Though I am not a new dad yet my wife and I are taking steps towards starting a family. My wife stated “you do realize, when our baby comes you won’t have time to be doing all this working out.” I already knew my training might take a toll when this happens but I was wondering if there are any suggestions for this scenario where I’m used to training 4 days/week to training less often and varying consistency for say 5 years until the kid starts school so that I am not restarting from zero when I get back to normal training. Would running the Pivot/Time Crunch be the answer?
This is certainly an option, but any of the templates can be modified based on an individual’s resources and preferences as well.
If you are a member of the BBM Facebook group, that would also be a good place to pose this question to get more input from others who have been in similar situations.
Father of three here (12, 6, and 4) and I am able to train three days a week and do all my GPP. It will take some adjustments and at first being a father you will adjust to less sleep, more stress, etc. But I think you are taking a good approach and idea.
You may need to adjust when you workout…sometimes I might get down in the gym at 9PM after kids are in bed. It’s not ideal, but anything is better than nothing. Also with new young ones, sometimes you might just need the rest.
If it’s any encouragement my kids sometimes hang out in the gym while I workout and I can split up workouts a bit or hit the bike at random times for GPP. And to add to it…I started my fitness journey five years ago after my son was born and made all my gains with little ones, non stop sickness sometimes, low sleep, etc. You can do it too! Good luck man.
Hi there, father of one with another one due in 2 months. For what it’s worth, I found that investing in a home gym (nothing fancy - just squat stands, a bench, barbell and plates) has helped massively with staying on track with training.
I’ve regularly had to adapt my training to fit around stuff, sometimes splitting up training templates over 6 days or sometimes changing exercises to save time (e.g. using myo-reps or time caps). I’ve found that consistency has helped, and rather than skip sessions I’ve opted to move or amend them when possible.
I’ve also been working on changing my mindset - rather than focus on the numbers all the time I instead try to focus on just seeing the long term benefits of training and taking the PRs when they come rather than actively chasing them all the time.
Being a father is great. (father of 2) I got thru by having a basic home gym, lifting early(5am), by concentrating on getting in a short workout (sometimes just one of the power lifts) rather than none when pressed for time, and often just hitting one or two top set(less volume). When I had the time and energy I would get in the a more traditional full body workout like squat, press and deadlift).
I am sure it was not optimal in terms of lifting progress… but I think I was a good husband and father… and now my son lifts more than me… ;-). The less optimal lifting time was not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. (approaching 40 years of training now). I would also say that some good did come from it… I gave up a lot of junk volume and simplified my workouts. You can find a way to enjoy family and get stronger(or whatever type of workout you enjoy).