Working over full time and losing weight

ktsmom430

I work 12+ hours a day. I get up by 2:30 am to work out at the office gym for an hour before I begin my work day. I pack my breakfast and lunch for the next day when I get home from work and take an hour walk in our woods in the evening.

You just have to make time for yourself. It isn't easy, and is often a struggle, but you just have to make it a priority.

renzjk

I can relate. It has been awhile since I was last on and due to some injuries, I too have gained back the weight I lost. I think the thing that helps is to pack your lunch and I have started to log in my days menu, that helps to stay on track. My weakness is wine and when I get together with my friends. I have been looking for alternative low cal drinks and a friend introduced me to a spa water with cucumbers and lemons, it is very refreshing. Just take a deep breath and take one day a time. Have a great day! Renzjk

Samstan101

My routine:

Up at 5:20am, feed the cats and get my lunch ready (usually a bag of salad chucked into a tub with couple of slices of ham or tin of Tuna plus a low fat yoghurt). Scrub teeth etc and out the door by 5:50am. Drive to gym for 6:30am, 30-40min workout, quick shower and get to work at around 7:30am. Breakfast a cereal bar and sometimes a protein shake at my desk. I don't snack at work - if I feel like a snack i drink a glass of water. To get around cakes etc in the office I either decline politely or say I'll have one mid morning (at which point word will have got around there are cakes and there'll be none left!).. I also have a Fitbit and try to get as many steps in as possible eg I walk to see people instead of phone, if the weather allows I go for a brisk stroll at lunch (minimum 10mins but if time allows 30mins). Home around 5:30pm, wash gym gear and pack gym bag for following day and then cook dinner etc. I also pre-log as much food as I can and use my mobile phone to make sure I log an additions to make sure I'm on target cals wise for the day.

Once you get a routine sorted its relatively easy.

BreMurie

I think working a lot makes it easier to lose weight b/c you don't spend as much time in social situations. But I guess it depends on your personality - I'm a social/opportunity eater, not a stress eater.

Here are some things that help me:
(1) Don't eat the free stuff at work - catered lunches, birthday parties, meeting leftovers. You can adapt this rule to make it work for you, like, no more than once per week, etc.
(2) Plan meals on weekends and cook ahead so you have NICE food to bring from home, not random stuff that makes you want to overeat, eat again later, or go out for lunch/dinner. PLAN SNACKS as well, not just meals.
(3) I always keep nuts in my desk drawer - they last a long time and it's easy for me to count out 30 pistachios for a quick, satisfying snack when I need one.
(4) Remember that your coworkers don't care what you do and don't eat. It FEELS like they do, and they might even comment on you skipping the cake, but really they don't care.

I feel like I need to print this out and keep it on me at all times! I am definitely a social eater and can NEVER turn down free food

harleygroomer

I walked during my lunch break and if you have stairs all the more better. I kept ankle weights at my desk and did leg lifts and then would take one off and every time the phone rang I would do arm lifts. I would use the rest room on a floor up and everyone I worked with was very supportive of this and most of them ended up getting the same weights I had and we all walked at lunch and breaks---and YES--our boss was very supportive of everything we did. You can find ways to sneak in extra time. Good luck

askeates

The best advice I can offer, plan ahead.... You know the deal, eat better, move more and keep hydrated. If you are having difficulties, take a day over the weekend to plan meals for the week. Use MFP to calculate the calories each day would be, and then follow the plan. At work, get up and walk a lap.... even if it's just a quick 5 minute lap of the parking lot, it is moving! And always keep a bottle of water handy

You know this takes work, and you have done it before so you can do it again! Best of luck :drinker:

lauren3101

I have a desk job, and these are some things that I do:

I walk part of my commute. Can you do that? Get off the bus or the train earlier?

I am very prepared when it comes to lunches. I either eat leftover dinners, or I will make it the night before. Usually something high in protein, as it fills me up.

I will eat my lunch, then go for a walk. Not only is it nice to get outside for a bit when you have a desk job, it also refreshes me after lunch - I am one of those that can get drowsy after eating a meal!

I always have healthy snacks in my drawers - usually fruit, sometimes nuts. Our kitchen at work has a fridge, and I always keep a yogurt in there too.

I fit most of my exercise in in the morning, as it's when I'm most energetic. When I get in, all I want to do is collapse on the sofa and watch TV. Make your exercise routine work for you.

ndj1979

I run a business and work full time..I do what I have always done ..eat less than I consume and work out.

