A rule I live by is, “If It’s Important, Do It Everyday”. I first heard this many years ago from a weight lifting coach talking about doing squats. His advice was controversial because it went against the conventional training approach that scheduled multiple days off between workouts because they were required for recovery.
I won’t comment on his philosophy for training Olympic athletes for high performance, since I have no experience there. But, over time, I have applied his advice to many areas in my own life.
I workout everyday. I alternate a gymnastic ring routine with a parallette & pull-up routine followed up by the same gymnastics, yoga and swim routine every single day. This seems to work well for me mentally, physically and psychologically.
I walk everyday. Regardless of the weather, injuries, time crunches, or mood, I get outside in the elements and walk several times a day for miles. The only exception is severe injuries (eg. blown out knee or immediately post-op) or debilitating illness.
I mush my dog everyday. I give my dog love and affection daily. I talk to her. I hold her. I play with her. I walk her.
I do something creative everyday. I write, draw, drum or paint.
I take care of my home everyday. There’s always something that needs to be cleaned, repaired, replaced or maintained.
There’s no place in my life for half-measures or haphazard efforts. Either something is important, or it is not.
If it is not, I don’t do it at all.