#oberlin ef

So full disclosure I am a converted exercise fan.  I used to hate exercise.  I was overweight and depressed and every time I went to the gym, I felt like a blob, had no idea what I was doing, and could only do so much before I felt like my lungs were burning out of my chest.  And it felt like I had done so little.  It hasn’t been a smooth or even complete journey towards enjoying myself at the gym, but more often than not the thing keeping me from exercising these days is my lack of EF proficiency.  More and more, I’m noticing that going to the gym takes a whole bundle of EF skills! Here are some ways I’ve been training my EF skills along with my body:

I found a reason to go.  Starting, for me at least, is always always always the hardest part.  It took me a lot of reflection and patience with myself before I could get to a place where I wanted to go to the gym.  I think this is different for everyone, but for me, I wanted to reconnect with my body.  For too long, I had felt that my body was completely alien to me, a weight that kept me from doing things and being things that I wanted to do and be.  Going to the gym, for me, started with simple walking meditations around my block at home.  I wasn’t trying to lose weight or get strong.  I just wanted to feel at home in my body.  After three years, I have slowly become a person who genuinely enjoys pushing my body and testing my physicality.  Find what you want out of the gym, not what you think you should want out of the gym.  That’s the first step.  

I rented a locker at the gym.  It took me ages to find out that you could rent a locker at Philips! Just go to the equipment room with 15 dollars and ask for one.  Super painless, and the lock is included.  Keeping all your gym stuff at the actual location of exercise means that you’re cutting out the “gather all the gym stuff in a bag and bring it with you” or “get changed into gym clothes” tasks, and you can also go straight to the gym from class instead of having to return home for your stuff.  I always get stuck procrastinating at home if I go back during the school day, so this works well for me! (Note: Make sure to indicate when you ask for your locker which locker room you want to be in.  I’m in the women’s locker room even tho I’m a man because I’m a soft trans boy who is afraid of cis men.  Also, because the very nice woman the equipment room very much misgendered me.  Do what’s right for you.  There’s always the gender neutral shower/changing rooms.)

I scheduled consistent gym times into my google calendar.  This may seem like an obvious one, but it’s actually a pretty hard thing to do sometimes.  Making a daily/weekly schedule is not a task to be taken lightly.  For me, the key is daily consistency.  The best thing about my gym schedule this semester is that I worked it in to mirror my class schedule.  I have class at 10am MWF and 3pm TR, so I scheduled myself for 3pm gym time MW and 10am gym time TR.  That way, I know that I always have somewhere to be at 10am and at 3pm every weekday.  

I developed an exercise routine.  This was the hardest part of the gym for me.  I would walk in and see all the weights and machines and have no clue how to decide what to do first.  The idea of keeping track of arm days and leg days and what to do if you miss a day seemed like a LOT of work to me.  Instead, I have a consistent exercise plan where I go on the elliptical for 20 minutes and then do a set strength training routine for 20 minutes.  Every person has a different routine that works for them, but make sure you know what you’re going to do before you get to the gym to avoid getting EF overwhelmed.

I gave myself a task buffer. For any task that repeats weekly, I like to give myself a graded scale of acceptable, good, and great.  For going to the gym, one day a week is acceptable.  As long as I’m going one day a week, I know that I am exercising somewhat consistently.  Two or three days a week is good for me.  I might miss one or two scheduled sessions but at least I’m going.  Four is my great.  That’s 100% of scheduled gym time used.  If I don’t make this sliding scale, I tend to shame spiral or feel like a failure just for missing one session.  This way, I know that even if I go once I am doing okay.  (I have separate but related advice about how to know that you’re not doing okay and what to do about it, coming soon.)

I stocked my bag with protein bars and snacks.  I dunno about y’all but I need to eat right after the gym.  The EF struggle around eating is real though.  Even though it’s not actually a meal, a protein bar can provide a really good snack for after the gym, since it supports growth of muscles.  With this in mind, I always keep a couple in my gym locker and a couple in my backpack so no matter what I can always have a post-gym snack.  

