How do you find the time for exercise?
BluffMeAllIn
Posts: 6 Member
I'd like to start exercising again, I was doing well in the first week of my new health changes until a nightly workout got me so sore I could barely move for two days and havn't been able to get back into it since (this was about 6-7 weeks ago now).
There are just not enough hours in the day, and I am so NOT a morning person to be able to get up early and work out. I typically throw myself into bed around 12-1Am and am up at 7:30am at the latest to get ready and out the door for work.
I get home from work around 5:30pm and then I start getting supper situated and usually finish up cooking/eating around 7pm....then its time to take the pooch out for his nightly round (about 20-30min usually, which is some movement but sometimes much of it is spent just standing and not moving lol).
By this time I'm exhausted and just come back and sit on the computer for pretty much the rest of the evening, to take care of some forum duities I have as a guide (it's a poker forum) and do a little playing and before I know it it's midnight and so its time to get to bed and do it all again.
How on earth am I suppose to get possibly an hour's workout into this, not to mention our apartment is so couped up that I have to shift around a couch and chair to make room to workout.......feels like I'll probably never get back into it.
Maybe someone has some suggestions for me?
Cheers.
There are just not enough hours in the day, and I am so NOT a morning person to be able to get up early and work out. I typically throw myself into bed around 12-1Am and am up at 7:30am at the latest to get ready and out the door for work.
I get home from work around 5:30pm and then I start getting supper situated and usually finish up cooking/eating around 7pm....then its time to take the pooch out for his nightly round (about 20-30min usually, which is some movement but sometimes much of it is spent just standing and not moving lol).
By this time I'm exhausted and just come back and sit on the computer for pretty much the rest of the evening, to take care of some forum duities I have as a guide (it's a poker forum) and do a little playing and before I know it it's midnight and so its time to get to bed and do it all again.
How on earth am I suppose to get possibly an hour's workout into this, not to mention our apartment is so couped up that I have to shift around a couch and chair to make room to workout.......feels like I'll probably never get back into it.
Maybe someone has some suggestions for me?
Cheers.
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Replies
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Stop playing on your computer? problem solved....
Stop making excuses for everything too.... Let's be real here you said you went and it hurt guess what that pain is your body rebuilding it's self. Those pains go away over time and eventually you miss them!!
Seriously stop making excuses... you can wake up and early and go to the gym before work! I know your not a morning person... that's because your wasting your life on your computer at night!. Go to bed earlier and wake up early, eventually you adjust to it.
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The first problem is affirming "I am so not a morning person". Time to become one, think of the desired goal, and let that kick your a** out of bed. If being in shape and exercising was easy, everyone would do it. Its supposed to be hard. Makes you appreciate the reward more. Start telling yourself "I am going to get up early and feel great" (even if it sounds like BS to you at the time). Your body will react in time.
Once you start to get results, it gets easier. Trust me.0 -
That's just an excuse.BluffMeAllIn wrote: »I am so NOT a morning person to be able to get up early and work out.
Another excuse.BluffMeAllIn wrote: »By this time I'm exhausted
Yet another excuse.BluffMeAllIn wrote: »not to mention our apartment is so couped up that I have to shift around a couch and chair to make room to workout
You'll make time if it's truly important to you. And if it's not, you won't.
Everyone has different priorities. If your priorities are sleep and poker, then that's fine... but own your priorities... don't whine about not having enough time. No one has enough time to do EVERYTHING they want to do, so we make time to do what's more important and sacrifice what isn't.
You need to decide what's more important, then own that decision.0 -
Im not a morning person either. I go to the gym straight from work. I get changed at work before a leave so I am already committed to going. Yes I hate the gym but it is necessary just like eating. The computer is not something you have to do the gym is. You dog will wait until you get home to go out mine does. Sometimes I make dinner in the slow cooker sometimes we eat around 7:00 - 8:00 but everyone survives. Make yourself a priority and stop with the excuses.0
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I don't find time to exercise. I make time.0
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Excuses excuses excuses.
