renewed focus.

I haven't had much time to focus on the "fit" part of fitdad recently.  I have been too busy with the "dad" part.  It's not that I haven't been working out, I just haven't been blogging about it.  I have not lost a pound in over 8 weeks, but after a little personal reflection this week I think I may have found the reason.   I am a secretive snacker, secretive as in I secretly don't log the little snacks here and there that I eat into weight watchers.  I have a feeling I am exceeding my points totals daily which is not causing me to gain weight, but is causing me to maintain my weight.  So starting TODAY, I have a renewed focus, and a renewed drive to be more diligent in my tracking.

I have started a new routine for my workouts in the last 2 weeks as well.  I am now alternating running days with biking days, either outdoors or on the trainer in the basement.  During my run days I am going to increase my mileage from 3-4 miles to 4-5 miles, and will add in biking 1 to 2 days a week for anywhere from 30-60 minutes.

One of the biggest challenges that I find during the week is getting time to workout between my work schedule and Noah's schedule.  I also need to make sure that I am being a good husband and spending time with my wife.  Throw in some yard work and some chores around the house and you have the perfect storm for no workouts.  The best possible advice I can give to anyone who is trying to keep fitness in their lives is to put it on a schedule.  Make fitness a part of your planner.  If I have a day off on a Wednesday, I make sure to tell Christine a few days before hand that I want to work out that day.  I figure out a time of day that works best for what we have planned to do and I stick to my time.  If that means I have to get up at 6am for a workout so be it.  That also means that sometimes I have to sacrifice time in the later afternoon or evening to workout as well.  No one ever said this kind of thing is easy, but by sticking to a schedule I am more likely to keep a scheduled workout and less likely to try to wing it, and then settle for missed workouts. 

I currently don't have any race or event coming up that I have to be ready for, but I am considering the City Of Pittsburgh Half marathon with Christine, and a few sprint triathlons in the spring/summer.  I would also like to see if I can compete in a Spartan Race, a Tough Mudder, The Run for Your Lives, and another Warrior Dash this coming season. 

What do you do to make sure that you get your workouts in?  Does anyone out there have any suggestions as to how to make fitness and managing your life duties easier?

I would be excited to hear from you!

(as an aside, if anyone is interested in doing a Spartan Race next year please let me know, I have a coupon code that will save you $10 off registration.)


Ron

Getting in those workouts.

I am not a selfish person by nature.  I guess no one really thinks they are selfish, but you don't realize you are until you have children.  Before Noah came along I loved my "me" time, my get away from everything time.  I could go for a run, grab the bike and ride, or head out fishing and the only person I had to o.k. it with was the warden (aka the wife).  With her blessing I could could "get away" whenever I needed it without feeling guilty.  Then along came Noah, you see babies are very needy, they can't feed, bathe, or survive for that matter without us.  So when you have "free time"  you usually spend most of it sleeping because you don't get much of that as a parent either.  The battle for me is finding the time and the energy to sneak in workouts in between the diaper changes, the naps, and then also finding time to take the baby for a few hours so the wife can get out of the house.

**Important fitdadorfatdad note to expectant fathers make sure when the baby is born that you take care of your wife as much as you can.  Make sure her sanity stays intact.  Give her a spa day occasionally, give her some cash and send her shopping, tell her to take a lunch date with her girlfriends.  Just get her out of the house.  If your situation is anything like mine, if the wife is happy she is much more willing to let me leave for an hour or two to jump on the bike and ride, or spend a half hour to hour out on a run.**

Add to that the cuteness tractor beam your son/daughter has on your heart and that just adds to the difficulty to leaving the house the first few weeks after the baby is born.  Noah definitely has the ability to convince me that a workout isn't necessary today and that I should just spend the afternoon holding him on the couch while he sleeps or just stares into space.

All that aside the best advice I can give new parents to finding a time to workout is to plan ahead (not as easy as it sounds).  Pre-Noah I would get up daily before work at around 5:50am and workout for 30-60minutes.  Post-Noah I "plan" my workouts for my days off from work when Noah takes naps.  Christine usually sleeps during the day when Noah sleeps so I usually just coordinate a workout with Noah when he decides to sleep.  Most of my workouts recently have revolved around treadmill or bike trainer rides in the game room while I catch up on the DVR.  As he sleeps more during the evening and our schedules somewhat regain some of their normalcy I will adjust them accordingly.  I have also been on a quest to find a good kettleball and do some kettleball workouts in the evening as well.  Suggestions for quick muscle blasting workouts would be appreciated.

You have to find what will work best with your schedule as well as with your wife and child.  Don't be selfish, this isn't about you anymore.  No matter how hard you try your life now revolves around that child.   My fitness is very important to me, but it will never get in the way of properly raising my child.  I want to be able to raise him to enjoy an active and healthy lifestyle.  The only way I will be able to do that will be to find a balance between  my "selfishness" and family.  I hope it won't be too hard.

Thanks for reading! Please share the link to the blog if you think that a friend or two would enjoy this!
-Ron