Moms...

During toddler naps or before she's up. Lately I've been needing to sleep in and find it easier to squeeze in a 20-30 minute video (my favorite is Blogilates on Youtube!) later during nappy time. :]

I also work full time (8-5) and have a 7 and 8 year old. I made tons of excuses before and had horrible mommy guilt if I worked out and "left them" with my husband before or after work. What finally motivated me was that my 8 year old joined a swim team and they practice at the university rec center. Since I work at the university, I could get a membership there. So, instead of sitting there watching my son swim, I hit the exercise equipment. Then I saw an ad for a morning boot camp and signed up for that (early morning and I could shower there and be at work on time). When the kids and dh are back in school, it's going to be harder to find time, but I've decided that I NEED to do this for me and it makes me a better mommy, so I'm really trying to loose the mommy guilt for times that I will work out that I could be spending with them.

For those who go to the gym during their lunch break, how do you do it. I've thought about doing this myself, but I don't see how I can get there, work out, shower, and get back in an hour.

I am jealous. I work 5 days a week, and Im gone 7am to 6pm. When I get home I only have 2 hours to spend with my baby before he goes to bed. I feel so guilty working out when he is awake. Then when he goes to bed I have other things to do or Im too tired. I know, I know. Im making excuses.

My schedule is the same as yours. Also, my husband travels for work so I am often on my own with my little ones in the evening and it's near impossible to work out with them wandering around unsupervised. I get up in the morning and workout. It's hard but once you get in the groove it isn't as bad as it is at first. My alarm goes off at 5:00 and I'm either out for a run (if my husband is home) or in the basement doing a video or on the treadmill by 5:15. I work out until 6:00 or 6:15 and then get ready for work. The trick is to go to bed early enough. I try to head up to bed by 9:30. If I'm later than 10:00 then that 5:00 alarm is a real bummer. I'm not going to lie... I'm not perfect and there are nights I stay up too late and mornings I don't get up but if I can do it at least 4 out of 5 mornings, I call that a success.

Feel free to friend me for extra support...

When my kids are napping :laugh:

I'm a stay at home mom with an 8, 5 and 18 m old. I exercise when the toddler naps. The older kids can entertain themselves long enough. They like to watch me do the Wii games (Exerbeat and Walk it Out)

I workout in the evenings, after my dinner has settled. Mine are teenagers now though.

My husband and I just joined CrossFit and they have included day care for our 10 month old.

If I want to do some body exercises at home then she's either napping or she's playing right by my side.

Sometimes we go running steps and we do it in intervals. One person stays down while the other is running then we take turns.

I'm doing the 30 day shred to get a full body workout in less than half an hour.

On days I work (10 hour days), I do it as soon as I get home while hubby starts dinner and watches the kids. On the days I'm home (I work 3 days a week), I do it as soon as I put my 5 month old down for her nap.

My 3 year old does it with me and says, "Go, mommy, go! Go faster!"

I am jealous. I work 5 days a week, and Im gone 7am to 6pm. When I get home I only have 2 hours to spend with my baby before he goes to bed. I feel so guilty working out when he is awake. Then when he goes to bed I have other things to do or Im too tired. I know, I know. Im making excuses.

Yeah, I've got a nice work schedule but I'd be making the time everyday after work if I had to. Trust me, I understand how you feel. When my older daughter was a baby, I didn't want to "waste" a minute of time with her either. But now I know that I don't have to feel guilty for taking a few minutes for me. Maybe it's because I have two kids and I had to come to peace with the fact that I can never give both of them all my attention all the time. Or maybe it's because I know my husband deserves his time with them as well. But part of it is that they deserve to be shown the example of a healthy lifestyle from an early age. I owe it to them to take care of myself. This way, healthy eating and exercising will be part of everyday life for them.

The "other things to do" is exactly why I do it as soon as I get home from work. That way, it's out of the way and I can't make excuses about running out of time later in the evening. As soon as the baby's in bed, I start my chores. Luckily my older daughter enjoys helping me, so this can be time spent together. Then once she goes to bed, I can spends a few minutes hanging out with my husband. Finding a good work-life balance is difficult, but it can be done. You just have to prioritize. And honestly, if I get my exercise and spend time with my family, I don't really care if my house is perpetually cluttered.

It's got to be a priority. I would rather leave a sink full of dishes or not put the laundry away than not work out.

I have been known to get up before everyone else in the morning, even if it's at 4am, to workout.

I'm a homeschooling mom of six who works weekend option (Fri-Sat nights.) For me, the best time is first thing in the morning before I get started with everything else. I work out at home--martial arts and dumbbells. I have a heavy bag hanging in my shed to practice punches and kicks, and I practice kata in the yard. If I don't get up early enough to work out alone, then we have P.E.--I keep the kids busy with pushups, planks, light dumbbells (1 or 3 lbs), or running laps in the fence. The oldest also practices kata. The 1 and 3 yo try to imitate what the rest of us do. They love it!

I work till noon then have 1.5 hours to burn before I pick up the kids from school. That's when I do it all. When husband returns from deployment, I go back to a schedule that eliminates that 1.5 hour window, but husband will be home so that he will be home with kids while I get my training done. I'll run in the morning, then do any cycling and/or swimming in the early evening when he gets home from work.

I get up really early to workout before my kids wake up. I also workout on my lunch hour as a second workout. And I will do a workout before bed of stretching or tai chi while they are getting ready for bed or after dinner. I make exercise my priority, my kids know it, they know Happy Mom = Mom that exercised.

I am a mom of 4, work full time (leave 7 am, home by 5:45 pm) and freelance many nights and weekends so going to a gym is out of the question. At first I thought the same thing as you...where do I find the time? I started with 3 days a week...2 of those days on weekends and one week day. Then I bumped up to 4 days, and now at 5-6. I do step for 30-40 minutes. High cal burn in short time. The days I add strength tend to go longer so I try to make sure those days are weekends. Find a hiigh insensity excersise you like and just make sure they count. Even as the kids get older, your guilt will not lessen so if you want this, you have to build it into your life style. Also...I tried double workouts on weekends in earlly am and late pm but it was too much. Good luck!