I’m in a rut. A big one. A few weeks back, I joined 15 other idiots in an event labeled “The World’s Greatest Sportsman Contest“. The event involved pairing with a teammate to compete in 10 events from 6AM until 12 midnight and involved such activities as golf, tennis, bowling, darts, basketball and….unfortunately….football. While in theory this event sounded like a good idea, a better idea would have been to stay home and read a book. As I laid my guts out on the football field, I manged to break my foot and tweak my already “three surgeries on the left and one on the right” shoulders. It’s been five weeks since the big day, and as exercise has disappeared, the rest of my life is starting to rust.

How could exercise make such massive impact on the rest of my life? As exercise took a backseat to healing my foot, I began to stay up at night and sleep in later. Why not? I had an excuse for not attending my boot camp class or meeting my usual running buddy at 6:15AM on the corner of Peppertree and Pacific Park Dr. Next, I found myself reaching for a bowl of ice cream and eating chips when I walked in the door from work. Hell….since I didn’t need to run in the morning, why not grab an extra beer or glass of wine while watching that late night movie? My work routine started to change as well. Where I used to harness endorphins after an awesome trail run to fuel new entrepreneurial ideas or power through a tough email, I now found myself empty of inspiration, optimism and mental clarity. OK – maybe I’m being a bit dramatic, but I am clearly not the same person I was when I exercised regularly.

This experience has lead me to my own personal revelation, but one I think that applies to all of us. I’m currently suffering from a low (or nearly absent) “Coefficient of Exercise”. Say what? I believe that exercise is not an activity in isolation, but one with a powerful impact on many other critical “variables” which determine the quality of our life and ability to be the “best us” we can be. If the impact of exercise could be defined mathematically, I’d venture to put forth the following theory of exercise:

(BYCB) = X + X(F) – X(A) + X(S) + X(M) + X(C) + X(O)

which can be reduced to:

(BYCB) = X * (1 + F – A + S + M + C + O)

where BYCB = Best You Can Be

and

X = Exercise
F = Food
A = Alcohol
S = Sleep
M = Motivation
C = Clarity
O = Optimism

While I’m no mathematician, for me this formula frames the argument clearly for me. Nothing I’m saying is novel, and much has been written about the impact of exercise on all aspects of life. When you work out, you are also more inclined to eat right, sleep right, live right and greet the world with optimism. When you don’t work out, you eat a bunch of junk, have less quality sleep, and lack the energy and motivation to conquer tall mountains.

What’s your formula for being the “Best You Can Be”?