December 24th Challenges

With eight days left in the year, you can still start a physical regimen or work at a sport skill. Let's say you skip Christmas Day and do everything in 7s:

1) 7 lunges per leg followed by a 7-second sprint - see how far you get.

2) 7 power jumps followed by a 7-second backward sprint.

3) 7-second elbow/forearm Plank into 7 push-ups into 7 pull-ups for 7 sets.

4) Consume 7 vegetables per day.

5) Make a 7-ingredient protein-vegetable rich bowl such as, broccoli, arugula, chia seeds, small chicken cuts, apple slices, string beans, and sliced almonds. 

6) Visit 7 different playgrounds, 1x/day, for 7 days.

7) Influence 7 family members or friends to workout with you until the end of the year.

Pick one for the last 7 days of 2022.

Much success to you | Derek | @teemptraining | derekteempt@gmail.com 

Social Media is Wild 2

(See Social Media is Wild and Gooooooaaaaaalll)

Too much - an exhausting situation.

WordPress has a nice polished look for its posts, right? Well that is the reason why I started a hockey blog in 2016 on the platform. You can see it here.

I started off OK on the other blog, took a long break, and have started to write on it again. However, I have more drafts than the total number of current publisher posts lol.

I got a little too ambitious in 2022 and set a mid-year goal of 50 posts for the Chesapeake Regional Hockey Review - @crhrhockey. Yikes!

I don't have 50 topics...yet lol.

I do have plenty of good topics that I know people will like to read. The interesting difference about the hockey posts versus the health and health & fitness posts: the Chesapeake Regional Hockey Review receives traffic. People are interested and like the community connection. It's fresh, new, fun, and vast.

That's wild.

But, 50 posts for 2022? Naaaah!

That's wilder.

So, the June addition to the Chesapeake Regional Hockey Review blog had too much ambition, especially in trying to meet the expectations of HAHPN, the blog you are reading right now.

Tune in if you are a hockey fan or local fan.

Much success to you | Derek | @teemptraining | derekteempt@gmail.com 

Social Media is Wild

(See Gooooaaaaaalll for more)

Wild - unrestrained, not domesticated.

I began this year with an Instagram goal of achieving 600 followers. At the time, I had around 540 to 560. 

So, I achieved my goal early.

Then, my son said, Why don't you go for 1,000 by the end of the year?

Folks, I didn't want to because I didn't think I could make it to 1,000 followers given my previous slow attainment rate. 

Then, all of a sudden I had difficulty accessing my IG fitness account - @teemptraining - because I need the newest version of IG on my phone, which has zero space. However, since my post rate has slowed down a lot, I have received more followers lol.

No posts but more followers.

The account currently sits at 640 followers.

That's wild.

The consistent posts stopped around late August, and the plan is to have more consistent posts. Maybe 2023 will see 1,000 followers. Actually, I'm not too worried about the increase. If it happens, it happens.

I am satisfied that my social media goal was met earlier in the year. How about a goal of 700 for 2023? Reasonable and attainable...I have a plan.

Do you have any quantifiable goals set for 2023?

Much success to you | Derek | @teemptraining |derekteempt@gmail.com 

Interpretation of Success: 2022 Posts

After a goal is achieved it's fun, progressive, helpful, and important to peak back on the process, the path, that led to the goal.

In 2023, will you look back on certain 2022 achievements? 

As you look back at 2022, will you remember how you performed during moments toward your goal(s)? Were you joyful, sad, happy, energetic, burdened, relaxed, etc.?

As I looked back at 2022 and this blog goal for 300 posts for 2022, I noticed my progress-to-feelings relationship:

January (40 posts) - Since I had Covid the last week of 2021, I reignited the blog in late December. The energy carried over to 2022. So, January started 2022 off with a bang and ahead of the pace.

February (10 posts) - Had a lot happening in late winter. The sophomore month fizzled.

March (7 posts) - Was not feeling much related to blogging.

April (8 posts) - See March above.

May (10 posts) - This spring did not have the spunk to post much, but the 300-goal was in mind.

June (18 posts) - Favorite month out of the year. The energy of the summer was a big driver.

July (28 posts) - My July energy fed off June. I felt like the summer had so much to offer.

August (21 posts) - Same summer vibe even after the little dip in posts from July. The goal was still in mind.

September (15 posts) - I knew the beginning of the fall season had to produce a big outcome. Start it off well with 40 posts and December would be easy.

October (9 posts) - Give it at least 30

November (45 posts) - The first record month with an in-month momentum chase to 60. Yea, that didn't happen. But, a record day of 9 posts occurred. The Thanksgiving season hit with fire!

