I read enough zen and life management blogs to know it really should be easy - do what you love and what is important to you.
Doing it all?
But what if you're a greedy Gen Y who wants it all?
Perhaps, just perhaps, having
- a stimulating, challenging career;
- health (including a healthy weight) and fitness without gyms, sacrifice or monotony;
- quality and quantity time with food, wine and the people I love;
- a conscious, sustainable, environmentally friendly lifestyle;
- being a domestic goddess (or something remotely resembling that); and
- contributing to society in a positive way;
all at once, really is impossible?
Life balance in 140 characters or less
I asked some of my friends on twitter to tell me how they created and maintained life balance. I'd like to share some of those ideas and comments with you.
sunili, who is what you could conservatively call a crazy brilliant high-achieving Gen Y (read all about it at de minimis ago curat blog) told me:
I don't but I try...
Oddly, it is rather reassuring to see that I'm not the only one struggling with this. Personally I think she's doing a pretty good job of managing her career and living in accordance with her ideals and convictions.
photo credit: justice is blind
I also got some practical advice from frank_in_oz:
I work my butt off 10 months of the year and have 2 months off for short breaks - hiking, travel, camping. Goal - work 6 mths
Frank is the consummate active traveller and outdoor lover and has hiked in some absolutely breathtaking places, including some of my favourite parts of the world.
This is great advice if you can swing it. My heart leaps at the thought of that much travel. But. What if the 10-month work cram is just too hard, or just not possible? My husband and I are in the stage of our careers where taking this sort of time off work each year is all but impossible.
photo credit: dove lake
Balance is the level of compromise you can live with.
Sage advice from hazelblackberry who proves you can do anything after a Bex and a Good Lie Down. I really think this is key.
photo credit: fruit balance
Via a tweet from tessgiles who blogs at Anchors and Masts I discovered Magpie Girl's Do Less Campaign. Magpie Girl reminds us that sometimes, it just isn't possible to do it all and we just have to do less. The campaign officially starts tomorrow, Friday 15 May and will be a step-by-step approach to doing less and feel better.
So if you're feeling like the balance just isn't happening, you might want to head over to Magpie Girl's blog to take a look.
Alternatively you could try what has been my strategy to date - try to do everything, over-commit, collapse in a heap and then fail at everything.
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]]>My exercise philosophy has always been no. Too hard, too boring, too sweat inducing, just no. Until that horrid turning point in my life when my previously fast metabolism decided to be as lazy as I am. All of a sudden I started putting on weight. And it didn't come off.
While I'm modifying my eating to be more healthy, even I have to admit that being active has to be part of the bargain.
A way to a healthy life by Abdullah AL-Naser
I considered a number of options for introducing exercise into my life. Despite the fact that I can't see the logic in working more hours to be able to afford more things to save ourselves time and effort and then paying to exert ourselves, I was even prepared to invest some money in my future health and fitness.
Swimming at the local pool
Good:
- I'm not completely hopeless at it
- Not expensive
- Easy to get to
Not so good:
- Crowded swimming lanes
- Being seen in my bathing suit
- Poo in the pool
Gym near home
Good:
- Not pretentious: low number of posers
- Not ridiculously expensive
- Easy to get to
- My husband and some friends go there
Not so good:
- Gym equipment confuses me
- My husband and some friends go there
- I'd have to get up before 6:00am
Gym near work
Good:
- I could go immediately before or after work, or during lunch
- Lots of nice equipment
- Great, encouraging staff who will show me not to look like an idiot
Not so good:
- Sweaty gym hair at work (ew) or wet hair for the rest of the day (it takes two hairdressers a long time to blow-dry my hair)
- I'd have to take gym gear/makeup/work clothes on the bus to and from work
Jogging or running by myself
Good:
- Fresh air
- Can do it anywhere
- Free!
Not so good:
- How would I stay focussed?
- I have no idea what I'm doing
As tempted as I am to say that the above lists prove that exercise is no good, I did some more research.
Lazy Cat by dougww
I found out about the Couch to 5K program. The program was designed by Cool Running and involves, um, running. The program is a gradual one, progressing from couch level fitness (which is where I'm sitting right now) to being able to run 5 kilometres. At once. Without stopping. It takes about 2 months to get to that point (although depending on fitness level it can be slowed down a bit) and involves a three day a week commitment.
The Couch to 5K website gives you a handy guide for how to progress your running. There is a schedule (I like schedules) prescribing what to do on each run. This solves my problem of not knowing what to do or how to do it.
