To the mums out there - how do you manage

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  • r1ghtpath
    r1ghtpath Posts: 701 Member
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    i am a single parent to 5 small children. my oldest is 10. 3 are in school two are too young.

    i find that working out at home is the easiest way for me to work out. i am able to get to the gym ( which for us is about 40 min away, but has childcare i don't have to pay extra for, plus an indoor and an outdoor pool, so we can swim as a family) but, only about 1 or 2 ( if I'm lucky) days per week. this summer we will practically live there with the outdoor pool, but right now there is NO WAY i could get to the gym 5 days per week.

    yes, it might only be an hour of my day spent working out, but it's also 80 min of driving. and it has to be after school hours, so then there is working in dinner and homework and getting the kids to bed before 8p. they have to leave for school at 730a.

    fitting an hour into your day working out at home though, TOTALLY do able!!!! i usually do it after everyone is in bed :-) i did 90 days of p90x and turbo fire this way. the p90x work outs are an hour long, each. currently, i am doing body for life weight routines and they are about 40 min. the cardio is around 20 and i do that at the gym ( not 3 days per week though).

    sometimes something needs to give. i am only kid free every other weekend for the most part. so, my really good deep cleaning takes place 2 saturdays per month. would i like to do it more, yes, but i just can't with 5 kids around. time wise and schedule wise, etc. i get my kids to help with chores, which helps me free up some time. my 3 yr old loves marshmallows so i can bribe him to clean up his room by offering him a marshmallow :-)

    i have been contemplating getting a new washer and dryer ( to save money on water as the main reason) but they have a new style out that washes and dries using steam!!!! that would replace the need to iron MOST things! i also use the dry cleaners for things that might need pressing to look really good. otherwise, we just wear cotton that does NOT need to be ironed ;-) i own an iron, but no board ( learned that last weekend, LOL!!!!)
  • belgerian
    belgerian Posts: 1,059 Member
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    Im not a mother but I am a father to two kids 9 and 8 my wife is a RN who works 12 hour shifts my schedule is more stable which means I take on that role at home. I am able to get my work out at work, I go for a run during my lunch hour. I work maintenance at a rather large facility so I walk alot instead or using the electric carts. I can get in some pull ups sit ups some basic body stuff here and there. Also been considering starting a DVD program at home but Im not sure I can even commit to 1 hour a day 5 or 6 days a week. I could if I got up at 5 am and worked out from 530 to 630 thats when I get the kids up and off to school. All I can say is do what you can and no you probably cannot make it to the gym 5 days a week but there are other things you can do. I was doing some things at home for a while and my son was joining in with me.

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