Stay at Home Moms (and Dads)...what do you do?

tpayne0453

Alright folks....I'm new to the "stay at home" scene and am having huge issues finding a routine and motivation. What do your typical days look like? I have no babies at home so i could get out of the house during the day. Since my husband works nights, any workout involve jumping, running, stomping, or loudness is out of the question.

***I'm always looking for friends, so feel free to add me (tpayne0453)

Ninkyou

During the summer when my daughter was off from preschool, I went walking at dawn. I'd walk 3.5 miles every morning, for about and hour and half and then go home before hubby had to leave for work. This way daughter was taken care of if I was gone.

Now that school has started, my daughter is in Pre-K 3x a week for 3 hours. Luckily for me, she goes to the YMCA for school, plus there's a nice nature/hiking/jogging/biking trail a mile from the Y. I walk to the trail and go hiking for an hour and a half and then go back. It's alot of hard work, but I feel great (and tired!) afterwards.

On her off days, Tues/Thurs I've started doing kettlebell workouts (about 30 mins).

Saturday I go to a different hiking trail for about 2 hours since hubby is home, and on Sunday it's 3.5 mile walk at my local park or rest day, depending on how I feel/what I'm doing.

aljeca

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JulesAlloggio

Ive been a stay at home mom for over 2 years now.

I don't use a gym. Although I have gym equipment. I work out while my daughter is watching cartoons and the older daughter is at school. YOU can ALWAYS make time! There is no excuse

As far as your hubby sleeping .... buy him some ear plugs. You need to think about your health.. Hes a big boy, he can take care of himself.

I'll add you if you want some advice... I enjoy knowing that I can keep an eye on my kids while working out. And they see mommy working out too... in their eyes, I'm "SUPER MOM"

amaysngrace

I workout Mon, Wed, and Fri. My son is autistic and goes to a private school out of the district, he also goes to summer school, so school is almost year round with the exception of a week and a half break and the holiday breaks. Therefore, I have almost 7 hours to myself and I have a gym membership that I have had for 2 years now, and I am in school fulltime online. So, I go to the gym around 11:00am on Mon, Wed, and Fri, and I either do my homework before I go to the gym or on my off days from the gym. I usually do 100 air squats from home, then I will do 30 minutes worth of heavy arm and leg weights on the machines in the gym, then I will do 35 minutes on the treadmill on an incline of 8 at 3.5 mph, and then I do 5 sets of 10 on an ab machine with 30 pound weights. If my son is off on a Monday, I might go to the gym on Tues, Wed, and Fri. Or only go twice that week.

action_figure

Well, I homeschool my two kids, so I'm home (or in the van going somewhere with them) all the time. My days look like this: We all wake up through the week at six. The kids start their chores, and my husband gets ready to go to work. On Monday - Wednesday - Friday I get the kids breakfast and take care of the dog, cat, chickens and goat while they eat. My husband leaves for work. I get the kids started on schoolwork by 8 am and I start my kettlebell / body weight fitness strength training. That takes 90 minutes. Usually they are done with school by then. On Wednesday and Friday a friend does my workout with me. On Tuesday and Thursday I go for a 5 mile bike ride at 6:15 and get home before my husband leaves for work at 6:50. We do lunch around noon, and then group stuff (playdates, projects, homeschool field trips, etc.) in the afternoons. My husband gets home from work by 5 pm. On Monday - Wednesday and Friday I go kayaking. On Tuesday, Thursday I go trail running / hiking. The kids are in bed at 7 for the little one, and 8 for the big one. My husband and I watch some Star Trek and we're in bed by 10. On Saturdays I sleep in till 7. I give the kids a fast breakfast (fridge oatmeal or something like that) and I go for a longer bike ride, 10 - 20 miles. Saturdays are spent doing shopping, lawn work, projects like moving our mobile chicken pens, etc. Saturday evening I do either another trail run / hike or a ropes course. Sundays are a rest day. (Edited to correct bedtimes.)

sarahertzberger

I've got 3 kids at home all day (and one on the way), and routine is hardest for me, finally I just had to make it click that as long as I had a timeframe I wanted things to get done in it was ok if we weren't right on schedule and as far as working out I used to do videos, but since some of those do involve jumping jacks and such and you can get outside, go to the park and start walking or running around the track, do body weight exercises out side too, it may be weird to do it out in public at first but, you won't regret doing it, and if you can get a gym membership, we were finally able to get one and since you don't have kids during the day, you won't have to worry about the childcare (which most gyms offer for a small monthly fee a month ours is only $10 a month) but go to they gym while they aren't with you. Or, maybe you could wait until your hubby goes to work and get the kids involved in the workouts with you when you can be a bit more noisy.
As far as how my typical day goes, I wake up at about 6:50 and get myself ready before anyone else and get breakfast going then have a little time to myself, then the kids get up at about 8 we eat breakfast and start on the chores and usually finish with those pretty quickly then we do school (we homeschool) have lunch and do some more cleaning and have outside play time for a good bit of the day and after my hubby gets off work at about 4:30-5 we go to the gym for about 1 1/2 hrs. to 2 hrs. come home have dinner and spend some time together and then after that bed time. I have a hard time with motivation too, but mostly just for housework, but I used to be that way with working out but I just had to realize that this was my "job" now and I want to do it for my family and for myself and if I didn't get up and do it it was only going to be harder for me later and I would feel even worse about putting things off, you will get it I promise!

iechick

SAHM and my youngest is in kindergarten this year. My exercise routine is simple-I walk 2-3 miles after I drop the kids off to school, and then 2-3 times a week I add in a bit of running (around 4 miles a week).

