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Courtside Forever is a podcast for parents swept up in the circus of everyday problems who, despite the world’s best efforts, are still dedicated to seeking intentional moments with their kids. I’m your host, Ryan Rucker, and each week, I will bring you a new episode made for you. We’ll keep it brief for some weeks, diving into a specific topic such as Youth Sports or Paternity Leave in America. These 15-20 minute episodes will focus on overarching themes, statistics, and practical next steps parents can take. In other weeks, we’ll extend our conversations, inviting parents in sports, business, and other industries to look at how they center parenthood in their lives and touch on our inevitable struggles while building a career, business, and future. Whether you’re a dad or mom or thinking of stepping into the role someday, Courtside Forever is a podcast that aims to recenter the world we’re building for our kids. In 2024, The United States of America declared parenting a public health crisis, citing the way society is set up for the reason we struggle. In the document created by the US Department of Health and Services Department, Parents Under Pressure, Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy stated, “Raising children is sacred work. It should matter to all of us. And the health and well-being of those who are caring for our children should matter to us as well.” In 2020, I hosted and produced the 8-episode docuseries Complicated Fatherhood, where I spent each episode speaking to my biological dad to understand how his absence from my life affected my Fatherhood. Since wrapping the podcast, I knew I wanted to get back into podcasting, and Courtside Forever is a continuation of my mantra to be ever present in my daughters’ lives. On Courtside Forever, we’ll have fun, get serious, tell stories, and work to focus on the only thing that matters because, as parents, we’ve got the best seats in the house. Let’s enjoy them.
Episodes

Tuesday Apr 29, 2025
Parents — Reclaim Your Weekend. Here’s How | Episode 25
Tuesday Apr 29, 2025
Tuesday Apr 29, 2025
Let’s be real—weekends kind of suck sometimes. You work all week, juggle homework, activities, and dinner disasters, and just when you think you’ve earned a break, the Saturday baseball tournament and Sunday birthday party hit. In this episode, I’m diving into the real reason parents feel like they're running a never-ending marathon—and how we can finally start reclaiming our weekends.
I’ll walk you through five practical shifts you can make starting this Saturday: using your PTO without guilt (yes, even if you don’t have big vacation plans), saying no to things you don’t have the bandwidth for, letting yourself be a little "lazy" without the guilt trip, outsourcing tasks like grocery shopping, and even—hear me out—scheduling rest.
There are no trophies for "Best Burnout." It's time to slow down, protect your peace, and build weekends that actually fill your tank instead of draining it. Society may not be built for parents yet, but inside your four walls? You get to set the rules.
If you’re tired of hitting Monday already exhausted, this episode is your permission slip to do weekends differently.
From the article Parents — Reclaim Your Weekend. Here’s How.
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