I have been struggling lately finding balance in my life. For short period of time, I was able to focus most of my time on my family, but I wasn't doing enough for myself and I was not happy. When I decided to focus more on myself and swim more often, I wasn't very happy with how much time I was spending away from my family. The past few months, work interrupted my swimming schedule and other life happenings required most of my focus; now my swimming has been much less than what I want it to be. I want to find a happy balance between all three. I know that compared to some of you that I am still young, but I worry that my life is slipping away and I am not enjoying it as much as I can.
I am curious as to how to find that magical balance and be happy with all three, or if I am looking for something that does not exist. Thanks.
So tricky to achieve that balance. I'm currently operating under the "Chef's Choice" method... which means I never know exactly when I'll work out.
I work very part-time, and have two small kids (ages 4 1/2 and 15 months). My husband coaches/swims at 5:30 am M-Th and Sat so most mornings are out.
I had a TERRIBLE time getting back into the workout routine after child #2 was born. Since Jan, I've been doing a much better job of it. I try to balance swimming, weights, and PT exercises (for knee, mostly). I usually swim Sat-Sun since the hubby can watch the kids, then if I can squeeze in a night swim after the kids go to bed once a week and maybe a daytime swim another day if my mom can watch the kids. That gets me to a goal of 4 swim workouts a week. There is NO way I can do weights at the gym (my gym time is dedicated to the pool) so I try to do a dryland/weight routine at home a couple times a week while the baby naps. Knee PT is also squeezed in during naps or after the kids go to bed.
It helps to be flexible, always try to have your gear together, and lower your expectations when things get crazy with work or family. My swimming can go into survival mode at 2x/week... but over Nov/Dec it dropped to 0x/week and that sucked. Good luck.
So tricky to achieve that balance. I'm currently operating under the "Chef's Choice" method... which means I never know exactly when I'll work out.
I work very part-time, and have two small kids (ages 4 1/2 and 15 months). My husband coaches/swims at 5:30 am M-Th and Sat so most mornings are out.
I had a TERRIBLE time getting back into the workout routine after child #2 was born. Since Jan, I've been doing a much better job of it. I try to balance swimming, weights, and PT exercises (for knee, mostly). I usually swim Sat-Sun since the hubby can watch the kids, then if I can squeeze in a night swim after the kids go to bed once a week and maybe a daytime swim another day if my mom can watch the kids. That gets me to a goal of 4 swim workouts a week. There is NO way I can do weights at the gym (my gym time is dedicated to the pool) so I try to do a dryland/weight routine at home a couple times a week while the baby naps. Knee PT is also squeezed in during naps or after the kids go to bed.
It helps to be flexible, always try to have your gear together, and lower your expectations when things get crazy with work or family. My swimming can go into survival mode at 2x/week... but over Nov/Dec it dropped to 0x/week and that sucked. Good luck.
