Exercise Is Not Free Time

I used to schedule my exercise in my free time. Exercise was personal, unrelated to work. I’m learning this was a mistake.

When things got busy, work always trumped free time and exercise fell by the wayside.

The first week this didn’t matter. But day after day subtle changes would happen until I’d reach a point where my energy and focus had noticeably diminished. At which point, it became so much harder to start exercising again and regain that energy.

Exercise has momentum. The more you do it, the easier it becomes to keep doing it, and the more energy it gives you. When you stop, you don’t lose that energy right away, but slowly it seeps out of you. The secret is keeping the momentum going.

Exercise is not optional. It must be a critical activity that cannot be rescheduled. Thus my new mantra: exercise is not free time.