As for schedule-
-wake up 6:45am and get myself dressed/check email etc
-kids (3) up at 7:30am (husband gets up somewhere in here too usually, unless he has to be on a job site earlier).
clothes are laid out the night before so kids can dress themselves while I make breakfast for them (cereal 3 times a week and then things like pancakes/waffles the other days).
While they're eating I pack their lunches and then it's shoes, hair/teeth brushing and out the door at 8:20. I drop them off (3 minutes away by car nice!) and then I come home and go on my walk right away. This is my morning schedule every week day. What happens afterwards depends on the day-

Monday-my big baking day and I bake for several other families (paid gig). I usually make 6-7 recipes and this takes up several hours. I wrap up in time to change/shower and then pick up kids from school. Then at night there's piano lessons and hockey games (husband is on an inline team)

Tuesday-house cleaning/laundry day. Tuesday nights are open.

Wednesday-women's bible study (2 hours). Wednesday nights is spent at our church (I lead a class in the children's program)

Thursdays-errands day (groceries, library etc). Thursday nights are open. I also clean our church nursery every other week.

Fridays-project day. I have a large list of things that need to get done and I chose one from the list to work on. This week I'll be decluttering/organizing our three season porch. Friday nights we either go out on our boat or rent movies etc.

I also volunteer at my kids school a few times a month-next week I'm helping on a field trip that's from 9am-2pm.

Everyone told me that when all my kids went off to school I'd have so much free time-haven't found it yet though lol. We'll also be adding Odyssey of the Mind, Girls on the Run and hockey for my son this fall/winter.

SweetLilyR

My kids typically enjoy bouncing around me while I do a workout video - I'm currently doing Jillian Michaels' 30 Day shred. My 5 y/o daughter will do it along with me, and then when I'm a sweaty mess gasping for air on the floor at the end, she'll hop right up and say, "Let's do that again, Mommy!!" I'll also bike between 30-60 minutes on my indoor bike - that's the kids' allowed TV time. I try to fit that in between conference calls, emails, and all the other minutia of running 4 home-based businesses, as well as homeschooling my kids.

When the weather is nice, I'll have the kids outside playing and exploring while I work from my laptop on the porch. I know I could fit in a workout during those times, but I'm rather slack in that area. If you're afraid of waking up your husband, head outside... otherwise, buy him some earplugs. Your health matters just as much as his sleep. If you simply can't bring yourself to work out while he sleeps, then wait until he leaves and incorporate your workouts in with the kids. They LOVE jumping around - heck, my daughter even chooses my biking routes that are programmed on my bike. Good luck!

Crohns2013

I have 2 kids in school and one at home. If I decide to of to the gym I just put my son in the gym daycare, or put him in the stroller and go for a walk.

I_Will_End_You

Staying at home, with no babies? What's the issue here? You can do whatever you want!

Francl27

I just do whatever I want during the day, lol. Vacations suck though, I had to get a gym membership for the babysitting.

fbmandy55

I have no babies at home so i could get out of the house during the day.

OK, so do whatever you want?

I have a kindergartner, work 40 hours a week, have 90% of the home responsibilities and my fiance works nights. I go to the gym on my lunch break a couple times a week and occasionally Saturday mornings.

shaydon80

I always recommend Ellen Barrett as a low-impact workout that packs a punch. She's awesome. www.ellenbarrett.com. Perfect for when the kids (or husband) are sleeping, apartment living or if you're just starting out and don't want brain rattling jumping jacks in your routine.

james6998

Alright folks....I'm new to the "stay at home" scene and am having huge issues finding a routine and motivation. What do your typical days look like? I have no babies at home so i could get out of the house during the day. Since my husband works nights, any workout involve jumping, running, stomping, or loudness is out of the question.

***I'm always looking for friends, so feel free to add me (tpayne0453)

I do contests online, its almost like a 2nd income for us when we actually win that is.

SonicDeathMonkey80

Wish I had this problem

healthy4life4mykids

Both my kids are in school starting this year...so far I have been continuing my degree on-line, I take care of our dog (he's like a kid) and for once I can get all the housework and errands done before everyone gets home at three! 7 hours alone a day seems like a lot, but it honestly flies by. Still, I am going to look for some part-time work.

Factory_Reset

FFS

You have NO BABIES at home!!!

You have endless possibilities

tzig00

Like others have said, what's the problem here? You stay at home...with no kids, and your husband sleeps. Go outside and go running? Go to the gym? Lift some weights at home? Meet some people and go on a bike ride? I would give anything for that kind of freedom...

Buckeyegirlbritt

Since I homeschool, my kids are always around, but I have free weights at home, I walk (run when I'm not pregnant), do aerobics (Leslie Sansone), and yoga. I even get the kids in on it.

emczech5

I have a 9 month old and an almost 3 year old and I struggle with a structured routine as well. But this is what I aim for. I wake up around 7. I eat breakfast. If it's warm enough I will pack the kids in a stroller and go for a run. If the weather doesn't cooperate I'll turn on a movie for the littles and then put a work out video on my laptop in the same room so I can keep an eye on the kiddles at the same time. I try to start my work outs by 9am. The 9 month old goes down for a morning nap around 10, so I can hop in the shower while she sleeps and the 3 year old finishes his movie. Then, the rest of my day isn't very structured, but I do tend to accomplish more I days that I do work out. I also have a weight set and the hubby and I try to get a work out in every once in a while after we put the kids to bed.