By Recycled Crafts Contributor, Anitra from the blog “Coffee Pot People”.
Creativity run rampant?
“A healthy mind in a healthy body.”
Did we all grow up hearing that? I used to think that it meant to exercise one as much as the other, and only recently have the studies begun to come out saying that to exercise your body is to exercise your mind as well. Apparently, those mental exercises I’m so addicted to—word games, puzzles, reading “heavy” books—are not nearly as effective in keeping the old brain cells plentiful and active as plain old physical activity.
And as an extra bonus, exercise sparks creativity! (For a great article on exactly how it does that, click here: How Exercise Makes you More Creative). As a crafter, I love it when those creative juices are flowing freely, and when getting past a creative block can as easy as running straight at it, my feet hit the floor pronto.
Of course, this being the beginning of a new year, many of us have “Exercise more” on our lists of New Year’s Resolutions already. But who has time? How do you keep from letting that perennially favorite resolution melt away with the winter cold?
The answer, for me, is to multi-task.
I began my exercise regime with the purchase of a pedometer, which I recommend. Set a goal for yourself, maybe the five miles a day many health experts recommend. That’s roughly 10,000 steps, at 2,000 per mile, just enough to be reasonable and still a bit of a challenge. Clip your pedometer to your belt first thing in the morning so you can track your entire day. Oh, and if you can, don’t wear shoes. You’ll find that if you’re barefoot you run more lightly, on the balls of your feet. It’s better for you, and is the reason you’re seeing many runners either barefoot or wearing those shoes with toes these days.
My day’s first exercise opportunity comes when I’m fixing breakfast. I admit to being a little surreptitious here, since my husband tends to tease me, but whenever I’m alone in the kitchen, I’m running in place, or back and forth, or from the ‘fridge to the sink to the range. Never walk when you can run, and never stand still if you can walk or run in place. I can, quite easily, get in the equivalent of a half-mile jog while frying the eggs and fixing the toast! It’s ten minutes I already have to spend in the kitchen; now it’s part of my exercise routine, too, and I haven’t added a minute to my day. (Extra bennie: Running in place burns nearly 600 calories an hour!)
That is the gist of my new exercise routine. Every meal I fix, every room I straighten, every pile of laundry I fold, is an opportunity to exercise. And I’m not into efficiency these days either, since two trips downstairs to put two things away gives me twice as much exercise and adds very little time to my cleaning.
It’s so easy, and you’ll find yourself feeling better, looking better, and enjoying the flow of new ideas forming in your brain. (Keep a note pad handy to write them down!)
Now then, what will you do with all that fresh creativity?
The Paws that refreshes
