Balancing training, work and family life

[V12man]

Already dont drink my coffee with sugar and I use minimal fat free milk. The milk is something I can not go without!

 

Practice... it might be fat free, but it is not calorie free - not even close... Takes a few cups to get used to it... and drinking it cooler, rather than hot is easier...

 

And if you are making espresso and adding water it is a lot better (Americano) .... as long as the water you add is not boiling - around 80 degrees is about right.

[reteid]

i also work for myself.when i drop the kids off at school i try and go for a swim.take a run over lunch time.office has a shower.bike over weekends.if i go after work i try to take my kids with to gym as they both swim so while they are with the instructor i do my sets.have a very understanding wife.

[Nofearnofun]

Practice... it might be fat free, but it is not calorie free - not even close... Takes a few cups to get used to it... and drinking it cooler, rather than hot is easier...

 

And if you are making espresso and adding water it is a lot better (Americano) .... as long as the water you add is not boiling - around 80 degrees is about right.

 

good point on the calories

 

I would say out of 8 cups of coffee 7 of them are instant coffee which I just cant drink without milk, the other cup will be nespresso which that is cool without milk. If I had to have Nespresso every cup I would be working just to pay for my coffee

[V12man]

good point on the calories

 

I would say out of 8 cups of coffee 7 of them are instant coffee which I just cant drink without milk, the other cup will be nespresso which that is cool without milk. If I had to have Nespresso every cup I would be working just to pay for my coffee

 

Life is too short for Nespresso.....

 

Interestingly some instant coffee is fairly high in calories too - does somewhat depend on what other junk they add in to it when they make it... not my favourite stuff at all.

[bigjoe]

I dont think there is one solution for all. It also depends on your goals and what you expect. I have goals, but due to the fact that I have a young family....and an active wife....sacrifices have to be made in terms of goals. We both train for IronMan (wife only 70.3), and both work 8 - 5 jobs makes it very tough!

 

But, we make plans to train early morning, before work while the kids are sleeping.

 

Typical training week...

Bike - One day a week i am out on the road (4AM) and my wife on the IDT. the next bike day i am on the IDT and she does a spinning class (cant let her cycle in the dark)

Running - we run early in the morning (start 4AM, depending on distance), so that we can both fit in a run, at seperate times....as we cant leave the kids alone

Swim - this is reserved for night time....if not too tired.

Weekends - sat morning run early....seperate times before 8...when the kids activities start. Sat afternoon an open water swim....take the kids with. sunday mornings are our long cycle.....drop kids of at granny

 

At the end of the day it is al about trying to be consistent....but work and family are part of our lives. Training is a byproduct to keep us active and healthy. will probable start pushing for bigger goals when the kids are bigger.

Edited October 17, 2013 by bigjoe

[Ratty]

I dont think there is one solution for all. It also depends on your goals and what you expect. I have goals, but due to the fact that I have a young family....and an active wife....sacrifices have to be made in terms of goals. We both train for IronMan (wife only 70.3), and both work 8 - 5 jobs makes it very tough!

 

But, we make plans to train early morning, before work while the kids are sleeping.

 

Typical training week...

Bike - One day a week i am out on the road (4AM) and my wife on the IDT. the next bike day i am on the IDT and she does a spinning class (cant let her cycle in the dark)

Running - we run early in the morning (start 4AM, depending on distance), so that we can both fit in a run, at seperate times....as we cant leave the kids alone

Swim - this is reserved for night time....if not too tired.

Weekends - sat morning run early....seperate times before 8...when the kids activities start. Sat afternoon an open water swim....take the kids with. sunday mornings are our long cycle.....drop kids of at granny

 

At the end of the day it is al about trying to be consistent....but work and family are part of our lives. Training is a byproduct to keep us active and healthy. will probable start pushing for bigger goals when the kids are bigger.

 

You are lucky, your kids clearly wake up a lot later than mine! My son is up between 6 and 6:30. If I get up earlier, he normally wakes up as well. Clearly got my early morning genes.

[flat29]

You are lucky, your kids clearly wake up a lot later than mine! My son is up between 6 and 6:30. If I get up earlier, he normally wakes up as well. Clearly got my early morning genes.

 

haha, you are lucky. Mine wake up at 5, dont ask me why.

