I work so much any advice?

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Mdj915
Mdj915 Posts: 2 Member
in Introduce Yourself
I work 10-11hr days then come home to ky 2yrs old . Then the work begins at home, lunches, backpacks,bedtime , etc. I barely find 15-30 min to work out before passing out. I try to prepare meals but I'm finding I eat a lot of fruit and lean cuisines. My daughter eats like an organic princess, but then I forget me......

Any busy working Moms have any advice ?

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  • LillysGranny
    LillysGranny Posts: 431
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    I don't have small children, but I work 2 jobs and I'm in school, so I sort of know what you're up against. I like to cook extra and freeze portion size packages for later. It works great for grilled or baked chicken breast, and most any kind of soup or casserole. I'd also suggest that if your daughter is eating like an organic princess, why not just fix yourself the same think you fix her?
  • pinkgirlzoe
    pinkgirlzoe Posts: 59 Member
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    thing i have found is with myfitness pal on my mobile this has been a godsend as i can now track everything on the move. also and i know its not for everyone but me and my partner are now getting our food delivered in meal size portions from a diet company that we just have to heat up. it costs a bit but its the kick start we need.

    other thing that i am going to start doing is making up large portions of food and freezing them in portion sizes so all i have to do again is heat one up.

    think planning is the key. we tend to worry about our childrens dinner for the week but forget about ours so we end up eating whatever. i am going to try and plan more i think

    Add me if you want i been here a week now

    zoe xxx
  • up2me2lose20
    up2me2lose20 Posts: 360 Member
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    I work 7:30-5:30 and then have book-keeping and record-keeping to do on top of that for my business and I have 3 children (20mo, 7yrs, 11yrs) at home and all their activities (once they are not "little" life gets busier!)....busy is not an excuse. I get up at 5AM before my workday/mom-day starts. :) It's the only way I can get some ME time in. Otherwise, like you, after I'm done putting kids to bed at 8 or 9, I'm pooped and I still have things to do around the house.

    If you really want this, you will find a way! :smile:
  • momma3sweetgirls
    momma3sweetgirls Posts: 743 Member
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    I don't work outside the home, but it is virtually impossible for me to fit formal exercise in during the day with all of them home (ages, 6, 4, 3, and 8 months). By the time kids are in bed it is pushing 9 pm and I really have to force myself to do some kind of exercise. I either jump on the stationary bike, go for a walk/jog, or do a DVD for 20-30 minutes. I'm also pretty exhausted at the end of the day, but I know the exercise will perk me up a bit. Last night is a prime example of what I shouldn't do: fell asleep after reading to my 4 year old. No exercise for me! Once you decide to make it a priority, the othe stuff will fall into place. Good luck!
  • flinchyny
    flinchyny Posts: 106 Member
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    I'm not a mom, but I agree w/ the advice to cook meals on weekends and freeze them. Cook stuff your daughter will eat also, and then that will free up the time during the week you spend preparing her meals.
  • marmitegirly2
    marmitegirly2 Posts: 35 Member
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    I think it's about balance- try to be too radical and you risk chucking it all in but you equally have to be committed to change. As a first step, why not try what the others have said about making up some freezer meals or even the cook a chicken on sunday, cold meat on the Monday type of thing. Or try quick dinners like an omlette with all the leftover salady bits or veg chucked in? As a first step you could aim for 3 or 4 nights of this type of thing and then the remainder on lean cuisine. As for the exercise, 20 mins is better than nothing. I have also tried to introduce exercise into my normal life around work - walking kids to school if time allows, going for a walk if I squeeze in a lunchbreak. Or you could try an exercise bike while watching TV so you try and relax. Or get up 20 minutes earlier and do a bit of a DVD. I know it's hard but you want to change or else you wouldn't have posted, so I believe you can. Babysteps babysteps...
  • egroff
    egroff Posts: 7 Member
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    Ahhhh...I can relate. I have 3 kids - ages 9, 7, and 5. My commute is 45 minutes one way, and I also drop off and pick up my youngest from daycare. Now that it is summertime, I also drop off/pick up my other two from summer day camp.

