Benefits of Exercise -- Worth the Time

Well, I've decided that I need to get back to exercising everyday like I used to do before I started grad school. The benefits far outweigh the drawbacks. Last night I helped my son with his homework ,after coming home from a full day of work and evening class, said "good night" to him and hopped on the treadmill for a four mile jog at 11:00pm. Afterwards, I felt happy, relaxed, and ready for bed (late-night exercise doesn't keep me from falling asleep). This morning, I woke up about 1/2 hour earlier than normal and jogged for three miles. Again I felt happy, relaxed, and ready for the day at work. This is why exercise is so important for me:
(1) improves my health
(2) helps me maintain a healthy weight
(3) helps strengthen my muscles (I do floor exercises too)
(4) increases endorphins and makes me feel much happier and relaxed
(5) no more aches and pains in my knees and hips
(6) increases my self-esteem due to the first five items on my list
(7) helps my mind stay focused
(8) decreases my appetite
My goal is to exercise everyday from now on. If I don't have time for a full workout, I will get in as much as I can and not worry about it.

Crazy for Grad School

Why Can't the Day be Longer?

Juggling career, household, children, grad school, relationships and social life as a single mom is a tough job. There are rarely enough hours in the day to get everything done, let alone to get enough sleep. At times it's quite overwhelming, but I've used a couple of different organizational strategies to keep me where I need to be and when. Not that I haven't made alot of mistakes along the way (like the time I completely forgot about picture day and sent my son to school in the wrong clothes and without his order form). I've learned to prioritize my issues and not stress over things that are unimportant in the overall scheme of life. I will share some of organization and time-saving techniques in future posts.