What does your day look like? Fitting in exercise...

I understand completely. It is NOT easy. I've got 2 little girls at home that suck up all my time and on a good night I just have to get up a few times to put a bink back in.
My schedule generally looks something like:
M-F:
5AM up-Try to get in 15 minutes of a workout.
6:30-head to work
7-Some days I'll stop at the park on the way in to work and run for half an hour.
7:30-work

11:30-Either get in a half hour walk if I didn't run in the morning, or maybe just a 15 minute walk if I did.

I also try to get in little bits throughout my work day with Fitbolt, like stretches, or sometimes 30 lunges, 15 pushups, a minute of jumping jacks, etc like every half hour. Sometimes that's more possible than others.

4:30 leave work

Grocery store frequently on the way home

6pm home

Try to go outside and walk with the girls for half an hour to an hour. Sometimes that means just barely walking while they meander or I might strap the 25lber to my back and carry the 15lber and walk up the hill and get in 20 minutes of hiking...


Weekend I may or may not get 15 minutes of workout in, and I try to get in either 30 minutes of mostly running or an hour of walking around our yard, which is up and down hill during morning nap time.

Those evenings of getting up and getting the girls outside is definitely the hardest. They don't generally cooperate. The older one either just wants to get in trouble and I'm trying to keep up while either carrying or pushing the younger. And if I try to strap them on, push them or pull them, they frequently fall to sleep which is not good if I want them to go to sleep around 8pm so that I can get to sleep and try to get the better part of 8 hours in!

And all of that is MUCH harder if I'm not getting enough sleep and tired!

My day Monday to Thursday:

6.00 Alarm rudely awakens me, I showed, get dressed
6.30 Quick breakfast - I measure out my breakfast the evening before
7.00 Leave house, drive to work
8-4 School hours; I eat lunch with the kids but I usually bring my own food
4.30 Home again, prepare lessons for the next day, grade papers etc
6.00 Switch on TV (Simpsons are on!!!) and get on Crosstrainer for half an hour
6.30 Make dinner
7.30 Often enough - back to the desk; or read, watch TV etc
11.30 Bedtime

So I do half an hour of exercise 4 times a week; on Friday I go to by bf's place after work. No crosstrainer there and I'm also shattered at the end of the week. Sat or Sunday I go for a run.

My uni timetable varies each week but I tend to workout in the evenings so that's all I can really 'plan'. Thinking of making my new plan the following:

Monday: Zumba 8-9pm OR 5k training session at the gym
Tuesday: Boxercise 7.30-8.15pm
Wednesday: Zumba Toning (7-8pm) and/or Strength & Tone fitness class (8.20-9pm)
Thursday: Gym session (1 hour between 7 and 10am) OR rest day (only rest if I did 2 classes on Wednesday night)
Friday: Rest day
Saturday: Spin Circuits class 10.45-11.30am
Sunday: Rest day

Hi I am a busy working mum like you. I exercise 4 times a week for 25 mins.
I have a stationary bike as well as a swiss ball and weights, and I also have a dog which I walk in the weekend.

My day goes like this:
Up at 5.30
exercise from 5.45-6.10
shower
kids ready, make lunches
Breakfast
Out the door at 7.45
Home at 4
Cook tea at 5
kids in bed at 7 after bath etc
Then chill out with husband, go to bed 9.00
I do have a husband but he likes to sleep in lol! He does help with kids when I am exercising, or kids come down with me in the room and watch tv.
I just get up a bit earlier.

Work day (3 days a week)

Up at 5 am to work by 7 am.
Off at 730 pm
8 pm either home and running or at gym strength training with trainer, some days neither.

Day off from paid job

Up at 630
Out the door as soon as it's starting to get light for a run
Clean, cook, laundry, groceries, bills, etc...
Cook dinner and clean it up
6 pm outdoor bootcamp or session at gym with trainer.


I only run 3-4 days a week and don't run after work unless it's the only way to get my runs in for the week.

There is 1 day a week I don't exercise at all.

