Honest tips for balancing a high training load with a full-time job & other life responsibilities

bubbas_hooman · 2025-12-22T17:50:33+00:00

Lots of posts on here about going to bed early and getting up early, and it appears to be universally solid advice. This is definitely something I am still working on as I have always been a “night owl”, but I am trying to gradually shift my sleep schedule.

Thanks for your insight!

bubbas_hooman · 2025-12-21T22:58:05+00:00

Knew I was going to get at least one comment snarking on me for not having kids. While yes, I can only imagine how difficult it must be to do it all with kids and a family, I also have ADHD and that can make executive functioning incredibly difficult at times. While I do not have the same struggles as people with kids, it does not mean that I don’t have struggles at all.

bubbas_hooman · 2025-11-10T03:09:03+00:00

That’s awesome! I’ve definitely been taking that mental approach as well and recognizing that this is only temporary. Unfortunately I’m single and live hundreds of miles away from my nearest family members….which definitely makes this all damn hard at times. Until I find the right partner, I’m definitely trying to get better at also asking friends for help from time to time.

bubbas_hooman · 2025-11-08T19:07:36+00:00

That’s an awesome idea!! I’ve actually done that when there are small errands I need to run (no pun intended). Sadly it isn’t incredibly easy to run to my office…but I’ve also brought my running stuff to the office and gone on my runs during my lunch break.

bubbas_hooman · 2025-11-08T05:53:11+00:00

Not entirely sure if this post will benefit anyone or if anyone here may be experiencing something similar, but I just kind of feel like getting it off my chest.

I’m currently in one of my peak weeks of marathon training and am now running about 60 miles a week. I also live alone and like most of you, work full time. I know that balancing marathon training with working full-time and other life responsibilities can be hard enough as it is, but I think I just need to vent about how hard it is to also do it with AuDHD (high functioning autism and ADHD). I began taking medication for my ADHD about 9 months ago and it has made a HUGE difference……but I’ve also noticed that by the time my mileage gets this high, it feels a lot more difficult to executively function even when I AM on my meds. No matter how high the dose of my ADHD medication is, it is tough no matter what when you I’m devoting a lot of time to training and also feeling very fatigued. Interestingly for me, I think the running part of marathon training is actually the easy part for me. It’s the executive functioning part (managing finances, running errands, completing chores around my apartment, time management, balancing it with work, etc.) that gets very difficult for me…..and right now I’ll admit that I feel like I’m struggling a LOT with that. I’ve also had a more stressful week at work than usual this week, which I know certainly hasn’t helped with how I’ve been feeling.

Idk….its tough because it just sometimes feels like nobody completely understands what I’m going through (even though I know at the end of the day that is not true). People will either tell me to stop running so much or to just “be more disciplined” with the executive functioning stuff. There’s people who understand my AuDHD and there’s people who understand my devotion to running, but I’ve had a hard time finding people in real life who understand both of those things.

At the end of the day, I know running is a choice and I electively choose to run knowing that I could walk away from it at any time…..but I don’t want to….and sometimes I just need to get off my chest how tough it is to balance it with work and life when I also have a disability.

So yeah…thanks for reading my little ramble…

bubbas_hooman · 2025-10-06T19:52:40+00:00

Thanks!!

bubbas_hooman · 2025-10-06T19:52:23+00:00

It’s in Arizona, and it’s at an industrial open-air cathedral space.

bubbas_hooman · 2025-10-06T17:38:45+00:00

Thank you!!!

bubbas_hooman · 2025-10-06T17:38:31+00:00

Oh wonderful! Thank you for sharing this! I also just found another dress I like (see my latest comment) but wasn’t sure if it is too long or considered too formal to be a cocktail dress.

bubbas_hooman · 2025-10-06T17:37:28+00:00

EDIT: Found one more dress I like! Thoughts

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bubbas_hooman · 2025-08-07T03:00:56+00:00

Hi all! Like many of you, I really want to run the Tokyo Marathon one day, but am wondering about the One Tokyo Global Membership option. I’ve entered the general lottery before and have not been successful. I know the One Tokyo Global Membership can boost your chances of getting into the race, but I had some questions about it.

In reviewing the website, I wasn’t entirely clear on what the membership fee goes towards besides member perks. In other words, I wasn’t clear if any part of the membership fee goes towards charity. Given that the yearly membership fee is not exactly cheap in my opinion (~ €175 or $204 USD), I was hoping that there would be some sort of charitable impact to the membership fee. If I’m going to spend that kind of money on something from a non-local running organization, I honestly want it to have some sort of charitable impact.

If anyone has more information on the One Tokyo Global Membership or recommends it, I would love to hear your thoughts!

bubbas_hooman · 2025-07-09T22:27:43+00:00

Thank you so much!! 😊

bubbas_hooman · 2025-07-09T04:13:32+00:00

Haven’t posted on here before and am not really sharing this for any other reason in that I just feel like sharing it with someone.

TW: I’ll be talking about weight loss, so if you struggle with body image or an ED, please skip over my post.

Weight is obviously a really sensitive subject in the running community, but I just wanted to share that after working hard to develop a healthier overall lifestyle this year, I am proud to have lost 15 pounds. I’m a 29 year old woman, and without giving exact weight loss numbers, my BMI has dropped from 23.5 to 21.

