Work in Progress #22: Exercising It

Earlier this week, I did some relatively intense training with my nephew, a 6th degree black belt in Goju-Ryu Karate.  It was the latest “Day One” in a stop-and-start year that has seen thirty of them, easily.  The workout included a Tabata routine that I pull out from time to time when I need a quick and complete workout, and some glove and mitt work that my nephew does to keep his hands right.  One for me, one for him.  And let me say this for the record, as of the day I’m writing this, I’m still incredibly sore.

Seriously, ouch.

I realized very early in the workout that it had been a while since I pushed myself like that.  And while I remember a time when a workout at that intensity wouldn’t have hurt so much, I haven’t worked myself to that extent in months, if I’m being generous to myself.  Years might be more accurate.  So, yeah, the mind was willing, but the body said, “go f*&% yourself.”

It's been like that with my writing as well.  I want to write.  I know I should.  And I get the opportunity sometimes.  But instead of hour-long marathon sessions like I did in years past, my focus barely lasts 30 minutes, if that.  The pen is willing, but the mind says…

The solution is both simple and complicated.  Bodybuilders talk about a principle called progressive overload, and what that means is that you do a thing—let’s say bench press—at your maximum safe capacity, where you can move the weight and control it enough to put it down safely if you need abort the exercise (or you use a spotter, but that’s not the point here).  You do that weight for a prescribed number of reps (usually between 8 and 12) or to failure, whichever comes first.  If you didn’t go to failure, then next time you either increase the weight or the reps to further challenge your body.  What happens behind the scenes is that you make small tears in the muscle fibers, which your body repairs and reinforces with scar tissue.  The more you work, the more tears you make in your muscles; the more tears you make, the more repairs, and that means you can do the thing more.

All of that is a very long-winded way of saying, “the more you do, the more you can do.”

Writing works the same way for me.  The more I get my butt in the chair and write, the easier it is for me to get my butt in the chair and write.  Sessions get more productive, and I write more in my sprints.  My sprints get longer over time, and I get even more words down.  The quality of my writing improves, motivating me to get my butt in the chair and write more.  But in those days where I’m restarting the habit and it’s been a while since I’ve exercised the writing muscle, those first few times hurt like I tried to run a marathon cold.

So, if I know all this, what’s stopping me from doing the thing?  Well, the honest answer is… me.  Once I’ve started doing something, momentum builds.  I do it one day, two days, a week, a month.  Somewhere in that time, I’m starting to look forward to it.  I crave doing it.  And then something happens that slows me down.  One day is fine, but then it happens again.  Then something different happens that keeps me from my task.  And that becomes momentum in and of itself, because next thing I know, a month passes and I haven’t done the thing, and I get too sucked in to restart.

So, what can be done to combat this?

I think I need to take care of myself better when it comes to both writing and fitness.  A big thing is preparation.  I need to prepare by carving out the time and setting it aside, and when I’m on the clock I should begin with a warm-up.  It’s unwise to do heavy lifting without getting some blood flow going by doing some light reps, and it’s also unwise to start writing words that matter without writing words that don’t.  You can’t just dive headlong into the thing, you’ll hurt yourself and your chances of success.

Consistency is probably the most important thing because you’ll never get to where you want to be by just making the move occasionally.  I have to make time every day and show up.  One of my favorite quotes is by William Faulkner: I write when I’m inspired, and I see to it that I’m inspired at nine o’clock every morning.  Yes, I know there are other versions of this quote by other writers, but again, that’s not the point.  Show up every day, at the same time, and do the thing.

Last but not least, I need to work on nutrition.  They say that abs are made in the kitchen and it’s not an exaggeration.  But think about it: how creative are you when you’re not eating well?

Does any of this ring true for you?  How do you get yourself going?  Please, feel free to leave a comment!