How do you keep up a diet/exercise plan when life is busy?

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embym
embym Posts: 65
in Health and Weight Loss
I really need some help getting back on track after the past week. The semester's finally started picking up and even though I was really good for about three weeks, once I started becoming really busy it's been really hard to find time to exercise and keep track of my food. How does everyone do it? I'm sure you're all super busy too. HELP!

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  • Phoenyxtears
    Phoenyxtears Posts: 173
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    Every Sunday was my day to plan workouts and cook all of my meals for the week and freeze them that way I didn't have to worry about them during the week when I was busiest.
  • luv2ash
    luv2ash Posts: 1,903 Member
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    oh the key is planning. Plan the night before, plan the morning of, always planning.
  • cranberrycat
    cranberrycat Posts: 233 Member
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    Squeeze in exercise whenever you can. You don't have to do it all at one time. Take a 15 minute walk during your lunch. Take the steps. As far as journaling goes, I usually carry around a spiral notebook and write things down until I have time to enter it. Calorie King journals are also very handy.
  • Charrisse
    Charrisse Posts: 163
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    When I work through out the day, if I dont have my laptop with me, I write down what I ate/ drank on paper and when I get back to my pc I log in. I have simply made it a priority. I set MFP as my home page.
    I also know if I log it, and its right before my eyes, I wont be so tempted to eat that cookie or another plate of food. So far, so good!
  • bjhumphrey
    bjhumphrey Posts: 1
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    I'm also super busy all the time. I'm a single mom, work full time, and go to church 3 times a week. Finding something to eat isn't the hard part (although I would love to find some yummy tasting, quick & easy to prepare foods that are healthy). For me, the hard part is making time to squeeze in some exercise. I have turned my time with my daughter into my workout time, and we play Wii together of the evenings. :)

    As for tracking, I have the app on my iPhone.
  • jennyfair24
    jennyfair24 Posts: 273 Member
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    Every Sunday was my day to plan workouts and cook all of my meals for the week and freeze them that way I didn't have to worry about them during the week when I was busiest.
    Same here...groceries on Saturday....cooking and prep for meals and workout schedules on Sunday. Having a day to get everything planned really helps my family stay on track :smile:
  • jerseygirl51190
    jerseygirl51190 Posts: 2
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    i know exactly what you mean! the semester just started for me also, and with classes and everything i feel like i never have enough time to exercise as much as i want or eat right. i'm in an engineering school which is crazy and stressful, as soon as exams come around my eating goes crazy and i either dont eat at all or over eat. but basically just need to try your hardest to stick to eating healthy and exercising. always remember if you slip up one day there's always the next to make up for it!
  • blitz2011
    blitz2011 Posts: 58 Member
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    I now have a job where i am sitting infront of a computer for 8+ hours a day, i do my exercise 6/7 nights a week at about 11pm then shower, wind down watching telly for 30minz then bed... On nights i know i'm going out with friends i try to fit it in around 6-7pm

    Good luck
  • embym
    embym Posts: 65
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    i know exactly what you mean! the semester just started for me also, and with classes and everything i feel like i never have enough time to exercise as much as i want or eat right. i'm in an engineering school which is crazy and stressful, as soon as exams come around my eating goes crazy and i either dont eat at all or over eat. but basically just need to try your hardest to stick to eating healthy and exercising. always remember if you slip up one day there's always the next to make up for it!

    Yeah exams are starting up for me too, and since I'm a cell biology student I've been spending a lot of my free time in the lab I work for. It's SO hard to keep myself from eating, because when I'm stressed out I get physically hungry. :(
  • AnitaAntone
    AnitaAntone Posts: 177 Member
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    The my fitness pal phone app for my android has really made keeping the food diary easy for me. I find myself filling it in whenever i'm waiting in a line or for an appointment. As for exercise I treat myself like a child. I can't watch tv in the evening until I've done my exercise "homework" !:wink:
  • mandijo
    mandijo Posts: 618 Member
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    The best piece of advice I have gotten is "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." Everyone hit the nail right on the head. Planning has to happen in order for you to succeed. Treat your exercise as if it were an appointment you wouldn't miss. That doesn't mean it needs to happen every single day. If you choose to work out 4-5 times a week, then write in your planner exactly when you are going to do that and then stick to it as much as you can. Life is busy. That will never change. I remember when I used to say "Oh my goodness, summer is so busy, I'll wait until fall." Nothing changed once Fall came. Activities were different, but I was busy non the less. You have to remember that this is a lifestyle change. Hopefully these habits won't ever leave you, so just working them in as if they were as important as that next term paper, or cleaning your apartment, etc. is really the key to maintaining a routine and a habit you can live with in the midst of a busy life. Good luck to you!
  • jerseygirl51190
    jerseygirl51190 Posts: 2
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    college definately doesn't make it easy to stay in shape and eat healthy. some people seem to have time to do it all but I don't know how they do it. i've always had the problem that when I get stressed during exam time I totally stop eating, which is nice at first when I lose the weight but then it comes back as soon as I start eating again
    i agree with everyone else, planning is the best. it works the best for me if i have healthy things to eat set out for the week. also, to keep count of calories the app for droid phones is the best. it's so helpful to see everything add up throughout the day, makes it easier to say no to little snacks that i never realized how much the calories added up before. the barcode scanner is also the best! this way everything stays accurate.

    4371436.png
    Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Nutrition Facts For Foods
  • Phoenyxtears
    Phoenyxtears Posts: 173
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    The other thing is that I would purposely park farther away unless it was going to be a late night with all of my meetings and stuff. It's not much but it did equate to a 10 minute walk, 5 to and 5 back, for me.

    College does not help at all.
  • jmhunter84
    jmhunter84 Posts: 206 Member
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    You can make time for what you want, that's what I had to tell myself. There are 24 hours in a day, one hour needs to be yours dedicate it to exercise. Organize and plan ahead...you can do it!
  • secostley
    secostley Posts: 409 Member
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    I have a very busy schedule and, after several attempts, I found that my best time to get my workout in is first thing in the morning. So, I'm up at 4 a.m./4:30 and in the gym by 5:30 a.m. I've tried working out at lunch, but I always had schedule conflicts. After work, I go straight home to take over as husband/Dad.

    The key is to make exercise a key priority and plan your life around that.

    God Bless!


    Shawn

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