Weekly Notes

I don’t write weekly notes every week, but today I want to.

This week has been similar to all other weeks during the pandemic: I worked a bit, but not as much as I could, I didn’t exercise enough, overall I felt tired, and didn’t feel like I had as much energy as I used to. But I know how to change all that because this is similar to how I felt two years ago. I was tired and unmotivated back then, and even though I went to the gym every few days, I didn’t really feel it made that much difference to my health.

Then one day I watched this:

I decided to go to the gym every day. And I did!

I was surprised I managed that. I have never liked exercising. There are sports I like, but the gym is rarely fun. When I decided to go every day, I thought it was going to be excruciating — forcing myself every day to go. I was wrong.

I can’t say I’ve ever learned to like it. But I went every day whether I wanted to or not, and after a week or two, I stopped thinking about it — it was just something I did. I didn’t have to force myself — it became a habit.

Those few months were the best time for my well-being. Every day, I woke up and went to the gym first thing in the morning. I slept better and I didn’t have problems waking up, I even stopped drinking coffee. I felt productive and had more free time.

Then the pandemic happened. Gyms got closed. I stopped exercising. Every night it took me hours to fall asleep. I woke up tired, had difficulties focusing on work.

My gym is finally open again. Last week I only went once and didn’t like it. But I remember how much better my life was when I had the habit of going daily. I am going to build that habit again.