Having kids means taking on a lot of responsibility. When you have children, it’s pretty common for your world to begin to revolve entirely around them. After all, they’re entirely dependent on you. You’ll become responsible for making sure that they are washed and clean, ensuring they are eating well, making sure they are getting their exercise, providing them with activities to keep their minds occupied, finding schools for them, signing them up and taking them to any hobbies and clubs they want to do and so much more. It’s not all too surprising, then, that many parents find themselves putting themselves last and never actually getting around to their own needs. This is especially common if you have other responsibilities and commitments – which most of us do – such as work or commitments to family and friends. It really is important that you make time for yourself and your needs though. It is possible to create a healthy balance where you care properly for yourself and your child. It just requires planning, organisation and self control. Here are some suggestions that can help you to achieve this goal.
Be Kind to Yourself
First, it’s important to remember to be kind to yourself. So many parents find themselves under a lot of pressure, and place their child’s happiness and wellbeing with (understandably) high importance, so give themselves a tough time if they feel they fall short in any area. Never feel this way. Acknowledging shortcomings is a good step in the right direction and you need to remember that we are all only human – nobody is perfect. Sure, it may seem like other parents lead chaos free, happy family lives that run like clockwork, especially with social media flaunting idealised versions of people’s lives in front of our eyes. But the truth is everyone has problems, challenges, struggles and other issues behind closed doors. Parenting is a life long learning curve and nobody ever has it completely nailed. Learning to accept your imperfections and to work on them as best you can will be much better for your mental and emotional health, and in turn will help you to be a happier person and a better parent.
Give Your Body the Fuel It Needs
Do you find yourself thoroughly meal planning for your kids, but not doing the same for yourself? So many parents find themselves preparing breakfasts, lunches and dinners for their kids and just picking at ingredients as they go along or eating leftovers that the kids didn’t want. This is no way to go about fuelling your body. Others will find that they opt for convenience fodos that take little time to make and clear up from, as they feel their time could be better invested somewhere else. This often results in overconsumption of takeaways, fast foods and junk foods. Avoid this. These foods don’t contain the right nutrients that your body is asking for. Instead, make sure to eat a healthy, balanced diet the majority of the time. This can be made easier and more manageable with some simple meal planning and meal prepping. You may also want to try supplements to fill occasional shortfalls or gaps in your diet. Meal planning emans sitting down and deciding what you’re going to eat for each meal for the week ahead. This allows you to pick up the necessary ingredients in one fell swoop, once a week while you’re doing your grocery shopping. Meal prepping involves preparing certain elements of your meals in bulk – perhaps dedicating one evening to chopping, slicing, marinating and taking other steps with ingredients to partially prepare your meals in advance. Altenratively, you may want to fully prepare meals in advance and then freeze them, ready for responsible reheating throughout the week. There are plenty of brands out there, so make sure you know what ingredients you’re looking for and opt for the most effective and best reviewed options on the market. If you are experiencing weight related health issues, consult your doctor who may be able to recommend treatments, meal plans or the best weight loss shakes or weight gain products.
Remember to Exercise
While we can often feel run off our feet, many of us aren’t actually getting the recommended one hundred and fifty minutes of moderate aerobic exercise we should be getting each week. It really is important that you hit this goal, as this is what your body requires to stay strong, healthy and active. Exercise can help to improve everything from stamina to strength, balance, flexibility and other essential life skills. It can also prevent ongoing health conditions. Of course, many of us feel that we don’t enjoy exercise. So how do you tackle this? If you find yourself dragging yourself to the gym or a fitness class, it’s time to find a form of exercise that you actually like doing and want to attend. This could be anything and will vary depending on your individual tastes and needs. You could attend a class that adds a social element, or a team sport, to combine working out and spending time with others. You could find that you like spending tiem outdoors in nature – this is where hiking, cycling, walking, jogging or running could be something that meets your needs. You might enjoy spending time in water, where a water aerobics class or swimming will keep you fit and happy. You could even try alternative forms of exercise, such as roller derby, pole fitness, aerial silks or anything else. Experiment and find what you actually like. If you find yourself struggling to get childcare to attend out-of-home classes, try home workouts. There are so many free resources online, such as videos, tutorials and social media posts that can show you how to get a good workout at home.
These are just a few different things you can do to start focusing on your won wellbeing, even if you feel that you are completely tied up with childcare and prioritising your little ones. Hopefully, some of the tips here will prove useful to you and you’ll be able to incorporate them into your general routine. Give them a try and see how you get on!