Fitting in more reading into your daily life | small blocks of reading time

I think it is very natural to wonder “how do they have time for that?” whenever you hear about someone devoting a lot of time to a specific hobby or activity. I am in my mid-thirties, which means many of my friends are in the same boat as me…we have kids, partners, busy careers and life just doesn’t have a lot of “downtime” right now.

A lot of us are also beyond the stage of baby and toddlerhood and are reclaiming some of our time and identities as our kids are getting older and more independent but that doesn’t necessarily mean life has slowed down at all. I do a lot of reading in the evenings but that free time is becoming shorter and shorter as our kids get older because their bedtime is now so close to when ours is..and I am sure in a few years, even later!

I have found that fitting more reading into my life doesn’t usually mean adding in long afternoons reading on the couch(although I did do that the other weekend and it was amazing) but more of finding smaller blocks of open time during my regular daily schedule.

It is easy to look at your calendar and not see a lot of free time but most of us have 10-15 minute blocks of times during our weekdays. I spend time waiting before my workout classes, before work meetings and appointments and in the car before I pick up the kids at school and when they are at a sports practice or afterschool activity. I have even read while waiting for a coffee or in line at the grocery store. All of this time really adds up and has been a great way to add in more reading time without having to adjust anything in a big way.

This means that I just need to be proactive and remember to put my book or Kindle in my work bag and then I am ready to read anytime there is some open space. I do have some friends that use the Libby or Kindle app and read right on their phones which is even easier because whoever forgets that. 😉

How do you fit in extra reading time? I would love to hear! <3