Nobody Talks About the Busy Dad
My Healthy Habits challenge is simple yet complicated. I commute 2 hours to and from work each day (I love my job). I’m out by 7am and home around 8pm. I work in sales for the greatest magazine on the planet – Cooking Light (shameless plug). As a sales guy, I am not as structured as most people are. I don’t truly know how my day will unfold, so it’s tough to plan ahead because I am at my clients’ beck and call. Here’s a snapshot of my day (when I'm not enjoying Disney with my wife and 4-year-old daughter):
Breakfast: I eat breakfast on the go, on the train, or when I get to work. Most days I’m rushing from the second I wake up and forget to eat all together. Because I am not consistent, I have introduced a vitamin regiment to my daily routine—fish oil, a multi-vitamin, and vitamin D. I wash half the daily dose down in the morning with carrot or grapefruit juice.
Lunch: As a sales guy, my lunch is with clients at fancy restaurants who serve gut busting meals….Adam & Eve ate the forbidden fruit and they cursed me! When I’m not with clients, I’m at the gym working out with a trainer, which means a post-workout shake (banana, whey protein, skim milk, flaxseed oil, oatmeal, vanilla extract, and ice) for lunch.
Dinner: This is the complicated part of my life. My wife prepares meals for her and our 4-year-old. My wife is also on a different type of diet, one that requires that she gain and maintain a weight due to health concerns. That coupled with getting our kid to eat doesn’t leave many options for me. So, I either prepare my meal at 8pm or eat what everyone else has eaten. Sidebar: having a meal on the train is not something I enjoy (cold food, eating on my lap, with strangers who give a scowl if the food I’m eating has any odor to it).
Evening: Sitting in front of the TV after a so-so dinner, I grab some chips or my favorite – slice of wheat bread with peanut butter and chocolate chip sprinkled on top. When I turn in for the night, I will down the remainder of my vitamins with some water and call it a night.
I’ve started to take the Healthy Habits challenge. Veggie-up has been difficult. I drink my carrot juice in the morning and then it’s tough during the day. Dinner usually includes 1 to 2 veggies, but I could certainly add more. This past week I bought some carrots and celery that I can snack on at work. My trainer loves when I eat something at 11 so it gives me fuel for the lunchtime workout, and at 3pm it’s a quick pick me up. I don’t think I can eat carrots and celery every day, so I need help with other options.
Post your tips for a busy dad below.