Part II: Have FUN!

Sportin' the dri-fit with my little runner!

            While “if you’re not having fun, it’s not worth doing,” doesn’t apply to everything in life (we have to do a lot of things that aren’t fun), it should apply to your hobbies.  You only have so much time left in a day after working, sleeping, and getting chores done, that however you choose to use it, it should be worthwhile to you.

            For me, family time ranks really high, so much so, that I’ll continue to do my biking and weekend training in the afternoon when it’s at its hottest, because that’s when Baya naps.  Now that it’s nice enough outside and track will soon be wrapping up, I plan to run more with her in the stroller versus on a treadmill at the Y.  Pushing her along with me far outweighs the time apart while on a treadmill.  Plus, she loves it.

            Some people who sign up or plan to do an Ironman are doing it as a bucket-list item.  In and of itself, that is not a bad thing, but with some of them, I wonder if they even enjoy swimming, biking and running very much, and then to need it in such high volume seems crazy to me.  It takes many months of high commitment that will greatly affect family time (as well as everything else in life).  There is no convenient way to fit in so many 4-6 hour bike rides, long runs and swims.  As much as I’d like to believe my triathlon lifestyle doesn’t impact my family, I know it does, and I just try to minimize any negative effects as best that I can.  Sometimes training is able to be a family affair when we can all do an easy run together, or when we kept each other company on the longest runs while it was marathon training time for either of us, me biking and giving Andy drinks, or Andy pulling Baya behind the bike while I ran.  Everything is sweeter when it can be a family affair.

            And while there are days that I can’t wait for a ride, run, or swim even to be over with, for the most part, I truly do enjoy being out there on my bike, even for 3 or so hours, or running 10-11 miles.  This spring has been super long in frustrations, but over Memorial weekend, I finally had some killer breakthrough rides.  Before that though, I had already decided to change my attitude, as I was nearing the end of the heavy training and towards the start of race season.  I wanted to have fun.  No matter who showed up on race day, or how I placed, I wanted to go out there, give it my best, and have fun doing it.  After all, that’s what got me hooked in the first place – the fun!  And with all the time, energy, focus, sweat and tears that I’ve put into it, it’s time to have some fun with it.  I don’t want to waste my time on race day being frustrated, or upset afterwards, and then wasting my family’s time with my poor attitude.  Not every race will go as well as I’d like, but there’ll always be a reason to have joy.

            Maybe your fun isn’t with swimming, biking, or running, but I hope you do find what you enjoy  - dancing, rollerblading, leagues, etc.  And you do it, you get moving and you show your kids that an active and healthy lifestyle is fun and joyful.  I hope it’s something your whole family might be able to get involved with too, even if it’s just being the best cheering section, because we all nee the support of our families, and there’s just nothing better than having them beside you along the way.  Enjoy every minute of it!