On an average week, the calendars of most working women look like a crowded freeway moving at the pace of the Indy 500. Days start early and intense, and continue forward at a breakneck pace often until well into the evening. Gears shift quickly along the way. One minute, it's a high stakes meeting, the next it's rushing into a lunch, then a string of conference calls ranging from media to business development to clients. It doubles if you're a wife or have kids. Downtime and moments are lived in slivers versus hours, let alone weeks. You sneak off to the gym for twenty minutes in between work and dinner and take conference calls while getting your eyebrows waxed.
When it comes to life, today's successful women don't just juggle one but many.
"I have two little boys, three dogs, a husband and a company to run," said Gift Girl.com CEO and StyleObserver author Jean Voute Pratt. "There isn't a minute in my day that isn't accounted for."
It's a world I can relate to. Between building the multiplatform franchise I've co-created and running my six month old startup, most days in my world are at best hectic, at worst outright madness. Weeks pass before I can schedule in any kind of much needed downtime, let alone running errands or tackling bills. It's a world among many of the entrepreneurial and executive women I've met and know. One of the biggest challenges is managing health and wellness.
"I struggle deeply with healthy living and eating - and fitting an ongoing commitment to health into my wildly busy life as an entrepreneur and mom," shared Ellia Communications founder and President Kathy Caprino. "I fit a walk in my day whenever possible and drink water every time I'm in the car," she adds.
Despite hectic schedules, Power Girls know how to make wellness happen. Here's how they do it:
Get On It: One sneaky wellness strategy commonly used among the new modern women entrepreneurs and executives is to swap walking for driving as often as possible, including to and from lunches and meetings. Others keep a treadmill or other cardio fitness machine in their home to work in a quick workout during busy schedules. "I try to commit to getting outside at least once per day, even if it's to walk down the driveway to grab the mail," said Silverplanet.com founder Florence Klein.
Get Hydrated: The secret behind today's successful women? H2O. They tote it in the car, bring it with them to the office and meetings, and make it a point to get plenty of it. Ageless-Sages.com founder Natalie Tucker Miller drops lemon, lime or cucumbers in her glass. Entrepreneur and executive (and my sister!) Lisa Trajkovich uses sports bottles as a means to keep water close at hand while working. My stealth tactic for keeping hydrated? Borba's vitamin-packed mixes. I'm addicted!
Get Snacky: Busy schedules can mean missed and skipped meals, a health no-no. Power Girls combat the problem with an arsenal of ready-to-reach snacks like nuts, energy bars, fruits and vegetables. Mission Possible founder and celebrity personal trainer Jenna Phillips relies on energy bars, while Women 2.0's Shaherose Charania munches on black berries and bananas. Smoothies of all kinds are also a Power Girl staple.
Get Sleep: For female founders, sleep is golden. They focus on trying to hit the sheets at an early hour at night or capture extra winks by sleeping late on weekends. Naps are grabbed throughout the day when possible, even if it's just a quick ten to fifteen minutes at the office. "A power nap refreshes my mind and body," shared Klein.
Most of all, women entrepreneurs and executives know that wellness is a commitment and they make it. "My time for exercise is integrated in my schedule" said DJ Nelson, founder and publisher of All Diva Media. "Exercise is now a client."
Power Girls know how to take care of business - and themselves.