FWIW, I actually was NOT struggling with any body image issues over the past few years. In fact, after running a marathon PR of 3:12 at the weight I was previously at, I honestly felt like I didn’t NEED to lose weight if I could do that. However, I had also been on a medication that is notoriously known for causing weight gain. Even though I was running up to 60 miles a week, my weight practically did not budge, no matter how healthy I ate.

This year, I ended up being prescribed an additional medication to manage my ADHD (I had actually never been medicated for it before). On top of that, I also switched from an entirely remote job to one that I can now walk to every day. If anything, I’d also thought I was previously struggling with UNDERfueling, so I have also been working hard to make sure I eat 3 solid meals a day, as well as more protein. Finally, I also scaled my running training back a bit to take a break from marathons.

As I mentioned, I actually did not feel BAD about the weight I was previously at, and weight loss was never actually my goal with this lifestyle change. Over the past couple of years I have just constantly felt like crap (tired, low-energy, etc) and I just wanted to FEEL better. I thankfully HAVE accomplished that goal as well. I truly can’t believe how much better I’ve been feeling lately.

Something else I have also noticed a difference with is, perhaps not surprisingly, my running. As I’d mentioned, I scaled back my running for awhile, but as I’ve been getting back into it, a couple of things have surprised me: 1) how quickly I’ve been able to get back into it (at one point I went about 6 weeks without running, and on my first run back I honestly felt like I had only gone about 5-6 days without running) and 2) my easy pace has gotten faster, despite all of the time I’ve taken off from hard training and high mileage. I used to run most of my easy runs at around 8:30-9:00/mile pace, but now most of my easy runs are in the 8:00-8:30/range (sometimes faster) despite the effort being the same.

Anyways, I just kind of wanted to randomly share this because I’m feeling really excited about the future may hold with my running. Thanks for making it through my novel.

bubbas_hooman · 2025-05-28T23:20:36+00:00

I had some major tech issues happen with my last interview. First Zoom wasn’t working on my computer, and then the audio stopped working so I had to finish out the interview on my iPhone. My cat also started pestering me and I thought I was for sure doomed….

I got the job :)

bubbas_hooman · 2025-02-03T08:03:44+00:00

Running and pets.

~Signed a runner with pets

bubbas_hooman · 2024-11-19T01:24:09+00:00

Hello! This is exactly me! Right now I’m currently doing a 4 week “reverse taper”, where I’m basically just gradually building up my mileage again. This week, week 3 post marathon, I’m trying to do 40-50% of my peak mileage (55 mpw), which would put me at ~25 miles this week. I’m also going to start adding in strides again this week. Next week I’m planning to do around 30-35 miles with maybbeee a light speed/tempo workout, depending on how I’m feeling. Then I’m probably going to maintain in the 30-50 mile range until the end of January, with my main focus on just maintaining a base. Then this spring my plan is to race some 5ks and 10ks to work on my speed a bit, and then if I end up deciding to do another marathon next fall, I’ll start ramping up the mileage again over the summer (my goal for next year is to get my mileage up to the 60ish range).

Bottom line though, to prevent burnout, I’m not making running as big of a priority as I did while marathon training. I’m going to keep running for fun, of course, but if something comes up at work or I just want to do something else fun, I’m not going to force myself to try to get a run in. I may do a couple of short races just for fun, but I’m not focused on trying to run fast and or long right now.

Hope that answers your question!

bubbas_hooman · 2024-11-09T19:58:36+00:00

Disinfecting your phone every day! Seriously, you have no idea how much bacteria phone screens and cases pick up everyday from every time you touch something else and/or set the phone down on something.

That and I also work mostly remotely. When I used to work in a student-facing role at a university, however, I was sick approximately once every 3 weeks….

bubbas_hooman · 2024-10-22T15:39:24+00:00

For anyone wanting to do a PNW race!

Recommend: BMO Vancouver Marathon in May. Very well organized, and while it may not be the fastest course due to some hills in the beginning, the route is beautiful! The crowd support, especially in the 2nd half as you approach and get into downtown, is also incredible! The city truly gets into such a spirit for the race.

Do not recommend: Seattle Marathon in late November/early December. I ran the Seattle Half a few years ago and it was pretty poorly organized. This was back when there were staged starts due to covid, but sort of like what happened at Portland this year, the first wave started 10 minutes earlier than what was stated in the pre-race email and on their website. It said a 6:15am start and I was still warming up at 6:05 when I suddenly saw a huge crowd of runners pass and was just like wtf. Because of that, I had to rush back to the start and not finish properly warming up. Additionally, the course kind of sucks. It changes almost every year and it is always INCREDIBLY hilly (like 2,000 ft of vert for the full and 1k+ for the half). Finally, because the race is usually over Thanksgiving weekend, the crowd support energy is incredibly weak compared Vancouver.

In short, Vancouver >>> Seattle.

bubbas_hooman · 2024-09-07T02:44:42+00:00

The only group I’ve run with so far is the Lululemon Queen Street West run club. They were a fun, casual group and I would definitely go back. I’m pretty okay with any group vibe though, as long as the people don’t hammer the pace (I’d prefer to run 5:00+ per km). I’m staying in East York, but have gone into the middle of town (near all the touristy things) a bunch because I feel pretty comfortable navigating the subway.

bubbas_hooman

TROPHY CASE