Need more hours in the day...

lkaline
lkaline Posts: 3 Member
in Getting Started
Hey everyone,
I've done MyFitnessPal before...multiple times actually. I really want to get back KTM the weight I was at about 2 years ago, approximately 160...I'm about 200 now :(

My problem is that I feel like I never have to time to hit the gym. Eating right, I can do that...although I seem to have better results when I actually workout in addition to it. I feel like I never have time because I work 3 days a week, go to school full time (with what feels like a heavy hw load) and still try to maintain a social life. It's super difficult. I know alot of people do this everyday but I feel like I get stressed so easily. I wish there were more hours in the day!

Can anyone relate or have any advice? I know it makes discipline, and I just really have to buckle down with myself and just do it. But...like I said, life is difficult.

Good luck to anyone who is struggling like I am!

Replies

  • JDixon852019
    JDixon852019 Posts: 312 Member
    If you want to get in gym time, it requires making that a priority. Kill your TV. It is amazing how much time TV steals from you. Meal prep Sunday is also a huge time saver. My friends don't see me M-F.

    I get up at 5:15am everyday so I have time to catch up on laundry and dishes before work and I have a strict bedtime of 10pm. I only watch TV on Sundays while doing meal prep.
  • TGTiger
    TGTiger Posts: 265 Member
    That's hardcore jrulo! Great use of time. I'd like to kill my TV too!
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
    jrulo16 wrote: »
    If you want to get in gym time, it requires making that a priority. Kill your TV. It is amazing how much time TV steals from you. Meal prep Sunday is also a huge time saver. My friends don't see me M-F.

    I get up at 5:15am everyday so I have time to catch up on laundry and dishes before work and I have a strict bedtime of 10pm. I only watch TV on Sundays while doing meal prep.

    This except I get up at 3:30 am everyday. It's about what you want more.. plus once you really get into a fitness routine and your stamina builds you gain energy.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    Exercise helps, just walk more. Drop and give me 10 once in a while.
  • clicketykeys
    clicketykeys Posts: 6,579 Member
    RunHardBeStrong wrote: »
    jrulo16 wrote: »
    If you want to get in gym time, it requires making that a priority. Kill your TV. It is amazing how much time TV steals from you. Meal prep Sunday is also a huge time saver. My friends don't see me M-F.

    I get up at 5:15am everyday so I have time to catch up on laundry and dishes before work and I have a strict bedtime of 10pm. I only watch TV on Sundays while doing meal prep.

    This except I get up at 3:30 am everyday. It's about what you want more.. plus once you really get into a fitness routine and your stamina builds you gain energy.

    Dang. What time do you go to bed??
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
    clicketykeys wrote: »
    RunHardBeStrong wrote: »
    jrulo16 wrote: »
    If you want to get in gym time, it requires making that a priority. Kill your TV. It is amazing how much time TV steals from you. Meal prep Sunday is also a huge time saver. My friends don't see me M-F.

    I get up at 5:15am everyday so I have time to catch up on laundry and dishes before work and I have a strict bedtime of 10pm. I only watch TV on Sundays while doing meal prep.

    This except I get up at 3:30 am everyday. It's about what you want more.. plus once you really get into a fitness routine and your stamina builds you gain energy.

    Dang. What time do you go to bed??

    Between 9 and 10... it sucks but if I don't make time for myself to workout I feel like crap and that sucks even more.
  • jessicarobinson00
    jessicarobinson00 Posts: 414 Member
    I feel you. Planning ahead helps. Sunday's I use for meal preps for the week. There are certain foods that seem to hold up being reheated better than others (pork chops and pork steam = WAY BETTER the second heating!)...but I cook up chicken in the crockpot for enchiladas, chicken tacos, chicken alfredo, fajitas..you can brown up a few lbs of hamburger for hash, spaghetti...you get the picture. :)
  • daniellek30
    daniellek30 Posts: 171 Member
    I feel your pain. I work a full time job, own a tattoo shop (which is essentially another full time job), and go to school full time. It's just about finding that time in your day and squeezing it in.

    I'm lucky that my job has a gym in the basement, so right after work I get in my workout, head to the tattoo shop, and then do my school work.
  • SunflowerSandra
    SunflowerSandra Posts: 70 Member
    Look, honestly, losing weight is not about exercise. To lose weight you only need to eat less calories than you burn.
    If you can and know how to eat right, why don't you focus on that?

    I'm really impressed with everyone that gets up super early to do everything, but OP, eating well and exercise do not only come as a team. You can employ both tools separately. Eat less, lose weight. If you want to work out, figure out ways to do so while already eating right. If you have plenty to worry about, you don't need the added guilt of feeling like you have to do something.

