Change Your Life

Today, I've got something a little different. This past week, I've been doing an in-class retreat with my students using Sean Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. Our school is actually implementing The Leader in Me and using the 7 Habits to teach students about personal responsibility, planning their future, working with others, leadership, and healthy habits.

The retreat has been eye-opening...for the students and myself. (And yes, I've read the adult version of this book and find the teen version much more engaging and relevant to my life, which is kind of sad, isn't it?)

Here's a short breakdown of the habits and videos I've been sharing with my students over the last week. If you want to learn more, I highly recommend picking up the book!

1. Be proactive. Being proactive boils down to taking control of your life; don't let others dictate how you see yourself. When I showed this to my students, they were enthralled and moved. Lizzie is a great example of how we can take control of our lives no matter our obstacles and naysayers.

2. Begin with the end in mind. Make decisions and choices that are true to the path and goal you have set for yourself. Lakeisha set her mind on her goal and worked tirelessly every day to get there. There are no excuses.

3. Put first things first. Organize your schedule so that things that are important to you - and your future - come first. This means learning to plan ahead, making time for friends, and being brave enough to say no to things that are time-wasters or of importance to others, but not to you. This is also where students write a mission statement to keep them on track, which for me is the same thing as a running mantra.

4. Think win-win. Find solutions to problems that allow everyone to benefit; consider the bigger picture when working with others, not whether you "win". I'm sure some of you have seen this, but it gets me every time.

5. Seek first to understand, then to be understood. Actually listen to others; don't offer unwanted advice or steamroll over their opinions and thoughts. Yes, I teach 8th grade. Yes, they get a kick out of ridiculous videos.

6. Synergize. Work together. United we stand, divided we fall.

7. Sharpen the saw. Take time to relax, re-energize, and keep yourself mentally and physically fit. Obviously, I choose running as my main way to sharpen the saw.

Since teaching this to the students, I've been trying to utilize it myself. The first three habits are "private victories", meaning you're learning to control yourself and really follow a plan you've set. The second set of three habits are "public victories"; you are learning to use your new self to work with and benefit others.

I'd be surprised if my students weren't a little tired of me linking these habits to running. It's the easiest way for me to explain how they work in my life; but I've seen them improve my personal and professional life as well.

I'll never be a Type A, organized person naturally, but at least now I have the tools and knowledge I need to improve myself and how I work with others.

Are you familiar with the 7 Habits?
What are you strong areas? I think I'm usually pretty good at "seeking to understand..."
What do you need to work on? I definitely could work on "putting first things first"! I'm super unorganized and give in too easily to what I want to do versus what I should be doing.

ABK

Music to My Ears

For whatever reason, whether or not runners should listen to music while running has become a topic of debate. I usually love debating, but I kind of hate any controversy that serves to drive a wedge between groups of runners.

Barefoot vs. traditional? Zero-drop vs. cushion? I don't want to hear it. Do you.

That's why I was surprised when Runner's World's Facebook page posted an image a few weeks back that opened the floodgates for heated debate that was filled with un-runner-like animosity. People feel really strongly about this, apparently.

The image in question...the comments on this from both sides of the debate were simply ridiculous.

When it comes to my choice, I like to have my music with me when I run. I can run without it, and often I run without headphones and just let the ambient soundtrack play from my phone speakers, but if I had my druthers (can you tell I'm reading To Kill A Mockingbird right now?) I'd choose my Run It! playlist and Yurbuds any day.

My music falls into three main categories and a sub-genre, but I mix them all together into a single playlist because I like to hit all three areas of my mood, rather than choosing a mood and sticking with it the entire run.

Pump Up 


Anything catchy, upbeat, and fast-paced falls into this category. Of course, there's a fair amount of unexpected alternative and rap here too...Who can say no to DMX or The Clash? They clearly go together. These songs kick up my pace, and usually I can be found mouthing the words or pretending I know how to play air-piano while running.

 Zone Out

Probably my favorite songs, but the least-represented on my playlist, my zoning out songs are sometimes slow and may seem like the antithesis of workout music. But they follow a very important rule: I know every. single. word. Matchbox Twenty (oh my gosh, favorite!), Goo Goo Dolls, The Spill Canvas...These are the best when I take the playlist off shuffle and let a few of them play in a row, especially if I'm well into a long run and facing some tough miles.

 Power Songs

I love Nike+ for having this option. Adding power songs to my playlist lets me hear exactly what I need to at any particular moment with just a tap of my phone screen. (Seriously, people who ran with Disc-Mans and Walk-Mans? How did you do it?!) Most of my power songs are about overcoming something. I've got "How Far We've Come" by MB20 right alongside "No More Drama" and "Work It" by Mary J. Blige. And for some reason "Backstabber" by Ke$ha is super effective.

Downright Embarrassing

If you've even glanced at the pictures in this post, you know what I'm talking about. 3OH!3? Gangnam Style? Avril Lavigne? Yeah. You need some space for embarrassing music that you genuinely love on any running playlist. A run simply wouldn't be complete without it!

As far as running races goes, I've never run a race that was so crowded with spectators and entertainment that I felt I was missing something by having my music going. I guess if I ever run a Disney race or any show-stoppingly huge race, I'll stow my headphones.

But for the most part, I'm just a music lover. Music gives me a way to deal with my head; the beauty of music is that it speaks to us in a way that is personal and intimate but also universal. If running is the perfect time to get my head straight and refocus my emotions, then what better companion is there to run with than a good playlist?

Do you run with or without music?
What about at a race?
What are your top music choices right now?

ABK

G'mar Hatimah Tovah

For the first time since I turned 13 and had my bat mitzvah, I'm a little torn. I always fast on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It's the holiest of days in the Jewish religion, a 24-hour period of self-deprivation and fasting meant to show your contrition and set the new year up on a good foot with G-d.

This is also the holiday during which we take time to make right the wrongs we've perpetrated throughout the year. In the Jewish religion, it's imperative to receive forgiveness from those you've hurt; forgiveness cannot come from a third party. Yom Kippur isn't exactly a happy, warm, cuddly holiday. It's a holiday about self-reflection and brutal, hard honesty.

Sunrise over Masada in Israel, 2012.

I, like many other Jews, fast during Yom Kippur. But this is the first year I've had to weigh my yearning to fast with my training schedule. I did a run last year after fasting that left me feeling weird and unsteady. If I fast, even if I plan to move my long run from Saturday to Sunday, I don't think my body will be ready for 17 miles.

So what comes first? My cultural and spiritual identity, or my commitment to myself?

The Western Wall in Jerusalem, 2012

Pushing back my long run would be good for my foot, too, so I guess there's a lot going in favor of choosing to fast and take the weekend's expectations down a notch.

Either way, I plan to do a nice, short run tonight. I love running on holidays. I love having the time to reflect and turn my gaze inward. But I can't run too long, because by the time I'm done, I won't be able to refuel.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. Here's to a good new year.

ABK