I am one of those people who needs to exercise in order to maintain a healthy weight and a healthy state of mind. Maybe you are one of the lucky ones who can eat whatever you want and never work out and still look good in skinny jeans–if so, screw you! (JUST KIDDING.) Seriously, though, most of us do need to put in at least a little bit of time each week at the gym in order to be at our healthiest, both physically and mentally.
For a long time, I was the kind of mom who would exercise “if I had the time.” That did not really work for me, because with 4 kids, a husband, and a job, I practically never had the time! A few years ago someone very wise told me the ONLY WAY to make it work is to schedule it in my planner just like my other appointments. Guess what? It works.
I use the monthly section of my momAgenda to put in my workouts for each day, and I also write them in my weekly views. But the monthly section is my “exercise section,” where I go to track everything I do workout-wise.
And if you are wondering whether it works, take my word for it. I ran a half-marathon in May, after 6 months of running… and it never would have happened, had I not scheduled in my training runs each day.
My question for you today is, how do you squeeze in exercise? Please share all your tips and tricks for our readers who are struggling with this issue right now!
I find that when I dont exercise I am not at my best and I have less energy. I need energy to get through my busy day so I make it a point to schedule my exercise on my calendar like an appointment and keep it! I find it easier to workout first thing in the morning (I get up before everyone else does to avoid interruptions). I will either take a brisk walk outside, go to the gym or my favorite is to workout to exercise videos at home in my living room. Either way, when I get my exercise in daily I have more energy to make it through my day so I encourage everyone to try this for a few weeks and see if you don’t get hooked on exercise! Don’t forget to drink plenty of water, take your vitamins and avoid junk food as much as possible, these things will help you with your energy as well!
I tend to wake up very early in the morning if I want to get any exercise in. Husband and kids are notorious “hit the snooze button” so I find that the only peace and quiet, meditative work out time I get is from the 5:30-7am time. It just becomes habit building and I’ve been doing early morning exercise for years. It is also less hot if you happen to be running outside in the summer time. Also, I pay for an exercise class once a week in the evenings. I happen to love it, but I am less apt to skip it knowing that it’s throwing money down the drain.