No matter how much you love your children, all parents feel frustrated at times. It’s normal to long for the good old days of less hectic schedules, adequate sleep and time to catch up with friends and participate in activities you love. Train for a race with young children? That may sound downright impossible!
If you’ve signed up for Spirit of Survival this year and you have kiddos at home, good for you! We know how tough it is to find time to train for a race with young children. By now, you’ve probably had more than a few ups and downs throughout your training. You might even be considering throwing in the towel, but don’t! Hang in there for a few more weeks and let’s make the most of what time you have left! Here are our answers to four common questions that may affect your ability to train as a parent of young children:
Who is going to watch the kids?
One of the biggest challenges to training when you have children is figuring out who is going to watch them while you train. This might be a great time to check into a new evening activity your kids want to participate in or ask your spouse or partner to rearrange their schedule a bit if possible.
If you have another friend with young children, consider working out times when you swap babysitting duties so you can get some “me time” and take care of yourselves.
What if I don’t have those options for childcare?
We get it. Sometimes childcare solutions are not simple. First of all, include your kiddos in your training time if you can. If they’re small, consider pushing them in a stroller. If they’re bigger, encourage them to participate with you.
Sometimes you may have to commit to working out before everyone else wakes up or after everyone is in bed. Sometimes you have to do part of your training at a gym that has childcare. Other times you have to invest in some new or used gym equipment for your home. Where there is a will, there is a way. Just because your training isn’t ideal, doesn’t mean you still aren’t setting yourself up for success.
How do I find time to train?
Use your time wisely. Your training schedule may look a little different than someone who has more flexibility. You may not have a whole hour or even 30 minutes to train every day. That’s ok. Ideally, you should have a couple of days a week dedicated to a longer training period. The rest of the week, squeeze it in however you can. If you’re waiting in the car line at school or standing in front of the stove, that may be a great time to grab your dumbbells.
Schedule training time so it doesn’t continually get pushed off until all the other tasks of the day are complete. Set your cell phone alarm to make time throughout the day when you’re typically available to squeeze in a few minutes of training here and there.
Should I really be using my time for this?
YES, YES, YES! 100x’s YES! There is only one of you. You must take care of yourself. We know you could spend more time cleaning the house, cooking, folding laundry, etc., etc., but if your health and well being are not a priority, you’re possibly shortening the time you have to take care of your family in the long run. Train for a race with young children, so you’re around to train for a race when they are not so small anymore!
Furthermore, if you’re a mom, don’t skip on time spent strength training. Your body has been through a lot from one or multiple pregnancies. Strength training will help rebuild your core which will improve your stamina and protect you from injury. To see some examples of good strength training exercises, check out our blog “How to Be a Better Runner.”
We know you want your kids to take good care of themselves as well. What better way is there to show them how than by setting a good example?
Disclaimer
The Spirit of Survival website does not provide specific fitness advice for individual cases. Spirit of Survival does not endorse any services or products obtained through information provided on this site, articles on the site or any links on this site.
Use of the information obtained by the Spirit of Survival website does not replace medical advice given by a qualified medical provider to meet the medical needs of our readers or others.
While our content is current when published, information changes quickly. Information may be out of date, and/or contain inaccuracies or typographical errors. For questions or concerns, please contact us at racedirector@spiritofsurvival.com.
