Parents, how do you finding time to work out?
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At the moment I get up at 5.30 to do 30DS before work. Sometimes I get on the treadmill as soon as I get in from work or jump on it while dinner is in the oven.
You just have to try different things until you find what works for you now and then change and adapt as your children get older. It does get easier as they get bigger!!
Just think something is better than nothing - even if it's just 10 minutes.0 -
This is a struggle. Even when your intentions are the best sometimes parenting has a way of sucking the energy out of you. The last 2 nights I've been exercising once everyone was gone to bed and settled in. This wasn't until after 10pm. The mornings have been brutal on me.
The work lunchtime thing works for some ppl (I am one of them, I used to do this a lot and I need to start again).
Otherwise, as someone said. You need to make time.0 -
I know what you mean. I have a 2 year old and he goes to bed so late that it wouldn't be possible to do it after he is asleep. When i get my gym membership in a few weeks i think I will start going in the morning. I'm not much of a morning person, but if i have to get up at 6am to feel betetr about myself than that is ok.0
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Look up Snorex mouthpiece. I use it for snoring, but it has been shown to work for sleep apnea too.I don't..... I starve..... :grumble:
I don't work out like alot of people on here, my working out consists of scrubbing floors until I sweat, lifting loads upon loads of laundry, putting up pools, mowing the lawn, blah blah blah, occasionally I'll have enough energy to fit in a DVD like Jillian or Zumba. It's not as often as I'd like though. There's enough hours in the day, I just physically can't keep going.
I refuse to have it diagnosed, (cost and I'm not wearing an elephant mask at night) but I'm pretty sure I've got sleep apnea. Otherwise tell me why a full grown woman will breakdown in tears because she is so unbelieveably tired.
I cut back as much as I can on what I eat to try and make up for the lack of exercise. There are others on here who have had success doing it as well. Many hate on it though.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
I know what you mean. I have a 2 year old and he goes to bed so late that it wouldn't be possible to do it after he is asleep. When i get my gym membership in a few weeks i think I will start going in the morning. I'm not much of a morning person, but if i have to get up at 6am to feel betetr about myself than that is ok.
That's silly, there is no rule that says you have to exercise by a certain time or it's not possible.
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That's silly, there is no rule that says you have to exercise by a certain time or it's not possible.
Yeah, but i like to spend time with my lady too!0 -
I have four boys.
I work full time and ALWAYS use my lunch hour to get gym time in.
After work, I usually take my youngest boys to the pool for some extra calorie burn from swimming and throwing them around in the water.0 -
Buy a kettlebell and work out at home, start running early am when everybody is a sleep, play with the little guy! Lift him, turn him dance with him! He will love it!0
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I did several things when our kids were all young. One was to use the little ones as weights. They got a kick out of it. Lift them over your head, lay on your back and lift them with your feet and have them play airplane etc. Go for lots of walks. Kids love to go on walks. Put on music and dance with them while you clean. You get a good work out and toddlers especially love this. OR wait till they take a nap and work out while they're sleeping. Get some weights to use in the house and put the nursery monitor in the room with you while working out.
Get a bike and put a kiddie seat on the back and take your little one for a bike ride. They absolutely love it!0 -
My husband and I both work out in the mornings before work. He's up at 4, out the door by 4:40, at the gym by 5 (when it opens). I'm up around 4:30, and I work out at home. I have a pretty good set up in my basement, treadmill, bench, 30 pound bar, Olympic bar, plates up to more than I can possibly lift at a time, small safety rack, plate loadable dumbbells, YouTube on my PS# and a variety of DVDs. I'm usually done working out by 6, my 12 year old is almost always still asleep, my 4 year old is hit or miss, but she knows to carefully come down to the basement if I'm not upstairs, and she knows to stay back if I'm lifting. Then I just set her up with some TV and she hangs out while I finish. Obviously, I know that's harder with a one year old.
Walks with a stroller or baby carrier are also a great idea. babies also make good 'weights" for things like squats.0 -
I have 5 kids. When the older ones go to school I strap the baby in a jogging pushchair. I went from couch to 5 K with no problems. Training for 10K now.. Babe gets a little whiny towards the end of the 60 mins but we're hanging on in.
I do this 3 times a week, mon, wed and fri.
On tues,thurs and sats, I do an nhs strength programme in my living room - no equipment required. That's about 45 mins a time.
