Today I planned to talk to my father at either five or eight. My softball practice finished around the usual time, quarter to five, so I warmed up a bowl of chili and decided to give him a call. At first he didn’t answer, which led to me calling my best friend from home and talking to her for a while, but when she went onto the underground subway and lost connection, my dad randomly (and with perfect timing) decided to call me back.
We started talking about things—boys, school, classes, boys, ex-boyfriend problems. It was actually a great conversation. I found myself sitting in the middle of my kitchen floor eating chili…the whole sitting on the floor thing stemmed from the fact that the only kitchen outlet that worked is low to the ground, so naturally, I just sat down and ate.
Well, our conversation ended up being around an hour, which led right up to my class time at six. I hung up, semi-engaged in some classroom discussion, but then when class ended at eight, I was faced with an ultimate decision…to workout or not to workout.
Tonight was/is one of those blustery nights, the one where the wind whistles around the cracks in the door and the snow drifts into huge piles that you’re forced to stumble through because they’re in the center of the sidewalks. I wasn’t too excited about bracing the wind to head to the gym…but I figured what the heck, I have to get a small run in.
I called my dad back as I headed to my car, making sure to cup my phone with two hands to keep the wind from ruining the connection. We picked up right where we left off, and in a few minutes, I found myself walking into the gym, lacing up my shoes with the phone pressed between my shoulder and ear. I stepped on the elliptical, the fancy one that’s both a stepper and an elliptical, and cranked the resistance up to 15. I figured, heck, since I’m going to be on the phone and unable to run, I might as well get a good workout in.
About thirty minutes later, I was sweaty and feeling a lot better about boy drama. See, it would have been all too easy to just skip the workout and crash on my bed and talk on the phone instead. But, I braved the wind and the snow and made something productive happen.
That’s what I’m encouraging you to do. Instead of making excuses, or feeling like you just don’t have enough time—make time! There are ways. Whether it’s just getting a good walk in, studying for a test on the treadmill, or like I did, talking on the phone while elliptical jogging—every little bit counts, and you’ll feel even better after you’ve accomplished it!
Featured Image Credit: YouTube.