During my freshman year of college, I decided to start running and going to the gym in order to improve my stamina and overall physical and mental health. Around this time I was stressed due to my courses and new work schedule, but I was also having trouble sleeping at night. My restlessness caused me to eat more in the middle of the night, which resulted in me gaining weight. I figured that working out would resolve all of my problems because I could take my mind off of school and work and relieve some stress while also aiming to get healthier and improve my body. Remaining dedicated to fitness, however, was a lot harder than I anticipated because I often found myself too tired or too busy to go and when I did go I would often get distracted and spend most of my time talking to friends. I soon realized that I had to change my entire lifestyle in order to remain focused on my goal. I started with my eating habits by going on a diet that included more fruits and vegetables and less junk food. I would also team up with friends to keep ourselves on track and cook meals together to avoid dining out or eating unhealthy foods. These changes immediately made me feel less sluggish and helped me keep the focus on my courses and assignments.
I had more difficulty changing my studying habits than I did my diet. I liked to do all of my work in my dorm room and found myself getting distracted easily because I was surrounded by friends to speak to, food to eat, a television to watch, and a bed to sleep in. This method of studying affected my work ethic as I would often find myself spending two to three hours on an assignment I could have finished in one if I really focused. I tried to fix the issue by going to the library and doing my work on the “quiet floors” where food and talking were not allowed. While this change definitely helped me concentrate and get work done at a faster rate, I still found myself getting distracted by going on my phone, observing the other students in the area, or heading down to the vending machines to get a snack, which led me to the social floors where I could talk to my friends. I was still finishing my work around one or two in the morning and this was a problem for me because I either had early classes or work shifts all week and the lack of sleep affected my focus and performance in these areas. I knew in order to improve my academic performance in addition to mental and physical health I had to make drastic changes to my work ethic. I finally managed to do this by locking myself alone in empty classrooms and turning off my phone. Being in the classroom alone allowed me to have fewer distractions and turning my phone off instead of keeping it on made me less likely to check messages/social media, play games, watch YouTube videos, and listen to music. I created an environment for myself in which all I had in front of me was my assignments and if I wanted to leave or do something else I had to finish it. I personally did not allow myself any breaks because I know my personality and fifteen minutes can turn into an hour very quickly. However, I always gave myself incentives like eating a snack after each completed assignment and when I completed all my coursework I would watch an episode of a show or a few YouTube videos. My concentration and productivity increased drastically, which subsequently improved my sleeping schedule, health, and social life.
After improving my diet and studying habits, I now had enough time to really focus on fitness. I usually ran with friends because I had become aware that I was more likely to stop and walk the rest of the way when I was alone. I knew I could meet my goals if I pushed myself and I felt more motivated when keeping up with others. We never talked during the run as I would listen to uptempo playlists and focus on the fields around me. When I concentrated on my surroundings and music I would prevent myself from getting into my head and stopping. At the gym, I would still listen to music, but I was a lot more social in the beginning. I was not experienced in weight-lifting so I would ask my friends for help and do sets with them. Whenever they saw me struggling, they would always give me words of encouragement to keep me focused on the goal and get through the set while also make sure I was not pushing myself too hard. At the end of my sessions, I would always reward myself with a protein shake or smoothie so that I had something to look forward to. I immediately felt the positive effects of exercising as I was no longer restless during the night and was able to get around eight hours of sleep. This change kept me focused throughout the day and I also felt happier in general. Running and weight-lifting helped me relieve a lot of stress and took my mind off of everything for an hour or two and kept me in a positive mood.
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