For me...it all came down to realizing just how much I wanted to be healthy and lose weight...it was something important to me and I had to make room for it in my life, just like I have to make room for my other obligations. I'm a single guy working full time at a very demanding and stressful job and I have no kids, but I have a 90-year-old grandmother who still lives in her own home and a 67-year-old mother now living with me...both have health issues and I am the only one to take care of them. With that said...here's what my days are like:

Monday - Friday:
5am - Wake
6:15am - Showered, dressed and out the door with protein shake in hand
6:30am - Arrive at my 90-year-old grandmother's house to make sure she is Ok, help get her up and get breakfast for her.
7:45am - 1pm - WORK a.k.a. HELL! My job is extremely stressful and I HATE it!
1pm - Run hom for lunch. Make sure mother who now lives with me due to health issues that started up about 6 months ago is doing ok...has taken her medications and has at least eaten breakfast. Make lunch for both of us. Throw laundry in the washer and/or dryer, eat lunch, make any necessary phone calls...head back to work
2pm - 5pm - more HELL...um, I mean WORK.
5pm-6pm - Leave work and head home (I only live 5 mins. from work, but I usually never leave work at 5pm)
Somewhere between 6pm and 6:30pm - 7:30-8pm - work out
8pm - run to Grandmother's house again to make sure she is OK...has eaten dinner and is ready to get into bed.
8:30ish - Come home and start dinner or begin to finish dinner - jump in the shower.
9pm - eat dinner, check laundry
9:30 - 10:30 - clean up from dinner, misc chores around the house
10:30 - 11 - check email, do any needed paperwork. Go to bed.

SATURDAYS
6am - Wake, shower
7am - head out the door to grandmother's house with protein shake in hand
8am - 2pm - Varies...yard work (4 acres), cleaning her house, paying her bills, working on her misc. paperwork.
2pm - 4pm - come home...do my yard work, cleaning, laundry, etc.
5pm - 9pm - continue with housework at my own home as needed, quick run to store if needed, dinner, check on grandmother again.
10pm-11pm - hang out and head to bed

SUNDAYS -
6am - Wake
between 7 & 8 - head out for work out - approx. 1 1/2 hours
10am/10:30 am - head home - shower
Noon - head out to grandmothers to check in on her.
2pm - shopping for either my house or my grandmother
By 5pm - random chores needing done at grandmother's house
6pm - back home. Dinner.
7pm-10:30pm - some free time, misc. laundry, anything that I can get done that hasn't been done and needs to be done!

I also have two little girls and work full time so I struggle with this as well! I was going to the gym two nights a week and then Saturday mornings and taking the girls to the gym daycare which worked out ok but cost extra money and I didn't get to spend much time with them on those nights. Two weeks ago I started going in the morning before work and although it really sucks getting up that early I've found that it greatly reduces my anxiety about trying to fit everything in between work and bedtime. I'm also getting more workouts in because I've been going every morning and feel great about having it done for the day! I lift weights M/W/F and do cardio T/TH. My typical day looks like this:

4:35 - Wake Up, get ready, head to the gym
5:00 - Start Workout
5:45 - Head Home to get ready for work, get kids up and ready and out the door
7:00 - Leave the house, drop kids off and start the dreaded morning commute
8:00 - Work
4:30 - Done working yay!!!
5:15 - Pick up girls and go home for dinner, chores, family time, next day prep
10:00 - Hit the sack so I can do it all again

I lay out all my workout clothes, shoes, hrm, water, everything I need before bed so I don't have to think about anything when I get up and really just need to make sure I get my a** out of bed! So far it's working and I feel fantastic!

5:30: Alarm goes off
5:50: Actually Get Up
6:00: Shower, do hair
6:30: Eat Breakfast, make lunch
7:00: Work
9:00: Eat snack
11:00: Eat lunch
1:00: Go for a walk (40 min) OR go home and clean (my actual lunch hour. I eat while I work.)
3:00: Eat snack
5:30: Leave work
5:45: Work out (1 hr) OR go for second walk (40 min) and run errands.
7:00: Eat dinner
9:00 Go to bed

I know not everyone can do the late dinner. I prefer it because I tend to get hungry at night, and it helps keep me satiated. I'll either go for two walks, or I'll go home during lunch and clean so I don't have to do it after I workout.

I always go straight from work to the gym. If I try to do anything in between, I won't actually go.

i HATE that people say its about priorities - 2 full time working parents with 1hr commutes both ways to work and 2 school aged kids with sports and homework every night.... yup those ARE priorities!!! We are very active as a family - skiing in the winter and biking in the summer BUT making it to the gym for extended cardio and weight lifting is something that i CAN NOT do and for everyone who says i can if i WANTED TO then try a day in my shoes and GOOD LUCK!

trade you shoes! two full time working parents, full time school, two boys in soccer and hockey and karate, youngest is 12 weeks old, and on Saturdays I volunteer at the mobile spay and neuter clinic. It is about priorities, for me kids do come first but I don't use them as an excuse to not take care of myself as well.

