Ayotte, Elected Officials Balance Health With the Demands of the Job: ‘A Work in Progress’

Karen Liot Hill spends a lot of time on the road.

On any given day, she traverses New Hampshire to visit one of the 81 cities and towns she represents on the state’s Executive Council, including Concord.

It’s a sedentary job, she said. When she’s not in the car or in meetings, she’s studying a monstrous stack of contracts in preparation for the council’s bi-monthly meetings.

Keeping up with her mental and physical health, then, becomes all the more important.

Hill keeps a full slate of activities and hobbies that she said keep her well: her jobs as a church pianist and local radio host, her trivia team and, lately, an early-morning, 2.5-mile walk with her neighbor around downtown Lebanon, where she also serves as a city councilor.

“I feel really good about that,” Hill said. “I feel very virtuous on the days that I get a walk in.”

Elected officials like Hill said it can be difficult to find well-being and balance in a job that demands so much of them. Here’s how they handle it.

Keeping it moving

Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s been running for years, a habit that she believes benefits her mental health even more than her physical health.

“If I don’t get enough movement in of some form, it’s hard for me to have enough time to sort of just clear my head and feel good,” Ayotte said. It’s “time when you’re away where you can think about things or you can just… not think about anything.”

She’s always been active, but Ayotte said she first got heavily into exercise when she started bike-racing after law school. Later, as a homicide prosecutor, she shifted to running as a faster, more efficient way to get her daily movement in.

State Rep. James Thibault, from Franklin, started hitting the gym three times a week this summer. He pairs that with “decently well-balanced” meals to stay in shape.

Thibault, who is serving his first term, is also a sophomore at Saint Anselm College. Between a busy legislative session and a full class schedule, he has yet to figure out how to mold his new fitness routine.

“We’ll have to wait and see how that plays into my academic schedule,” said Thibault, whose classes start later this month, “but I’m going to try to set aside some time for it for sure.”

Mind over matter

State Sen. Denise Ricciardi, from Bedford, credits her sense of wellness to a lot of things, regular visits to Orangetheory fitness clubs and a Mediterranean diet.

A positive attitude is even more impactful, she said.

Her dad used to call Friday the 13th — stereotypically dubbed a day of bad luck — his lucky day.

“Because he said you make your luck, you know?” Ricciardi said. “I kind of grew up with someone who was like that, so early on, I started training myself to be that way, too.”

Ricciardi also tries to stay away from drama — she doesn’t always vote the Republican Party line, which means she gets criticism from all sides, but she tries to stay above the fray.

“This business, you have to have a thick skin,” Ricciardi said. People won’t like everything she does, but “I never let it bother me. I pay attention, and I look to see what people say. I never respond. I don’t defend ignorance. I don’t do that on social media. And when I run into those very people, I’m as kind as I am to everybody, that’s the way that I choose to be.”

For Thibault, his faith plays a big part in recentering his life and priorities. He often partakes in the Catholic sacrament of confession, which helps him “start with a clean slate,” and goes to church at least once a week.

“It is truly quite a gift, and it really puts things into perspective of, this is what we live life for,” Thibault said. For him, that purpose is “to serve others, to serve God and to really prioritize the good of the world and the good of others over selfish personal gain.”

Balance, if you can find it

Lawmakers who spoke to the Monitor said they deal with their stress in all different ways: reading, singing, cooking, watching TV and spending time with friends.

The pinch, they said, is finding the time to do those things amid their busy daily routines.

Hill tries to find a balance within her work week. Councilors receive their agenda — sometimes 200 items or more — on the Friday before their Wednesday meetings. Those days are a sprint to prepare, Hill said, and Thursday is her day to recover. During non-meeting weeks, she travels through her district and meets with constituents and other state officials.

Being governor is no walk in the park either. New Hampshire’s executive has a busy schedule and contends with state legislators, agency heads and many others.

Ayotte said it’s “critical” that she gets her exercise time in the morning.

Asked how she balances her busy plate with her own well-being, she laughed.

“It’s a work in progress,” Ayotte said. “I cannot say that I am perfect at this because I know I have always a lot of effort to put into trying to strike that balance and to get that movement.”