I gave myself an incentive to go.  Already, I have an incentive to go to the gym because I know that my muscles will start hurting and my attention will begin to wander and I’ll have trouble sleeping if I don’t keep up my gym habits.  There are serious benefits for me that I see nearly immediately (at least within two weeks, but usually faster).  Still, it isn’t usually enough to make me get sweaty.  As an added incentive, I’ve started putting aside certain audiobooks/television shows that I am NOT allowed to watch if I am not at the gym.  As soon as I enter Phillips, they’re fair game.  As soon as I step out of the building, they don’t exist.  If you don’t listen to audiobooks/watch tv at the gym, you might consider something like treating yourself to a decafe smoothie after a workout or allowing yourself an extra $5 spending money in a week for every time you work out.  Just remember to reward going, not any other goal.  The important thing is getting there.  Don’t rate your workouts too strongly! That brings me to the next thing.

photo description: [A PDF page with the schedule for EF group sessions, transcribed below:

Executive Functioning Group- Spring 2019

Wednesdays from 4:30-5:30pm in Peters 129

2/13 - Making a Daily Schedule (being honest with yourself) - led by Evan Corey

2/20 - Prioritizing (+ being a person) - led by Paige Reinstein

2/27 - Summer jobs & internships - led by Sylvia Ros + Bernie Fischlowitz-Roberts (Career Development Center)

3/6 - Values and healthy relationships - led by Monique Burgdorf

3/13 - The professor is just another human, they promise: How to communicate with professors - led by Alex Jackman-Wheitner

3/20 - Reflection, accomplishment, and growth mindset - led by Emily Volz

3/27 - Spring Break - No session

4/3 - Skipped class 2 weeks in a row?: How to overcome shame and go back to class - led by Alex Jackman-Wheitner

4/10 - Executive functioning doesn’t just affect classwork - using EF skills for things you want to do - led by Alex Jackman-Wheitner

4/17 - What is time?? - Time management for those who left the Time Co-op; accountability, breaks - led by Emily Volz

4/24 - Big picture planning - led by Evan Corey

5/1 - Accountability beyond Oberlin: academic incompletes, summer projects and post-grad - led by Paie Reinstein

5/8 - Balance/letting go (50% is better than 0%) & celebration! - led by Anna Brandt, Monique Burgdorf, Maria Z. Maclay, Alex, Paige, Emily, and Evan

The EF tutors are now offering one-on-one tutoring, available through a google calendar sign up! We are very excited to work with y’all individually.  Please check out the link below to schedule an appointment.  :)

I find that if I try to do a pomodoro method (25 min work / 5 min break), I end up wondering what I can do for 5 minutes that won’t suck me in and ruin my flow.  Here are some tips for how to manage a short study break!

1.  Actually time your break.  It’s so easy to think that five minutes will be easy to keep track of, but they go by So Fast.  Remember to set an alarm so that you can be notified when it’s time to get back to work.

2. Do a short meditation.  Meditation can be a very good way to clear your brain after a large influx of information.  It’s also something that gets easier with practice! If you set aside time during every study session to meditate, you’ll be a pro in no time.  Way to pick up a new skill during your study break! I recommend preparing yourself before a study session with a few short meditation videos or breathing exercises that you feel confident you can follow.  I personally use the Simple Habit app; they have specific study break meditations that are 5 minutes!

3. Try stretching during your break. Stretching is a great way to relieve tension and get your blood flowing.  Especially people who have a hard time sitting at a desk for long periods of time (me) can really benefit from getting out of their chair and moving their body.  There are some great short stretching routines out there, so explore and try to find one that you like.  Or make your own! I personally like this Greatist post that outlines some stretches specifically for doing at a desk.  They have descriptions of the stretches as well as gifs of someone implementing them, which I find super helpful.

4. Have a snack and drink some water.  Any prolonged period at a desk is going to fatigue you.  A small snack and glass of water can go a long way to rejuvenating you! I love having a piece of fruit and/or a nutrition bar, and Decafé often has both for sale with a meal swipe.  They also tend to carry cubed cheese, fruit cups, overnight oats, and other small things that you can save over from your lunch for a study snack! As for hydrating, don’t forget that tea and coffee can dehydrate you.  Water (or La Croix) is your best bet.  

5. Stay away from the internet.  Scrolling is not resting! You want to make sure that you will feel okay going back to work after your break, and the internet is usually trying hard to keep you there.  Getting too involved in something else can make it difficult to come back to your work ready for more.

6. Draw or color in a coloring book.  I have definitely gotten in the habit of bringing a coloring book around with me for phone-free breaks.  Getting creative can be very calming and centering, which makes it perfect for a study break.  Don’t forget to keep it simple, though, and keep yourself from feeling pressured about it.  You want a short doodle or a few colored in blocks, not a masterpiece.

7. Consider a longer break.  Ultimately, sometimes five minutes is not enough. Ideally, your study break will be a way to refresh yourself   I often use a modified pomodoro for more challenging work where my worktime lasts 50 minutes and my break is 10 minutes.  That way, I can really take a solid break.