You need to find a time slot that you can go to the gym. some people go early in AM, others go on lunch break, others, myself included, work out after work. I come home, put in my gym clothes, and go straight to the gym, no exceptions....

ItsCasey

If it worked for you in the past, why do you want to rethink it? Do what you KNOW will work. Nobody has as much time as they'd like. Prioritize.

jonnythan

There are 168 hours in a week. If you work 60 of them and sleep 56 of them, that leaves 52 hours. Take 3 of those for exercise per week.

And... control your calorie intake.

A lot of people here are a lot busier than you. I'm not sure how working 50-60 hour weeks can make you fat. Eating too much is what makes you gain weight. So eat less.

Fkika3131

I also work about 50 hrs. a week. I have learned to walk 30 min during my lunch break and then I eat at my desk. I don't eat at the kitchen at work cuz my co-workers aren't eating healthy foods; they make sure to tell me how delish their food were . After work I tried to get a bike ride for another 15 - 30 min. Weekends I tend to do alittle more exercises. You have a great day and we are ALL here to motivate each other.

RenewedRunner

My day
6AM- Wake up Kid #1, feed, get out of house at 6:45
6:30-Wake up Kid #2, feed, get out of house at 7:15
7:30-Get ready for work (20 min commute)
8:30 Be at work
4:30-Get off work
5:00-Get home
5-7-Cook dinner, supervise homework, clean the house-laundry, dishes, take care of dogs, etc
Alternate days: 530-730: kids have practice so gone for that meaning I get home at 8 and we rush through whatever homework is left and get them fed

7-Clean up dinner, pack lunches for tomorrow
8-Get kids in showers and off to bed (they are 11 and 10 but this still requires nagging)
8:30-Finally have free time (unless it is alternate days which means we are still getting homework done and haven't gotten to a shower yet most days). I work out, take a shower, collapse in exhaustion. Rinse and repeat.

So that right there is a 14.5 hour day. That doesn't include any days where I need to go buy groceries or run errands, do something after work like meetings (in one yesterday until 8pm), or game days which are even later than practice days. And up until last year, I had schoolwork on top of that.

EVERYONE is busy. I challenge you to find more than a handful of people who are able to do whatever they want with their time. You need to sit down and do a time chart. I do that for my students. We can't get any more time as there are only 24 hours in a day, but we can MANAGE our time better. Less facebook, more push ups.

Say no to the food, No one makes you eat work food. I keep packs of Better Oats oatmeal in my desk. Cheap, easy, quick, healthy, filling.

Drink water. Lots of it. Take a bottle and fill it up at least 4 times a day. Minimum. Hunger and thirst are often confused.

Find small workouts. Lots of people like 30 Day SHred as it is only 25 minutes. I bet you can find 25 minutes (I ran last night between my work and my after work meeting. It meant taking a baby wipe bath but I did it)

Plan your meals out. Take a lunch pail with ice packs. Yogurt and Kashi keep me very full.

Excuses or success. You can have one or the other, not both.

Lyerin

I work in a professional job, definitely more than 40 hours a week. I also have two young children, and my daughter is involved in a lot of activities (my son is too little still).

I get up early in the AM and exercise. That way, even if I do nothing else for the rest of the day, my workout is done. On Mondays and Wednesdays, I run in the early AM. On Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, I do a boot camp class in the early AM. I run on Saturdays after boot camp. I also squeeze in 2-3 Zumba classes per week, which I do after work. I view Zumba as "extra" so if I have to miss it, it's not a huge deal.

I have breakfast at my desk everyday and keep food at work so I always have something healthy on hand. I also keep healthy snacks in my desk - almonds, quest bars, etc. for times when I really need a snack. I used to bring my lunch everyday, and I need to get back to that because it saved $$ and was better for my weight management.

I don't eat candy out of candy jars, I don't eat cake served for anyone's birthday, and I eat nothing left in the kitchen at work. Especially with regard to the leftovers left out in the kitchen, I remind myself that I am not a garbage can. It is not my responsibility to eat stuff that others don't want. I attend all of the events, but I either bring my own snack or just spend my time chatting with coworkers instead of eating. A piece of cake isn't worth the time it would take to burn those calories.

I have a FitBit Flex and I use it to try to up my steps during the day - taking the stairs, walking down the hall instead of sending an email, etc. I think it has had a positive impact. I don't eat back those calories, but I sort of count them as "extra".

