The workload of graduate school comes with an obvious time demand. Maintaining one’s health through that workload is a challenge to some. Here are my keys to succeeding in this area: surround yourself with like-minded classmates, make effective use of your downtime, and write down your goals.
Surround yourself with like-minded classmates.
It is as simple as it sounds and probably the most important. If your goals are anything from competing in a marathon, competing in a fitness show, or just overall health, it is helpful to find like-minded individuals. This is helpful because it allows you the ability to bounce ideas off of each other and it greatly helps with accountability.
Effective use of downtime.
During school you will inevitably have breaks in your schedule, or days where there are no classes. It is important to utilize those breaks productively so you have time to study/cook/spend time with a significant other. A lot of students exercise over their breaks during school, which is a great use of that time. Exercise is shown to help with energy levels as well as increase cognitive function. So what can be better than that in the middle of the day?
Write down your goals.
Experts on success will all agree that writing down your goals is a key step in actualizing them. If your goal is to maintain your health, then write it down. Put it somewhere that you will see everyday so you can put your goal into action on a daily basis. Short and long-term health goals are great to pursue throughout school.
There are plenty of ways to help maintain health throughout school, but these are a few that I have found to be helpful. Health is a lifelong journey, and it is important to regularly make sure you are staying on the path you are choosing. I hope if nothing else, this helps generates new thoughts on pursuing health.