If you are exhausted by 7 pm, why the hell are you staying up until 12 or 1 am? That's your first problem. Stop staying up late so you can wake up earlier.
If you are not too exhausted to play on the computer for 5 hours, then you aren't too exhausted to workout for 30 minutes-1 hour. Exercise gives you energy, by the way.
You don't need to workout in your apartment. You can go for a walk or jog outside. Or join a gym. Some memberships are as cheap as $10 a month.
ETA: Your schedule is not that busy. You are simply choosing to spend the time you do have to play poker. Another suggestion is to actually take your dog for a walk for 20-30 minutes after dinner- instead of standing around while he does his business.0 -
When you make it a priority you will stop trying to find time in the day to do it, and you will make time to do it. It is not a priority for you right now, and until you make it a priority you will always find an excuse to not do it.0
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No one has any more magical hours in the day. Everyone gets the same amount of time.
It's a priority and it gets done- or it's not and you don't do it.
plain and simple.
Otherwise the only person you're lying to is yourself with your excuses.0 -
Some answers are hard. This one isn't. You have plenty of time; you are simply choosing the hobby that keeps you sitting in a chair over a hobby that gets you up and moving. If you truly were exhausted, you couldn't stay awake to play poker on the computer. Life is all about choices. Lying to yourself is not going to help you reach your goals. Find time, make time. It's there. Your schedule seems much lighter than mine and I get 10 to 15 miles running in a week and three visits to the gym. And I stay up playing video games almost each night. AND I have two children that I spend a lot of time with. The time is there. You must choose to use it.0
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When exercise becomes important to you, you'll prioritize it. Right now, excuses and computer games are obviously higher priorities.0
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Everyone is busy.
Me for example: I get up at 5.45am; Leave the house at 6.30; work at 7am; leave work at 3ish; Home by latest 3.45; dump my stuff; let the cat out; get changed into workout gear; check post, close curtains, other getting in the house stuff; Go for a run at 4.15ish for about half an hour; put dinner on/get stuff out for dinner depending on what I'm cooking; Shower at about 5pm; showered and dressed by 5.30pm; finish sorting dinner, sit down to eat by 6pm; Eat, watch tv, sort my clothes and lunch for work the next day, tidy, internet, general free time untill 8; 2 hours of studying; bed at 10.
Obviously weekends are slightly different, but the reason I can manage all that is because I know where I need to be at any given time.
It's not easy, I'm not naturally organised, But I am an adult and I know that sometimes I have to do stuff if I'm tired or don't want to.
Make it happen.0 -
You've got this dude, don't let excuses get in the way of your goals. You have everything you need to throw yourself into this! Waking up in the morning if you hate it, won't work long term. It may for some people but for others, it will just deter you from working out. Take a little time at the end of your day or at the beginning, if it's not to work out then 30 minutes earlier to walk the dog so you don't have to do it later on in the evening.
Just try and mix about your schedule so you find the time that suits you, maybe come off the computer an hour earlier, have dinner a little later; It shouldn't be a chore, it should fit into YOUR lifestyle as you'd like. You can do this mate!0 -
Regular exercise should give you more energy overall, making you less tired all the time. You seem to have a normal job where you leave at 730 and come home at 530. That leaves several hours in the evening to get a workout in.0
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It sounds like you have plenty of time to exercise. It's motivation that you lack. If you want it, you'll do it. Either decide you want to improve your fitness, or don't. It's all your choice.0
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You don't 'find ' time. You have to make time. It's all about priorities.0
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like others have said, you have different priorities at the moment, and thats okay. if you found 30 minutes to get moving and went to bed earlier, you'd find that you'll probably stop feeling so exhausted.
start by doing working in some exercises WHILE you are on the computer. every 20 minutes you do 5-10 reps of a body weight exercise, such as push ups, lunges, squats, etc etc.0 -
When you want to make the time you will. Until then there will always be a reason not to do it handy.0
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When I was not able to go to the gym I used to flip my bed up on it's side to make room to lay down some mats to do P90X everyday.
