Have you ever had one of those days where no matter how much caffeine you take in or walk breaks you take you just can't shake the fog? I had a day just like that recently. I couldn't remember if I had packed my keys and I was holding them in my hand. I was on a client call and completely zoned out for a solid 30 seconds and could not multitask to save my life.
At 5:50 when I was wrapping up a call I told a colleague that I was going to go to bed early because I just felt terrible. But, I hadn't exercised and decided that a quick detour to the elliptical would be good.
Honestly, I wish I had time to do it earlier in the day because it was like I had sweated out the fog. I had a clear head for the first time all day.
My second wind gave me enough energy to be able to power through another hour of work, which meant work the next day was less stressful.
I forget how helpful a mid-day sweat sesh can be for refocusing.