Last year the YLD started to promote the concept of work-life balance. In our field, this concept may seem like more of an aspirational goal than a reality.  As a busy litigation attorney, I fully understand the struggle to find time to make health a priority. Through this post, I hope to provide a few ideas that have worked for me so you can improve your own work-life balance.

I have found that health and fitness goals become more attainable when you have someone to help hold you accountable. My husband and I train together for races, and since he is a busy litigation attorney as well, this is also an outlet to indulge our competitive natures in a positive and healthy way.  We pick a race that is a few months away, print out a calendar, and write out a full schedule of what we will do to train for the event. We put the calendar on the refrigerator with a marker so that we can check-off when we complete each day’s training. Because it seems easier to make excuses later in the day not to train, we attempt to complete our training goal in the morning. It is always hard to start training for a new race, but I have discovered that after the first few weeks, the training becomes much easier as I begin to fall into a routine.  This is something that can be modified for all skill levels. If this is your first race, you can register for a local 5k (try to find a race that is affiliated with a charitable organization; that way, you can combine the healthy benefits of exercise with a sense of philanthropic pride). There are several websites that provide sample training schedules for various race types and skill levels.

There are also ways to implement a healthy lifestyle throughout your work day. You can take the stairs instead of the elevator.  You can also go for a walk after lunch to re-energize your body and mind instead of relying on the caffeine in a cup of coffee. My law firm recently purchased a walking desk, which is a treadmill with an adjustable-height desk top. You just set your laptop or documents on the desktop and continue to work while exercising.

These are just some of the things you can do to maintain a healthy lifestyle and work-life balance, but of course there are many more.  Please feel free to share examples of what has worked for you to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle.

Stephanie Cagnet Myron is an attorney with Scott Wagner & Associates, P.A., practicing labor and employment law. She is a current elected member of the Florida Bar Board of Governors, Young Lawyers Division, 15th Judicial Circuit. She is also an elected representative on the state board for the Florida Association for Women Lawyers (FAWL). Mrs. Myron is based in Palm Beach County and handles both state and federal cases throughout Florida.