You rather play poker then workout. Priorities for some are interesting. I guess if I was getting paid for it I would still buy some weights to hit while I am on the computer. That just me though. If I go a week without lifting weights I get really stressed out.0 -
A few suggestions:
Try cooking dinner using a slow cooker or cooking meals on the weekend and freezing them. This will cut down on the time you spend on dinner.
Incorporate exercise into walking the dog. If you're going to be standing around, do squats or lunges or jumping jacks or any exercise that you can do outside.
Use the stairs at work or in your apartment if you can/don't already.
What you'll find is if you make these small changes and start to incorporate exercise wherever you can, you'll start to feel good about exercising and want to find a way you can build up to the hour workout.
I get what you mean about not being a morning person. I wasn't either but due to having kids and having to get them to school on time each morning, I changed. It's hard but you can do it. I don't recommend waking up early for a workout right now though because you won't get enough sleep if you're going to bed around midnight. But you can change it. I used to go to bed at 1am and now I'm in bed at 10pm/asleep by 11 and I wake up two hours earlier than I used to.
What kind of workouts are you looking to do? Why not try some of the "challenges" you find online - like squats, plank, etc. These are exercises you can do with little space. I workout in an apartment as well, I understand the space issues.
Ok, one more thing. If a workout leaves you sore, don't give up. Don't overdo it for the first week or two, ease into it. And if you are sore, spend the next few days doing yoga and stretching. Then get back to workouts.0 -
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If you wanted to work out badly enough, you would find the time to do it. Give up some computer time. Work out right after work. Make a sandwich instead of spending an hour and a half on dinner.
I think part of the problem is that you overdid it. Working out 6-7 days a week would be enough to make me never want to do it again either. Try 3-4 days and see if you can stick with it.
ETA: Nm, I thought you were working out 6-7 days a week. My bad. Learn a reasonable schedule and stick with it.0 -
Can't tell which country you're from, but here in the US, most of us are expected to take a lunch break. Your employer expects you to be gone and usually they don't look for you during that time of day. If you have an hour for lunch, spend half of it walking or going up/down the stairs. Also, your family isn't there to bother you during your lunch breaks.
I keep pretty much the same schedule that you do, and I can get 60 minutes of exercises from my chiropractor done in the evenings! Sometimes its only 20 minutes, but the important one's get done. Sure, it means something else doesn't get done, but how bad do you wanna be healthy?
Just as with anything else, if its important to you, you'll make the time to get it done. Exercise needs to be done, but if it helps, don't try to knock out an entire hour in one block. If your schedule is such that two 30 min sessions work, by all means get off the couch.0 -
I make time. We all have 24 hrs a day. Taking 45 out of those 24 hrs shouldn't be too complicated.0
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I once read an article that suggested instead of saying "I don't have time to xxx" say "i'm not prioritising xxxx right now" and that will help you see what your current priorities actually are.
If yours are moderating your computer gaming forum that's fine - make it an active choice and decision that that's what you're doing with your time. If however you really want to exercise and decide to do this then you reduce your time online and exercise then.
I have a busy lifestyle and often get asked by colleagues how I find time to do everything. My answer is I prioritise. I don't watch much TV and I try not to spend too much time on the computer outside of work hours. Also I make a plan.
I know on certain days I need to go to bed earlier because I have to get up early to go to the gym as all my evenings are full so if I want to exercise I have to fit it into my morning routine.
Also if you start exercising regularly you may find you have more energy.
If you like being online - use YouTube exercise videos and do home workouts for 15 - 20 mins an evening.
If you really want to exercise you'll have to make sacrifices and fit it in somewhere.
There's no "easy" answer.
I hope you make a plan that works for you!0 -
I don't stick to nighttime exercise like I do morning exercise. It just doesn't happen.