Other than that, I track everything with MFP and log in all of my food.

cookiealbright

If you sit at a desk all day (like I do) you can't eat as much as a guy working in a mill (like my husband). Sometimes I go for a walk at lunch time. I work out 2 or 3 times a week plus use my treadmill at home early in the morning before my shower twice a week. It's time consuming, but so is sitting around doing nothing eating chips (which is what I used to do). You have choices to make every day.:flowerforyou:

MelRC117

Getting a new desk job a few years ago stalled my weight loss. I stopped working out after work and I snacked more. I worked about the same amount each day (11 hours) but my previous job I was active and out and about all day. Sitting around made me more tired than being active.

What are you eating during the day? Are you drinking water or soda and coffee with creamer? If you really do log every thing you eat into MFP, I think you will see what changed. Eating healthy doesn't take that much more time than not. Plan out your meals so when you get home you already know what you're making more dinner. I hated coming home and realizing I never took anything out of the freezer and then just saying screw it and run to McDonald's.

lavaughan69

Walk half of your lunch break. 15 minutes if it's a half hour, 30 minutes if it's an hour. Depending on your bodyweight, you can burn an additional thousand calories a week.

This.

I eat at my desk and then I do a brisk walk for a 1/2 hour. If you can't fit in much exercise then you're going to have really watch what you eat and be consistent with your logging. I know that I don't get enough activity so I keep my calories to 1,200-1,400. Some days even less if I know I need to save room for special occasions.

But I suspect if you've already lost weight that you know this already and what you're really looking for is motivation. Working long hours is just one of the excuses we like to give ourselves when we just can't get motivated. I don't mean to criticize, it's just something I know from experience. When life gets more difficult we seem to like to use it as an excuse for why we can't eat properly...like it would just add to the stress of life. In reality, being unfit, eating poorly just makes us feel tired, sluggish and depressed, and that's far more stressful in the long run!

alpine1994

I lost 35lbs while working 60 hrs a week and not being allowed to take a lunch break, and traveling one week every 2 months (I have since gotten a much better job!!)

I brought lunch every day except Fridays, when a coworker and I would go to Panera and I'd get something there around 400 calories. I very rarely strayed from my daily calorie allotment during the week, but I would allow myself to go over on the weekend if I really wanted to. The 10 minutes it took at night to prepare/pack up my breakfast, lunch, and snacks for the next day was honestly the best way I could've spent that time. It was vital to my weight loss success. As far as dinner, you need a grill! We grill lean meat and grill, steam, or roast veggies pretty much every night.

As far as exercise, I got into the habit of working out right when I got home. Put down bag, change, let Jillian Michaels kick my butt or hit the pavement outside. Sometimes I went to the gym but I found I had a much better routine going if I stuck to my home workouts. I bought myself a range of weights and DVDs, a heart rate monitor, a running app on my phone, a good pair of sneakers, and lots of work out clothes from TJ Maxx. My current office has a gym downstairs that we can use for free (I am so greatful!) and I go down there right after work. I actually get a lunch break now but I prefer to socialize with coworkers and work out later. A bonus is that I miss the traffic and have the rest of my night to relax and hang out with the bf.

The hardest part is starting. Making changes isn't easy, especially ones that will last, but I took baby steps. I didn't jump into working out 5-6 days a week and eating healthy every day overnight. I changed small things, and I remember that I started with breakfast, then lunch, then dinner, then snacks, etc. Start today but changing one little thing. Do it for a few days, then add something else. You can do this!

Rogsman

In my backpack (laptop style) I bring a wide variety of calculated snacks on top of what I normally eat that day. So if I get stuck at work I have enough "healthy" calories to survive for some extra hours. They never get stale cause I'll often hear a coworker complain of hunger and toss an extra snack at them.

So in my bag:
Breakfast
Snack
Lunch
Snack
Extra Snack
Extra Snack

A 1/4 cup of almonds/walnuts with some dried raisins works great.

BlueBombers

I work full-time as well, have two young sons who have activities most week nights. I get up nice and early at 4:45-4:50 in the morning and workout then. I also make my breakfast, lunch and snacks the night before so I have good healthy choices prepared and it prevents me from going out at lunch or buying something from the vending machines. I find preparing meals ahead helps a lot with a busy schedule.

meganrpelican

put your gym clothes in the car. change into them as you are leaving work, then you have no excuses. that's the only way I get it done while working full time and having an internship.