain under umbrellas and poncho’s to see KC.  So there, I have admitted it and you can say whatever you want about us and our musical tastes if you want.

But up on stage was 57 year old Harry Wayne Casey, aka, KC, singing the same songs he wrote and performed 33 years ago.  In fact, Karen and I both saw him perform at Disney World at Grad Night when we were in high school! 

Yes, he is much heavier than he used to be.  Yes, he is bald.  Yes his voice is not as strong as it once was, if it ever was strong.  Yes, the lyrics are overly simple and the music is not sophisticated.

But a sold out crowd waited in the rain for him!  And we all stood and danced and sang every word and smiled the entire time.  KC has taken his simple pop/disco/R&B sound and turned it into a travelling Vegas show.  Dancing “fly” girls, smoke, lights, multiple costume changes, and the addition of some hip hop and rap sounds and influence.  His dance moves are confined to a few simple spins, but the smile on his face said…”Hey, don’t you wish you were up here dancing and singing?” 

I am sure that KC could have retired years ago and lived off his royalties from his hits in the 70′s and 80′s.  But he is still performing, still smiling, and the thousands of Atlantan’s who braved the rain and lightning were all dancing and smiling with him.

And, the best part, all of the musicians in his band, 12 of them, were playing real instruments.  A full horn section, amazing guitarist, incredible drum and percussion section.  Real musicians playing and singing on stage, no recorded music or drum machines.

The lesson?  Just don’t stop!  Especially if you are still having fun.  Don’t let age or the “critics” stop you.  Keep going, keep pushing, keep dancing, keep smiling.  And don’t be afraid to change the packaging a little to stay current, but stay true to your roots.  “Old School” never looked or sounded better than it did Saturday night.  Thanks KC, That’s The Way I Like It!

What Can You Learn While Running Around the World?

Life Lessons Each of Us Can Use– By Mike Kramer and Joe Hale 

Polio is a disease that most of us never think much about anymore. Thanks to heroic breakthroughs of the mid 20th century, the disease is more ancient history than current news. But polio is on Joe Hale’s mind every single day. While Joe’s mother was pregnant with him, she contracted polio and was paralyzed from the neck down. As he says, “her first visitor was a representative from the March of Dimes.” The group provided support, paid for rehabilitation, and helped her regain use of her upper body.   This memory drives Joe every day. And recently, it drove him to raise money and awareness for the March of Dimes in a very unique, dedicated way—by running (get ready for this…) 7 marathons in 7 months on 7 continents! He called it the 7in7on7. Traveling the world and running has helped him spread the word about the March of Dimes and their mission of promoting healthy pregnancies.  He just finished this monstrous undertaking, returning home with 8 marathons under his belt and more than $150,000 in donations for the March of Dimes. He also returned a little wiser than when he started. Below are some of the lessons he learned during his journey of love. If we all take these lessons to heart, we can improve our lives, reach our goals, and enrich the lives of everyone around us. Just like Joe. More heroic breakthroughs may be just over the horizon for you. 

Top 10 Things I Learned During 7in7on7! 
-By Joe Hale

The older I get, the more I realize that the important things in life are the same things my parents told me were important when I was growing up. I just didn’t believe it at the time. Running seven marathons in seven months on seven continents allowed me the opportunity to experience the truth of those early lessons in amazingly vivid and profound ways. With heartfelt thanks to my mother and father for their wisdom and patience, here are the top ten things I re-learned during “7in7on7.” 

1.  Make up your own mind (or at least get a second opinion).  I celebrated fellow-runner George from California’s 79th birthday with him in Beijing at the Great Wall Marathon. Twenty-five years ago, George’s doctor told him to stop running. George found another doctor. As he put it, “If I’d listened to the first guy, I would have missed out on the best 25 years of my life.”  2.  It’s better to give than receive (and a lot more fun).  There was no more poignant moment than when the American runners noticed the deplorable condition of the Tanzanian runners and began taking off their own running shoes to offer them to the Africans.  3.  Eat right and get plenty of exercise. (Yeah, I know, but it’s true!)  I met a lot of runners who used to be overweight and out of shape. Most said they weren’t unhappy that way, but all of them said they’re much happier now. I’m going to write a new diet book for Americans and it’ll contain four words: eat less, exercise more. Is there a correlation between the fact that there are 16 million bicycles in Holland and 16 million people and you don’t notice many overweight people? Is there a correlation between the fact that we have shuttles that pick us up at amusement parks in the US to take us to the front gate where we’re met with funnel cake and corn dog stands? I think so.  4.  Always keep a hand for the ship. (Whatever you do, be careful!)  Learned this one on the way to Antarctica on the Russian icebreaker Ioffee. The Captain said, “If you fall overboard, swim for the bottom. Drowning hurts less than freezing to death, and you’re going to do one or other if you go in the water.”  5.  Listen to what other people have to say (you just might learn something new).  I met people from every walk of life from nearly every country in the world. Each one I spoke with had a fascinating story to tell. If you give a person the gift of your time and attention, the result is a blessing for both of you. Like Ruth from Alabama—65 years old in 1995 and never been out of the state. She decided she’d raised her kids and now it was time for her self. She banked a year’s worth of vacation and on January 1, 2000 got on a bike and rode it around the world, visiting 47 countries. She now runs marathons at 74 and kicked my butt in Antarctica. 

6.  Keep busy. (You only retire from the job—not from life.)  If you stop giving, you stop receiving; it’s as simple as that. The “retirees” I met have lives that are fuller and more rewarding than when they worked. Community service, they said, is the reason why. As one man told me, “Retirement is like marriage; it’s not the end of something—it’s the beginning.” Retirement in the traditional sense is a pretty selfish act.  7.  One person can always make a difference. (Be a good ambassador, wherever you are.)  It is possible to change the world (and change the perception of America abroad) by performing one small humble act of kindness. I saw it happen a hundred times. One was the occasion I mentioned above, when we gave our running shoes to our (much faster) African counterparts. America made some friends that day.  8.  There’s no place like home (and your family is your home).My friends know about my Blackberry addiction. (Linda: “Only Joey emails from Mt. Kilimanjaro.”) I felt at home when I shared my experiences with my wife and children, even though I was 5,000 miles away. Even better was when my son, Grant, joined me to run the Australian Marathon. He also reminded me that the best present a parent can give a child is a look of pride after a job well done.  9.  God exists.  All the pain, suffering, and unhappiness around the world can occasionally make you question His existence. But there is so much natural beauty, joy, and kindness out there too, that you can’t deny there’s a divine agent behind it all somewhere. There is a harmony and balance that isn’t accidental. It’s His work and ours, and we have much left to do.  10.  You DON’T always need to use sunscreen (even in Africa in the summer).  OK, our parents were wrong on this one. In freezing rain at 19,500 feet on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, sunscreen is totally unnecessary. Warm milk, however, would have been nice—just like Mom said.

To learn more about Joe Hale’s “7in7on7” or to donate to his campaign, visit www.RunJoeHaleRun.com.The mission of the March of Dimes is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects and infant mortality. To learn more, visit www.MarchOfDimes.com.