Use the Opportunity

“Sleep is the new broke.” – Eric Thomas

Photo of Randy Legaspi

By Kenton Sefcik

I’d like to think I get a lot done in a day.  I work out or practice Kung-Fu almost every day.  I write almost every day.  I see patients four days a week.  I walk my dog, feed my cats and most recently have been cleaning little chicken’s bums.  I have an absolutely beautiful family as well that needs tender loving care.

I have dreams, goals and aspirations.  I enjoy all the things I do and I am very blessed I get to do them.  I also want to push myself farther and higher and I believe I must use my time wisely.  In fact, every year that I get older, I go a little faster because I know the countdown is on.  I only have one life to do all the things I want to do.

I have an exercise ball where I work.  I also have some small weights that can be tucked into a corner.  Between patients, I bang out 10, 20 or 50 sit-ups on the ball.  If I’m somewhere else, I know that push-ups, crunches, squats and back extensions don’t require any equipment.  A 10 minute ‘coffee-break’ can be used effectively.

I also write in my free time.  I try to look for these little gaps in my day.  I jot something down – sometimes it turns into a full article or a blog post or maybe nothing.  Maybe I send a few emails.  Maybe I stretch instead.

I try to get up early enough throughout the week to walk the dog in the morning so that my wife can sleep in a bit.  However, sometimes my plan is foiled because I can’t control my children’s internal clocks!  Before that, twice a week, I’m waking up to hit the heavy bag and run my sprints.

On the way home, or if I have a larger gap in my day, I’m picking up some groceries we might be lacking.  This allots more time on the weekend to be spent with my whole family so we can be together at home instead of taking a couple of hours to venture to the mega-grocery store.

Perhaps it’s my martial art’s fault – its theme on striving for simple and direct resolution of a problem.  However, as I write for more outlets, as I strive for better fitness solutions, as I make those global connections, one thing’s for sure: I keep looking for those little pockets of time where I can put something inside that will bring me closer to that feeling I’m striving for.