Motherhood and Wellbeing

lululemon Ambassadors Rylie and Caitlin from Run Club talk balancing motherhood and wellbeing whilst working towards their personal and professional goals

This Mother’s Day, in celebration of the mother figures in our lives, we sat down with Rylie McLoughlin and Caitlin Duncan, the sisters behind Run Club, an indoor treadmill running and reformer pilates studio in Melbourne. Rylie & Cailin talk all things Motherhood, wellbeing and working towards personal and professional goals.

lululemon: Tell us about yourselves and about your business Run Club?

Rylie & Caitlin: We're sisters who own a running studio called Run Club! We both have two children each who keep us incredibly busy. Prior to Run Club we both worked in the field of Social Work. While we loved working with people and the industry, we decided it wasn't a field we could maintain working in full time, for the rest of our working lives. In 2018, we took the leap and opened Run Club. Run Club is an indoor treadmill and reformer pilates studio! It has allowed us to combine our passions for exercise and working with people. While it's certainly been a challenging experience it's been totally worth it. Seeing our clients feel empowered and achieve things they didn't think they could is one of the best feelings. We are obsessed with seeing people thrive in our community!

 

"Prior to motherhood when considering wellness, it was about what was good for us and it stopped there. Since becoming mums, wellness now considers much more. It's about being healthy and happy so that we can show up for our families and really discover what that looks like." 

 

lululemon: What is a goal you are working towards at the moment - physical and / or as a mum?

Rylie: I've just come off training for a half ironman which took up a lot of time and energy so now my focus is the business and staying fit while enjoying freedom of training in different and fun ways!

Caitlin: I'm currently training for the Gold Coast Marathon at the start of July. I've been working towards this for a while now so I'm really looking forward to getting up there and giving it a real crack!

 

"Each day for us can look completely different. Some weeks we have great, consistent routines with work and our kids and the next it's a circus!"

 

lululemon: How do you balance being a mum with running the studio and being athletes yourselves / training for your own personal goals?

Rylie & Caitlin: With much difficulty! We train very early in the morning and go to bed very early at night and accept and embrace being flexible and adaptable with our training as well. We have supportive partners and family who help us a lot with our kids and we communicate with each other well and keep space for the other when they need it. It's pretty hectic most of the time and we can often feel completely out of control but we make it work. Each day for us can look completely different. Some weeks we have great, consistent routines with work and our kids and the next it's a circus! But doing life like this together and having our children so close makes it so worth it!

lululemon: What have you learnt about yourself since becoming a mum?

Rylie & Caitlin: That we are capable of doing and being much more than we thought. Being a Mum isn't easy. It's beautiful and wonderful but it's hard. Before being a Mum you think you've done the 'hard' things and it's not until we had kids that we have been challenged in a completely unknown space. In fact it was a new ball game. Both physically and mentally. When we are faced head on with new and unknown experiences it's then we really know how incredibly strong, resilient and wonderful we really are. We discover parts of ourselves we didn't know existed.

lululemon: How has motherhood shifted your perspective on wellness?

Rylie & Caitlin: Wellness definitely looks a bit different now. Prior to motherhood when considering wellness, it was about what was good for us and it stopped there. Since becoming Mums, wellness now considers much more. It's about being healthy and happy so that we can show up for our families and really discovering what that looks like. And while sometimes it can feel selfish to take time for ourselves we know it's a crucial part of being the best versions of ourselves as individuals and mothers.

"When we are faced head on with new and unknown experiences it's then we really know how incredibly strong, resilient and wonderful we really are. We discover parts of ourselves we didn't know existed."

 

lululemon: What are you both doing for Mother’s Day this year?

Rylie & Caitlin: We are going on Run Club's first ever Run Retreat this year on Mother's Day. We’re finishing up at the retreat in the morning and then heading home to the family for the afternoon. It will be a very low key evening in both our houses, probably with some nice food and a glass of wine :)