Hey Space Cadets, I hope everyone is surviving the snow which has blanketed most of the United States.  For those of you not in the States, well we hope you survived too!  The Sleeping Legion Series books are doing well, and I’m continually amazed by that fact.  I’m halfway through writing book three and hope to have it to the editor by the end of the month.  I’m still excited about this project, and the next two afterwards so never fear I’ll disappear and leave you hanging!

 

 

So for today’s World Building Wednesday I’ve decided to talk about something that acts as a companion to your writing plan.  Today I want to talk about our health, there is a proven medical correlation between physical health and mental agility.  I’m not going to lie, the Army over prescribed me cortisone shots while I was deployed to keep me the field.  They continued this as I transitioned into the VA (Veterans Administration) for my medical care.  The excess cortisone combined with decreased physical activity due to my injuries resulted in my gaining weight.  Lots of it.  While my body was wounded and no longer as active as I wanted it to be, my lifestyle choices didn’t keep up.  I kept drinking and eating like I was still running 5 miles a day, though given the delicious microbrews available these days, can you blame me?

 

A quick side tangent; unlike my misinformed Boss Man, I drink my beer in a cold frosty mug as God intended it to be drunk.  Those wacky Brits seem to think we should drink beer warm!  I mean, didn’t anyone go over to the island and tell them we had refrigeration?  Next, they’re going to tell me they still cook with fire, instead of on the stove.  Sigh, it’s a shame but I shall continue to persevere with my 5-Step Plan to educate him on the ways of the beer world.  Wish me luck!

 

Okay, rant over… and now we resume your regularly scheduled programing!  Since I started tracking my daily word counts, I noticed a trend.  On the mornings where I got an early start with a walk, my writing improved.  My neurologist tells me this is because blood flow, oxygen levels, as well as other medical sounding stuff that I didn’t even bother remembering.  Due to this insight, and the knowledge that I can’t keep writing if I let myself spiral into an early grave, I’ve decided that 2017 is the year of the healthier me.  I might never fit back into my Class A’s, but I can get down to a place where my doctors and wife aren’t worried.  I’m 5’9” and weigh in at 341 pounds, this can’t continue.  I promised I’d still be writing when my youngest son is older.  He has it in his head that he’ll write a book with me someday.  To do that, I have to turn this ship around.

 

And I shall, because my kids are worth it.  As writers, we tend to spend a lot of solitary time in front of our monitor clacking away on our keyboards.  This lifestyle of professional daydreaming can lend itself to inactivity and general unhealth.  Let us all endeavor to turn that around so that we might live longer and write more.

 

We can do it.  We HAVE to.

 

 

Until next time, stay frosty and don’t forget to keep your powder dry!   

JR

 

 –> As usual, all images came from the Google’s “labeled for reuse” section, or are owned by JR Handley.