Reduce the busyness in your life

Do you feel like your life is rushing by? 

Do you feel like every minute of your day is filled with something to keep you busy, like work, exercise/training, family, commuting, emails, phone calls, bills, social events and maybe some cooking/eating and sleeping? 

As an athlete, there's a good chance that you excel in managing a lot, every single day. You also may also have the tendency to say "yes" a lot, feeling like you can do it all, while saying no makes you feel inadequate. You may notice that if you have free time, you feel uncomfortable, insecure, unproductive, anxious and maybe even worried.

I've been working on the concept of busyness for several years. Not to be more busy but to become less busy. Yes, having more free time. I love staying busy and I thrive off a packed to-do list but I have learned over the years, that life was rushing by me way too fast and I felt like I was not able to really enjoy it. While I will never lose my work ethic (especially as a small business owner) and I know I have a lot to get done every day, I have learned how to say no more often, manage my time better, put myself first at times and to not overbook myself with responsibilities. 

Certainly, this did not happen over night and it was very uncomfortable to change my normal thinking and ways of going about life. 

My dad passed away from cancer in May 2014. I was very close to him. We talked every day on the phone. He was very proud of me for all my educational, work and athletic accomplishments and he did an excellent job of bragging about me to his patients. 

Of course, to succeed with my past accomplishments, I had to devote myself to what I was doing, with high motivation and a high achiever attitude. But at the same time, my dad always encouraged me to not work "too much." 

Not only was my dad always happy but he was extremely successful as the chief optometrist of a VA clinic (formally at a VA hospital for over 20 years). He just loved his job and he loved working. He had so many responsibilities at work and he hated to miss work, but he never seemed to be "too busy." 

My dad had a lot of hobbies - he loved old cars, old movies, listening to the radio, fixing things, electronics, stamp collecting, taking care of the lawn, coin collecting, astronomy and jogging. Despite being so successful at his job and having a family to raise and take care of, he was never "too busy" to enjoy things that he loved to do. 

Although my dad loved working, he passed away just two years away from his retirement, so he never really got to enjoy "the good life" as a retired adult. 

However, in my eyes, my dad had the good life. 

He never ever took a day for granted. 

He was never ever "too busy" to enjoy life. 

It's interesting that I married a European because I feel like my dad was always telling me to "work to live, don't live to work" which is a similar strategy of the European lifestyle. 

Of course, Karel didn't have this lifestyle when he came to America as when he pursued the "American Dream", he was simply an immigrant working 2-3 jobs a day, just to survive in the USA.

I learned a lot from my dad but I have also learned a lot from Karel. 

If you feel like there is always something to do, always overwhelmed and never enough time to do everything, take some time and begin to simplify your life. I encourage you not to put yourself second but instead, to think about your happiness and how it improves your overall quality of life. 

In order to reduce the busyness in your life, it is important to stop the equation of:

busy = happy= successful. 

You can be happy and not be busy and you can be busy and not be successful. 

And you can be busy, not happy and successful.

My equation looks a little something like this: 

Productive = fulfilled. 

Prioritize your life so that the most important things in your life are on the top of your to-do list. Be sure not to overload your to-do list with extra stuff. Manage your time wisely, be productive with your time, learn to say no and don't feel the need to fill in every free minute of the day. 

And above all, never ever neglect your own health. 

How to make training work in your busy life

Being an athlete is tough, especially if you are an adult athlete.

As an adult athlete, it can feel very overwhelming to try to dedicate enough time to every important component of your life. 

While it’s important to identify yourself as an athlete while training for your upcoming events, your primary role in life is much more than just being an athlete. Being an athlete is a choice and your training is a hobby. As you train your body for your upcoming athletic event, it is important that you do not neglect your parent, spouse, family or job responsibilities just to be an athlete.

In life, human beings have to make a lot of lifestyle choices. These choices help people function better in life with improved energy, mood, productivity and health.

As an athlete, these choices are extremely important as they help you adapt to training while keeping you in good health, but they help with the flow of your extremely busy life.

Life as an athlete is tough. It’s busy, it’s rushed, it’s packed and it involves a lot of decisions and planning. As an athlete, your life is like a puzzle and each piece of the puzzle makes up your ability to function well in life. Sometimes, it may feel like all the pieces are there and sometimes it may feel like there’s always a piece or two missing.

As an athlete, you don’t need every piece of the puzzle to be perfectly in place for you to function well in life but you need the pieces of the puzzle to be there. And for those pieces to be present, you do need to make a lot of decisions on a daily basis. These decisions will always be tough because there’s a lot of moving parts to your life - you have a responsibility to your family, spouse and job to show up, be present and take care of others but you also have a responsibility to your body to prepare for your upcoming event.

As an athlete, sometimes you will make decisions that are very easy and sometimes you will make decisions that are very, very hard. For you to achieve athletic excellence, you must be motivated to make decisions all the time – no matter how easy or hard.

For example, 6 weeks out from a key race, athletes are very motivated to make decisions. Athletes will not skip workouts, they will cut out alcohol and sweets, they will pay attention to the diet, they focus on good sleep and they remove outside stressors. Decision making is a great priority. These athletes are still great parents, they show up to work on time and they are great people, but athletes prioritize the decisions that are made, all in an effort to help with race day preparation.

