In Need of a Routine
Since this is a personal post that mentions health issues, I've decided to exclude it from showing up on the Bear Discovery feed.
As I mentioned in my last post, I haven't felt like blogging lately. That's mostly down to the fact that I've dealt with an anemia flare-up and my sleep has been all over the place. Now that I'm feeling mostly better, I'm very much feeling the need to get back into a regular routine, and I thought I'd write a bit about what that will hopefully look like and steps I can take to get there.
My Planned Routine
This is for weekdays only. I'm going to keep weekends more open to run errands, spend time with family, and just relax.
- 7:00am - Wake up, feed Ranni, and have a glass of water along with breakfast while reading news and/or listening to the radio.
- 8:00am - Start work for the day.
- 10:00am - Take a 30-minute break and decompress for a bit.
- 10:30am - Back to work.
- 12:00pm - Have lunch and maybe spend time doing puzzles.
- 1:00pm - Back to work.
- 4:30pm - End work.
- 4:30pm-6:00pm - Workout then rest for a bit/shower.
- 6:00pm-6:30pm - Take Ranni to the dog park.
- 6:30pm-11:00pm - Have dinner, decompress, and spend time on hobbies.
- 11:00pm-12:00am - Read.
- 12:00am - Bedtime.
The only variations will be Tuesday evenings, when I go over to my parents' house for family dinner, and Fridays, when I'll work in some time to accomplish my weekly cleaning routine. Obviously, sometimes things will come up and I'll have to adjust my routine a bit, but for the most part I want to try to stick to this schedule as closely as possible.
The most crucial aspect of this routine is getting a solid seven hours of sleep each night. My sleep is currently all out of whack, and it's having a significant effect on the way I feel. I've had anemia on and off all my life, resulting from poor iron absorption and chronic inflammation, but this latest bout has been particularly bad, causing me to feel more exhausted than ever, to the point where all I want to do is lie down and take a nap.
I've been oversleeping, for sure, but napping at weird times has also meant that sometimes, when I'm feeling okay, I'll stay up way too late at night, affecting my sleep schedule for the following day. It's just a big mess, honestly, and it desperately needs to change.
I also think getting into a regular exercise routine will make a world of difference, which is why I'm adding in both a daily workout and visits to the dog park with Ranni. Both of those things will ensure I'm moving my body every day and getting some time outside with fresh air as well.
On the weekends, I want to try to get outside as much as possible this spring and summer, whether it's going for walks, kayaking trips with my cousin, hiking, swimming, or taking Ranni to the dog park. Being outdoors is genuinely my favorite thing in the world, and I want to enjoy the surrounding nature where I live as much as possible during these warmer months. We have a beautiful urban wilderness area here in my city, and I want to take advantage of that more than I have in the past.
So a good night's sleep, daily exercise, and fresh air are the main components of getting into a routine and feeling better. I'll be updating every now and then about my progress, and hopefully I'll get back to blogging pretty regularly again as well! I'd like to share some music I've been listening to in an upcoming post, and of course the next volume of my indie game recs zine will be out later this month too.