Sometimes I don't feel like doing it. 5 kids as a single mother is hard work. But I make myself. Nobody's going to wave a magic wand and make everything come together for me. I make do with what I do have.
Good luck0 -
I like many and a working mom to an 18month old and the best time to workout for me has been when the doors open at the gym, 5AM! He is still sleeping and I am content knowing that I can focus on "me" time because he is not missing me, or that I am neglecting any of life's other chores...other than sleeping. Besides, a good morning workout puts me in a good mood, which in turn keeps him in a good mood.0
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I have two girls 16 month old and a just turned 3 year old...they are full of some energy!! lol...i stay at home with my kids (full time college student)...i will workout in the same room as them (i like workout videos ex: p90x, turbofire, taebo, etc.)..which they will sometimes grab my equipment or climb on me while im doing a push up or something....its cute when they try to copy me though..but...i still work through it lol....or i will wait till nap time or bedtime...sometimes i will end up working out really early or super late (1 or 2 am) but i get it done...thats what matters to me...im very exhausted sometimes but i know that its all good once i get up and start doing it ill enjoy it...its just the initial step of getting up and starting...i tell myself i will never see the results i want if i dont get up and do this!0
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Someone else suggested the Y, which is great advice. I work full time and have two boys 5 and 7 and they love the Y. If you can find something to do all together that's awesome. Otherwise I get up early to work out or do it late at night. Good luck!
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I'm lucky and hubby and I take it in turns to go to the gym in the evening. On the nights he goes to the gym I run when he comes in. It can be hard and we normally have to fit all round after school clubs too. Have also just bought a treadmill so i can run while the kids play as its school holidays.
It does get easier as they get older ( we have 4 from 3 to 14)0 -
That's silly, there is no rule that says you have to exercise by a certain time or it's not possible.
Well, sure, there's always the option of staying up late to work out and showing up at work the next day looking like a train wreck. ;-)0 -
i am one of those people that really can't work out in the morning. I'm sluggish walking my little guy to daycare!
I find the moment to work out during the day while I'm at work... i run three times / week and i try to do *something* the other days (30 day shred, cycling, etc)
I also try to just be more active. We take our bikes to the store for an outing; baby in a bike trailer... kids get a treat, i get a water. we all get a little workout.
The trick is balance. And i know all about the guilt, but if you work, can you manipulate your schedule to squeeze some hours within daycare times? (i used to work M-W-F until 4 instead of 4:30 and i would make up the 1.5 hours by coming in early and staying a little later the other days because daycare ran from 7-6 or something) Yea it was long days for the kids, but they weren't being moved around and they barely noticed the extra time.
If you are not working, childcare at the gym is a great opportunity for your children to meet other children.
If your husband is home in the evening, cook dinner, but don't eat yours... head to the gym while your husband eats and feeds the kids,then have your dinner when you come home then take over.
You just have to find what will work in your own life, since one size fits all fits nobody (I have beaten myself up for years about working out in the morning, i just CAN'T do it)0 -
It's changed with time- when LO was Itty bitty, it was the jogging stroller.
Then I found a gym with a daycare.
Now that my son is 6 and in school activities and camp inthe Summer and refuses to go to the daycare, I joined a gym near my office so I can workout at lunch only so I workout every day at lunch and we go bike riding toegther in the evenings.0 -
I go during work. Lucky enough to have a boss that is really into the gym and feels if someone wants to take an extra hour on top of their lunch, go for it!0
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I don't work, so it's relatively easy, at night after the kids are in bed or I use the gym daycare, or do home workouts when they are in school.
Something that always works though, if you watch any tv at all, is to just jog in place while watching. That way you still get to relax but you still get some exercise in.0 -
When my twins were little, the bike trailer helped tremendously! I've hauled kids all over creation.
I'll gladly admit to being a little too joyous over not having too now.0 -
When I'm off, I workout during my 2yr old's nap. When I work, I just get up before she does. When there's a will there's a way!!0
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Many YMCAs have been renovated to compete with local health clubs.
At the Y, you only pay what you can afford.
Some offer child care for people while they workout.
Look into it.0 -
Hi everyone,
Just wondering how those of you who are parents are finding time to exercise. I'm the father of a very energetic 1 year old boy. I used to work out regularly in the evenings, but find myself struggling with regularity since his birth, either due to parental obligations, or, occasionally, just being completely drained by my boy when he refuses to go to sleep at his bedtime. Any of you who has been though this have any tips?
