I got some bad news last Thursday. Not life or death, but not that Twitter was down either. Thursday night consisted of no sleep, tossing, turning, and a giant headache the next morning on the way to school. I had planned all week to get a workout in at lunch on Friday, but it just didn’t seem like that would happen. The mind, the body, the spirit, and soul were………defeated.
Nonetheless, as lunch time rolled around, I stared at the workout bag in my office. And stared. And stared some more. Finally, I reached for it.
Plugging the headphones in and hopping on the treadmill at a slow, but steady pace a sudden “zone” came over me. The bad news slowly seeped from my body. All the other pre-planning, family juggling, and project incompletion evacuated my soul. The up arrow started working on the “pace” section of the treadmill. As I completed the cardio part and headed down to start the CrossFit section, I became a man on a mission. This was my time and I was going to enjoy it. The headache and beat down feeling was oozing out with the sweat. By the time I was done, I was a new man.
That whole experience reminded me that sometimes physical educators have to take our own advice. We all have different levels of fitness, but a good workout for our personal fitness level can work wonders for our body, mind, and soul, particularly in times of stress. Exercise can be a miracle drug. Don’t be afraid to use it!