[V12man]

haha, you are lucky. Mine wake up at 5, dont ask me why.

 

Mine too - if not before... WISH I could get them to sleep till 6.... or later.. especially on a weekend...

[bigjoe]

You are lucky, your kids clearly wake up a lot later than mine! My son is up between 6 and 6:30. If I get up earlier, he normally wakes up as well. Clearly got my early morning genes.

 

Nope, my kids get up at 6 latest. I run at 4, so that i am back in time so that my wife can run. 6 the kids wake up and i will help them get ready. when my wife gets back from her run, she gets ready and leave with the kids. then i finish of and set out for work.

 

We need to leave at 7:15 to get to school and work. Hence the fact that we run so early.

 

We make sure that we are quite, and even if they wake up earlier either me or my wife is awake to look after them

[ADe]

Both my wife and myself are currently training for 70.3(me Ironman as well) and we have a 2 year old daughter. She has a demanding job and I have my own business with its own challenges and demands.

 

Luckily my mother lives in the same city as us, so on Saturday mornings she looks after our daughter and we can go for a long bike ride together. Every second Wednesday we drop her off at granny and we do our club time trial together. On some Saturday afternoons we take her with us to swim in the VA pool, taking turns to get our own workouts in.

 

We train early mornings while my daughter is still asleep. What makes it more difficult is that it is not safe for my wife to train in the dark. So we invested in a treadmill and indoor gym bike, I swim during lunch times and I do not train after work. This is the time I spend with my daughter and it gives my wife time to go for a run.

 

I think planning, communication and having realistic goals are important. I would love to do 70.3 in under 5:30 and IM in under 12 hrs and and, but I just don't have the time and, as someone else also said, my family is my first responsibility, training should always come second.

 

What I have realised this week is that between all this you need REST. My body kind of broke down this week from all the training, not enough sleep, work pressure etc. I used to take one rest day per week, but over the past 3 weeks, skipped the rest days and it caught up with me this week to a point where I have not trained for the last two days and am currently at home with a stomach bug and feeling really tired.

 

But in the end it is worth the effort when you cross that finish line and we are setting a great example to our daughter of living healthy and being active.

[JGR]

During summer Ill run to the beach from Tamboerskloof (around the waterfront) and meet my girlfriend there and if we go away for the weekend ill cycle out 2 hours before her and she collects me on the way.

 

IDT helps with everything and I try have a back up work out if I can get out or the weather is *** - I also have a pull up bar and some weights at home

 

The biggest challange I have is training early in the morning - im not a morning person and with my girlfried only getting home around 8 we only eat at 08h30/9pm and normally go to bed at 11h30 as that is the time we get to spend together so make it s hard to get up at 4am

[SwissVan]

 

IDT helps with everything and I try have a back up work out if I can get out or the weather is *** - I also have a pull up bar and some weights at home

 

The biggest challange I have is training early in the morning - im not a morning person and with my girlfried only getting home around 8 we only eat at 08h30/9pm and normally go to bed at 11h30 as that is the time we get to spend together so make it s hard to get up at 4am

 

 

Sounds like you will fit in with the Schweizer life style just perfect

In summer I sometimes go running early (5am) and NEVER see anyone else out training, maybe the occasional dog walker but never seen a sports related person.

[reteid]

i am not a morning person and struggle to get out of bed before 6. I envy people who can train that time of the day.

[Skubarra]

i am not a morning person and struggle to get out of bed before 6. I envy people who can train that time of the day.

 

Try to get hold of those people after 8 in the evening, then you'll know their secret...

[bigjoe]

i am not a morning person and struggle to get out of bed before 6. I envy people who can train that time of the day.

 

I am not a morning person either, but with family and small kids....you need to adapt. If i dont train early then there is no time. it took a while but once you are in a routine it gets better.

 

And no, i am not in bed by 8....when we swim we only get home at 8....then it is supper time for us (adults) and getting the kids to bed.

 

not easy at all....but thats why it is a life style and not a once off thing

[mon-goose]

I only swim at the moment and even that is difficult to fit in at the moment. And I don't yet have kids, first one due next April. I would love to do the ironman etc one day but I can only imagine how difficult it would be to training for all disciplines. Between family, church and friends etc it would be crazy. But I'm quite happy right now and I do know that I have a supportive wife so I'd be able to arrange something for a period of time.