Knock Out Distractions & Make Your Workouts Count!
Photo by Leslie Hassler

I’m proud to be a native New Yorker and absolutely love living in the Big Apple. However, one of my biggest pet peeves about living and working here is walking down the street and colliding with someone engrossed in texting or checking his or her smartphone. What’s even more annoying than dodging a shoulder shove on a crowded city street? Seeing people waste their energy on their smartphones when they should be focusing on their workout!

As we kick off another Workout Wednesday, I offer a simple but important tip: focus on making your workout count!

I love the fact that my iPhone carries all the tunes I need to keep moving. However, the same amazing device also gives me 24/7 access to texts, emails and yes, my Twitter and Facebook accounts. Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, training my body has included training my brain to ignore all the distractions a smartphone has to offer.

You’ve made the effort to exercise, so remember, this is your precious time to focus on getting healthier and stronger. In our time-crunched world, many of us are lucky to get those 30 recommended minutes of cardio in on a near-daily basis. If you only have 20 or 30 minutes to commit to that power walk or weight training circuit, you owe it to yourself to get everything you can out of each of those minutes. That means focusing on what you’re doing. The text can wait, and you don’t need to tweet every time you complete a set.

Of course, I realize some people really do have to be “on” all the time, like those who work in emergency services or in the medical field and who may be on call during a workout. I also understand parents may need to keep an eye out for an emergency text from a spouse, partner or babysitter. For the rest of us, however, is the world seriously going to end if it takes another 30 minutes to respond to an email with a well thought-out response?

Working in public relations, I’m acutely aware of the fact that my job has nothing to do with saving lives. My boss knows I’ll check my work email eventually after I leave the office, but not while I’m focusing on my form or my breathing during an elliptical session or push-up Tabata and especially not during my all-time favorite Club Strength class. If taking a group exercise class will keep you from checking that smartphone, then find one you like and take it a few times a week. That way, you can truly focus on doing your body and mind some serious good during those precious minutes.

You made the effort to get to the gym, the park or the hiking trail. You owe it to yourself to focus on making that effort count so you can have fun, be fit and feel fabulous!!