For the last few weeks, since the writing marathon in October, I’ve been getting up early every morning and driving to the gym. Once there, I’d do a combination of elliptical and treadmill, basically going fast for 45 minutes. Then I’d spend another 20-30 minutes on the mat, doing yoga, before driving home, showering, feeding the cat, then finally getting around to writing.

I don’t consider myself very disciplined, I just build good habits. And it was kind of cool getting up and working out. I felt better doing it.

However.

I’ve been having problems writing the new novel, even though it’s new!shiny! And I’ve been really excited about it.

I was bringing my magic book with me when I went to the gym. I got to read! I love reading. It was so enjoyable. And I would frequently fall into whatever I was reading, then look up and realize that it was almost time to quit.

But reading in the morning means that somebody else’s words are coming before mine. In addition, the gym plays music. Loud, pumping music, to get your heart going. Though I didn’t like the noise, it was nice to have something to pace myself to.

You can see where this is going, though, right? The music contains someone else’s words, particularly when I was stretching and doing yoga at the end of the workout.

It all came to a head Sunday night when my brain said, “No,” when I started getting everything ready to go for the morning. (I always got everything organized at night, so in the morning all I had to do was put on gym clothes. My water bottle, keys, wallet, kindle, and hair band were all piled beside my gym shoes.)

I was determined to go anyway. Then my brain sabotaged that by forgetting to set the alarm.

WTF?

Took time yesterday to process and figure out what was wrong. Mainly, I wasn’t valuing my own words enough. Yes, I felt better exercising. But it was enough of a distraction that my writing has been suffering.

So I am changing my schedule. I’m still doing yoga first thing in the morning, then write. I have an alarm set for going to the gym later tonight.

It will be more difficult to get to the gym in the evenings. I am aware of that. However, my darling husband has volunteered to help and will go with me. I have some evening commitments that I will keep, so there will be nights I don’t go. He has some evening commitments as well. So sometimes I’ll go alone.

But I’m committed to walking and getting to the gym on a regular basis. I know I will feel better if I do.

This morning, doing yoga in the tiny house, was absolutely divine. I missed the quiet. I missed the focus. It’s so much better doing yoga out here.

Plus, I will blog more regularly if I’m not working out in the morning. I found that I’d get back from the gym and by the time I was ready to get to the keyboard, it was already so late I’d skip blogging and would go straight to writing. That wasn’t working out well for me. I figured I was awake enough, but I need something more than just consciousness.

What was the last big change you made? Did it make you happier?