I'm struggling right now because I NEED sleep. I always have. I can make it for a few days on 6 hours a night, and then I will just shut down and get sick. I'm at my best on 9-10 hours a night, but can live on 8. Unfortunately, that really makes it hard to "make" time to excercise. Oh, and believe me - the housecleaning went a long time ago.

I am a single mother of 3.5 year old twins, have 2 dogs and work full time. Daycare has a rule you can't leave the kids there for more than 10 hrs/day, and my commute takes 30-45 minutest each way. In order to get my hours in at work, I have to work through lunch and eat at my desk, or I'd be over the 10 hour mark each time.

Here's our schedule:
6:30 wake up, dogs out, kids usually wake up too.
6:30-7:30 feed dogs, kids, get dressed (herding turtles time)
7:30 out the door to take kids to preschool.
8:00 kids at preschool
8:45 arrive at work
8:45-4:45 work (eat lunch at desk and work thru lunch)
5:30 pick up kids, head home
6:15 home, feed dogs, make dinner (usually heating up previously made food, so not much time savings to be had there)
7:00 play time, bath, stories
8:00-9:00 sometime kids to bed. They take forever to get to sleep (just like me).
9:00 quick 20 min dog walk, dishes, paperwork, etc. This is often the only time I have to myself in the house.
10:00 start prep for bed, lay out clothes and backpacks for next day
10:30 bed.

So - I could do something during playtime, but they are at the age where they can play for about 5 minutes before a crisis occurs. I do have time between 9:30-10:30, but I can barely keep up with maintenance, bill paying, etc as it is.

Is this just something I have to wait out until the kids are older? I used to run every morning from 5:30 - 6:30 before I had kids and I LOVED it. Now I just hate the fact that I have so little time. Maybe the kids will be a little less needy (HAH) as they get older?

i HATE that people say its about priorities - 2 full time working parents with 1hr commutes both ways to work and 2 school aged kids with sports and homework every night.... yup those ARE priorities!!! We are very active as a family - skiing in the winter and biking in the summer BUT making it to the gym for extended cardio and weight lifting is something that i CAN NOT do and for everyone who says i can if i WANTED TO then try a day in my shoes and GOOD LUCK!

Sorry I don't agree - as you described it above my situation is no different than yours. I make my mental and physical health a priority becasue I realized that I am a better wife and mom when I make time for me. I workout before my kids are even out of bed. My husband does in the evenings on his way home from work. We all chip in to get household work done. We are a happy, healthy, cohesive well oiled machine. One difference maybe is that my kids are only allowed 1 weekday activity and 1 weekend avtivity. But, that is a choice - I was an overscheduled kid and got stressed for it and I don't want that to be my kids. But, we could fit exercise in even if they had activities 7 days a week.

Its all about prioritizing, organizing, scheduling and team work as a whole family.

Ooooh another tip. I have a free app I downloaded called 7 minutes. It gives you a mini work-out in seven minutes and its pretty good. Ofcourse, 7 minutes should not replace a full workout but on those days you absolutely can't make time all you need is 7 minutes.

I have completely hit a slump when it comes to exercise. I keep making excuses that I'm busy and too tired to add daily exercise into my day. I know I'm only BS'ing myself because there are TONS of people who have much busier schedules than mine but manage to get their workouts in. I have 2 small children who rarely sleep through the night so I never get a full nights sleep.

My typical days looks like this:
Wake up, get ready for work and get kids ready for daycare
Go to work until noon
Pick up the kids
Lunch
Nap time for the kids while I clean the house/organize/manage bills
Make dinner
Have quality family time
Get kids to bath and bed (that takes anywhere from 1-2 hours, ugh, mentally exhausting!)
Clean up the house (again)
Crash!

So ... how do you all do it? Have energy to go through your busy days but still get to the gym, do homework outs, etc ...

I'd love to hear from others to get motivation and help me to tell myself to 'suck it up! this is life, just do it!'

Thanks!

Looking at your day, I would use nap time to work out. You can do housework later. And I'd work on shortening bed/bath time. Shouldn't take 2 hrs!!!

bump for later

I'm lucky. I'm a nanny full time *(triplet first graders) and part time babysitter (once or twice a week) since my part time is while the kids are at school and schedualed out normaly a week or two in advance so I just put the gym into my phone around that.

I get the kids on the bus and then go to the gym. One day a week I also do heavy cleaning of the work house and normally my part time is thursdays so that is tue/thur and then gym mon-wed-fri works well 75% of the time. I don't stress though if a kids sick or whatever and I miss a day as it is life.