Now that we are approaching the end of 2010, it will soon be time for our resolutions (or now time for pre-resolutions, as the case may be).
And as you cast your eye toward self-improvement, might I suggest one of the important fundamentals to the healthy and productive writer: exercise.
Not only because writing is a solitary pursuit, that writers sometime need the occasional mood-lift while pondering the depths of the human condition, and because we want to keep writing as long as Louis Auchincloss.
No. Not just those reasons.
Do it for the creativity boost!
I can’t quantify this. I don’t know if it’s been proven by science (Livia? UPDATE: see her comment for the science).I don’t know if it’s the endorphins talking. All I know is that when I’m stuck on a plot challenge or can’t think of where things go next, I exercise. And it’s amazing how it unlocks the brain.
And even from a macro sense, I find myself more productive and happier during weeks where I exercise. The ideas and words just tend to flow better.
Am I alone on this? Does exercise help your creativity?
Photo by Gruban via Creative Commons
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Emma says
Yes! Absolutely! I've been a runner for twenty-some years, and when I'm not pregnant (I am), I am out there, rain or shine. These days, I still walk. Not only does it help with creativity, but it is great for overall mental health!
February Grace says
As someone with multiple physical disabilities, it's impossible for me to work out like real humans (I'm a toy human, or more probably, a Muppet. I'd snap in half.) but I do find that physically doing something else- painting, for example, playing a musical instrument or believe it or not, taking a shower seems to help get my mind un-stuck when I'm trying to write.
I'd love to hear what other people find helpful who also can't go for a jog when they need to clear their head! Or even a drive. Wow, I miss driving…
Happy Monday, Jedi Master!
~bru
Richard Gibson says
Does exercise help your creativity?
Absolutely, almost always, usually in surprising ways.
Susan Kaye Quinn says
Yes, absolutely! Not to mention fighting off the creativity-crazies that happen when you're deep into a plot turn.
C(h)ristine says
'fo shizzle it does! Just read "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" by Haruki Murakami–running helped me get through the first draft of my novel. The two are linked in my brain. Writing goes better when I run.
Chuck H. says
I'm a grumpy old man. The most exercise I get is rolling out of bed and snagging a cup of coffee. Would more exercise improve my creativity? Probably, but why take the chance?
Sarah G says
Exercise sometimes lets my brain have the space (and blood flow) to work stuff out. I've solved more than one serious story issue while doing something invigorating but mindless.
Jacqueline Windh says
Doubly yes.
Exercise (running or whatever) is a great stress release that keeps you in a good frame of mind for life in general (including writing).
But I also use my long runs as very productive meditative time, where I can plan things like how to structure and article, or go into my characters' heads or figure out what might happen to them.
Anna says
Agreed! I like to run without headphones because it simultaneously clears my mind and allows for creative juices to flow. If anything, it gets my legs moving so they're less likely to fall asleep or get blood clots from sitting down all day!
J.L. Johnson says
I do yoga after a morning of writing. Helps to stretch the muscles out after sitting for so long. Bellydancing is good too. Helps to burn off the calories of the crap I eat while I'm writing. š
Jim Hill says
Absolutely agree, even if I did just eat a donut. A nice three to five mile run clears my head every time.
Joseph L. Selby says
When I left Fort Knox, I was the fittest I had ever been in my life. I also inexplicably lost half my vocabulary. Words I had known and used for years tripped me up.
Exercise actually interferes with my thought processes and creativity. The more still I am, the more creative I am.
Jay says
Yes! I exercise almost every day, doing either biking or resistance training. It releases tension and I find that being relaxed helps with thinking/writing.
Kathryn Packer Roberts says
I better do this more often. Right now I'm in rutsville and could use a boost out.
Red Boot Pearl says
Sticking my toddler in the stroller for a run or even a walk totally helps boost my creativity. I don't know if it's being outside with the fresh air and all…or just that my toddler is strapped down and occupied. It is seriously my best time to think. I don't listen to music or anything so I can brainstorm without distraction.
A. J. Larrieu says
Absolutely! When I run into a plot problem, I lift weights, the heavier the better. And I find cardio is great for letting new ideas drift into my head.
