When it comes down to being awesome (at whatever you do), there are a few simple things to consider:

1) know, and master, the conceptual foundations of your industry

2) never stop your research, updates, and innovation

3) make something new (create) and/or better (add) to solve a problem

Let’s break it down:

1) Knowing your industry gives you the greatest advantage. You know the business and the business problems you want to solve. You [hopefully] know your audience. At times, you’ll be eager to solve crazy, theoretical problems. Those can be alluring. Save that for future innovation. You want a solid foundation to start. The knowledge above will help you focus and guide you towards solving real problems for real users.

GZ: When starting at RealDirect, I read everything I could get my hands on. Real estate law, processes, etc. I began using all of the existing sites out there. I reviewed their great features as well as their shortcomings. What did I love? What did I hate? What was a good idea, but not done right yet? Figure out your business and the problems within.

2) Beyond knowing your general industry, you’ll want to keep up with changes in it and your underlying technologies. Follow Twitter accounts, read feeds/blogs, etc. for all relevant contacts/companies. Use this ongoing stream of information to make incremental improvements as well as innovations (now is the time for your crazy, theoretical ideas).

GZ: Now that I knew my business and my problems, I started to build a relevant network. I followed contacts in technology and real estate, signed up for every service out there, reviewed potential integrations, libraries, etc. Before long, you have a feedback loop of information and inspiration about where to flow next.

3) Work on something which either doesn’t exist or is stale and in need of an update. There’s no point in re-building the wheel. It’s unlikely that you clone something that exists and pull away users from the original. You need to add value in some way. Whether it’s just a small, useful feature or a brand new product/site, change the world. Create something that people can’t get elsewhere.

GZ: Once I knew the problems and had my feedback loop in place, I was able to think about real-life solutions. What could my service provide that the others didn’t? Did we have a sales advantage? YES. Did we have a technology advantage? YES. What was possible, taking into account these things as well as resources? Well, see where we are now - http://www.realdirect.com.

Moral of the story:

If you understand true problems, define them, and solve them uniquely, you WILL be successful.

Today’s run at the track. 1/4 mile walk between every set. There were a lot of people out there this morning. It was the end of a bike race at Astoria Park and the weather was amazing. The half miles were pushing pretty hard, just short of what I can maintain for the distance and all of the maneuvering around. The miles felt like a nice relaxed pace. I would have done more if I didn’t have to go home. Might reverse the distance order next week. Tired and cramping at half mile 4, but made it through without too much fight. Climbing later is another story…

half mile 1 - 2:58
half mile 2 - 2:57
half mile 3 - 2:55
half mile 4 - 3:01
mile 1 - 7:14
mile 2 - 7:26

Boy, has it been a busy post-Thanksgiving week!  Lots of working, working out, and all of the everyday challenges life throws at you.  We’ve had warmth, cold, and torrential rains.  Somehow, most of us have made it through.  Feel good about that!

Today was legs and arms (bis AND tris) day.  My splits are a little bit different than most people’s, but we can chat about that another day.  I started out with a stretch, a short jog, and then hit the weights!  First I will focus on legs for about 25 minutes, followed by 20 minutes of bis and tris.

I start with legs because they are the biggest, and close to, if not the most important muscle group in your body (I can easily defend the core here).  Remember too, that leg exercises require painstaking attention to form in order to get the most out of them.  With that in mind, take my word that you’ll see the most benefit by doing them first.

I didn’t go very heavy today.  I started with an incline leg press (5 x 10 @ 300#), followed by kettlebell lunges (6 x 6 @ 90#), then a lot of squats.  Squats are one of the most important and underrated exercises you can do.  Even with very little weight (I warmed up with 3 x 12 @ 45#), I feel each one making me stronger.  I finished them with 5 x 5 @ 145#.  Finally, I did some leg curls (3 x 10 @ 90#).  I was now pumped and ready for arms!

I like to do almost all supersets for arms.  For those who don’t know what supersets are, they are basically back-to-back exercises, usually using different muscle groups, that (a) make weightlifting more aerobic and (b) allow you to keep going when you otherwise might take a break between sets.  I started with a close grip benchpress (3 x 10 @ 70#) with barbell bicep curls (3 x 8 @ 50#).  Next, I went to tricep kickbacks (3 x 8 @ 20#) with overhand grip preacher curls for forearms (3 x 8 @ 40#).  Finally, I did tricep pulldowns (3 x 8 @ 35#/45#/55#) with standard preacher curls (3 x 8 @ 55#).