    I have an intense job working as a manager for a small, employee-owned company. We've struggled over the last couple of years through the recession and that has required a lot of us to work 10-12 hour days. It is hard. Over the past 4 years, I have steadily put on about 5 pounds a year and my overall health has deterioriated.

    This year, I've decided that I have to take my health seriously. If I can make all of my other commitments, then I should be able to do this one.

    The tools that I have found to work so far for me are fairly short but intensive workouts and careful but flexible planning of food.

    On the workout front, I really like Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30. The workouts are intense (for me at least!), but don't take more than 45 minutes total. I also like her Yoga Meltdown. And, because I love yoga, I've also started doing Bikram Yoga at least once a week. This is a big time commitment for me (90 minutes), but its "my" time. As busy, working moms, we can lose sight of how important it is to take care of ourselves.

    Even though I feel that I get a better workout in the afternoon, on workdays I force myself to get up and workout in the morning before anyone else is awake. I work out 6 days a week, and take a break mid-week. I take my break mid-week instead of on the weekend because I think that is when I need it the most.

    On the food front, healthy eating is the most important thing you can do. I got rid of everything processed in my cabinets and restocked my inventory with healthy ingredients. It is super hard sometimes to come home from a long day of work and jump right into cooking a healthy meal, but I found ways to minimize the effort. Instead of planning meals out in advance (like I used to do), I just make sure I have ingredients to put something healthy together. At first, my kids pushed back a little ("Mom, why is the rice brown?"), but after I explained why it is important to take care of our health (and why brown rice is good :-)) they started experimenting with me. Now they love multigrain pancakes better than "regular" pancakes, go figure! :-)

    Some good cookbooks to check out are the Eat Clean Cookbooks and Master Your Metabolism. These helped me to understand better ways to cook.

    And, also, I've only been a member for a short time, but I've found that religously recording my food and exercise on MFP helps keep me focused. It does take a few minutes everyday, but again, that is time I feel is important to take.

    Last but not least, you can do it! Hang in there, look for help where you can get it, and remember that you are also setting an example for your kids by living heathly. It's not enough to just feed them healthly - you have to live it because that is what they will remember.

    Good luck!

    P.S. If you want a friend in your journey, feel free to friend me.
  • onmyweightohappiness
    onmyweightohappiness Posts: 151 Member
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    Welcome to MFP!
    I have a busy schedule as well and have a 2 yr old wild little boy lol. What I typically do is 2 things. When I get home from work he is either still napping or I ask my husband to watch him so I can get in a 20-45 minute work out in. If time doesn't allow right after work I wait until he goes to bed so typically around 9pm I do my work out. It's tough some days but I have just made it a part of my life no matter what. If you have 30 minutes to sit on the couch you have time to work out. Thats the way I see it. I try to work out sometimes if my son is up and sometimes he works out with me but most of the time he gets in the way thats why I prefer to do it when he's sleeping or my husband can help me out but sometimes I don't have a choice and I just make do.
  • Mdj915
    Mdj915 Posts: 2 Member
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    Thank you all so much for the support and advice. All the other mothers in my life don't work as much as I do and their jobs are not nearly as stressful. I am at 11 lbs lost in about 8 weeks. I have lost a lot of weight in my life since I was a very obese teen but this has been the toughest for me by far.

    I have been making my lunches ( ww turkey sandwiches, with watermelon or little lean cuisine , plain Greek yogurt with berry, grilled leftover , etc ) and its working. Its not the fast results I'm used to but its coming off. People are starting to notice but most of all I can feel and see it.

    I have 14 more to go by my daughters bday September 15th and I know I can do it.
  • up2me2lose20
    up2me2lose20 Posts: 360 Member
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    Thank you all so much for the support and advice. All the other mothers in my life don't work as much as I do and their jobs are not nearly as stressful. I am at 11 lbs lost in about 8 weeks. I have lost a lot of weight in my life since I was a very obese teen but this has been the toughest for me by far.

    I have been making my lunches ( ww turkey sandwiches, with watermelon or little lean cuisine , plain Greek yogurt with berry, grilled leftover , etc ) and its working. Its not the fast results I'm used to but its coming off. People are starting to notice but most of all I can feel and see it.

    I have 14 more to go by my daughters bday September 15th and I know I can do it.

    You are doing awesome!!! Keep up the good work!

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