Why I love Stroller Warriors
I love Stroller Warriors for a multitude of reasons. The friendship and support I have found in like-minded women, the play dates for my kids, and the opportunities to set and reach new goals all while having FUN are of course some of my many reasons.
The main reason I love Stroller Warriors, though, is because of a little life analogy I call the bucket theory. Bear with me as I explain this all to you.
Imagine you are a bucket of water. Your friends are buckets. Your children, pets, siblings, parents, husband, and everyone you know in life are all buckets. Each time that you do something for someone (whether it is making a lunch, doing a load of laundry, making a meal, giving a ride, etc, etc.) you are taking water out of your bucket and putting it into his or her bucket. Eventually as you keep taking water from your bucket and putting it into someone else’s bucket, what will happen to your bucket? Your bucket will be bone dry. You will feel depleted, run down, depressed, and anxious. The needs around you will still be screaming to be met, but your bucket will be empty.
Now imagine instead you take one drop of water and add it to your bucket. A drop of water could be a shower, or brushing your teeth, or going for a run, or meeting up with the Stroller Warriors. A drop into your bucket is when you do something FOR YOURSELF. As you add drops of water into your own bucket what is eventually going to happen? Drip by drip the water level in your bucket is going to rise. Eventually the water level of your bucket is going to over-flow into the buckets of the children, siblings, husband, family and friends around you.
Stroller Warriors helps me to dump huge amounts of water into my own bucket. In one swoop I can get a run in. I talk to friends. I am guaranteed to shower after a sweaty run. I often meet new goals and have opportunities to volunteer or raise money for a charitable cause. Stroller Warriors helps me to take care of me, and the benefits from that ripple into the buckets of the friends, family, and community members around me.
One day while husband and I were discussing our upcoming PCS I asked him, “Would you rather have me start up my own home business again or do Stroller Warriors?” I thought his answer would require some thought but without hesitation my husband quickly exclaimed, “Definitely Stroller Warriors!” I’m not going to lie. I was a little surprised that he didn’t need to think about it and weigh the pros and cons or wasn’t the slightest bit tempted by the prospect of additional new money coming into our home. I told him I was surprised he hadn’t needed to think about it at all and asked him why he preferred Stroller Warriors over a home business. He said, “With Stroller Warriors you’re out of the house, meeting new people, making new friends. You get adult time and exercise and the kids get kid time and exercise. Everyone is happier and healthier. It’s a win-win for everyone.”
My husband is a smart man. He knows that when I have friends, when I take time out of my day to exercise I am less stressed, I am more able to juggle the demands given to a wife and mother. I am a happier me –and Stroller Warriors helps me to make that possible.
When my kids hear that we are going to Stroller Warriors they get really excited. They LOVE Stroller Warriors, and I don’t blame them. Stroller Warriors is just as much for my kids as it is for me. They get to get out of the house and check out a cool running trail and a park (which varies every week). They have fun, exciting things to see while out on a run which may or may not include animals or beach views. They get to spend time with their favorite person (me of course!).
They also get to play with old friends and make new ones. They get to practice adult interactions with other parents. They get exposed to workout routines and often mimic the burpies, planks, and lunges they see the Stroller Warriors doing.
As an added bonus they’re going to sleep better because they’ve gotten some exercise in. Usually (but not always) they’re better eaters, too.
It’s unanimous in my house, we’re all huge fans of Stroller Warriors! So tell me, why do you and your family like Stroller Warriors?