Lists to Achieve Success
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Dr. J offers his irreverent, slightly irrelevant, but possibly useful opinions on health and fitness. A Florida surgeon and fitness freak with a black belt in karate, he runs 50 miles a week and flies a Cherokee Arrow 200.
Dr. J and I are tag teaming again! How fun! Dr. J is talking about lists to help you achieve success. I got to tell you, I DO THIS! When I was younger & had a better memory,
, I did not do this so much BUT thinking back, man, it sure would have helped me in so many ways! Although, in my years when I worked 60 hour weeks, I had lists for the chores & errands that needed to be done!
In my late 30's when I was doing the bodybuilding thing, I had lists for food, exercise & more & that led to me winning my competitions the 2 times I competed in them. A good thing!
Now I make lists for food, errands & just about everything! It really is a great way to maximize your potential on paper & then play it out in real life! Heck, I use the notes portion of my cell phone to make lists! We all have them with us all the time so that way you can't lose your lists, a prob I had before cell phones! And yes, for you youngsters, there was a day when there were no cell phones!!!!
Please to enjoy, Dr. J!
Dr. J offers his irreverent, slightly irrelevant, but possibly useful opinions on health and fitness. A Florida surgeon and fitness freak with a black belt in karate, he runs 50 miles a week and flies a Cherokee Arrow 200. Dr. J and I are tag teaming again! How fun! Dr. J is talking about lists to help you achieve success. I got to tell you, I DO THIS! When I was younger & had a better memory,
, I did not do this so much BUT thinking back, man, it sure would have helped me in so many ways! Although, in my years when I worked 60 hour weeks, I had lists for the chores & errands that needed to be done!In my late 30's when I was doing the bodybuilding thing, I had lists for food, exercise & more & that led to me winning my competitions the 2 times I competed in them. A good thing!
Now I make lists for food, errands & just about everything! It really is a great way to maximize your potential on paper & then play it out in real life! Heck, I use the notes portion of my cell phone to make lists! We all have them with us all the time so that way you can't lose your lists, a prob I had before cell phones! And yes, for you youngsters, there was a day when there were no cell phones!!!!
Please to enjoy, Dr. J!
Make That List!
I was not always a big fan of lists. I used to just remember everything, and it all was going along quite well until my third year of college, when I walked into a class and discovered that we had an exam that day that I had forgotten to prepare for! Well, I started writing things down a little more often after that!
In my training to be a doctor, teachers always stressed the importance of not forgetting or overlooking something important! It was called “errors of omission.” We use a lot of lists to avoid, as best we can, those types of errors.
In learning to be a pilot, students are introduced to the checklist. Every airplane has it’s own unique checklist, and often each pilot that flies each airplane modifies that list with his or her own specific additions. That’s a lot of lists!
The Arrow has a list printed right on the instrument panel, called a GUMP list.
■Gas: on fullest tank
■Undercarriage: landing gear down
■Mixture: fuel full rich
■Propeller: full RPM
We don’t want to forget any of those prior to landing!
Well, it seems I am not the only person to notice the similarities of surgeons and pilots when it comes to lists! Military pilots met with surgeons for two days at Baltimore Washington International-Thurgood Marshall Airport to learn list-making techniques.
The two fields have a lot in common, said Dr. Adrian Park, chief of general surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center, which sponsored the forum. “Both work in a high-stakes environment where the tolerance for error is zero, and error can translate in very short order to fatality,”
The conference began a day after the World Health Organization unveiled a safer surgery checklist, an idea derived from the aviation industry.
Lists for fitness
Perhaps lists can help us stay on track with our health and fitness goals!
Lists can be as general or specific as needed to help us. Consider, for example something as simple as a grocery list you make prior to going to the store. Sure, they want you to shop the inner aisles, buying everything at eye level, or in the most forbidden zone of all, the checkout line, but if you have a list, made in the safe, non-tempting place you call home, you will be prepared for them! Stick to your list and you will get out without any future damage!
If you have educated yourself as to your nutritional needs, you can make a list of your meal ingredients in advance. Do it when you are NOT hungry and you will not feel you are being deprived. Stick to your list!
The same with exercise. Write down your plan, and check off activities as you accomplish them. Nothing wrong with a gold star for success! Feeling good about your accomplishment will be all the reward you need to keep at it!
Make that list!
Sticking to your list will lead to consistency in healthy behaviors! Consistency is your health’s best friend! Consistency builds habits and habits will make you successful!
I was not always a big fan of lists. I used to just remember everything, and it all was going along quite well until my third year of college, when I walked into a class and discovered that we had an exam that day that I had forgotten to prepare for! Well, I started writing things down a little more often after that!