Father of a 3 year old boy and 1 year old boy. Time is an illusive thing...if you're trying to find time, you likely never will...you have to make that time...finding time is passive and there will always be something else to occupy that time.
For me, that meant getting my tired *kitten* out of bed at 4-4:30 in the morning so I could get my run in or my cycle in or whatever and be home in time to get ready for work and help get the kids ready for day care, breakfast, etc. I still do that some, but I also train some at lunch as well...I just forgo my lunch break to workout and I eat my lunch at my desk while I'm working.
My wife an I also ponied up a little more cash and switched gyms to a more family friendly club that has a 2 hour child care drop-off. Our gym nights (Tues and Thurs) are rough in that we don't usually get home until 7:30 and we're rushing to get the kids ready for bed, etc and have little time to relax on those evenings...but those are the breaks. It's important to us, so we make the time to do it.0 -
I get my workouts in after my 15 month old goes to sleep. So I'm usually at the gym around 9:30 at night, even if I'm super tired, I just make myself go, because I know I'll feel better afterward. On the weekends, I go to a Zumba class and my husband watchers the baby. We also try to incorporate activities as family, like hiking or swimming. Good Luck!!0
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SInce summer vacation started I noticed I am relying more on low cal days than on workouts which I can't seem to make time for.
It's harder when they are little like one because you may be getting up at night still.
It will be very hard to have energy AFTER he sleeps so I'd suggest waking up BEFORE HIM.
Another option is during his naptime. Usually mom's are supposed to nap when the baby does, not sure if that applies to men though. If not I think you could do some things while the baby naps. Unless you need the nap. Single fathers I know do. OR stay at home dads or whatnot.
Kids wear you out. Completely.
I'd also suggest working a babysitting trade off with someone. They dont' need to know why you want to switch babysitting or have the same intentions as you. You could take your baby and someone elses in a double stroller for a walk while she shops. THen switch and the next day she does the babysiting while you lift weights or hit the gym or something. I think that could work really well as soon as you find someone rational and trustworthy to handle your kid for a short bit of time. Congrats on your little baby. They grow up so fast. Enjoy this time.:flowerforyou:0 -
I work out whenever I can. I work full-time and have a 4 year old. So on days when I can go at lunch, I go at lunch. On days I can't, I wake up at 5:30AM, 6AM and work out to a DVD in my basement or hit the pavement for a run. If I don't wake up in time and I couldn't work out at lunch, I do the DVD or run in the evenings leaving the kid to play next to me or with my husband. If NONE of the above work, I walk from the train station to my office (30 mins) instead of taking transportation.
You don't HAVE to work out for 30 mins or an hour at a time. Take 10 mins at a time if you can. Take your child to the playground and do pull ups on the monkey bars, jump up and down the steps of the slides 10 mins at a time. Run around the playground while keeping an eye on your kid. Stand up instead of sit down watching TV, oh and while you are standing, do squats. Find the time, if it's 10 mins, do 10, 20 mins do 20...anything is better than nothing.
Just my 2 cents..0 -
I wait until my wife and daughter are in bed and then I go. Occasionally I go for a run on my way home from work instead of being up all night...0
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I cannot speak highly enough of the Y. Both my husband and I work. But I go to the gym right after work. And granted I leave my child in daycare until I am finished but if I had to I would pick her up and put her in the childwatch program at the Y while I worked out. We do that on the weekends when we work out. The Y has just about every cardio machine you can ever want. They have machines to do weights or free weights if you want to go that direction. They offer personal training at great prices. Most have pools and tracks (indoors or outdoors). They also have community things like runs, walks, pick-up basketball games, triathlons etc. And what I find best of all is as your child grows you can start engaging them in sports and other rec activities right there knowing how wonderful the people are. Its a great community and place. Since joining and thinking about getting myself in shape I know I have put my daughter's wellbeing onto a good track as well.0
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My two boys are 6 & 9. I wake up at 5 a.m. and workout then or if I am too lazy to get up that early I do it when I get home from work.
On the weekends I do it whenever I feel like it while dad hangs out with them.
When my kids were younger I would exercise while they napped or I would get their dad to watch them while I did my thing.0
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