Finding time to exercise...

santje00

I know it sounds like an incredible cliche, but after work I'm usually so tired I either fall straight asleep or I have to do some washing and cleaning around the house. Seems like I'm always running out of time to exercise or just am too tired to do it. And I suffer from CFS so that doesn't help one bit. I get tired so fast after work and when I do exercise I make my fatigue so much worse. I tend to stick with yoga on my day of, since that's the only thing my body can handle at that point.

Any tips of how I can exercise more efficiently?

tricksee

By making time, not trying to find it.

sifjada

I also have the issue of being too tired after work to do anything, although for me if I'm going to be honest with myself... it's probably 70% laziness :P That's also why I don't seem to be able to force myself out of bed early. BUT we gotta kick ourselves hard into gear to get any progress.
Have you tried doing it before you go to work? Even 30 minutes would be good.

theycallmebubba

I have had the same issue. I recently changed to try and workout before I go in to work even though it means I get up way early. So far so good.

ShortNBratty82

Do you wear a pedometer? I have worn one for two weeks and I find myself trying to reach a certain amount of steps before I go to bed. Even cleaning the house helps burn calories. If you have stairs at work, you could try to take them instead of the elevator. You could park a little further out when going to the grocery store to help get in those extra steps.

MoRiv1986

I would recommend trying to work out before you go to work. Do some exercise videos at home. I had to start doing some morning workouts because I agree, after work, I'm tired. You get good energy during the day with morning workouts.

JessicaJoanJarvis

Hey, if you're too tired, you should make yourself do 10 mins of some simple exercise, it might not be much but every little helps.

If I'm in the office all day I'll try to do some squats at my computer, or whilst I'm making a drink.

Green tea is really good for perking you up, I try to have one every morning when I wake up - didn't have one this morning so now I feel sluggish!

There's also the option of - if you know you're not going to be able to exercise that day, just stick to salads, proteins and good carbs, then you won't feel so bad!

Jess xxx

RunEatLift

Incorporate it as part of your day - walk to or home from work, walk on your lunch break, get off the bus a few stops early, do some vigorous housework - hoovering, scrubbing floors & windows - even washing dishes is better than putting them in a dishwasher. Do HIIT exercises - they take up much less time but are much more effective.

timberowl

Ooof. I had CFS back in High School and I feel your pain. (I still "have" it, but haven't had a bad flare up in a decade). Here is what I do (and I work nights so you have no excuse): work out immediately after waking up. If you have to make yourself go to bed early to wake up that early, so be it. Go to bed as soon as you get home from work if you have to. The wake up go to the gym (or run outside) and then shower and go to work.

JustMQ

By making time, not trying to find it.

THIS!!

mazdauk

Don't try to find time for an hour or more after wok, incorporate it into small bits. I do 20 mins before breakfast (DVD), walk to and from work (15 mins each way) and go for a walk at lunchtime(20-30 mins) then do another workout as soon as I get in (exercise DVD ir Wii Zumba) - originally this was 20 mins or 1/2 hour, but now its more often 45 mins. So I'm doing more than 1 1/2 hours a day without having to set aside a specific lump of time.

If you feel the gym/organised class is the only way for you, try to find one you can do on the way home from work - either near work or home. I do one Zumba class a week, which is fairly early evening. I couldn't do a class which started at 8pm or later as I've wound down by then.

shivles

Get up an hour earlier and workout then, you have to make the time not find it.

I find exercise in the morning really helps get me pumped for the day.

Cal28

I feel your pain! I got a promotion at work which meant longer hours plus I'm working another job and was doing my Masters, life is busy! (Better than being bored though )

I've had to do what others have said and make time for it. I bought a treadmill & now fit in a 30 Day Shred DVD or C25k in before work (meaning getting up 1/2 hour earlier at 5am). It depends how much you want it...

Best of luck!

Xiaolongbao

I'm also often so tired after work that I'm tempted to make excuses. So, as others have said, I get up early (and we're talking EARLY 4:30 am) to exercise before work.

mumof5

WE all have the same 24hrs in our day. i don't find time to exercise - i make it.

glovepuppet

i do squats while i wait for the microwave to ping.
counter top push-ups while the kettle boils.
go up & down the stairs twice when i go upstairs.
bicep curls with my shopping bags.

all day. every day. it all helps.

Zomoniac

By making time, not trying to find it.

This. I can't work out tonight, I'm going out. So I got up at 5.30 this morning to do it. Despite not getting home till half midnight last night. Yes, I'm exhausted. I'll make up the sleep at the weekend. I got it done though.

traceytwink

If you want to do something you will make time to do it ????

dovetail22uk

Lunchtime? If you get a lunchbreak then you could use half of it to go for a brisk walk.... Get your arms swinging to get your heart rate up... Walking is underated as a form of exercise.

ETA: It has been found that more people recover if they are helped to try to do more than they think they can – rather than adapting to a life of limited activity (some study in the Lancet a few years ago) and that you need a combination of graded exercise therapy and CBT (cognative behaviour therapy).

I suffered from CFS for years and I'm still clawing my way out. I've found that if I do a little bit of exercise then I feel a little bit better, and that if I keep doing that then it makes me feel more positive etc etc. Definitely talk to your doctor about getting some CBT and start with a little bit of exercise, often. When you feel supported and that someone understands (as lots of people seem to think that CFS is all in the mind!) then it makes it easier to free yourself from it.

Oh, and I'm doing 30DS first thing in the morning whilst my 4 year old tries to destroy my IPad as a distraction.

Nothing that is worthwhile is easy.

pinkraynedropjacki

Instead of being on the computer asking what you could be doing..... you could be just going for a nice walk around the block a few times. You could be walking on the spot for an hour. You could be doing anything with some light weights in your hands.

