Making Excuses Opportunities
"I have 3 kids. I don't have time to work out". That was my mindset in 2015.
With a demanding work schedule and 3 kids, it's easy to make that decision. It's an easy world view to have.
But.. is this the real life? Or is this just fantasy?
Either way, the landslide that caught me gave me no escape from reality.
Excuses
Bohemian Rhapsody aside, by the time the kids were in bed I was dead tired. Let's not even think about the hours worth of chores that still needed doing.
Anyway, if I got up early, so did the 2 yr old and that limited my ability to go jogging. He'd either scream for me and wake the entire block or worse. He'd move a chair across the house, climb it, unlock the door, and follow me outside. What was I to do?
Whatever it was, I needed to do something. I was gaining weight. My clothes were tight or no longer fit. I was down and out, stressed and lost...
Then my mindset shifted. It wasn't immediate and it took work but when you need to make an 180 degree turn, you take it 1 degree at a time.
Finding time
I wast to share an audit of my typical weekday.
- Sleep 8 hrs
- Work 8 hrs
- Lunch 1 hr
- Getting ready in morning 30 min
- Getting lunches ready in morning 30 min
- Getting kids ready in morning 30 min
- Morning commute 30 min
- Evening commute 1 hr
- Homework 30 min
- Dinner 30 min
- Time with kids 1 hr
- Getting kids ready for bed 30 min
- Housework 1 hr
- Time with wife 1 hr
Total 23 hrs
Free time 1 hr
Wow. So now I know why I don't have time to do RPGS. "Too Much Time On My Hands" does not apply to me. Sorry Styx.
What's more, even with optimizing my schedule or sacrificing sleep, it's still not much time for the gym. I had to look for another solution. Then I realized the solution has been in front of my eyes the entire time. I was mistaking my opportunities for excuses.
Taking Time
Ever notice children never run out of energy? They are like the energizer bunny. They just keep going and going!
At least mine are. You should see how much energy my 5 yr old has. So many times I've shaken my head and pondered hooking him to the power supply. That way we could go gridless and sell of the excess for profit.
Then it hit me. if the boy loves running so much. What's to stop him from running with me. Why can't at fuse play time and exercise time together a few days a week. Why can I have high intensity play dates?
That's the thing. I could. \
And I did. Now my children are my gym equipment and my personal trainers too! I can't count how many times they've cried "One more time Daddy!" when I think I'm out for the count. And with those cute little sad faces. Two more times they get.
Not only am I seeing results, feeling better, and have a ton more energy, I also am closer to them than ever. It is awesome.
I want to share with you 5 high intensity games we play, as defined by my 5 yr old, Colin.
Racer Man
"Wanna do some Racer Man?"
To be honest, I'm not sure if it's Racer man or Racer, man but that's besides the point. The point is holy cow this is a work out. Not just for me but the kids too. We take turns sprinting as fact as we can to an object and back, then tagging the next victim. After 3 loops, even the children are ready for a break. That's when they usually ask for the next game.
Rescue Ranger
This is Racer Man except I'm the only one running. But wait, that's not all!
I'm also carrying one of the children. Typically it's from smallest to biggest, then back biggest to smallest. I tell you, by the time I'm done. I'm ready to drop to the group.
The thing is, if I do, we immediately transition to the next exercise.
Supermans
As I drop to the ground to catch my breath, my two year old scrambles like a linebacker to tackle me. He's looking for one thing. Supermans.
Super mans is a combination of bench pressing and leg lifting children into the air. Now with a 30 pound toddler, it's not torture and when you're done, you feel pretty awesome.
>But, when it's the 70 pound 10 yr old. Holy moly!
My goal is to stack children and bench press all three at once. I'm looking to do that by August.
Dance Off
The great thing about 5 yr olds is they don't pick confusing titles and names. It's pretty straight forward.
This exercise is us getting down to the beat. It usually involves us singing karaoke and break-dancing. Spinning and jumping play a big roll too. It's like Just Dance without the controller, which is odd because we have Just Dance... With a Wii that's pretty neglected.
>I should pull that out some day.
Park
This one involves us all taking a little trip to a park, usually the neighborhood one.
There we run around like a bunch of heathen until everyone is covered in sweat. Of course, instead of sitting and watching them play, I'm now in the thick of it.
Yep, I'm that weird parent that's swinging on the monkey bars with all the kids. What about it? I'm also quickly become the healthiest parent too!
Conclusion
I've found I love it and the kids love it. By the end of the day, I'm ready for bed and I pass out. I also sleep deeper and get better rest.
It still seems so strange how all my monkey business gets me better rest. At least until then I check on my little ones before turning and realize the same is true for them. They sleep hard because they play hard. That's now me too. It's a great feeling.
What excuses do you make can be turned into opportunities? Think about it, then let me know. I'd love to hear them and who know how many people it could influence and affect for the better. Let's find out. Let's share our stories and share our victories.
Let's make 2016 our best year ever, together. Thank you for taking time out to read this. if you enjoyed or got something from this, please let me know. I read all my comments and love talking shop. Let's talk shop.
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