The Physical Activity Experiment
Disclaimer: I am no scientist.
I am back with a brand new experiment! Since I am still very much in the middle of finals week, I thought I would test out another way to keep the mind focused during long periods of studying, reading and writing. For part two of my experiment series, I will do the physical activity test. Instead of reading, I will be writing this time. I will start the experiment with thirty minutes of writing, stop and proceed with thirty minutes of non-stop physical activity and finally finish with another thirty minutes of writing. The goal is to compare both writing sessions and evaluate the difference in productivity.
Expectations: The brain needs exercises in order to function at a higher capacity. But the brain is nothing without the body and vice versa. That is why it is just as important to train the body. With this in mind, I think working the body and getting the blood flow moving will only improve the performance of the brain since these two work in conjunction all the time. However, I fear the tiredness of the body after an intense workout and do not know how long the stimulus will last.
Observations: I started this experiment after a couple of hours of non-stop writing. My mind was already starting to wander every few minutes and I could feel the motivation leaving my body. I then started my thirty minutes workout. I mostly did jumping jacks, squats and sit-ups, but most importantly, I did not stop before the time was up. When the thirty minutes was over, I was a little bit out of breath, but I mostly felt amazing. I could feel the buzzing energy in my body and I was ready to begin my writing again. Productivity was very high during the second writing session and I can say my energy from the workout lasted very well over one hour.
This experiment was a real success. Physical activity does improve productivity over time. My creative juices flowed a lot easier during my second writing session than they did during the first one. I will definitely use this trick again in the future.