In my training to be a doctor, teachers always stressed the importance of not forgetting or overlooking something important! It was called “errors of omission.” We use a lot of lists to avoid, as best we can, those types of errors.
In learning to be a pilot, students are introduced to the checklist. Every airplane has it’s own unique checklist, and often each pilot that flies each airplane modifies that list with his or her own specific additions. That’s a lot of lists!
The Arrow has a list printed right on the instrument panel, called a GUMP list.
■Gas: on fullest tank
■Undercarriage: landing gear down
■Mixture: fuel full rich
■Propeller: full RPM
We don’t want to forget any of those prior to landing!
Well, it seems I am not the only person to notice the similarities of surgeons and pilots when it comes to lists! Military pilots met with surgeons for two days at Baltimore Washington International-Thurgood Marshall Airport to learn list-making techniques.
The two fields have a lot in common, said Dr. Adrian Park, chief of general surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center, which sponsored the forum. “Both work in a high-stakes environment where the tolerance for error is zero, and error can translate in very short order to fatality,”
The conference began a day after the World Health Organization unveiled a safer surgery checklist, an idea derived from the aviation industry.
Lists for fitness
Perhaps lists can help us stay on track with our health and fitness goals!
Lists can be as general or specific as needed to help us. Consider, for example something as simple as a grocery list you make prior to going to the store. Sure, they want you to shop the inner aisles, buying everything at eye level, or in the most forbidden zone of all, the checkout line, but if you have a list, made in the safe, non-tempting place you call home, you will be prepared for them! Stick to your list and you will get out without any future damage!
If you have educated yourself as to your nutritional needs, you can make a list of your meal ingredients in advance. Do it when you are NOT hungry and you will not feel you are being deprived. Stick to your list!
The same with exercise. Write down your plan, and check off activities as you accomplish them. Nothing wrong with a gold star for success! Feeling good about your accomplishment will be all the reward you need to keep at it!
Make that list!
Sticking to your list will lead to consistency in healthy behaviors! Consistency is your health’s best friend! Consistency builds habits and habits will make you successful!
Do you make lists? What type do you make & have they made a difference in being "successful" in your endeavors like exercise, food or anything else?
Posted by truth2beingfit at 4/20/2010 9:01 PM 
Categories: Guest Posts, Motivation/Support, Tips
Tags: list making Tips Dr. J
Categories: Guest Posts, Motivation/Support, Tips
Tags: list making Tips Dr. J
I love lists and am more productive with them!
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I'm definitely a list maker. It feels good to cross things off a list as it is a visual reminder of your accomplishments.
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Great point Karen!
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omg, i am the queen of lists! if it doesn't get written down, it doesn't get called, done or bought. my brain retains nothing.
even my grocery list is an excel spreadsheet. every week before i hit the market, i do the meal planning for the week, then i go over that list and circle what we need and cross off what we don't. i even have the list of items as they appear in the aisles in the store. is that a little tmi as far as my analness?
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WOW!!! You are quite the list maker & more!!!!
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Who am I to argue with a doctor....? Could not agree more. Okay, with the exception of a 3-year break in the early 90's, I have been working out and eating clean since 1977. That said, I still make out a list of exercises to do each following day, and I still write down what I am going to eat tomorrow. A list may not guarantee success, but it sure does put a person in better field position.
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Roy, so true.. might as well set ourselves up for success!
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I need more lists in my life...because I have a really bad mommy brain! I will make a do list today!
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I have a bad older age & change of life brain! :-O
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Love making lists but:
"Sticking to your list will lead to consistency in healthy behaviors! Consistency is your health’s best friend! Consistency builds habits and habits will make you successful" ... but this is my problem.
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I'm a list fan! I keep a small notebook in my purse with my daily to-do's, grocery items needed, etc. There's something super-satisfying about making that check mark that says, "yes, I did!" Especially the check mark beside "Workout." (It's even satisfying to cross through it and write "rest day".*g*)
Thanks, Dr. J. Excellent advice as always.
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Dr. J always has great advice!!!! YUP! I keep lists on my cell phone in the notes section.
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lists keep me accountable for sure!
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I love lists! I use them for everything - food shopping, cooking, exercise, packing..you name it. Like Jody & Dr. J, when I was younger I rarely kept a list of anything I did and that got me into some trouble in school and home (I can be very forgetful!). List make you feel more productive and very organized.
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I agree... easier to stay organized this way!!!
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I recommend this as well. When I help people with their weight loss this is one of the first exercises I have them do. Making a list is a great visual for us all to see what our goals are and what we need to do to accomplish them.
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The visual is a great point Diane!
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