Training for a marathon takes hours of running every week – so how do parents manage when they have a young family?
For Becky and Andrew Findlay, of Forfar, a monthly planner in their kitchen is central to family life.
It ensures they both get out for regular runs but still have plenty of time to spend with daughters Phoebe, 3, and Freya, 23 months.
Becky, 32, said: “It’s just a complete juggling act!”
She is training for Manchester Marathon in April, running up to 40 miles a week.
Andrew recently completed Inverness Half Marathon and plans to run Loch Ness Marathon in September.
She said: “It’s constant communication, constantly updating the board.
“I actually don’t know how we would live without it!
“We laugh about it. Andrew will say ‘we’ve got this coming up’ and I say ‘if it’s not on the board it’s not happening!'”
Balancing marathon training and family time
The couple pencil in runs for different times of the day, and for big races different times of the year.
Becky said: “My husband is just so supportive and he knows I’m not a morning person so he lets me write in all my runs.
“Then he pencils in his runs round about that.
“If I’m running on a Wednesday night, he will get up on a Wednesday morning and go and run.
“We understand both of us can’t run a marathon at the same time, as much as we would love to do that.
Our family promise
“We very much take turn about. I’ll run Manchester in April and Andrew is looking to run Inverness at the end of the year.
“We would feel really guilty if we both had a long [training] run on a Sunday and have to rely on our parents.”
Becky’s parents are marathon veterans and Andrew’s have just completed a couch to 5k programme so are fully behind them.
But Becky said: “We’ve made that promise we wouldn’t do that and will be sensible about what we sign up for.”
Not only does primary school teacher Becky have her own running regime to fit in, but she’s also a run director of the weekly Forfar Loch Parkrun and a run leader for Jog Forfar.
So it means she and Andrew, a project engineer, have involved Phoebe and Freya in their running lifestyle from day dot.
Becky was pregnant with Freya when she helped to launch Forfar Loch Parkrun two years ago.
She said: “I would have a huge bump and be down there setting up.
“When Freya was born she was strapped to me in a carrier when I was run director and speaking on the microphone.”
Expressing milk at Parkrun
Becky would even discreetly express milk as she was getting the circuit set up! At first, people fellow organisers wondered what the noise of her portable pump was.
But she said: “It became totally normal that I would have my breast pump on and then Andrew would come down and pour the milk into a bottle.
“He would come with both girls and I would stand and feed Freya as he ran.
“It was just the way we had to manage family life at the time.”
Running while pregnant
Becky had previously run both Edinburgh and London marathons.
She said: “I didn’t have children then so I could go out on a Saturday morning, do a long run and there was no commitment. It was very leisurely.”
She continued to run until the latter stages of pregnancy with Phoebe, but it wasn’t until Freya was four months old that she resumed properly.
Becky was inspired to lace up her trainers again by watching Andrew’s turn in the London Marathon.
She was frustrated at being seen as just a mum and signed up with a running coach.
“I just wanted to enjoy running again and almost have that head space that I could go and do it,” she said.
“I also wanted to show the girls that being a mum doesn’t define you, you can do other stuff as well.”
Just a few months later she ran her first race for several years, the Forfar 10k.
Now the girls are often on the sidelines cheering Mum and Dad on in events.
“At the Inverness half marathon Phoebe was putting her hand out to high five all the runners going past,” said Becky. “I hadn’t even said to her to start doing it.”
Phoebe and Freya also are well known among Forfar Loch Parkrun regulars.
She said: “When I’m run director the girls are running about at the finish line with all the other kids.
“I want them to see a healthy lifestyle and it’s just a really nice place to be.
“The running community is so supportive.”
Becky hopes their involvement will inspire them to run themselves as they grow up.
“I really hope they will,” she said. “They are going to either love it or hate it!”
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