December (89 posts) - At the time of writing this post, 53 posts (48 posted, 5 in queue), a new monthly record, have been written with a record day of 10 posts. Another daily record may need to happen. The Christmas season has a lot to offer. 

Pretty sure you have monthly goals at your place of work. What do your months look like? How did you feel during those seasons?

Much success to you | Derek | @teemptraining | derekteempt@gmail.com 

Treadmill vs. Park Bench

(Check out HAHPN - July 2010...Park Bench vs Treadmill was rearranged and edited to make the excerpt easier to read)

OK, it dawned on me again yesterday while I took my kids to the playground in the cold air: a park bench is more versatile than a treadmill...or more than any cardio machine. The reason why makes sense because each one has its own characteristics that the other one should not possess. Otherwise, a park bench would be called a treadmill, and a treadmill would be called a park bench.

To each its own.

The Breakdown

Treadmills - Of course, they are superb for cardio, speed, and shuffle training. Hill work, acceleration & deceleration training work as well. You can do hand walks in a straight arm plank position or lateral hand walks in the same position. You could also do assisted mountain climbers by facing away from the treadmill in a push-up position. But, set the speed to a workable pace.

The treadmill literally moves you.

Park Benches - You do all of the movement. You are the initiator, which is the main difference between a park bench and a tread even though treadmill brands such as TechnoGym allow you to initiate movement.

But, your park bench will hold form for push-ups, lunges, squats, lower and upper body holds, bench taps with your feet or hands, power jumping, depth jumping, and wall drills (bench drill for acceleration work).

The park bench targets your strength, balance, coordination, agility, and....what a minute...these two pieces of equipment complement each other.

Combine the two. If you do no have a park bench at home, then use a strong chair, step, or other. If you don't have a treadmill and cannot get one, then use the great outdoors. On that note, you can get in your treadmill and park bench benefits for free courtesy of the great outdoors!

You have so many workout opportunities at your fingertips.

Have you performed decent exercises on a bench?

Much success to you | Derek | @teemptraining | derekteempt@gmail.com 

Best Playground Structures

Playground equipment provides some of the best muscle group activation. Of course, this equipment has many shapes and forms that are not all pictured below. But, here are some good ones: 

Various Angled Bars 

A different angled bar works your grip strength better, which, in turn, improves muscle activation.

Helix Ladder 

Great use for uneven chin-ups and rows. It also challenges your child's climbing skills.

U-Rung Ladder

Use it to beef up your single arm (unilateral) and double arm (bilateral) rows.

Swings

For lunges, curl-ins, swing dolled core curl

Rock Wall 

Challenges grip strength, balance, coordination, leg strength

Spiral Slide

Reverse climb balance

Bar Dome 

Great for rows, pull-ups/chin-ups, balance, uneven push-ups, uneven climber holds

Tube Ring 

Agility, lunges, pistol squats, single leg squats, push-ups...

Others:

Incline Parallel Bars - best used for inverted rows, dip walks, and leg overs, which work your abs.

Bridge - fantastic for dips and dip holds. If the bars are narrow enough, you can walk across the bridge in dip form.

Which ones do you and your child like?

Much success to you | Derek | @teemptraining | derekteempt@gmail.com 

Drive Carefully. Have Road Safety..

I do not hate many things. But, I hate hearing bad news such as this one about a pedestrian, who was fatally struck.

For anyone who has lost a friend, co-worker, or family member to an automobile or pedestrian accident in the past, I pray that this type of incident never happens again.

For anyone who has survived a terrible accident, whether or not you or someone else was injured, I pray that you will never have to experience this type of incident again.

Folks, you can drive better. You can drive safely and in a hurry. Just don't drive erratically, without a care for anything and anyone around you.

In addition, pedestrians...please be aware of vehicles at intersections and in the middle of the road. Do not compete with a vehicle because all of them move faster than you. Keep your eyes and head active when crossing roads - look at the lights, oncoming vehicles, stopped vehicles, and turning vehicles.

Drivers and pedestrians, you must realize that cars, trucks, and vans, have blind spots: the blind spots over the driver's right and left shoulders as well as the blind spot caused by the windshield holder.

Windshield holders hide pedestrians. The next time you are stopped as the first car at an intersection, pay attention to how pedestrians disappear as they waking across the street, passing the windshield holder width.

Their entire body disappears. So, that means for a second or two, it appears as though no one is front of you. But, the person is right there!

Ah, these types of incidents get to me because I want everyone to be safe on the roads...because terrible motor accidents can be avoided.

As 2022 ends, drive safely. As 2023 begins, keep safety in mind. Do not lose focus as a driver or as a pedestrian. 

Do you believe that bad accidents can be avoided?

Much success to you | Derek | @teemptraining | derekteempt@gmail.com