Rater than ask what to do or how to find time...... just do it. You think I'm sitting here typing? Nope I'm standing up walking on the spot with ankle weights on. Then I'll stop and do a few hundred calf raises, or some squats while watching a Youtube gaming video.

Even when doing the dishes I'm not just standing there..... it's an awesome time to dance to some music or even do some more steps from side to side to get those abductors working.

amy1612

I know it sounds like an incredible cliche, but after work I'm usually so tired I either fall straight asleep or I have to do some washing and cleaning around the house. Seems like I'm always running out of time to exercise or just am too tired to do it. And I suffer from CFS so that doesn't help one bit. I get tired so fast after work and when I do exercise I make my fatigue so much worse. I tend to stick with yoga on my day of, since that's the only thing my body can handle at that point.

Any tips of how I can exercise more efficiently?

This may be a bit of a weird suggestion....but have you tried eating more? Eat more to give you more energy to support working out, it may help. If you eat more during the day your body will have more energy to burn and you'll be more able to workout when you get home

Edited to add that I do 9 minute HIIT workouts called Hurricanes (http://www.trainingforwarriors.com/what-is-a-hurricane/)...you can do it at home bodyweight only if necessary, try 20 secs sprint on the spot, 10 pushups and 10 air squats, repeat 3 times. Then do 20 sec sprint with 10 star jumps and 10 mountain climbers, repeat 3 times. Then 20 sec sprints, 10 burpees, 10 high knees on each leg x3. DONE.

Siannah

Can you exercise before work, or during your lunchbreak? Or maybe straight when you're back from work, before you do anything else?
I think you should treat exercise as a chore, just like you have to do your laundry, you have to do exercise. It doesn't have to be 2 hour sessions either, a 30 minute HIIT is just fine.

lisali2011

By making time, not trying to find it.

Truth! I'm a working mum with 3 young kids and I make the time. We're all living busy lives, but we need to prioritise, and health is high on that list.

If you're really struggling I'd def build in some walking on your daily commute to/from work. That's how I started

Good luck!

tcunbeliever

3 sessions of 10 min. is as effective for cardiovascular health as one 30 min. session...so if you are too tired after work to fit in a full workout routine, then work out 10 min. before work, 10 min. on a lunch break, and 10 min. after work...you will start to have more energy as your body adapts, but even 10 min. once a day is a good start.

MissTati85

As a teacher, I have no time either - so I had to make time. I've put off teacher related things so that I can have time to exercise. My house is a mess right now because I haven't had time to clean it up since I'm choosing to exercise instead. Cleaning can be exercising too- you're moving around, going up and down stairs maybe, using energy to get your house back into order. I try to do as much standing as I can while cleaning, so that will help as well.

Something I've started doing is that I like to watch a couple of shows when I get home from work. On go my exercising clothes, I attach my Kindle fire to my elliptical (I put it right over the screen so I can't tell how much longer I have ), I turn Netflix on, and I watch my shows. No more laying on the couch, eating, and watching the shows- now I'm doing something much better for my body.

Perhaps there's some type of activity you're doing that you can switch it over into exercise time. Yesterday I did 15 minutes on the elliptical before cooking dinner, took care of dinner, sat for a bit, and then got back on for another 30 minutes while I waited for my husband to come home, eat his dinner, so we could go run errands together.

KANGOOJUMPS

i start at 4am,, there is no excuse, it is done and out of the way.

zumbarock

I incorporate as much exercise into my workday as possible! I work on the 13th floor, therefor I take the stairs. EVERY time I have to go up or down it is 260 stairs.....yes I count them everytime and it's 260 stairs! I run them, I lunge them, I dance up them....make it fun right!? Drink alot of water at work? Squats-20 of them everytime before peeing, hey, little things add up! And yes, setting a date with yourself to work out, has to be done! Make your workouts competitive, do more everyday then you have done the week before! I am competitive, and have to beat myself. And try something new everyday, one new thing. Walk or run on lunch breaks!

If in your mind you say you don't have time, well then.....you won't. Good luck!

tricksee

I walk to work every single morning. It takes me an hour which means I'm up an hour earlier than I need to be if I were to jump the bus. I could also drive if I wanted to, but I don't.

I get a lunch hour, 45mins of which I spend in my own little gym that I knocked up from my friends unused exercise equipment. I could sit at my desk or chit-chat in the kitchen if I wanted, but I don't

At home I do workouts while the missus feeds our 4 month old daughter. Press-ups, chin ups, sit ups, planks, dips etc... I could watch TV if I wanted, but I don't

Of a Saturday, I'm up and off the gym at 8/9am with a buddy of mine. I could easily sleep in if I wanted, but I don't.

2stepscloser

By making time, not trying to find it.

When I started this journey 12 weeks ago. I heard the following which was motivational : "if you were diagnosed with cancer, would you find an hour a day for treatment? Why won't you do it for exercise?" That spoke volumes to me!

I often feel guilty for exercising in the evenings. I work full time and feel like it takes away from my family, but I do it anyway because I need it for myself.

Frozen300

I feel your pain. For the next 6 months I'm working nights and it's totally messed with my workout schedule. Sleep all day, family comes home, my day turns into their day, by the time I'm done with them my gym is closed (small town gyms suck). The gym is open after my night shift but I have zero energy for it.

Valerie_Malone

Getting up at 4 a.m. is for the birds, but it is the only way I will get my exercise in. I've been getting up at 4 a.m. for the past three weeks to workout for an hour and a half for 5 days a week. I found that If I don't exercise in the morning, I usually find an excuse not to exercise later in the day.