Over the last year or so I have attempted to work some type of fitness into my daily routine as much as possible. Some weeks I do really well while during others I am lucky to fit a 20 minute walk in an entire week. Needless to say I have not been very consistent or motivated. While my weight hasn’t fluctuated all that much despite the lack of activity, I am beginning to see a difference in how I feel, both in regards to my mental focus (or lack there of) and energy and it is not a positive difference at all. I find myself fatigued much of the time and while my to do list continues to grow, my motivation continues to plummet. This weekend I was reminded that I need to refocus my health goal and set a new intention to create (and stick to) a fitness regime.
One of my most basic issues with setting a plan surprisingly is that I have been working on being in the flow of life. Instead of setting a schedule and stressing over every detail, I am sort of letting life take me where it chooses to some degree. I am learning that this method only works with some things, and perhaps fitness is not one of these areas. If I am honest with myself (and you) “flowing with life” is probably an excuse I have come up with to make me feel better about not exercising as much as I need to. I know I have not made my own fitness regime a priority in my life and while it isn’t always my favorite thing to do, I need to make the time for it again.
How do you make time?
I have always believed that we make the time for the things that are important to us, but in a world where we wear many hats, how can you make the time for all that you need and want to do? Sometimes it seems impossible.
I could give you a million reasons why I don’t work out, how it doesn’t fit into my schedule, or why it is just difficult to stick to, but I won’t. Instead I will tell you why making time for fitness and any other task that is part of your dream is important.
There will always be something else to do instead of your craft (or any goal or dream you may have) and you may very well find a way to rationalize why the other thing is more important at that moment, but if your dream is worth achieving you must make the time for it. No.Matter.What. It doesn’t necessarily have to be every day, but if you create a schedule, stick to it. (This goes for me and my fitness schedule as well.) If writing a book is important and you are ready to achieve that dream, set a writing schedule. If you want to make your dreams a reality, they aren’t going to magically appear, just as I am not going to wake up one morning and suddenly be able to run a mini-marathon, believe me if this was true, I would have run several by now.
We must prioritize the things that are important to us. If you are like me, you have a list a mile long of things you want to accomplish in a day, but the reality is that even with an unlimited number of hours in a day, you still wouldn’t complete everything. Prioritizing is a must, but I think the most important thing to do is to is remember we are human.
Life happens.
There will be times when we get distracted and fall out of our routines. It happens, and the best we can do is flow with what comes and get back to what is important to us. That is exactly what I am intending to do. I am getting back to a peaceful mind, energetic body, and creative soul through exercise and meditation. And while it will require me to rethink how I spend my time (especially since I am blogging again), making time for meditation and exercise is essential for the rest of my dreams to become reality.
With so many responsibilities in our day-to-day lives, we often forget to take care of ourselves and our needs. Now is the time to change that. I encourage you to look at your dreams and goals and without judgement, see where you can fit more time to those things that bring you joy, so you too can be that much closer to making your dreams a reality.
What do you want to make more time for?
Great post! I find that (for me) the more I make plans to do the things that matter to me, the more likely they are to get done – even if I sometimes just can’t fit it all into the day. That’s where I have to remind myself to treat myself with grace and focus more on the long-term goal than the short-term “miss.” I wish you all the best as you plan and work toward your goals!
Thanks KJ! I am really hard on myself when things fall by the wayside and I was reminded to be kind to myself and to simply get back on track. I think boils down to balance, and I am still finding balance with everything going on.