Sierra McConnell says
I can't exercise much as I used to be able to because of certain health problems, but I find that any "mindless" task helps. Just window shopping at the mall, walking slowly around, cooking, baking, or gardening, helps. Because it gets you to focus on one thing and one thing only.
Porter Anderson says
Nathan, don't forget the reason nobody likes to admit: EXERCISE MAKES YOU LOOK BETTER.
People who like the way they look make happier, more productive writers (or construction workers or doctors or rocket scientists). People who aren't fat think better, in part because they're not battling self-esteem issues every word of the way. The fit body also channels energy to the brain for good writing, no need to waste that energy on fat-support. And people who look fabulous gain a whole lot of confidence for the ego-pummeling business of publishing, about which we're always wringing our hands. (Use those hands to do some dumbbell curls instead.)
So don't underestimate the aesthetic angle, even though it's generally not cool to talk about it. I actually believe the chief motivator toward exercise is the appearance boost for most of us. And how grand that we end up healthier, too. š
David says
Yes, indeed.
I lift weights for my main exercise. I like to watch mindless TV (e.g., recorded made-for-SyFy Channel Saturday night bad movies), so I don't ponder plot problems while working out. But the wonderful effect on my mood and mental clarity for hours afterwards is great for my writing sessions.
Oh, I suppose it's great for my regular, paid work sessions, too, but, gee, who cares about that?
kellye says
Maybe I should try this exercise thing. I usually go for caffeine and sugar for a boost.
Actually, I have seen some reports on exercise and Alzheimer's and how exercise gets blood flowing to the brain, so I think that's a good thing, too.
summeroutside says
Exercise absolutely improves creativity!
I am a runner, and it is SUCH a great outlet. It relieves stress, refreshes the mind, and gets the endorphins flowing. After a run, I'm in a better mood and feeling motivated in all senses. Not to mention the ideas that come to me sometimes when I'm out there, just me and the road and the tunes in my ear.
Furthermore, exercise is just flat out good for you, and when you feel better about yourself, you're going to feel better about your endeavors.
skipperhammond says
Yes, especially now that it's cold. A 30 minute brisk walk with chill air biting my face sends blood rushing to my brain.
Hillary Jacques says
There's a reason nobody ever dreamily proclaims "I'm looking for someone with the body of a…writer."
Exercise helps me to calm my mind enough to sleep, when I'm caught up in characters and plot. That's a small blessing.
Hand-washing the dishes is my plot unraveling, character-developing time.
Kerrie T. says
It's true. I even tried to write and recumbent bike at the same time once. It didn't work.
My best ideas/thoughts come at the most inconvenient places: while exercising, in the shower or in the car. I guess I need a recorder and some bath crayons…
Rick Daley says
I've plugged many a plot hole while running or swimming. Swimming is better than running because I don't get distracted by my iPod.
WORD VERIFICATION: feday. Iron day, according to the periodic table.
Anonymous says
I prefer vodka, sex, and cigarettes.
I'm from NY š
Perle says
Totally true. I walk 5miles almost every morning and I have to carry a notebook in my pocket to capture those wonderful but fleeting words that just start coming around mile 2.
Anonymous says
"I've plugged many a hole while running or swimming."
So have I š
(sorry; just couldn't resist…it was too easy)
Feel free to delete.
Robena Grant says
Definitely.
I'm missing my daily swim, brrrr.
I walk the dog twice a day. And that is good thinking time.
Rebecca Henderson says
This is definitely true. I can look at my own work from weeks that I'm exercsing and weeks that I'm sedentary and see a huge difference in both the quality of writing and the amount of time it takes me to write it. I don't know how many times in the last few weeks I've solved a problem in something I'm working on by setting it aside to think about during a long run–it really works!
lotusgirl says
As much as I hate to admit it, you are so right. Maybe I should go for a walk.
Ishta Mercurio says
I love exercise! It doesn't just make me a better writer; it makes me better.
Raj says
Very true. And we are in good company. Haruki Murakami's memoir "What I Talk about When I Talk About Running" explores precisely this theme. He explores how his running is interlinked to his writing.
A must read.
Mark Terry says
Don't know, but I do know that not long after I started writing from home fulltime I joined a gym. Then I started karate. Then I started running. Some of it just may be the I'm-glued-to-my-chair-for-hours-on-end-let-me-out-of-here, but it sure doesn't hurt to air out your brain (as well as your butt) from time to time.
