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You really can't expect to participate in a marathon and be successful if you don't train for it right. The same thing can be said about marriage. You can't jump into it believing you can just wing it and see how it goes. You know, free-style it. No-no, it doesn't work like that. It would be great if all you needed was just pure love. But marriage requires more than that to work.
In many ways, marriage is like a marathon because it takes commitment. There are going to good days and bad days but the most important thing is going through the rough waters together. Marriage can wear you out at times, so it's crucial to take a break every now and then. Whether it be to go meet up with your own group of friends, take up a hobby or whichever activities that will allow you to have 'me-time', together. Plan dates as a couple too. Plan movie nights. Plan long walks together. You should try to communicate with your partner just like a marathoner would with their trainer. Listen to what the other person has to say even if all they need is just a lending ear.
There are more preparation going into a marriage than what would think. You don't want to go into it being oblivious. So when preparing for a marriage, you need to get all the essential information right. For instance, on information such as financial planning, family planning, relationship balance, sex life and the list goes on. For one, you can start talking to your married close family and friends about this. They can probably give you a tip or two about what they have learned along the way. But make sure you don't go into the trap of comparing your marriage with another couple as that could turn out to be toxic.
Next, you can enroll in marriage classes for you and your partner. This is where you can be introduced to a series of training and mentoring on topics you may not even have thought about. These classes may force you to think of questions like who will be responsible for what duties in the household. No, we aren't just talking about who will be in charge of the vacuuming and dishwashing. It's questions such as who is going to handle the family finances, will both you and your partner be working or who is going to stay at home when the time comes to for a baby. These are the series of questions that are important to discuss prior to tying the knot so that opposing views can be compromised.
Don't go into marriages thinking it is not going to take a lot of sweat and tears, because it is. Most importantly, don't go into it thinking it is going to be one smooth journey. Because it isn't going to be, especially if you don't take the time to mentally prepare for it. We don't mean to scare you, but we want you to understand that there will be many speed bumps and roadblocks that you will encounter that will test your marriage to the extreme. But know that having that mental and physical preparation will ease the process.
Yes, marriage is like running a marathon. It is going to take a mighty load of endurance but don't forget to have fun along the way.
