The HEA Cafe

What if I told you that in as little as ten minutes a day you could boost your creativity, elevate your mood, improve your memory and guarantee a better night’s sleep?  Sounds too good to be true?  It’s not.

As little a ten minutes a day of aerobic exercise can do all that and more. 

I can hear the groans now.  You don’t have time.  You have deadlines, a day job, family responsibilities.  You barely have time to write, much less spend precious time exercising.  All you get is tired and sweaty.  Exercise is too hard.

So is becoming a writer, but you’re willing to sacrifice and work to reach your goal.  Consider exercise another weapon in the arsenal you use to win the war we call publishing.

Studies, such as the one in Creativity Research Journal, have supported the theory that creativity is enhanced by exercise.  Tell me of one writer who wouldn’t love to have more creativity and I’ll show you a liar.  Personally, I like to sit down at my computer brimming with plot ideas and twists.  If exercise helps me do that, I can carve out at least ten minutes.

Exercise also improves your mood.  Rejection is a hard fact of this business.  No matter how long you’ve written or how successful you are, when you get a rejection letter or your current book sells less than expected, it hurts.  Instead of breaking out the chocolate or buying a pair of shoes, why not call a friend and go slap around a tennis ball?  Better yet, join a gym and learn to box.  Picturing a particular editor or agent’s face on a heavy bag can be rewarding and no one has to know why you have that smile on your face.

Have you ever read a book and halfway through realized that the heroine’s eyes changed from blue to green?  Exercise improves memory and can help you avoid such embarrassing screw ups.  Studies show that a good night’s sleep increases concentration and productivity.  Physical activity contributes to sound sleeping.  I’ve heard stories of writers who wake up with an entire plot fresh in their mind.  The subconscious can work out plot problems or break through writer’s block and exercise helps to regulate sleep cycles.

Finally, writing is a solitary business.  Taking a walk with a neighbor or joining a gym and partaking in a group aerobics class can help break up the loneliness of the job. 

Try it and I’ll bet before long it becomes a habit you won’t want to break.