Exercise: One of the keys to mental health
A reoccurring pattern- no matter how many CEO's I look at: Exercise is always part of the routine, whether its once a week or once a day, the busiest and most successful people I look up to, find a way to fit exercise into their routine. And hey, if Mark Cuban can squeeze an hour of "sweat" in a day, 6 days a week, a 24 year old like me should be able to do it no problem. There have been no shortage of research showing mental acuity and exercise- so I'm adopting this CEO habit.
A sweaty billionaire- Mark Cuban
I've been working out very consistently for the last 3 months. I had worked out consistently before, but when I started at IBM in 2016 - I took less care of myself physically that I should've. It was a bit of a vicious cycle - I would work, come home tired, and not exercise. And over time, this only made me more tired after work, which meant my will to exercise deteriorated even more. My cardio and strength had gone to shit. I tried to pick up a strenuous routine- 6 days at the gym, 6 days of cardio a week. And the days when I tried this exercise routine cold turkey, I wouldn't be able to finish my HIIT routines. I found myself on my knees out of breath many times, just giving up. It was extremely frustrating- to remember what you were able to do years ago so easily, and to struggle so hard now. Why'd I work so hard before, if I was just going to lose it all?". But the past doesn't matter as long as I progress forward- Today, my routine consists of me hitting the gym 5-6 times a week for weights, and doing HIIT (cardio) at home for 40-55 minutes, 6 days a week.
How do I feel after 3 months of this routine? It took me a full month before I was able to transition myself into my current routine. It's no surprise I feel better today. When I wake up, I feel ready to tackle the day. Playing casual sports doesn't tire me out- it feels like a breath of fresh air to move around, rather than a struggle. I feel myself sweating, but there's little tiredness that tags along with it. I feel more mentally awake and sharper- whether that's placebo from all the articles I read about exercise and mental acuity or truly reality- I don't care. It's working for me.
Snippet about me- As someone growing up with asthma, I have several memories of myself encountering the shortness of breath common in asthmatic persons. Whether the memories were of me using my puffer, the burning sensations in my chest, or the "drop to your knees" shortness of breath, I always thought they were regular occurrences- I attributed them to regular "tiredness". My competitive nature did not grow short with my condition, and I'm glad I was able to enjoy school with all my class mates.
I rarely encounter the effects of my condition these days, my asthma seems to have departed as I grew older, but my competitive nature remains. I challenged myself to do something I never thought I would in 2013- run a 10K. My time was neither fast nor impressive, but I find myself thinking about that moment as one of my proudest moments. And yet - that was 5 years ago. Half a decade- why haven't I done something similar that I can be proud of recently? So I signed myself up for the Tough Mudder Half in Sept 2018.
8KM, 13 obstacles, and 3 months, stand in the way of me creating my newest "proud" moment.
My medal from an outdated memory- Oasis 10KM
How am I positioning myself for a successful day?
Reverse back to the successful - and jam packed day of these CEO's: fit exercise into my daily schedule, and commit to making it a long term habit.
The same way we position for self growth - commit to new experiences, goal set, and step outta that comfort zone. Thanks for reading.
Cheers,
Victor