Horsham-based female personal trainer, Becky, works at an independent gym and trains clients one-to-one. Lots of her clients are parents, and manage childcare responsibilities alongside training. Here, she shares some suggestions for how this can be possible when routines change during school holidays…
I’d like to start with an acknowledgement of privilege, and the fact that I’m happily childfree. Personal trainers and fitness coaches are regularly and justifiably maligned for doling out advice to people whose lifestyles are very different from their own without making an effort to understand the pressures those people face. Many people working in the fitness industry also conveniently ignore that their lives are better set up for them to access physical activity than other people – for many of us, our workplace is also our exercise space, so we don’t have additional travel time or logistics to worry about.
As the UK Easter holidays approach, I wanted to give some suggestions and support that may work for some parents. They won’t work for everyone – each of our situations is different, and blanket advice doesn’t work here. Just as important is the fact that our priorities are different – if you read to the end, you’ll hopefully see that I support that concept.
So, how do we cope with schools being closed and routines being different as a result? Let’s go…
Factor in a break from exercise
This is probably the most accessible idea on my list. Strength training in particular requires you to take regular rest or deload weeks. I like to plan mine in for when I go away on holiday, or when I know that my social life is going to be extra busy. If you are a parent looking to navigate the school holidays, this could be something that works well for you.
It’s also not uncommon for classes or other fitness sessions to run on a term time-only schedule, so it could also be that your preferred activity isn’t available to you.
Have a plan for how to ramp back up
If you are taking a break, know when it’s going to end! It’s easy to forget to book or plan things if you’re not doing so regularly – at least, I find that to be the case – so make sure that you think ahead, get the next session booked into your diary, and have a plan for your return.
Personal trainers tend to book things in the way that suits them, so make sure you know how yours works if you have one! I choose to keep a rolling diary open, so my clients tell me when they’d like to book, and when they’ll be away. As I’m busier than I’ve ever been, I do advise my clients to make sure that they let me know availability as soon as possible, as I can’t guarantee I can fit anyone in with less than a week’s notice, but I will always do my best.
Lower your expectations
My friend Kaye, who runs her own business, and is a parent to a teen daughter, gave this key piece of advice to fellow self-employed people, and I think it transfers to fitness too. With schedules suffering from extra pressure, go easier on yourself. Expect the bare minimum – children are unpredictable, and whilst we all hope for the best, things can change at the last minute, or your child may need you in an unexpected way and things have to give.
If you are planning to continue to exercise and you usually do two sessions per week, plan for one and maybe hope for two. If it’s that you train once per week at the gym, instead consider mentally committing to a home workout.
Another way of looking at this is the idea of under-promising and over-delivering – if you lower your expectations, but then do manage to have the time to fit in everything you ideally wanted to, you have done better than you hoped, rather than setting yourself up to feel like you’ve failed (when you truly haven’t if you’ve made it to the end of the day and everyone is still alive and unharmed).
Smart scheduling
Whether you want to compromise or not, there may be the option of fitting your activity in with one your kids are doing. Some of my clients choose to make use of the fitness facility they have to take their child to, rather than training in their usual location.
If you would rather visit said location’s café, or enjoy the downtime whilst your child is otherwise occupied, or if this is a time when you need to catch up on some work, or phone a friend to rant, I am absolutely not going to criticise you. Do what you need to do during that time.
What I’m also saying is – if you cannot get to the place you usually train at, you may be able to make use of a different one.
Seek childcare support
This is the one which is probably least practical for many people – notably single parents, or those whose partner doesn’t work near home – and may also sound most privileged. However, many of us will have been brought up hearing the phrase, “if you don’t ask, you don’t get”.
I know of couples who tag team their workouts – one is caring for the kids whilst the other trains, and then they swap. What I’m encouraging here is for you to use your voice – know that it’s ok to ask for cover so that you can exercise, and know that you might have to state that want and need aloud (no person is psychic). I’m also advocating for an equality of opportunity – there are undoubtedly plenty of scenarios where one parent goes and does their activities with little thought behind childcare, and therefore has a blind spot when it comes to offering the same for their partner.
Of course, co-parents aren’t always the only option for childcare. You may be able to access it via other family members, friends, or alternative providers. Sadly, many fitness facilities don’t offer childcare options, which is an oversight with a blog post all of it’s own…
Finally: it is ok to go and enjoy spending time with your kids
You can also, obviously, completely disregard all of this. I hope that the majority of people have chosen to have children, and therefore want to spend time with them. I’m sure that there will be times when they will drive you mad, or upset you and challenge you in other ways. Ultimately, you don’t get that time back though, and the holidays are hopefully a chance to spend quality time together. If that’s what will serve you best, please go and do it.
Gyms are open year-round. Which means that they’ll be open when the kids go back to school (or leave home!) and your time is freer again. Holidays don’t last forever, please enjoy them.