Today’s letter in the A-Z Challenge is E, E for Exercise!
One of the problems with being a writer is the inevitable bum-in-chair syndrome. Hours spent at the computer may result in a hefty word count but can also result in a hefty posterior. Exercise for health reasons are obvious, but exercise can also help creativity.
There is nothing worse than staring at a blinking cursor at the top of a blank page. You might even type a few words only to delete them and keep staring at the blank page in the hopes of being struck by inspiration.
This is a common scenario for many writers and it’s not even the dreaded writer’s block. Sometimes we know exactly what we want to write but it just doesn’t flow, the words come out like stodgy porridge instead of golden syrup. This can be as frustrating as it is time wasting.
Whenever I feel stuck in a rut with writing, I turn to exercise. I’m a pretty active person as it is. I teach dancing three times a week, try to swim at least once a week and take my dog for walks twice a day. Sometimes that’s not enough though and I find myself parked behind the PC with a numb bum and negative word count.
This is when you should take a break and get the blood pumping. Doing some basic exercise like skipping a rope, starjumps, squats, crunches or pushups are great but I find that a tad boring and that that sort of repetitive exercise doesn’t actually take my mind off the lack of words on the page. I need something to distract me, so I dance. I’m not talking Black Swan pirouettes either. There are some fantastic and easy dance videos on Youtube to fun, upbeat songs that’ll get you sweating and wake up the Muse.
Here’s one of my favourites. Hope you enjoy!
How important is regular exercise to you?
