Did you exercise today? If not, why?
Because you didn’t have time?
Or perhaps, you had more important things to do.
For those that want to improve their productivity, one of the first things I ask about is their exercise routine.
Do Something Active Every Day
I try to exercise almost every day. I find that it drives me throughout my daily schedule.
On days where I don’t have a lot of spare time, I will still squeeze in a short workout.
Maybe 20-30 minutes of cardio. 30-60 minutes of weightlifting on a longer day.
Even when it is a short workout, I find that it increases my energy and motivation throughout my day.
Lots of people claim they can’t fit exercise into their day.
To them, I would say:
- You Do Have Time – You have the same amount of time as everyone else. It is how you choose to spend it. If exercise is important to you, you need to decide what it is more important than in your daily activities. Do you really need to surf Facebook for 45 minutes or should you go exercise instead?
- Try Small Workouts – Most people spend more time at the water-cooler in the morning than it would take to go to the gym. It doesn’t have to take 3 hours. Working out is about consistency as much as it is about intensity.
- You Don’t Need a Gym – People say it takes too long to “go to the gym” or that they don’t want to pay for a membership. No worries, no gym needed. Run outside. Do push-ups, sit-ups, and more.
- Do It Early – Thinking that you are going to workout after a long day at your job is not realistic. Put first things first. Exercise first thing in the morning, before you start your day.
Exercise is good for you, why are you avoiding it?
Exercise Your Productivity
There is a myth that staying in shape takes too much time out of one’s day.
The truth is that exercising acts as a catalyst to improve your performance in all areas of your life.
Here are 5 Ways That Exercise Increases Your Productivity:
- Pumps You Up – I hear people say, I can’t workout because I will be too tired. Not true. Exercising will pump you up better than any caffeine or energy drink. It drives you and lifts your energy level.
- Improves Your Confidence – Being healthy increases your confidence. Knowing that you have pushed yourself physically, increases your ability to believe in yourself in other areas of your life.
- Increases Your Capacity – Simply put, being healthy increases your body’s capacity to get things done. Whether it is putting in long hours at your job or playing with the kids.
- Inspires Creativity – Want to jump-start big ideas? When you are “in the zone” exercising is when some of your most creative ideas will come. Trying to solve a problem? Go for a workout and you might surprise yourself how many solutions you come up with.
- Builds Momentum – A body in motion stays in motion. While others are struggling to get their day started in the office, you will come in already at a full jog. You will become known for your energy level and ability to hit the ground running.
Pump Up That Productivity
Is exercise missing from your productivity routine?
Start small and try adding a small amount of exercise each and every day.
Instead of taking time out of your schedule, you will find that it increases your productivity in all your endeavors.
Question: Is exercise part of your daily routine? How does it drive your productivity?
Great post and something I agree with 100%. I find that once you get used to regular exercise, the opposite becomes true – when you miss an exercise you feel less motivated, creative, and inspired. It really is amazing how being active can help in creativity and focus. BTW – shame about the “heel strike” running photo, I do NOT recommend that 🙂
Oh, good point.
Once it is a part of your life… you will miss it when you don’t get to it.
PS – Ha… very funny on the “heel strike.” 🙂
Absolutely love this, Craig!
“Do you really need to surf Facebook for 45 minutes or should you go exercise instead?”
It really boils down to priorities and so many put our time and energy into the least productive areas of our lives: watching television, surfing the Internet, procrastinating, and so on. It’s just amazing how many excuses we can make to not take care of the only body, mind and spirit we have.
It’s time for people to stop making excuses and start making the correct priorities!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Thx, Shannon.
The one stat always scares me is how much TV and surfing people do each week.
If you use that time for a better priority… the sky is the limit. 🙂
Wow… That hurt. Because it was right on for me and ever increasing waist.
Going to the gym right now… myself. 🙂
I can vouch for this. I have had so little energy at works an then less at home with my daughter after a long day.
I started exercising 15-30 minutes everyday and the difference in my energy level and focus has been night and day!
That is great! It is amazing what even a little exercise can do when added to your daily activities.
I’ve also noticed it’s not just about my productivity, but about my mood. I just *feel* happier when I’ve been exercising regularly.
Upward management is one of those skills that some do very well, many never seem to master, and virtually all learn only through on-the-job lessons-learned. When done well, both the manager and employee work as a team to ensure each other is informed, address problems before they spin out of control, and be more effective at managing.
Just read this today. I can say for sure that I thought I did not have time to excersice until 2 1/2 weeks ago. That was when I decided to start riding my bike to work. It is only 3 miles each way but what a work out it has been. Yes, I do have to get up earlier. Yes that means I need to go to sleep earlier too. My first week took 26-30 mins to ride to work(slight upward slope) and 16 mins home(downhill). I have rode my bike everyday to work and home, and added walking 2 miles at lunch. With the addition of changing my diet I have lost 15.5lbs as of today and have been completeing my full days 8 hour work load at my job in 2-3 hours. Where as before it would complete it in about 4 hours. So a big improvement in concentration and performance. Not to mention super high energy level.
Almost for got. Yesterday the ride took 19:25 mins to work and 14 mins home. Today was 17:56 min to work. I would have thought that an impossibility 3 weeks ago. That is about what it would take me to drive.
I have found that, if I will do a little exercise at two different times of the day (I do first thing in the morning and late afternoon when I can), that it helps keep my energy fairly high throughout the day. If I miss the afternoon session, I get worn out in the evenings far easier.
Good stuff.
I fit my exercise in first thing. This prevents me from skipping it later due to things that come up throughout the day.
I don’t exercise at all but I noticed that, my pace completing work is longer than the pace of my FATHER….He is like a machine. It must be due to the fact that he exercises EVERYDAY. I definitely will squeeze exercise in my daily routine.
Check out the iOS App, “The 7 Minute Workout Challenge.” Everyone has 7 minutes a day!