Mark Zajdek Applies His Education

For nearly two decades, Mark Zajdek has worked for the United Parcel Service, commonly known as UPS. UPS has provided excellent health care for Mark Zajdek for the the whole time he has worked there and excellent pay too. It's a common belief that no higher education is required in order to work for UPS, many long-time employees like Mark Zajdek believe that their educational backgrounds perfectly prepare them for success in this challenging industry . In fact, Mark Zajdek believes that he applies his education in his work almost every single day.


Mark Zajdek holds a degree in social work. This is an interesting field of study in which students learn about how human beings think, how they are motivated and how they function in groups. In essence, it's a study of the society we all live in and how our actions influence the actions of the people around us on a daily basis. When Mark Zajdek was in school, he found the classes interesting and stimulating, and he was often encouraged to continue his education so he could obtain his license to work as a counselor, but he believed he'd find a way to apply his education in almost any career path he chose. As the following years have aptly demonstrated, Mark Zajdek was right.


In addition, the education of Mark Zajdek allows him to participate in a variety of rewarding volunteer opportunities. For example, he volunteers with the local chapter of NAMI, the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. Here, he is allowed to put his counseling skills into direct action, and he's able to make a real difference in the lives of others in his community.
A degree in social work has been valuable to Mark Zajdek, both in his professional life and his personal life. He works hard to apply his education, each and every day.

Mark Zajdek Gives Advice about Building Endurance

Mark Zajdek regularly participates in road races and has made a habit out of both cycling and running. As a result, he knows what it takes to build endurance in a relatively short amount of time, and has offered to share some advice on how to do so. Mark Zajdek says the most important aspect of building endurance is focusing solely on your performance, and not necessarily on the distance you're able to run or bike. He says it is imperative to understand the difference between racing and endurance building, as the key to improving stamina is to pace yourself by running at a slower speed for longer periods of time.

A great way to bring your endurance to the next level is to decrease the amount of time it takes to run or bike through your daily routine. For example, if you normally jog one mile in 10 minutes, try slowing your pace down to the point where it takes you 15 minutes to jog a mile. As a rule of thumb, you should be able to have a conversation comfortably without having to gasp for breath, and if you're unable to do so then need to slow down. Mark says that slowing down gives your body the opportunity to focus more on improving physiological functions during exercise, while also helping your muscles tone more effectively.

A great way to gradually improve your endurance is to run three days each week, and designate one of the days as your endurance testing day. Zajdek says that on your endurance testing day you should try to add between 3 to 5 minutes to your jogging time each week. Once you've begun seeing a gradual improvement in your endurance, you can begin working on your speed by conducting interval training, which involves running an entire mile at a faster pace before taking a break and walking for a mile.

As a rule of thumb, during your "speed mile" you should be moving fast enough to where it is difficult to have a conversation, but not too fast to the point that it is impossible to talk without running out of breath completely.  Mark Zajdek is currently training in preparation of three charity races that he'll be participating in 2012 – the 5K Great Prostate Cancer Challenge, the 5K race at the Baltimore Running Festival, and the 8K Rockville Rotary Twilight race.