Embracing Your Healthy Habits: Part One

This week we're looking at what we're doing right for our health and why it helps our writing.



Most of us have windows of time we use to write: an hour first thing in the morning, a few hours in the afternoon, or an hour or two at night. We're squeezing it into an already busy schedule. How do we fit exercise and the whole healthy eating thing into our life too?

Contestants on The Biggest Loser have to work out around six hours a day to lose enough weight to stay competitive, but the average person doesn't. I'll bet you're fitting in small bouts of exercise and you don't even realize it. It's easy to fit all kinds of movement into your day.


I walk up the flight of stairs from my living room to my office at least three times a day. When I end a writing session, I stand and stretch my arms over my head, then I bend forward to touch my toes. It's a yoga move, but it's also relaxing. When I take the puppy outside, I do a few circuits of squats or leg lifts.

My body thinks of it as exercise even if I don't, and that's what counts. At night while watching television, I do stomach crunches. It only takes about three minutes, but it makes such a difference.

In the winter, my treadmill is my main source of cardio, but if I skip a day or two, I know I'm at least getting some exercise with my mini-sessions throughout the day.

But how does this relate to writing? Exercise pumps oxygen to our organs, including our brains. It also releases endorphins, which are mood boosters. When we strengthen our muscles, our body is better able to support long writing sessions. No more aching neck or back! Plus, we feel good about ourselves when we take care of our bodies. Good feelings promote confidence, and that's a huge factor in writing.



Another benefit of exercise is its cost-saving qualities. It's cheaper to exercise than to pay for diabetes and high-blood pressure medications.

My sneaky exercise fill-ins take less than ten-minutes total of my day. Can anyone truly claim they can't do a few stretches, squats, or crunches each day? Sorry, no one is that pressed for time.

What sneaky exercise habits do you incorporate into your schedule each day? Do you think your body notices? Does it help you sit and write longer because you aren't in pain?

Join me on Wednesday when we'll look at the healthy eating habits we overlook.

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