Action beats inaction

I used to run early in the morning. The plan was simple: alarm goes off at 5:00, roll out of bed, pull on some clothes (which were sitting by the door), and go - regardless of the weather. Rain, wind, cold, dark, whatever - just get out the door.

I had to win the internal argument of whether to get out of bed or roll over and get more sleep, every single day. And I was almost always successful.

Looking back, over all those years, I never once regretted waking up early to workout, after the workout was over. I felt better about myself and about what I was able to accomplish that day, and I had the energy I needed to move forward and attack the day.

It turned out the workout had a larger impact on my day than a little extra sleep.

Today, life is different and morning workouts aren't as practical. This means I need to find time after work for a workout, along with whatever other errands and household chores or projects might be on my plate.

I can usually get something accomplished after work, but then we get into the dinner-time, family-time, clean-up-time, and it gets later into the evening before I get back to whatever outstanding thing I wanted to get done. And by this time, sitting down on the couch and relaxing with my wife is a tempting offer. However...

Sometimes when I succumb to being a couch potato, I regret it. I end up going to bed that night thinking about what I didn't get done and putting myself under pressure (whether real or imagined) to get it done the next day.

In summary:

No regrets for getting out of bed in the morning to be productive.

Yes regrets for sitting on the couch in the evening instead of being productive.

Action beats inaction, regardless of the time of day.

- Chris Butterworth