Last, but not least, I’d like to share a new meal I made today!  I took 3oz whole wheat pasta, 3oz lowfat mozzarella cheese, 3oz pre-cooked shrimp (fresh would be better, but hey, I do what I can), and some steamed broccoli.  As it turns out, it took about 10 minutes to make from scratch, is about 700 calories, and was delicious.  The shrimp are a great source of protein too!  You might need to watch the cholesterol depending on the rest of your diet, but I will definitely be having this one again soon!

Today, I want to discuss the benefits of working out while sick.  I’ve heard endless advice to stay in bed.  Granted, if you have the flu and a 103 degree fever, you probably won’t get far from the bed even if you try.

However, if you have a less severe cold (or a headache, or even a hangover), a light to moderate workout will likely reduce your symptoms and accelerate recovery.  There’s no need to run sprints.  A little jogging and/or weight training will do the trick.  It’s pretty logical if you think about it.  A workout gets your blood flowing, increases your metabolism, and fortifies your immune system.

One key aspect of this concept is that you tend to lose your appetite while sick, when you need nutrition the most.  Exercise will stimulate your hunger.  When sick, ideally you should eat, eat, eat.  And if you can’t keep food down, then, chances are you’re in that 103 degree fever, stay in bed, situation.  Above all else, learn your body and listen to it.

At various times in my life, I’ve had seasonal allergies, acid reflux, recurring colds, etc. Since adopting my new lifestyle about 3 years ago, I’ve gotten sick only a handful of times, and each occurrence was limited to a day or two.

Aside from the simple act of getting out of bed and moving, exercise does a few other good things for you while sick.  It allows you to sweat out your impurities, clear your lungs, and warm your core temperature.  Additionally, if you go to a gym with a steam room or a sauna, use them!  Add eucalyptus if you have some.  

I can’t force you to do the best things for yourself, but I can tell you first-hand how much better you’ll feel by following my advice, so I hope you do!

Wednesday was more of a strength training day.  Mainly upper body, with some circuit training as well.  As usual, we warm up with sufficient stretching and a short jog.  Next comes about 40 minutes of weight training, from bench press (chest) to pulldowns (shoulders/back) to deadlifts (legs/back).  After that, some boxing, a short intense run, and a little post-workout stretch in the steam room (just made sure to drink enough water).

Nutritionally, today I made one of my favorite new recipes - pizza.  This one is relatively healthy and delicious.  Pre-heat your oven as hot as it’ll go (about 550F for me).  Take a couple of small whole wheat pitas.  Slice and add low-sodium canned tomato with as little liquid as possible (it makes the pita soggy).  Add spices (my secret, but add some salt and red pepper flakes at a minimum), shredded brocolli, and about 3oz of mozzarella.  Throw it in the oven for about 10 minutes.  The cheese will get nice and gooey while the pita takes on a bit of a crunch.  This is a really tasty and filling meal for just over 500 calories.

I’d have to say tumblrbot!!!

This morning I did 150 jumping jacks, 1 minute rope pull, 12 minutes boxing, 165 flights of steps in 23 minutes, 25 pullups (5 x 5), 50 pushups (5 x 10), and 50 kettlebell swings (5 x 10 @ 45#).

I call this my “interval” workout.  The jumping jacks and the boxing are great warmups.  They get the heart started and are great active stretches.  However, the key to it all is the step climbing.  By alternating each minute between all-out sprint and something slightly slower, I’m able to keep my heart rate high for quite some time without tiring.

After workouts like this, you need to feed.  I tend to eat about 5 or 6 decent sized meals a day.  To give you an idea - I woke up at 6am and had some yogurt with almonds, went to the gym, then to work at about 9am, where I continued with a big bowl of oatmeal, a diced apple, and some more almonds.  This post-workout meal is the most important one of the day for an athlete.  It’s your first line of recovery and can’t come soon enough, as your body’s muscles gradually become less receptive to re-fueling after a hard workout.  By 2pm, I’m ravenous, so I had a PB sandwich and yogurt with grapes in it.  At 6pm, I went out to dinner and had an overstuffed chicken wrap with hummus, potato chips, and a bowl of cereal with milk at home for dessert.  Finally at around 830pm, I constructed my own delicious invention - a PB sandwich containing a sliced banana and chocolate, with a side of 2 hard boiled eggs, more yogurt with fruit, and pita chips with melted mozzarella cheese.  This is not an unusual daily menu for me.

I should probably mention that I’m only 5’7” and 130 lbs.  Still, my hunger can’t be satisfied.  Maybe I should try a Snickers bar.  Next time I’ll discuss a different workout and another one of my favorite (relatively healthy) recipes.

Once upon a time, there was a man.  But he was more than a man.  He was a man with a gift.  A gift with weights and words.  Some might say that’s not much of a gift at all.  A cynic might call it work.  But, I call it fun.  I call it me.  I call it home.  I hope you enjoy this man and his blog…