“When we found that we didn’t have the time to do it anymore, it was a real drag,” says Hess.

For busy couples, date nights offer much needed time together. But they can lead to unhealthy habits.

Between having a baby and her busy public relations job at the Narrative Group, Hess struggled to spend quality time with her husband. Eating out became their alone time.

“We would make a reservation at whatever the hot restaurant was and we would get all dressed up and every time we would go out for this meal,” says Hess.

But date nights added extra calories to their otherwise healthy diets and left them feeling guilty. That’s when the couple decided to hire a babysitter for Saturday mornings instead of Saturday nights, and turn the concept of “date night” on its head.

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Being Active With Your Partner Can Make Your Relationship Stronger and Help You Get in Shape

The popular Instagram couple started using their daytime dates to train for endurance races again, including the New York City Marathon.

“We would sign up for a race together and we would have the babysitter come early and we would go do a race, which for us being outdoors in the sunshine early on a weekend morning is like the joy of our life,” says the 37-year-old. “And we would finish it high on endorphins, having completed something together and having that sense of accomplishment.”

Hess says date days helped her lose 10 pounds, though it was not intentional.

“By falling into this natural cadence of being able to just enjoy our outdoor time more and really just indulge in it, it just changed my body,” she says.

Date days have also made her bond with her husband stronger.

“Fitness is such a big part of our shared joy,” she says. “The most important thing, in my opinion, about finding a partner is they make you the best version of yourself. Because I can tell you, Lord knows, I have been with partners who have made me the worst version of myself. I truly have. And so George and I really, really contribute to each other’s best version.”