Mummy and Me Magazine August 2014 July 2014 | Page 38
Daddy & Me
Creative Learning
Fit for Purpose:
How to fit training in around family life.
B
I recognised that I needed to get creative about
how I could fit training in around my family
commitments (which I have a lot of as a stay at
home dad). It’s wasn’t always easy, but then
nothing worth doing ever is.
So dads, if you want to start, maintain or revisit a
training routine, here’s my tips:
Don’t believe the hype. People will tell you that
it is impossible to train with a family and that there
just isn’t enough time in the day. I once said this
and got the response, “You have the same 24
hours a day that Einstein, Marie Curie and other
world changers had”. Well that puts things into
perspective. We are only talking about scheduling
in training, gentlemen. You can do it.
Gain Home Support. Ideally, you need the full
support of your partner, or if you are a single
parent, the person/people who help you out with
childcare. Not only for their help in looking after the
troopers while you train, but also as a motivating
force to help to stick to your schedule. This can
be tricky as you will be training at times that may
currently be considered time for you to spend
together (especially if you are training for an event
and your training time is increasing).
If this is an issue for you, tackle it now. It is not
going to go away. Here’s how I did it:
- I explained to my wife why I really wanted to
train and compete.
- I worked to ensure she had as much ‘free’ time
as I had training time.
- I stuck it out and proved I was serious.
38 |
WWW.MUMMYANDMEMAGAZINE.CO.UK
Become more efficient at exercising. Create –
or find – a fifteen minute routine that allows you to
give yourself a total body workout. Fifteen minutes
is the optimum amount of time because even a
very young baby trooper will nap for 15 minutes.
Visit
l o ...
f fa
u
Gr
he
in t
r
ou
ol
C
www.
gruffalo
.com
for more fun!
Do exercise that requires little – or no – kit:
sit ups, press ups, skipping and squats are
al l fabulous exercises that you can perform in
confined spaces at a moment’s notice. And that
may be all you have.
Get exercise kit you can use at home and be
disciplined enough to use it. My indoor trainer
for my bike was essential to my triathlon training – I
would thrash it at every opportunity.
Make it a family affair. Make your training a
family activity as this will not only enable you
to train during ‘normal’ hours but also to set a
brilliant example for your troopers. Importantly, it
gives your partner an opportunity to have time to
themselves. For example:
- Take the unit to the park, and when your partner
joins you, start your laps.
- Take the troopers out for a bike ride, then drop
them back at base camp to your partner, and then
get some serious miles in.
- Take the unit swimming, and when your partner
either joins you or collects the troopers, get some
real lengths under your belt.
- Invite your family to watch you compete.
Hilarious pictures of me at The Tough Guy, in
various stages of torment, have gained almost
legendary status at our base camp.
If you’ve got any other tips, please share them
with me – and other dads – on the Commando
Dad forums:
www.commandodad.com/
forum
Our Next Reader’s Rogues Gallery is ‘fancy dress costumes’
send your images to [email protected]
Make Sacrifices. Sacrifice everything that you do
not know to be useful or believe to be productive
uses of your time. If you cannot train because you
need to schedule it in alongside playing on the
Xbox, checking Facebook or tweeting for example,
you need to re-evaluate your goals.
Choose your moments. Some training can only
happen away from base camp. If this is the case,
avoid busy times in the family day: i.e. mealtimes,
bedtime etc. All hands need to be on deck then. So
either get up early and create time at the start of
the day (I prefer this) or be prepared to go out once
the troopers are bunked down.
Kids page
COMMANDO DAD - FIT FOR PURPOSE
efore I was a parent, I loved keeping fit and
setting myself physical challenges, from
marathons to triathlons and even endurance
events for people who should know better, like The
Tough Guy. However, when my troopers came
along, I quickly realised that there was never going
to be free time in my day that I could train in (or to
do anything else for that matter).
Our Next Reader’s Rogues Gallery is ‘fancy dress costumes’
send your images to [email protected]
Daddy & Me
Commando
Dad
WWW.MUMMYANDMEMAGAZINE.CO.UK
|
39