The Best & Hardest Way to Stay Productive in Hectic Times
Ever since Covid-19 started shutting everything down, it’s been a lot harder for me to concentrate, be creative, and find motivation. Don’t get me wrong, I am still doing everything I need to do, but it feels like much more of a slog.
I know I’m not alone in this. When I talk to my entrepreneurial friends, they tell me they feel it too. It’s clear that the last few months have put much more pressing matters on everyone’s mind.
Our current situation is unprecedented, so when it comes to how to get through the workday when it seems like the world is falling apart, I don’t know that there is a proven regimen. I’ve seen a lot of advice that basically sticks to:
Follow a routine
Cut yourself some slack
While that is good advice, I think there is something else that is even more essential. The only problem is that it’s one of the hardest things to accomplish even when times aren’t so hectic.
I’m talking about regular exercise.
Exercise is good for the body and also the mind. Research shows that regular exercise improves energy levels, anxiety, memory, and a bunch of other factors that contribute to our overall health. So if we physically feel good and use exercise to prime our mind and mood to be productive, we’ll be a lot closer to that creative place we need to be in to do a good job.
But honestly, it is still hard and even harder now to include exercise in each and every day.
For me, I tapped into the same strategies I use when I want to include exercise in my vacations. I’m not saying 2020 has been a vacation, definitely not, but similar to how a vacation disrupts our day-to-day lives, so have the events of 2020.
The way I see it, I’m treating the current circumstances as if they are part of any other type of temporary new normal rather than forcing the situation or pretending everything is fine.
Here are my three strategies to include exercise in your routine even when everything is chaotic.
1. Exercise from a place of gratitude, not punishment
Body-positive exercise culture is new. Most of us grew up being told that exercise is a way to punish our bodies for not looking or eating a certain way. So if that’s your mindset, cut that out.
Years ago, when I started making exercise a regular thing, I realized I could enjoy it way more if I looked at it as something to be grateful for. And truthfully, I am grateful that my body can move this way and I’m grateful for how good my body feels when I do.
Lately, I’m most grateful for how exercise almost always leads to a better day, productivity or otherwise.
2. Find something you love
This may sound like the biggest cliché, but you have to love your form of exercise. When you love it, you can stick to it.
For me, I need variety. I can’t do the same workout every day, so something like Bikram yoga is out of the picture. I mostly go to a gym near my house called Sweat Athletics where they have a different workout every day and I can stay consistently engaged. Also, Sweat Athletics has virtual classes now if you want to see if it’s your thing too.
Finding the type of exercise you love may take some experimentation and self-exploration. Not everyone is the same, so if you aren’t excited about the same trendy workout your friend swears by, move on.
3. Make movement a non-negotiable
Working out is the one thing that is non-negotiable in my day. It comes before work and almost everything else. The reason it’s my top priority is because I know that I can show up for everyone and everything else that day as long as I get in a good sweat.
Think of working out as the foundation of your day. Make it so important that you can’t fathom how anything else works without getting in a workout first.
I don’t want to set unrealistic expectations, because even though it’s my top non-negotiable priority, there are days that I need to skip. Adding regular exercise into your routine can be tough at first, and every now and then something will disrupt it. But what I have found is that making exercise the foundation of my day is one of the best ways for me to make many of the other things in my life a priority too.