Bulk up and Slim Down Stages in Fitness Programs

When working out there are times when you want to bulk up and times when you will need to focus more on slimming down. This occurs because it is difficult to have "clean" muscle growth. Clean meaning muscle growth without putting on extra fat. That can be difficult to do if you are eating lots of protein and food need to fuel muscle growth.

I like to think of this as a pendulum. Slimming down on one side and bulking up on the other.

A little to the Weight Lifting Side: If you want to bulk up then you will need to do more weights than cardio. Cardio will burn the calories you need to build muscle. Likewise, the food you eat will be heavier in the bulk up stage than when you are in the slim down stages.

A little to the Slim Down Side: When you want to slim down you should eat very healthy with protein. Try and cut down on fatty foods and do a little more cardio than weights. You want to make sure you are sill eating healthy as you will need to ensure you don't burn your muscle at the same time.

The Importance of Keeping Notes in the Workplace

Taking notes is a pain and trust me it can be time consuming. Despite the extra effort there are a few good reasons why a person who might want to keep notes on major activities and work they are completed. When it comes to justifying a position or moving projects forward it will be those with the notes that will step ahead of others.

Memory is sort of hazy after a few months. It is helpful to keep notes so that you can remember what actions you are taking and where you are on any particular project. 

You may have had conversations you need to remember so that responsibilities, completed components and other check off items are noted.

It can be beneficial to file away your notes with the project when completed. This way you can review to determine the best methods for managing future projects.

You may also want shared notes so that others on the project can update when they complete something as well. This leads to participants knowing exactly what is happening in real time.

A few things you should know before you accept the boating life

Boating life is something a little unique that some people love and some people can't stand.  There are positive attractors and detractors to anything you do to life. Staying on a boat and engaging in the boating life has lots of advantages but one must also consider some of the downsides. Here are a few that I can think of.

1.) No space: Trust me...you won't have much space for anything. It isn't like living in a house or an apartment. Your boat can only take so much to be comfortable. Unless you are buying a large yacht you will need to get rid of most of your possessions.

2.) Small Batch Groceries: Most boats have small refrigerators unless you are going to use the ice chest. That means running to buy ice on a regular basis. You will need to shop every other day to get what you need.

3.) Shared Parking: While it wouldn't seem like a problem just remember that you will need to share parking in either a public or private lot. Don't leave any valuables in your car.

4.) Use Others Boats: Most of the time it is more beneficial to use others boats when you can. Taking yours out takes time.

5.) Expect to Do Chronic Maintenance: Boats require chronic maintenance. You will need to keep updating, cleaning, and fixing your boat as much as you can.

Theory as a Puzzle and Game

Personally I like theory. It  is sort of a mental puzzle that provides some game play for the mind. Like a project you simply keep adding to it until you get to a point where its begining and end run together to create a circle where the major holes are plugged and it is self contained. If it works well to explain something or predict something then it is a valid and a useful theory.

I'm not sure there is a right and wrong way to create a theory. If you are reading about a theory then you must only understand. If you are playing with creating a theory then you have to understand individual parts and then tie them together in a way that makes some level of comprehensive explanation.

Why does theory play attract me?

Not sure. It always has. My mother once said she could give me a pair of socks as a toddler and I could play for hour with these imaginary dinosaurs and farm animals. As far back as a child I remember having many more questions than answers.

I guess there  some people who just like this stuff.

Most of the time people didn't really seem to understand these theories and the more I delved into them as a child the more I seemed to confuse people. I earned the name "Specigram" for my little playful experiments, questions, and ideas.

In my pr-teens I spent hours in our neighborhood library between sports and other activities. I saw that same library last year and it has long been closed but the librarians there knew me by name. Sometimes they would bring me a treat to keep sitting still.

Today I still like to play in my mind with some theories and only recently started committing them to paper sort to speak. No idea if it will be of benefit to someone but as it gets edited, adjusted, and rewritten it will likely become more comprehensive and whole.

http://www.academic-capital.net/2018/04/theory-of-transactional-clusters-and.html

Learning the Wisdom to "Not Care About What You Can't Change and Change What You Worry About"

Today I heard this statement on the radio that I found was quite profound in nature.

"Not Care About What You Can't Change and Change What You Worry About"

The statement says that there are some things in this world you can't can't change and we should stop worrying about them on an individual level. There are some things we can influence and we should change them if they concern us.

I'll give you a little example here.

Not Care About What You Can't Change: Maybe there is injustice in the world. While you the statement might say not care it means don't fret or dwell on something you can't change. Enjoy each day as much as you can and look toward the positive.

on the other hand....

Change What You Worry About: There are some things that bother us that we can change. We should consider trying to change them if we can. Instead of worrying do something about it.

Kind of interesting statements if you think about it. Put things in perspective and do what you can each day to improve your life.

Keeping Your Outdoor Pouch Clean

If you take your pouch outdoors, to the beach, hiking, traveling and other activities you know how dirty they can get. Long hair that is well groomed and maintained is wonderful but gets hot and dirty. Unless you are in cold weather consider giving your dog regular shaves and shampoos. The end result is a clean dog less prone to pests and injuries.

Long hair attracts spurs, fleas and gets caught on twigs and branches. If your dog naturally has long hair you may be forced to shave off much of it to keep the bunching done.

You will also find that taking your dog to the beach also leaves lots of sand that is difficult to take out. When the hair is short you can just hose it off but if it is long then it doesn't matter much how much you shampoo it will not be coming out.

There is also the risk that an un-groomed dog can be confused with other wild animals. The better kept your dog is the more likely people will recognize it as a domestic pet.

Finally, you may also want to see at a glance if your animal was hurt in anyway. Long hair can mask scrapes, scratches and bumps.

Data Collection to Improve University Efficiency-Cost and Quality?

More universities are using data analytics and information to improve overall efficiency of the university. This is awesome and can be a little concerning at the same time. On one hand data can provide a lot of useful information but on the other hand it can take the focus away from knowledge creation and into a world where if it doesn't fit within a number it doesn't count.

Becoming more efficient means that universities can free up resources. As universities struggle against limited budgets they will need to find efficiencies where they can to save resources for themselves and their students.

They do run into the problem of top heavy administrator staff. There are a lot of universities that have an exorbitant amount of administrators that look more like CEO's than actual academics. Perhaps some of these universities will find out they have too many and starting hiring more full-time faculty.

On one hand, information can create efficiency but on the other side it limits the ability to see learning for what it truly is. When we rely too heavily on metrics we start forgetting what isn't being measured and that can make companies blind.

Metrics are great but human skill and ingenuity is still a valid way of understanding performance. Any feedback system should offer both quantitative and qualitative measurements that give a full picture based on numbers and experience. As schools measure their performance lets hope they measure the right stuff and create value for students.