Time...I just never have time

In my day job, I am a Health Educator.  It's an extremely non-glamorous, socially isolating gig.  The office and cubicle environment is not exactly what I went to graduate school for.  That being said, I get the opportunity to talk to a lot of different types of personalities every day with a range of different motivations to practice weight management with exercise, nutrition, or both.  I hear a lot of different reasons as to why one of my members don't get enough exercise.  Some of them are legit, some are crap.  Perhaps the biggest reason I get is time, more specifically, the lack of time.

I used to believe that time was a legitimate reason for not exercising.  In today's world, one thing we lack is time.  Especially as parents.  Between a 40 hour / week job, getting the kids from after school care, taking them to whatever extracurricular activity they have going on, making dinner, helping them with their homework, getting them to bed, and finally having some down time before you put yourself to bed, that's a full day.  And if you are a single parent, it makes it even harder.  I completely realize this crazy schedule is not conducive to your exercise goals.  But what I've learned is that if you really commit to your goals and your health, you can find the time.

Recently I have begun working out in the evenings after dinner.  I have the privilege of having a wife help me out with my 2 children after dinner, which helps a lot.  We generally eat dinner about 6 - 6:30.  I have found that if I allow myself to digest for about 90 minutes, I can go out and get a quick 30-40 minute workout around 8.  It's not the most intense workout by any means but I am getting my workout in.  It's amazing how much more energetic I feel and how much more work I am able to get done now.  Again, if you want to achieve your goals bad enough, you will find time.  I have found the time at 8:00 at night.  I used to only get exercise on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday because of my time constraints with work on the other three days of the week.  Now I'm getting some kind of activity every day.  I feel amazing.

I realize this type of schedule doesn't work for everyone.  Again, I have the privilege of having a wife help with the kids and allow me to have time to myself for a bit.  For those without the luxury of this, you can still find time.  Whether it's in your living room, before you get the kids, before your kids wake in the morning, whenever.  You can find time.  I no longer believe this to be a reason.  If you want to achieve your health and fitness goals, you will find the time.  You just have to start today.

An Introduction

I used to be an athlete.  Well, at least I think I used to be.  I grew up playing baseball, football, and running track throughout all of my schooling years.  I also played a little golf, tennis, kickball, ghosts in the graveyard, and tag when time would permit.  That's just what I did as a kid growing up.  My parents gave me no choice.  I thank them for that.  Because of that, I have a lifelong love of physical activity.  I'm a 35 year old child that still loves a game of pickup basketball, golfing with my buddies, running the occasional race, and maybe even a game of tag.  I have dedicated my life to physical activity, fitness, wellness, and an overall healthy lifestyle.  I have obtained an MS in Exercise Physiology and I earned my Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist from the NSCA.  I have used this education to help others become healthy, fit, and reach physical goals they never thought were possible. 

The purpose of this blog is to showcase my love of physical fitness.  I vow to never stop being the athlete I once was, or at least thought I was.  So at the age of 35 I have decided to participate in athletic events I never thought I would.  Whether it's a marathon, mud run, duathlon, triathlon, CrossFit competitions, MMA, handball, cricket, ski-ball, whatever.  I am going to spend the next few years showing that you are never too old to do new activities.  Also, I'm a little bored now that I have my master's degree so I need something to train for.  This blog will chronicle the events I am training for, what I am doing to get ready, my training schedule, my nutrition, setbacks, injuries, family support, and whatever else comes with training.  Hopefully I can keep you interested, make you laugh, and possibly even motivate you to participate in something new yourself.

Please feel free to ask me any question regarding my training that you might have.  And I welcome any input you might have also.  While I have dedicated my life to physical fitness, I do not know everything.  In fact, I have so much more to learn and I am amazed at the knowledge I pick up from people like Eric Cressey, Mike Robertson, Teena Murray, Robb Wolf just to name a few.  So please interact with me.  I love learning and love seeing what you might be doing in your own training. 

All that being said, I am currently training for the Derby Marathon in Louisville, KY on April 30.  I have never run a marathon (why would anyone purposely run 26.2 miles?)  but have always wondered what it would be like to complete one.  I have participated in 2 half marathons and finished both under 2 hours.  Not to shabby for a sprinter in high school who thought anything over 200 meters would make my legs fall off.  I am 2 weeks into my training and feel I am about 2 weeks behind, so I'm kind of behind the 8-ball on this one.  But with smart, proper, effective training, I think I'll be able to finish this beast without walking.  I don't have a time goal, I just want to finish.  So check back in tomorrow and I'll let you know how my training is going and what ideas I have for what I need to do.