Parents with small kids, full-time job, and an unsupportive partner: how do you manage to train?

Triathlon Forum
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I trained for marathons before triathlons and loved marathon training. I only switched over as I got injured a lot with a single sport. But I found that time commitment was very reasonable compared to training for full IMs and 70.3s. When I was training for the Boston marathon, I would go skiing on Saturday and then do my long run on Sunday and 4 training runs during the week. But with long course triathlon it was super tough with 3 sports to balance and those long 4-6 hour bike rides on Saturdays followed by a big long run on Sundays. And getting up at 4:20am to swim in the mornings during the week. It was a lot and not sustainable for the long term. At least for me it wasn’t. If I could have trained for open marathons w/o all the injuries I would have stuck with it. At age 43 I ran a 3:07:56 open marathon (female here) and that was just my 3rd marathon and I only had to run 40 to 50 miles a week peaking at maybe mid 50s.

Very cool your whole family runs!

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82

Full time job, 35 years old and 1 small kid, the 4:30 alarm will be your best friend

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83
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I’m currently on a 5:00 alarm and yes. Pre work training is really the only solution if you have a life and family outside of triathlon.

My question for all of the other early risers - How do you cope with being ready for sleep at 8 in the evening when everyone is still active / wanting to do things. I’ve had it a number of times now the wife has said (as I’ve nodded off on the sofa…) “so this enjoyable…watching TV together” (sarcastically)

85

Cofee in the morning, coffee at work, and coffee when I got home. :hot_beverage::hot_beverage: :hot_beverage:

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86

Some frankly bizarre perspectives her (as well as some better advice)

I think it’s fairly straightforward:

  • Weekday lunch sessions
  • Weekdays 2nd session choose between 1) training early before kids wake 2) training late after kids asleep
  • Weekend long bike early one of the mornings, fit around the family schedule for the weekend
  • Get a good turbo / treadmill setup to reduce prep time and increase flexibility
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87

Say you’re going to get something from the shop and never come back. OP can train as much as they want then. Leave the state and get a new phone.

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88

I’m fortunate in that initially my OH was happy (accepting?) for me to go to bed ahead of her, but then she started just reading and not she also goes to bed the same time and is into a 5am alarm routine (mine is 4:45) so that she can do some treadmill walks before work.

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I’ll give you a few tips to get more support from your partner:

  • Try to train indoors as much as possible. In many cases, they just want your physical presence at home.

  • If you’re planning a holiday, try to choose a race in a place the whole family can enjoy. You may need to budget for a babysitter as part of the negotiation.

  • After a race, always—always—congratulate your wife in your Instagram post. She’ll appreciate the public recognition.

90

I learned to function off 5 hours of sleep.

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91

You can function, but it surely isn’t optimal for maximizing athletic performance or life in general.

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92

That’s not necessarily correct; I know someone who would always credit her husband for “patience, understanding, and assistance” whenever she finished, even though he really didn’t do much, and never came to her races

He took this as a P/A way to say “I did this without you, thank you very little” and calling him out in public

See also: IronEx’s

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