When you work freelance like I do, and you make your own schedule, it can be both a blessing and a curse. Sure, if I want to take the afternoon off because it’s a gorgeous sunny day, I can…but it also means I’m always juggling my schedule and fitting in meeting, events, fitness and a social life however/whenever I can.
As much as a 9-to-5 job can be a drag, sometimes I envy the structure it gives your life. Although that does mean you have to cram everything else outside of those hours, doesn’t it? So life can get chaotic for all of us–whether it’s kids, fitness, travel, friends, work–we all have times we feel like we’re just struggling to stay ahead of it all.
How do I juggle my responsibilities and make it work? It’s not rocket science by any means but here are three ways I’ve found have helped make my busy schedule more manageable.
Snack on the go. I try to eat three meals a day, and snack as needed depending on my workouts and how hungry I am. But sometimes i legitimately forget to include time to grab a meal because I’ve scheduled my day to run from one meeting to another. And often, since I’m not a morning person, I’m running out the door trying to get to an early workout or event, and I haven’t eaten a thing. This is why ready-to-go snacks like Good & Simple Muffins and Bars are a staple in my house. I’m partial to the Bars (they’re just easier to eat and I find they taste slightly less sweet than the muffins); Walnut and Grains is my fave but the Blueberry Oatmeal is a close second. Made with real ingredients such as whole grains (in the blueberry oatmeal bar, for example, there’s 13 grams of whole grains in each bar) and no artificial flavours or colours, Good & Simple offers a wholesome and tasty quick way to fuel up quickly and when you’re on the move.
Create some routine to your day to day. While I love making my own schedule (although I do curse that very same thing when I’ve taken a few hours off in the day to go to a sample sale and I’m typing away on my computer at 2 a.m.!) , going through each day with zero structure can be taxing mentally. So I try to have some routine to my day: I try to do a quick journal entry morning and night (this is still a work in progress), and now walking my recently adopted dog, Billie Jean, a minimum of three times a day helps me break up my schedule into distinct chunks of time, which makes managing my time easier to do.
Find a calendar that works for you. My smartphone calendar is my bible. I use the Informant app to keep track of my events, meetings, phone calls, deadlines, workouts, appointments and plans with friends. It’s all colour-coded, and I’m very, very lost without it and refer to it a few times a day. I didn’t find the iCal had all the functionality I wanted, which is why I purchased Informant. Before I bought it, I was forgetting about deadlines from time to time. It remains the most expensive app I’ve ever bought but it was worth it (and that’s even without using it to its full capabilities, I still need to learn how to make use of all of its features).
I’d love to know if you have ways to streamline your busy life! And in the meanwhile, to learn more about Good & Simple, which are now available in Ontario, here.
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July 27, 2017
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. Congrats to @blondefriesen who is the winner of this prize!
I’m in training for a marathon about 45 weeks out of the year for the past five years. And I’ve been called a machine by many people. I actually use this idea of being a machine to help me during a run; I try to really think of myself as a machine, one that can keep on keepin’ on without feeling any of the agony and pain marathon training can entail. I’ll likely be thinking of this next weekend when I’m running the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon as I work towards my summer of sweat #keepsweating goal.
To keep this machine performing well for training and racing, grains are key part of my diet. Healthy whole grains help the body to recover from a tough workout and they help provide the energy our muscles need to get through the training (whether it’s speed work on a track or an easy recovery run) or the 42.2 kilometres of the big race day.
Another great aspect of whole grains? They will have you feeling full so I’m a fan of having a bowl of steel-cut oats for breakfasts, and especially so before a morning run. And while I’ve been eating it simply (usually with just a touch of honey and a small handful of nuts), I’ve started trying it as a savoury dish.
With a splash of soy sauce and chopped scallions, it reminds me a lot of congee (that soupy rice that’s a comfort food I grew up with). Thanks Mark Bittman for the idea. Post-run, I have more time to cook so one of my new favourite savoury ways to eat my steel-cut oats is topped with some crumbled bacon, avocado and a fried or poached egg (I finally tried poaching eggs using a mesh strainer and, yay, success!) and some chopped chives and sriracha. I think it’d also be delicious with some caramelized onions and a soft-boiled egg, and maybe even some blue cheese, hello, stinky but yummy breakfast bowl!
Whether you’re just kickstarting a new workout routine or are a fitness buff, #trainwithgrains and you’ll have the fuel and improved recovery your body needs to perform at its best. Want to add this to your diet! Well…I can help you with that!
To help you #trainwithgrains for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon ( or your personal fitness goal, Grain Farmers of Ontario has given me a $50 President’s Choice giftcard to give away to one lucky fitness fan in Ontario. This way you can create your own delicious recipe with barley, grain corn (think corn meal, flour or starch), oats, soybeans or wheat so that you can ensure your body is getting the wholesome, clean fuel it needs to help you perform your best.
N.B. To enter this Good in Every Grain Giveaway, you must be a resident in Ontario.
You can enter to win the $50 President’s Choice giftcard in four different ways:
- Email me at healthandswellness@gmail.com with your name and address (please put “Good in Every Grain” in the subject line).
- Twitter. Follow me on Twitter (@healthswellness) and tweet:
I want to #trainwithgrains and enjoy the good in every grain by winning this @healthswellness #giveaway! http://bit.ly/1N0VYz6
- Instagram: Follow me on Instagram (@healthandswellness), “like” the photo of this savoury egg, bacon and avocado oats bowl, and tag a friend who you think would also benefit from the good in every grain.
- Facebook: “Like” the Health and Swellness page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/healthandswellness)–not just the photo but the page for Health and Swellness — and comment on the savoury oats photo about what grain dish you think you’ll make using the giftcard if you’re the winner.
This giveaway is open to Ontario residents and you can enter up until 12 p.m. EST, Tuesday, October 13, 2015. The winner will be chosen at random and notified via the method they’ve won. If they do not claim their prize within five days, another winner will be selected at random.
Good luck! And stay tuned for another tasty grains dish from me next week!
October 8, 2015
Feed on a diet high in fibre (whole grains in particular) and you’ll live longer, according to new research from Archives of Internal Medicine.
February 15, 2011
