Could it be that exercise really does affect our brain? After all we learned in Brain Rules, I decided it was worth giving it a try! It has been my habit throughout my career years, (and that would be farily significant at this point!) I have never taken the luxury of a break. There's never time for a break - too much work to do, too many deadlines to meet, too many expectations of myself! It simply was not part of my daily routine.
That changed in mid-January of this year. I began to take heed to Mr. Medina's brain rule # 1: Exercise boosts brain power!. It sounded good - made great sense, but surely I could prove him incorrect! I began to plan a walking break whenever I was on campus mid-morning and mid-afternoon. This indeed was a 10 - 12 minute power-walk. At first I felt very guilty - how could I do this on HISD time? Then I consoled myself my reminding myself that full-time employees are actually granted a break in the morning and in the afternoon. My husband works at Fluor, and they REQUIRE all of their employees to take a 15 minute break in the morning AND afternoon. We're actually doing HISD a favor - by increasing our productivity level!
Well, my little mid-day sprees soon became a habit. I return to my seat feeling amazingly energized; ready to take on the world! My energy level is greatly elevated and my mind is cleared. The stress is reduced, and my productivity level is on the rise! I discovered that I actually improved my ability to "get things done"! Of course, a great little side benefit is the loose-fitting clothes and several pounds disappearing around the waistline!
I encourage everyone to try this - it would be awesome to see you out there in the corridors! Boost your brain power today!
What a motivator you are. Congrats on your perservance and the results.
ReplyDeletei love the idea. not only is it good for you, the work benenfits are tangible. as a runner i always think about trying to fit in a quick run over lunch, but i was never able to make it happen, probably because i don't have faith in my ability to get cleaned up in such a short time after a run and with no facilities. plus, i would probably offend my cube mates! as far as walking goes, if we wanted to have a walking meeting, where would the best place be? needs to have few interruptions in terms of doors, stairs, etc.
ReplyDeleteyeah, the "sweat thing" is definitely an issue - i often walk at lunch as well - and keep the speed down so that I'm not scaring others off all day.
ReplyDeleteIt would be tough if a group was walking together - th corridors are rather narrow. I ussually walk down the middle to avoid doors etc.
Perhaps the downstairs Lobby area - it's definitely wide enough. We could from the east entry doors to the west and then back as many times as we needed to.
The mall is my lunch time walk zone, however, that doesn't work for quick 10 minute breaks.
Interested to hear what you think about that...
Movement always gets the brain going. We must follow our own training guidelines and feed our brains with energy breaks. Sign me up! NOTE: I love your pictures on your blog.
ReplyDeleteThat’s why I love running so much; I am constantly strategizing or problem solving on a run. I always feel so energized after a run and sleeping at night is “heavenly”. On the other hand, I hate to walk because I feel like I’m cheating on the “run” and soon after want to start jogging. So, it would look weird seeing me in flight” up and down” the corridors or stairs. Cheryl, ‘hats off “to you, do continue on this great path - keep up the productivity.
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