Working and Working-Out From Home

Working from home is the world in which I've been living most of the past 10 years with DCRC.  I see that there are online articles floating around all over the place on "How to Adjust to a Work-From-Home Environment" and "6 Things You Can Do TODAY to Improve Your Productivity While Working From Home!"  It's all practical advice, so I won't belabor the point here.  Without having actually read those articles, my #1 tip is to find a place with the least amount of distractions, which might actually be outside your home.  For me, I've found that the UMD library is where I am the most productive, with a specific section of the specific floor that I go to.  With that shut down, I still have other backup options I've used over the years.  Yes, I'm sitting at my home desk 80-90% of the time when I'm working these days, but I also know it can be beneficial to go outside for a while to get other type of work done, like reading and/or less-consuming work.  

As it relates to training, some of you are now feeling "cooped up" because you don't have the separation of commute-work-gym-commute-home that you used to have.  So now you might not always have the usual peppy enthusiasm to do ST because now instead of doing it at the gym, you're doing it where you work and eat.  My advice on this is the same as it's always been, try doing your ST outside!  There has to be some small park or patch of grass near your home in which you can take your bag of ST goodies and knock it out.  

Either way, whether it's working at home or working-out at home, you have to flip a switch in your head that enables you to switch modes (see Link below).  One tactic here is to change your clothes when it's time to workout.  Maybe you've been lounging in workout clothes all day, and that's fine…you don't have to wear your business attire when working from home (I hope you don't!), but make it a point to change clothes, as in putting on a "uniform".  Uniforms have a special connotation in that it allows us to make those small yet meaningful identity changes, which enables us to "get in the right zone" prior to the workout.  Maybe you have a favorite workout T-shirt?  …special tights/shorts?  …headband!?  

Whatever it is, now more than ever is when you can use that to your advantage.  Switch clothes, put on your workout uniform and "go to work"…flip the switch in your head!  Thank you, Sly!

Train hard!

Mike