Let me explain. My achilles heel in my bid to lose weight is the weekends. Aside from half an hour on a Saturday morning when I pretend to be Sebastian Coe, I'm far less active than I am during the week, and eat a lot more. Going to work offers me more structure in that I've got a lunch hour where I can get to the gym and back, and be regimented on what and when I eat. At home with two young boys, the gym is off limit and the fridge is not my friend.
So the next three days present something of a challenge, not least as the weather today is meant to get stupid hot again which may prohibit extended periods at the park or even an evening jog when my other half gets home. But I know I've got to make this challenge work, because this is essentially a trial for what will become a full-time vocation in a few weeks time.
I'm taking advantage of the recently changed laws on paternity leave and will be taking September and October off in entirety, as an extension of my wife's maternity leave. Two months at home with my little one, while getting his older brother settled into his first term at school. It is something I've looked forward to ever since finding out we were expecting, and all the more so after my initial paternity leave was by and large spent living in a hospital, following the birth and subsequent surgery.
Quite how being a modern dad and taking additional paternity leave will work out remains to be seen. When push comes to shove, I can't imagine being out of the office during the busiest month of the year will make me many friends, though the timing is purely coincidental. Despite the modern world supposedly embracing equality and diversity, it will be interesting to see if putting family first will have a negative impact on future career prospects. It shouldn't, but then women of child bearing age shouldn't be discriminated against in the job market either, though regrettably it does happen.
Enough pondering about the job. My task at hand is to be daddy. September/October should be easier to maintain discipline as there will be a structure to the day, walking my eldest to and from school, providing some light exercise whilst pushing his brother in the pram. As for this week, I'll just have to be on my best behaviour, avoid the pitfalls of the food cupboards and try to ensure I'm not sat on my backside tapping away at the laptop throughout.