My usual schedule:
5:00am Get up, swish down the bathroom, make bed, throw clothes over swimsuit.
5:30am Hit the gym with Dear Hoosband. We part, I swim, he does his running foolishness, and we meet back up after workouts and showers at
6:45 am Go home, have coffee and breakfast. (We live close to the gym)
7:15 am Out to the door to go to work.
5:30pm Home from work. If I was smart, there is dinner in the crock pot. I am not always smart. So I sautee up some meat and veggies and we have dinner. We might watch ONE tv show during this time, but not always.
7:30 pm Make lunches for the next day, sort out and pack gym bag, get out clothes for next day. (Laundry is usually done on weekends)
After that, I might screw around knitting or writing or messing around online for an hour. Ideally, I should be writing, but being a writer, I am also an amazing procrastinator. I try very hard to have my head on the pillow by 9pm. Sometimes I am bad and it's 9:30 before I'm down.
I'm training hard enough swimming that I kind of need that eight hours of sleep.0 -
BluffMeAllIn wrote: »
I get home from work around 5:30pm and then I start getting supper situated and usually finish up cooking/eating around 7pm....then its time to take the pooch out for his nightly round (about 20-30min usually, which is some movement but sometimes much of it is spent just standing and not moving lol).
So looking at this part I can think of two things.
One - while you are "just standing and not moving" start doing some squats and lunges. If your pooch stops several times then you can get a couple of sets in.
Two - after the pooch is done, then go back out on your own and get in a more brisk walk or even a jog. Doesn't have to be a long one - even the same amount of time that you spent walking the pooch is good.
Once you start working this in, you'll probably be more more motivated to make changes in other areas to increase your exercise time.
Good luck.0 -
Tedebearduff wrote: »Stop playing on your computer? problem solved....
this... you've finished supper by 8... either take the dog for a proper walk, or do your work out after that... you have 4 HOURS between that and when you go to bed... thats plenty of time...
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What others have said is true. Until you make exercising a priority you will rarely "find" time to do it. So I don't "find" time, I make time. I work 9 hours per day, spend another hour commuting and go to school part time and I still have time to spend an hour at the gym or out running around my neighborhood. I live in Tucson, AZ so running in the summer can be problematic. When it's hitting triple digits in the afternoons, I run before work and work later. This time of year, I usually run as soon as I get home from work. Lifting at the gym is always after work. I still have enough energy to go home, make dinner, do a little cleaning and do my schoolwork before I hit the sack at 10:00pm.
However, exercise will actually make you feel less exhausted after work. I speak from experience on this because until 2011 I didn't work out at all. According to the pedometer I got that January I often didn't walk more than 2000 steps per day. Although I wasn't technically overweight, I was getting there and I couldn't walk a flight of steps without getting a little winded. I now have more energy, am rarely tired until bedtime, and I'm in the best shape I've been in over 20 years.
I agree with the others that you should probably just go to bed earlier and get up earlier. That will magically add a few more hours to your day. If you're truly not a morning person (I used to say that, too, until I was up at 5am so I could get in a run before the sun was fully up and the temperatures topped 80°) then do your workouts before bed and keep your midnight bedtime.
The good news is, you don't need to exercise to lose weight. You just need to eat less calories than your body burns every day. So, if you really don't want to exercise, then don't and stop making yourself feel guilty about it. But don't make excuses that you don't have enough time because that excuse just isn't valid.0 -
1. I stopped making excuses.
I work very weird hours. Sometimes I have to be in the gym at 4:30 a.m. or else I won't make it at all. Some weeks, I work upwards of 14 hours per day (not making it home until 10 p.m.)
I wasn't a morning person.... until I was forced to be. I HATE working out that early, but soon enough it becomes a habit. I'll feel worse if I lie there in bed and don't go and feel *kitten* the rest of the day because I DIDN'T go.
You gotta figure out your priorities and go from there. If you want it bad enough, you'll make time.0
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