FEBRUARY 13, 2019
As you know from last week I’ve started an 8 week fitness challenge. It certainly is a challenge but a welcomed one. Doing this with my partner is proving to be a great idea as we are accountable to each other and can offer encouragement also.
WITH THIS CHALLENGE HAS COME SOME CHANGE. ALTHOUGH IT’S EARLY DAYS WE ARE ALREADY ENJOYING SIGNIFICANT POSITIVE OUTCOMES. IT’S NOT JUST BENEFICIAL FOR ME BUT THE WHOLE FAMILY.
AS MUCH AS I DON’T LIKE IT I’M GETTING UP EARLY, AND I MEAN EARLY, TO HIT THE GYM.
It’s hard (both getting up and training) but it’s worth it. In order to fit in sessions at the gym every single week day we have made our already busy and scheduled lives even more so. The surprising benefit has been more quality time for the family as we are making a conscious effort to fit this in.
We are planning our meals for the week in advance which means shopping for the week in advance. We even did our first online Woolworths shop! We have been preparing lunches and dinners the night before which is not something I have done since my kids were babies. This effort has minimised some of the day to day chaos.
The act of meal planning has saved me a lot of time. I’m not spending my lunch break shopping for that evening and following day. I’m not dropping in to the supermarket on the way home because I’ve forgotten something. This is saving money as well as time and it also reduces the temptation to buy treats.
The early starts to my day give me the benefit of increased alertness and the need to go to bed earlier. I used to stay up as long as it took to complete my ‘too long’ list of jobs. Now that I need to be in bed earlier to get 8 hours of sleep I’m setting myself timeframes to get things done when I get home. This means I’ve started to make progress with the seemingly insurmountable backlog of work I have to do whilst incorporating the after school activities and homework. It’s not a strict roster but a guideline to help all of us achieve the necessary things as well as the things we want to achieve. In my house these things include time together to talk, play music and do craft.
It’s a work in progress but we’re getting there! I’d love to hear your feedback and thoughts about how you manage your time and make changes to routines.