Rachel @ MWF Seeking BFF says
I'm sure I'm echoing what everyone else has said, but I most definitely have had a good chunk of my book/plot aha! moments while I was running. Or taking a shower. Or driving. It's in those moments where I am free to just be alone with my thoughts, where I give myself enough time to flesh out an idea.
Of course by the time I get out of the shower I've forgotten it. Grrr.
I've had many times at the gym where after a treadmill run I have to rush to my phone to jot down a virtual "note" before forgetting..
Chris Phillips says
I've never tried jogging or any kind of vigorous exercise to jog the creativity, but often long walks help.
Carrie says
According to all the fitness magazines I read at the gym exercise does help keep your brain in shape. I think creativity is included in that. I always feel more creative after a cardio kick session or running.
E.J. Wesley says
Do we have to exercise bare-chested like those guys in the picture? If so, we may need our own writer's gym with no windows … just sayin'.
Deb says
I can't speak for whether or not exercise boosts creativity. I do hip-hop dance 2-3 times a week, religiously, and the ONLY thing I am thinking about during that time is the choreography. But it's an amazing outlet and incredibly freeing. So maybe it loosens something up in me creatively. Also, I've been writing a book about the Holocaust, so it's been great to have something on the complete opposite end of the spectrum to balance it all out.
Munk Davis says
There is such a thing as physical morality.
Debbie says
Yes. Yes. Yes.
I finally figured this out earlier in the year. I took a couple days off work to get a better handle on some rewrites. Whenever I got stuck, I'd jump on my–then–new Wii Fit Plus and play. I thought I was goofing off. But when I sat back down, voila! The problem unstuck.
Jessica Lei says
I never exercise. Ideas usually stem through the inanities of life for me–taking a shower, trying to fall asleep, eating dinner. I knew I was a freak…
J. M. Strother says
You bet it does. I find bike rides and hiking the best forms, but the rowing machine in the gym works in a pinch.
~jon
Keetha says
No doubt! It seems to clear my mind of what may be junking it up, making way for ideas and creative fun.
Another big factor for me is how motivational it is: later in the day if I don't feel like writing, I remind myself that I didn't feel like working out but I did it anyway, and how great was that.
That gives me enough internal encouragement and you-can-do-it to make me spring back to my current writing project.
Watcher55 says
I've been killing myself for two weeks trying to write the last chapter of my first WIP by locking myself in my room. You just reminded of the one thing that's gotten me this far – dead writer's don't write. I have 1.8 acres of leaves in the yard so I'm going to shut the 'puter down and treat my brain to a few hours of oxygen.
Watcher55 says
I've been killing myself for two weeks trying to write the last chapter of my first WIP by locking myself in my room. You just reminded of the one thing that's gotten me this far – dead writer's don't write. I have 1.8 acres of leaves in the yard so I'm going to shut the 'puter down and treat my brain to a few hours of oxygen.
Karen Fisher-Alaniz says
Absolutely! I'm a walker. I just listened to an interview with a neuroscientist who studies writing and the brain, so I now have teh science behind why I should get out there and walk! Fascinating. I just blogged about it. Like most writers, I've had many, many experiences where I got a great idea when I was least expecting it.
D.G. Hudson says
Exercise/fitness is very important. Walking and weight training are my choices.
We walked every day in Paris on our last visit and probably covered 5-6 miles a day walking, sometimes more. Some walks were uphill (Montmartre) and some were straight up – the Arc de Triomphe 300 steps (+).
There's nothing like fresh air to clear the grey matter, and when it's by water of some kind (river, ocean, lake)it also calms my thinking.
Besides, as an observer, something I've posted about, you have to get out and see the world around you. Exercise just adds another layer.
Very good point, Nathan. We don't want to get sluggish.
Katherine Hyde says
I'm with you, Nathan. At my annual writing retreat (a week on the beach in Oregon), the daily morning beach-walk is a crucial element of the great work that always gets done, and I'm pretty sure that goes for everyone there.
My normal workout routine (Curves) is less invigorating, but still essential to keeping my mind clear.
Nicole MacDonald says
Yup!! Running and stair climbing and going bush often give me my best ideas š
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