It’s been awhile…almost 2 months to be exact.
The past 2 months have been a whirlwind. I’m going to do a seperate post on 50K training but first an update on life in general is needed.
I quit my job in early July to become a SAHM, running coach, and (former) barre instructor. More on that last part later. I was lucky to have 6 months of child care leave but I knew I wasn’t going back. I started RTLR Coaching 4 years ago with the goal of devoting more time to it once I had kids. And I loved staying home with Fiona more than I ever imagined.
In anticipation of leaving my job I decided to pursue any and every opportunity. Because adjusting to motherhood, coaching runners through a busy Fall racing season, and train for a 50K isn’t enough (this was an actual thought of mine). One of the opportunities that came up was a barre instructor position at a new studio. This was perfect – I loved barre and wanted to start teaching classes anyway. Win-win.
I started training back in April and teaching in June. What an eye-opening experience…and kudos to all you fitness instructors out there. A lot of work goes into an hour class (and a lot of work to make it look so seamless and easy). Between taking barre classes, prepping for classes, making playlists, and getting up to speed in general, I was in way over my head. WAY over my head.
The pressure to give 100% to everything was physically and mentally draining. There was so much I wanted to do with coaching but didn’t have the time. When I was with Fiona, I couldn’t turn off the to-do list in my head and just be present with her.
I finally admitted to Matt last week at dinner that I bit off more than I could chew and something needed to come off my plate. He agreed (to say I was an anxious basketcase at times is an understatement) and wondered when I was finally going to wave the white flag. The problem was that I truly enjoyed everything on my plate and, obviously, coaching and Fiona were non-negotiable.
Matt, always the voice of reason, reminded me of why I left my job in the first place: to stay at home with Fiona and grow my coaching business. Barre was taking time away from coaching and, to a much lesser extent, Fiona. It had to go. It killed me to give up such a wonderful opportunity that I loved. Had this opportunity popped up before Fiona was born or even when she was a bit older, the timing may have been better. So I slept on it, ran 20 miles on it, and then resigned. I do feel as though a huge weight has been lifted off of me but part of me is still sad about it.
unrelated but makes me laugh
Lesson learned? You can have it all but not at the same time.