Making good health a priority | Oct 15th 2007
One of my favorite working parent blogs is The Wall Street Journal’s, The Juggle which covers a number of issues that parents face as they try to juggle work and family.
In a post dated August 23, 2007 titled, “Health Takes a Backseat to Babies, Work,” Mark Gongloff posted about how taking care of himself has been difficult since his twin boys were born a year ago. Mr. Gongloff’s post addresses the difficulty of fitting exercise and a healthy diet into a full-time work schedule when you have kids and the consequences he suffered as a result of neglecting his health (namely, he threw out his back).
Although I feel bad for the guy, it’s comforting to know that I’m not the only one who has developed less than stellar self-care habits since the kids have come along. Between sleep deprivation, poor eating habits and an innate aversion to going to the dentist, it’s a wonder I’ve survived the last three years with my health (and all of my teeth) still intact.
This summer when work slowed down for me, I decided to focus on getting my health back on track. I joined a gym, went to the dentist after years of avoidance and caught up on all my routine doctors’ visits. I’ve dubbed this new method of staying healthy the, “I’m-not-25-anymore” approach. I’m determined to keep it up now that my schedule is picking up and my two girls are back to school.
Naturally, this is easier said than done. Going to the gym in the morning means I don’t actually sit down to work until about 10:30 a.m. I could conceivably workout earlier since the gym opens at the absurd hour of 5:30 a.m., but that would mean missing the kids’ morning routine which seems counterintuitive. One of the main benefits of working from home is being able to spend time with my kids in the morning.
Still, I have to admit that spending time on my own health has a positive impact on both the work and home front and that’s worth getting a late start in the morning. I feel better about myself, more confident in social situations and have more energy overall. Plus, I’ve discovered that going to the gym is an enjoyable activity that doesn’t involve slaving over my computer or wiping any runny noses (other than my own). You can’t beat that!
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This article was originally published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, September 15, 2007 with the title, “Gym time worth the inconvenience.”