A Workout Ate My Marriage?

This morning on mytalk107.1 fm in the Twin Cities, Ian and Marjorie were talking about an article that had appeared in the Wall Street Journal entitled "A Workout Ate My Marriage" (You can torture me and I will swear up and down that that station was on only because my kids enjoy the Happy Boy joke segment)

Here's the full article:

A Workout Ate My Marriage

Basically the article offers some anecdotal evidence of extreme endurance training causing marital discord.  One counselor even referred to "divorce by triathlon"

The radio hosts talked up the addictive nature of working out and triathlon in particular.  Portraying the tri widow left behind with kids and the cleaning.  The one line of the article that got no mention was as follows:

The effect of extreme exercise on divorce rates isn't clear. Even if research showed a higher rate of discord in homes where just one spouse is an endurance athlete, exercise could be a consequence, rather than a cause.

Now I'm not going to argue that the time demands of triathlon and "extreme endurance" doesn't ever put stress on marriages.   I think it's probably even harder when only one spouse is engaging in an active lifestyle.

Balance is really the key.  Most of my athletes use triathlon and training as part of a healthy lifestyle.  They race to keep them motivated to stay in shape and because they enjoy it.  Like me, a lot of them choose to make it part of their family lifestyle.

I think you could plug hunting, fishing, golf, tennis, car racing, hockey, or even coin/stamp collecting into the article and find anecdotes where one spouse's hobby has created strain in the marriage.

Participation in endurance events in general and triathlon in particular is skyrocketing.  At the same time our nation is getting more and more obese.  It seems to me that rather than looking for problems associated with exercise we should be figuring out how to get the other spouse off the couch.

I contend that triathlon can strengthen a marriage.  I know I'm happier and a better husband than I was 40 pounds ago before I started exercising.  I certainly appreciate the support I've received from my wife and kids.

Has your need to train strained your marriage?  Have you struggled to balance work, family and hobby?  One solution might be to train more efficiently. (WARNING - self serving plug to follow)  At TFI we can help you get the most out of your training time, so you can get back to your loved ones.

Don't forget to thank the ones who allow you to pursue your passions!