Any other nurses or rotating shift workers?

pattya925

How do you handle squeezing in work, sleep, and exercise??

dlegros

How do you handle squeezing in work, sleep, and exercise??

Honestly? With difficulty!

I'm luck in that my Krav Maga club is flexible so I can train any day I'm free but fitting around shifts can be hard as our shifts are all over the place (I'm an ER nurse) - as an example the last couple of weeks looked like this...
Mon - Night
Tue - Night
Wed - Off
Thu - University
Fri - University
Sat - Off
Sun - Night
Mon - Off
Tue - Day
Wed - Off
Thu - Night
Fri - Night
Sat - Night
Sun - Off

So I was able to train Wed, Sat, Mon and Wed. Sleep was problematic due to switching back and forth between days and nights.
I'm also doing the 20 pull-ups programme on Mon, Wed and Fridays.

It can have a negative impact on my eating habits as on nights I just can't get the calories in (we work 12.5hrs and often only get a single 30min break).

kar328

You have to be creative. I'm a nurse, I work 7P-7A three times a week, the schedule varies. I reset the calories at midnight. If I'm working that night and was off the night before, I get up at "normal" times but nap for two hours in the afternoon. I eat a full dinner before I go to work (I work in a crazy delivery room, often you go the whole shift without a break). I try to drink all my water before I go, then anything extra is great. You can't always judge what will happen and being stuck in a delivery with a full bladder isn't fun. I usually have a couple of hundred calories left when I get there, so I pack protein bars, cheese sticks etc. They're easy to grab. If all goes well I try to eat about 1 AM. I bring my own food because the food there is not exactly healthy. I just try to bring enough things I can grab on the run. We also have a pantry there and I've raided it for peanut butter, cereals, milk etc.

I go home, eat something and go to bed. If I'm off that night I get up at 1 PM and try to be normal with food and sleep. If I'm working I get up at 4.

Exercise is my problem and I'm still working on it. I'm about to do my third shift in a row and walking from the parking lot and around the unit is all I've done. I just can't get up the motivation to do something before I go to bed and/or get up early. One of my coworkers was going to do a run after work this morning. Good luck to her. So with my weird schedule, exercise isn't consistent and I'm trying to work on that. I'd love to read what others are doing and how they manage it.

pattya925

Sleep is a huge issue for me as well, especially on works that I rotate between days and nights. I also work 12.5 hours assuming I get out on time... rarely actually get to take a lunch break - usually too busy. By the time I get home from night shift, it's often 9:30 and I have just enough time to catch 5-6 hours of sleep before my son is home from school. Good for you for making your workouts a priority. I am really struggling with finding the energy!

Honestly? With difficulty!

I'm luck in that my Krav Maga club is flexible so I can train any day I'm free but fitting around shifts can be hard as our shifts are all over the place (I'm an ER nurse) - as an example the last couple of weeks looked like this...
Mon - Night
Tue - Night
Wed - Off
Thu - University
Fri - University
Sat - Off
Sun - Night
Mon - Off
Tue - Day
Wed - Off
Thu - Night
Fri - Night
Sat - Night
Sun - Off

So I was able to train Wed, Sat, Mon and Wed. Sleep was problematic due to switching back and forth between days and nights.
I'm also doing the 20 pull-ups programme on Mon, Wed and Fridays.

It can have a negative impact on my eating habits as on nights I just can't get the calories in (we work 12.5hrs and often only get a single 30min break).

pattya925

Exercise is my biggest hurdle in regards to night shift also... it's much easier for me to fit in when I am on daylights.

You have to be creative. I'm a nurse, I work 7P-7A three times a week, the schedule varies. I reset the calories at midnight. If I'm working that night and was off the night before, I get up at "normal" times but nap for two hours in the afternoon. I eat a full dinner before I go to work (I work in a crazy delivery room, often you go the whole shift without a break). I try to drink all my water before I go, then anything extra is great. You can't always judge what will happen and being stuck in a delivery with a full bladder isn't fun. I usually have a couple of hundred calories left when I get there, so I pack protein bars, cheese sticks etc. They're easy to grab. If all goes well I try to eat about 1 AM. I bring my own food because the food there is not exactly healthy. I just try to bring enough things I can grab on the run. We also have a pantry there and I've raided it for peanut butter, cereals, milk etc.

I go home, eat something and go to bed. If I'm off that night I get up at 1 PM and try to be normal with food and sleep. If I'm working I get up at 4.

Exercise is my problem and I'm still working on it. I'm about to do my third shift in a row and walking from the parking lot and around the unit is all I've done. I just can't get up the motivation to do something before I go to bed and/or get up early. One of my coworkers was going to do a run after work this morning. Good luck to her. So with my weird schedule, exercise isn't consistent and I'm trying to work on that. I'd love to read what others are doing and how they manage it.

kmc979

i'm a respiratory therapist who works three day shift 12's a week, plus 1-2 other 12's a week at other jobs. depending on how many i just worked in a row depends on what time i get to the gym. if i'm coming off 4 days in a row i'm not going to the gym till closer to 2-3pm after i allow my body to rest a little. depending on how the day went i sometimes go to the gym after work also.

lilbearzmom

Bumping this- I work very part time 1-2 nights a week in DD group homes, but will probably be moving to a new job (Respiratory Therapist) by July, and it's nights. I will be much less sedentary, too. Looking for ideas. Right now I rarely eat during my shifts.

-Kendra