I dont have time to exercise!

Drea_ann

Of course you can. You just need to be super strict with your diet.

2-3 times a week (or whatever you can manage to do) is best, but you can lose weight without exercise. You'll just be skinny fat like me (I lost most of my weight that way). Skinny fat is a bad word on here - but I'm happy with what I've accomplished!

Oh gosh!

You are throwing away HUGE AMOUNTS OF MUSCLE!
Exercise is key. 1 hour of exercise is 4% of your day.

Only 4%!
That is getting up a half hour earlier and running, and taking your lunch hour to the gym.

It comes down to prioitizing how you spend your time.

gingerjen7

I have 3 kids, a job, and a new baby. I joined a gym but It has been proving near impossible to get there more than once or twice a week. Can i still lose weight even if i cant workout?

Yes, if you are careful about your diet, you can still lose weight.

However, I'm a single mother (with 0% support from his father or my family) and my son is developmentally disabled. Even though I work 40+ hours a week and I am busy taking my son to occupational therapy, behavioral therapy, swimming lessons & horseback riding programs for children with disabilities and cancer, I still find a half hour to work out at night. At about 8:00 I make my son go upstairs to his room to watch a movie while I do Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. I wouldn't have thought 8:00 would be a good time to do it, but since it seems to be the only time I can do it consistently, that makes it the best time to do it. I used to say I didn't have time to do it, too, but that was because I didn't MAKE time to do it. Not saying you have to, but you can if you really want to, but you have to actually want to do it.

Just have to say that I really admire people like you.

Thank you! :blushing:

Maymichelle

I have 3 kids, a job, and a new baby. I joined a gym but It has been proving near impossible to get there more than once or twice a week. Can i still lose weight even if i cant workout?

I think it really depends on the person and their body type/structure/health history. I have always been the type of person/had the type of body that required both exercise & healthy eating in order for me to lose weight. Are you able to do home workout videos? I have never had a gym membership & rely only on home videos because I know I don't have the time to get to the gym, but have the time to exercise...just at home. When I first started this journey I did videos by Lindsay Brin who created Mom's Into Fitness. She has some great post natal workout videos. Good luck finding what works best for you.

JessicaBR0

I agree with others, you can. However working out has so many benefits not just losing weight.

WendyTerry420

Do your workouts at home to save commute time. Use a DVD or Youtube or something or just jog in place and do some calesthenics. You can do any of these things while baby is sleeping or in a baby swing or bouncy seat.

Spartan_Maker

Yes, you can easily achieve your goals without a gym membership.

All you need to do to lose body fat is maintain a reasonable calorie deficit. The operative word is "reasonable" because if you try to be too aggressive, your metabolism will eventually slow.

Exercise of any type will help to keep you in a calorie deficit. Most important, resistance training will help you to retain muscle while you lose fat. There are plenty of body weight exercises that you can do throughout your day, and you can do them randomly. Body weight squats are a perfect example. While the kids are occupied, do 20 body weight squats. Three other great exercises are push-ups, pull-ups, and lunges. You can also do tricep dips on the back of your couch. Find an object around the house that poses a challenge to deadlift.

Just think of the seven primal movements, and find ways to make your body perform those movements: (1) bend; (2) push; (3) pull; (4) lunge; (5) squat; (6) gait (i.e., walking and running); and (7) twist.

LoriBeMe

You can still lose weight, I've done it. I'm unable to even walk even short distances due to chronic spine issues. Used to love being able to exercise. I really envy those who can :sad:

laurainparis

I work (with a commute) and am a single mom to 2 kids, so I understand where you're coming from. At the very least, get a pedometer and aim for 10,000 steps a day. You'll be surprised how much you will be motivated to reach 10,000 steps and will find ways to sneak in a few extra steps here and there to reach your goal. I have the FitBit Ultra pedometer and really like it. My whole office gets a kick out checking my pedometer to see where I'm at.
I've also starting eating at my desk and using my 30 minutes of lunch break to walk fast and take stairs. I go up and down our three-story building as many times as I can during the day. Lately I've been using my 30 minute lunch to walk to the public library, walk up to the fourth floor, down to the basement, up to the main floor, and back to work. Just be creative and sneak in the exercise when you can!

marywilsoncline

Yes you can.

You also don't need to go to the gym to exercise. Not sure how young your two oldest are but you can go for a walk, or even walk around the house. You can get exercise DVDs and so on as well.

But no you don't have to exercise to lose weight.

This woman knows a thing or two and its true, you don't have to join a gym to exercise. I know

knowwhentoshutup

I don't have time, but I make it.

You don't have to go to the gym to work out. Check out videos from your local library, movie rental place (our Family Video has free fitness rentals) or use YouTube, if you don't have tapes or dvd's to follow at home.

I work two jobs, volunteer with many organizations, have two young boys, and am constantly on the go.

You can do it!

vim_n_vigor

It is very hard with kids that young. Most people I would say wake up early, but you are probably not yet getting full night's sleep on most nights. At this point, I'd do whatever kind of exercise you can do with the kids, get down on the ground and play with them, use them as weights (they think it is fun), dance. Most important right now though is making sure you are getting good nutrition and plenty of sleep.

Heaven71

I have 3 kids, a job, and a new baby. I joined a gym but It has been proving near impossible to get there more than once or twice a week. Can i still lose weight even if i cant workout?

Couch to 5k with a stroller! Workout at home with the kids!

snykim2005

Thank you everyone for the great advice! I definitly do get plenty of exercise i suppose, just from being a busy mother . I rarely ever get to sit down when im home . My kids and I play the just dance game on the wii almost every night for a half hour, and we do take walks . I guess i was just wondering if I could lose the weight successfully without lifting wieghts and all the things i could be doing at the gym. I want to get dvd's , im sure i could make time for that . Anyone have any suggestions for dvd's ? I very overweight right now and ive noticed some of those dvd's are really very hard for heavy people. anyway.. THANK YOU FOR ALL THE SUGGESTIONS! Im going to look into dvd's and get creative with my kids!

jr1985

Yeah, weight loss is really like 80% diet anyways... but you might want to add quick exercises in too... like doing jumping jacks, push ups etc during commercials if you are watching TV with the family... It is better than nothing.