Have you sometimes felt so overwhelmed by everyday work that you have simply been unable to do anything productive? Have your days been increasingly exhausting to the point where you are surviving on autopilot mode? Have you been feeling disconnected from everything around you, even your kids? These could be signs of parental burnout.
Sure, parenting is an extremely rewarding experience, but it is in no way an easy one. Having to constantly put the needs of your kids before your own can naturally take a toll on your mental and physical health. Most parents don’t even know that they are dealing with burnout.
What are the reasons behind parental burnout?
When a parent experiences total physical and emotional breakdowns due to constantly putting children’s needs before their own, parental burnout tends to happen. There are many reasons why parental burnout happens in the first place. Some of them can be:
- The desire to be perfect parents
- Single parenting
- Balancing parenting with a career
- Financial problems
- Lack of support from family
It is not easy to keep up with children and their seemingly endless energy. For most parents, it is completely normal to place the needs of children before their own, but at the same time, it is important to look after themselves as well. Parental burnout most often shows up in the following ways:
- Unexplained bouts of anger
- Crying spells
- Loneliness
- Insomnia
- Anxiety and depression
Often, a lot of parents feel the need to be perfect in their day-to-day duties as parents. If anything goes wrong, they tend to blame themselves for not being perfect enough. Sometimes, this desire for perfectionism can result in negative feelings towards children.
Fitness Strategies to Combat Parental Burnout
So, how can this condition be dealt with? One of the most effective ways to combat parental burnout is through exercise. Physical fitness can have a domino effect on mental health, and help in alleviating the stress associated with burnout. However, working parents, especially mothers, do not always have the luxury of time when it comes to working out. In this situation, a few strategies can help working moms beat the effects of parental burnout. These fitness tips will not only help in maintaining the much-needed stamina that goes into looking after kids but it will also provide a channel for all the stress and anxiety that comes with parenting.
Exercise on the go
Since you need more time to go to the fitness center, learn to squeeze exercise into small pockets of time. Instead of driving to work, take the subway- that way, you can get in quite a few steps. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. The first few days, it will be hard to walk up all those flights of stairs, but you will slowly get used to it and notice a change in your stamina. Take a walk after your lunch break at work- you will not feel drowsy in the afternoon and will also have the energy to complete all your work and not have to take it home.
Make sure to walk 10k steps daily
Walking is one of the most underrated forms of exercise. Investing in a pedometer will certainly help your fitness habits because you will be able to keep track of the number of steps you have taken in a day, as well as your overall activity levels. Make it a point to walk at least 10,000 steps every day. Start small, begin with 5,000, and go up to 7,000 before you reach 10,000. It is easier than it sounds- after all, as a working mom, you are practically always on your feet. Why not get some exercise out of it?
Choose biking over driving
If you are running errands or shopping, make it a point to use a bike instead of your car. Biking is a fun activity that helps tone your legs and strengthen them. For small outdoor tasks, it is a good idea to take your bike instead of the car. Moreover, it can also serve as a bonding time between you and your children, since you can teach them how to ride their own bikes.
Forest Bathing/Go on hikes with your family
Use the weekends to go on hikes with the children. This will inculcate in them a love and appreciation for nature and will be a great way for you to relax and get in a good number of steps beyond your usual target. You could actually bike your way to the hiking trail, and then walk all the way up, combining the workouts and making the experience much more effective. And enjoy the therapeutic benefits of the natural atmosphere and connecting with nature.
Get into the habit of gardening
Gardening sounds like a very peaceful and relaxing activity- which it is- but a lot of people underestimate the kind of physical strength it takes to be a good gardener and tend the land year-round. This is an activity you can do from home when the kids are napping, or you could even involve them in the activity to foster a love and interest in plants as well as nature, from a young age.
Make sure to get some cardio
You do not have to necessarily go to the gym to get some cardio in daily. A lot of household chores involve the steps to doing cardio. For example, you could try to do squats while you vacuum, or try to tidy the room after your kids have played. The benefits of squats cannot be stated enough, since this movement helps in strengthening your core and works all the muscles of your lower body. To keep up with energetic kids who have a truckload of stamina, this strength is a godsend.
Strength training at home
We know what you are thinking- dumbbells at home can be a possible hazard when kids are around. And that’s okay, you do not need them anyway. There are plenty of things at home that are heavy to lift, and as long as you make it a point to get in some movements with your heavy grocery bags (it could literally be just walking a few blocks with one in each hand), you will be golden. Even better- involve your kid in your workout routine and do push-ups with them on your back. You will be teaching them the importance of healthy living as well as be able to reach your own fitness goals.
Make sure you achieve the goals you set for yourself
One of the main reasons why working moms give up on exercise is because they lose the motivation to work out after the initial days. This is something very natural, after all, working moms have a lot of other responsibilities and even professional athletes can lose motivation to work out if they follow the same routine every day. This is why it is important to mix and match it up so that your routine keeps you on your toes. If you are cycling and doing strength training on one day, mix it up by walking or running and combining it with cardio the next day.
Get adequate rest
One of the reasons why parents experience burnout is because they do not get enough time to rest. Getting enough shut-eye is just as important to a fitness routine as the actual workouts involved. If your body is not well-rested, it will not be able to perform at its best despite your efforts. Sleeping for 7-8 hours straight can be challenging for working moms, so make sure to get into the habit of napping throughout the day.
Eat well
When kids are in the picture, busy moms tend to spend hours thinking about how to provide them with the most nutritious food, but skip back for themselves and rely on takeout or pre-made meals. As women grow older, they need adequate levels of calcium and iron, which store-bought readymade meals cannot provide. Bad food habits can often be one of the causes of parental burnout since inadequate nutrition will not allow the body to keep up with the needs of raising the children. Therefore, make sure to eat lots of healthy food so that your body can keep up with all the heavy lifting you have to do every day.
The bottom line
It is only natural for busy working mothers to neglect their own needs and only focus on the needs of their kids. That’s especially true if you’re trying to ask what is foster care, or consider yourself eligible to potentially provide a safe haven for a teen who needs it. However, keep in mind that you can look after your kids only if you look after yourself well. Prioritize self-care, treat your body the right way and be engaged in your children’s lives. If you follow these tips, you will notice a marked improvement in your energy levels and overall well-being and will be much better equipped to ace your projects at work and raise your kids right.
Mom on the go in Holy Toledo 