FAMILY RUNNING
It can be hard to train consistently while juggling family commitments. TR caught up with ultra-runner Debbie Martin-Consani to get her top tips for balancing family life, a full-time job, and a rigorous training schedule
1 PRACTICE DISCIPLINE AND COMMITMENT
Be organised, know your training plan, and when you are running that week, down to the time of day. When you’re training around work and family, you only have a small window. The weather becomes irrelevant – get on with it, no excuses. When you look at it, the average person has around 60 hours of ‘free’ time in the week, and it is up to you what you do with it.
2 BUILD RUNNING INTO YOUR ROUTINE
Create a habit, such as running to from work. Keeping spare kit in the office will make this more accessible and give you no excuses. I have a jacket in the office and use it all the time.
Another tip is if you’re planning on a morning run then get your kit ready the night before; some people even sleep in theirs!
3 TRAIN ON ZOOM SO YOU CAN STAY IN THE HOUSE
This is another tip to make training more accessible and less of an inconvenience.
You can book in a class and be part of a social group so you’re not just training on your own all the time, and you can save money on childcare! There are so many options for training online nowadays, meaning there is something that appeals to everyone.
4 SET ASIDE SOME ‘ME’ TIME
See running as your personal time. It allows you to create the best headspace when you’re o
