My kids are on Spring Break this week.  That means, the whole week, 3 kids, every day, no school, no camps, no breaks.  How in the world is a mom supposed to get a workout in with that going on?

With a full marathon, a half Ironman, 2 relays and a bunch of other races coming up, I can’t exactly take the whole week of Spring Break off from working out.  Some days, you’ve just got to improvise.  Today that was necessary.  Silas has been begging me to go back to The Boxing Gym.  Today he got his wish.  I’m a regular at the 10:30 am Monday class, and today was no exception.  David is always saying to bring the kids in, so today I did…the whole crew.

Ally spent the majority of her time playing on her iPhone.  Yes, ridiculously, my 10 year old daughter has a better phone than I do.  Anyone who has ever fallen victim to receiving random old texts from me when I restart my phone knows exactly what I’m talking about when I say my smart phone isn’t really that smart.

However, the boys were incredibly enthusiastic about the whole experience.  As soon as we got there, Silas put some gloves on and went to town.  Ethan put down the iPad soon thereafter and put on some gloves of his own.  Ethan was particularly good at the jab/cross/4 hooks combo.  Who knew it would turn into a family workout?

I wouldn’t say it was exactly strenuous, especially since the attention span of my boys only lasted about half of the 30 minute class, and that’s being generous.  With 10 minutes left to go, Silas was going, “Mom, mom, mom, MOM!”  Dude, chill.  No, I am not going to stop doing deadlifts to go turn on the treadmill for you.  Now burpees, that might be another story…

So, at least I got a pseudo workout in.  By the end, I had a pretty good sweat going.  And I got to model for my kids the importance of exercise in one’s daily routine.  I wouldn’t say that I do all things well as a parent, sometimes I cave to a tantrum, and sometimes I get overly mad about things that really aren’t that big a deal, but if there is one thing I can say about myself as a mom…I know how to make exercise fun.  Childhood obesity is an epidemic and if I can protect my kids from that, Lord knows I’ll do what I can.  And considering the sweet tooth that Silas inherited from me, it might take more effort than just offering green beans at the dinner table on a regular basis.

I was planning to take the kiddos to Florida this week to visit my mom (Woo-hoo, built in Granny-Nanny to entertain the kids while I go run!), but unfortunately, airfare costs kept that from happening. So, instead, I made a reservation at a lodge that is driveable, with an indoor water park…umm, that can provide exercise, right?  But the best part is that it’s located right next to a fantastic state park.  It may be cold, but rest assured, we’re going to bundle up and get out there to do some hiking and exploring!  The idea of spending 3 straight days at an indoor water park makes me seriously question my own sanity.  (Do you think I’m allowed to bring wine?)

All this to say, my workouts this week may be somewhat lacking in intensity, but they are guaranteed to provide lots of laughs, good memories, plenty of togetherness and probably a fair amount to blog about.  One week of lesser workouts isn’t going to make or break my upcoming races.  And I’m pretty sure that regardless of the outcome in Vancouver, I won’t likely look back and think, “Boy I really regret that week I spent with my kids”.  The best things in life are the experiences we have and the people who are with us.

So, away we will go to the water park.  I’m sure I’ll return a little more crazed than when I left, if that’s possible.  But hopefully my kids will be reminded that as much as I love running, and cycling, and boxing (I still can’t bring myself to add swimming to that list) I love my Ally and my Ethan and my Silas, way, way, WAY more.  And if you know me, that’s saying something! 😉

Ethan getting down to business with David at The Boxing Gym in Ballwin

Silas was all smiles at boxing today