Right now, making decisions is probably pretty tough as it relates to race preparation. It’s cold, you are too busy, races are far away, it’s no fun running on the treadmill, riding on the trainer is boring, the pool is too far away, it takes too long to cook, etc.

One of the easiest ways to make better decisions is to focus on the many lifestyle factors that can help you feel less overwhelmed with your training.

Although it's hard to change lifestyle habits, I can tell you that when you focus on good sleep, a healthy diet, good recovery, daily mobility, stress management, communication with your family and consistency in training, it’s a lot easier to function in life. Even though this may look like a lot to focus on, life actually becomes less overwhelming when healthy lifestyle habits are in place.  There are less missed workouts, you feel less overwhelmed, your body isn’t as tired and your body is more prepared when you get to that next stage of training. Your week just seems to flow very smoothly when you make good decisions with your lifestyle.

And let’s be honest – training makes you feel good and function better in life. So why push training aside when you feel overwhelmed??

It all comes down to your lifestyle choices. 

Training should not be a chore or an obligation but something that you want to do because it makes you feel good, it makes you happy, it makes you feel less stressed, it makes you a better parent and feel less overwhelmed and you are being a good role model to people around you.

I know that it’s hard to balance training with life and sometimes, training adjustments will need to be made and workouts will need to be missed. But, by being an active participant in your life and making great lifestyle choices (ex. plan ahead, be creative, communicate, manage your time well, be practical), you will find a way to make training less overwhelming in your busy life.

Training is not always fun but it's important that you enjoy your athletic journey so that one day in the near future you can look back and tell yourself that it was all worth it. 

Staying balanced in my busy life

The work is done. 

In 11 days Karel and I get to show off months of training in St. Croix. for our half ironman distance triathlon and our first of three key races of the season. 

Although we both feel strong and prepared for this race, this recent half ironman journey has not been without obstacles. Thankfully, no injuries or sicknesses to battle but instead, a lot of major life changes. 

In 19 days we will be moving 6.5 hours north to Greenville SC. After spending my life in Lexington KY and then the last 10 years  in Florida, migrating from Ft. Lauderdale to Clearwater to Dunedin to Jacksonville, we are turning a page in our book of life and starting a new chapter as we grow the Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition business. We have SO many exciting things planned but we just have to get through this little thing called moving first! 

Life is absolutely amazing and I never want to waste a moment. But I know I am not alone that even though I love so much about life, sometimes life presents moments that I ask myself "really, now?"

How many times in the last few months or perhaps even in the past few weeks have you believed in Murphy's law. 

"If anything can go wrong, it will"

Because Karel and myself are balancing on a very thin tightrope lately, I wanted to share a few of my tips as to how I try to stay balanced in an extremely busy and active life as an endurance triathlete and small business owner. 

1. I have a weekly plan for all workouts that fits my current lifestyle. My training is also flexible.

2. I respect my body when it's tired or fatigued

3. I never sacrifice sleep. I get good night of sleep most nights of the week. I don't set an alarm at least once a week. 

4. I love my whole-food diet but I also do not have an off-limit food list.

5. I always use sport nutrition during my workouts and real-food before/after workouts

6. I plan meals ahead and whenever possible, prep ahead (I love my oven!) 

7. I never bash my body if I don't have the perfect workout. I accept whatever I can do for that day knowing there will always be tomorrow.

8. I am not afraid of workouts and I don't worry if I "don't have it" for that workout. I love to exercise so I give an effort when I get started and then find a way to give my best effort for that day. 

9. I take advantage of every moment to stretch/recover, I don't set a schedule for this, I just make myself do it.

10. I try to see the positive in every situation, as much as possible. I try not to waste energy on things out of my control. 

11. I surround myself with positive and energy giving individuals.

12. I communicate with Karel a lot and share everything with him. We live together, work together, train together and eat together. We are around each other almost every hour of every day most days but I still believe in effective communication.

13. There's always time for Campy for he never complains. He has the best life ever!

14. The outdoors makes me happy. I love being outside, even if it's just for a walk. 

15. I am motivated by my goals but do not dwell on the past. I enjoy giving my best for every day. 

16. I love making to-do lists. If I don't see what I need to do, then I feel overwhelmed thinking about all the things I need to do. I prioritize my list and then get excited when I cross things off my list. 

17. I love to travel. It is a special way to enjoy another culture or to experience a different way of living. Traveling exposes to me to new foods, sights and people and I feel this helps me live a better quality life. 

18. My health never takes a back seat. Sleep, real food and daily movement keep me healthy and allow me to function well in life...now and hopefully for the future as well. 

19. I love my family, my close friends and my athletes (coaching and nutrition). For those in my life who do not do triathlons and those who live a similar busy and active lifestyle like my own, I enjoy sharing life with everyone. 

20. I'll be honest. I put a lot on my daily plate and I function better in life this way. I don't like having nothing to do, watching the clock or being bored. However, life is short and I do not want it to rush by too quickly. I enjoy slowing down in the evening with Karel and Campy and giving my mind and body a little time before bed to relax. If I asked for more time in every day, I'd likely fill it up so I just make the most of every hour to be as productive as possible and I never take a day for granted. 

Well, those are some of my tips as to how I stay balanced. I'm not perfect and I don't try to be. I get stressed, overwhelmed and there are plenty days in my life that I just can't balance everything. But, that's life. It's not perfect and we don't have to be either.