To keep up the motivation and to make it easy, Robert Ullrey has made a series of podcasts for the program, incorporating music and directions on when to run and slow down during the workout. I found my husband's old ipod and was able to easily load them all on.
To top it all off, you don't have to pay a cent for the program or the podcasts. It is all provided free from the goodness of peoples' hearts. I figure if they're going to do all this to help me get fit and healthy the least I can do is get on with it.
So I checked with my doctor, (which is a very good idea if you're starting a new fitness program, particularly if you have medical conditions, are overweight, over 40 or just hopeless like me) and with her approval I've gotten off the couch.
What you need to start
- Couch to 5K program
- Couch to 5K podcasts
- An ipod, mp3 player or mobile phone that can play mp3s
- 45 minutes, 3 times a week
- Properly fitted running shoes
- Health check-up with your doctor
I'm now at week one - which means we can do it together if you'd like to join me. I'd also like to know what fitness and exercise you prefer and what your health goals are - tell me in the comments below.
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]]>Oops...
Case in point: in an act of complete stupidity last week I fell over and landed entirely (and heavily) on one knee. It goes without saying that I am incredibly uncoordinated. (It won't be a surprise to anyone who knows me that I somehow, unconsciously, protected my capacious handbag/briefcase in the fall which suffered not a scratch.)
As a result of my stupidity I have been forced to become acquainted with a pair of rather boring looking crutches and my footwear is restricted to my rather meagre collection of flat shoes.
photo credit: Patience
My doctor has also told me to do the unthinkable - rest - and stay downstairs for the foreseeable future. This is all very well but I live in a 2-storey house and my kitchen is upstairs.
The situation is dire indeed. Not long after I met my husband, he offered to cook me dinner. When he pulled the bright yellow Old El Paso box out of the pantry I knew that I was in trouble.
Things have moved on from there slightly. 5 years later I can confirm that he is fabulous at tidying up and putting things away.
However not much has improved in his cooking. Luckily there are no yellow boxes in my pantry!
Keep some pre-cooked meals in the freezer
photo credit: my freezer
While as a general rule I am not friends with my freezer (freezer burn is friend to no-one) I do have an emergency stash of pre-prepared and pre-cooked (by me) meals in the freezer, vying for room with the huge top tier of my wedding cake that has been in there for nearly 3 years and counting.
While I was stuck downstairs, lame and miserable, my husband was quite able to defrost some chicken schnitzels that I had previously crumbed and cooked.
As per my instructions he smeared the schnitzels with some tomato paste and sprinkled them with fresh rosemary from the garden and some grated cheese.
He chucked them under the grill to warm through and melt the cheese.
They would have been quite perfect if he had put them on the grill tray rather than in a baking tin, but served with some spaghetti tossed in some fresh and lively organic olive oil and lots of cracked pepper and some steamed vegetables, it was a satisfying dinner. (The baking tin warped in the high heat but was able to be restored to its previous shape.)
To make the schnitzels
Slice trimmed chicken breasts in half width-wise.
Bash the chicken with a meat mallet or you can use your fists and roll over the chicken with your knuckles.
Dust them in well seasoned flour (I often add paprika to this), then swoosh them into an egg wash (about a tablespoon of milk to each large egg) and into a mix of fresh and dried breadcrumbs, finely grated parmesan, herbs or whatever takes your fancy.
Shallow fry in hot oil until golden (don't overcook or the chicken will be dry and awful), drain well, cool, then wrap individually and pop them into a labeled freezer safe container or bag.
To reheat, warm through in the oven or make parmigana as directed above. Please don't use the microwave to do this, unless you have one of the fancy convection ones.
Buy it pre-prepared
photo credit: Whole Foods deli counter
Many butchers and delis now stock a great range of pre-prepared and easy to cook meals that are surprisingly budget friendly and tasty when added to some fresh ingredients.
My local butcher sells lovely little handmade meatballs which can be easily browned and then cooked through in a sauce of tinned crushed tomatoes, garlic, onion, fresh herbs, a good glug of wine, a small dash of balsamic vinegar and served over pasta with a generous amount of freshly grated parmesan.
You could even use a good quality basic store-bought pasta sauce or passata instead.
A tray of meatballs is less than $6 at my butcher and will serve 2 very hearty eaters for dinner with leftovers for lunch.
So despite all predictions we're eating well during my exile from the kitchen and thanks to some generous offers from friends and family that is likely to continue.
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