    If you don't have time to go the gym but want to work out you could do some at home circuit training, use a youtube channel for training (I like fitnessblender), maybe go for a bike ride, combine it with your social life? If you usually go for a coffee with a friend suggest a walk with or without a to-go cup. Take a bus earlier to school and walk from one stop sooner, park further away. All of these are small things but will help. Bring your study book to the gym and read it on the bicycle/elliptical/treadmill (strength training might be more difficult to combine :wink: ). Even doing a 1 min plank before you shower counts in my book. I go climbing in a climbing gym sometimes with the outdoorsy part of my family, it gives me quality family time and a work-out.

    I usually make less than healthy food choices when I'm stressed, one thing that I've found helps with stress and sleep quality is doing some yoga. I do a 10-15 min youtube video before bed, helps me sleep like a baby. I feel like my food choices and work outs should contribute to my overall health and happiness and not be another thing on an already full to-do list.

    TLDR; stress less, eat less, move more when you can

    Hope this helps, you've got this! :smile:

  • clicketykeys
    clicketykeys Posts: 6,579 Member
    First of all, try a different perspective. IMO having lots of things you want to do, so many that you don't have time for them all, is a good thing. I feel your pain; I'm bad about over-scheduling myself. Having to say "no" to things you like kind of sucks a little, but it can be a reminder that your life is already full of things you like! You have goals for the future, you're working toward them... all those things are blessings. You just have too many blessings! ;)

    As some others have commented, losing weight is MOSTLY about how much you eat. I'm going to try to get back to logging this week. It'll be hard - my mom sent over a serving of chicken lasagna that I reheated for lunch. I don't have the recipe, so I didn't bother weighing it. I just put in something that was relatively similar. But I figure that's at least a step forward. It's better than going "oh well, my day's going to be off, guess I won't bother logging anything else." You know? So try logging what you eat. If you have a scale, that will make your log more accurate, but even guesses are (IMO) better than nothing at all.

    Same sort of thing with exercise. Maybe you don't have time to get to and from the gym. There's a lot you can do at home or at school. Make a 15-minute playlist and go for a walk or jog around the neighborhood, or around the campus between some of your classes. Remember which 3 songs are at the end of the playlist so that you can be sure you'll make it back in your allotted time. ;)

    Bodyweight exercises can help you build strength. And there are lots of yoga tutorials on youtube that can help you improve your balance and flexibility. There's a lot that you CAN do. You may want to think about what type of exercise most helps you feel better, and focus on that, since you don't have time to do everything. The truth is, nobody does!
  • lkaline
    lkaline Posts: 3 Member
    daniellek30 wrote: »
    I feel your pain. I work a full time job, own a tattoo shop (which is essentially another full time job), and go to school full time. It's just about finding that time in your day and squeezing it in.

    I'm lucky that my job has a gym in the basement, so right after work I get in my workout, head to the tattoo shop, and then do my school work.

    Same...my work has a little gym too. So in days I have work I try to get a workout in there! Hats off to you though
  • fitoverfortymom
    fitoverfortymom Posts: 3,452 Member
    I rarely (re: I never go to the gym) have time for the gym. Most of my weight loss comes from calorie deficit. I do walk the dog 2x per day and aim for a walk during my lunch hour so I can eat back some of those calories. My life is just super busy and I'm not in a place where gym workouts are a priority yet. I do hope someday, because I would like to consider weight training. Until then, just watching what I eat.
  • lkaline
    lkaline Posts: 3 Member
    clicketykeys wrote: »
    First of all, try a different perspective. IMO having lots of things you want to do, so many that you don't have time for them all, is a good thing. I feel your pain; I'm bad about over-scheduling myself. Having to say "no" to things you like kind of sucks a little, but it can be a reminder that your life is already full of things you like! You have goals for the future, you're working toward them... all those things are blessings. You just have too many blessings! ;)

    As some others have commented, losing weight is MOSTLY about how much you eat. I'm going to try to get back to logging this week. It'll be hard - my mom sent over a serving of chicken lasagna that I reheated for lunch. I don't have the recipe, so I didn't bother weighing it. I just put in something that was relatively similar. But I figure that's at least a step forward. It's better than going "oh well, my day's going to be off, guess I won't bother logging anything else." You know? So try logging what you eat. If you have a scale, that will make your log more accurate, but even guesses are (IMO) better than nothing at all.

    Same sort of thing with exercise. Maybe you don't have time to get to and from the gym. There's a lot you can do at home or at school. Make a 15-minute playlist and go for a walk or jog around the neighborhood, or around the campus between some of your classes. Remember which 3 songs are at the end of the playlist so that you can be sure you'll make it back in your allotted time. ;)

    Bodyweight exercises can help you build strength. And there are lots of yoga tutorials on youtube that can help you improve your balance and flexibility. There's a lot that you CAN do. You may want to think about what type of exercise most helps you feel better, and focus on that, since you don't have time to do everything. The truth is, nobody does!

    Thank you! I really appreciate all the words of advice and it's knowing I'm not the only one who feels this way. Or who goes through the stresses of life lol.
  • nancybuss
    nancybuss Posts: 1,461 Member
    Great advise above. Yup - we all want to do a Lot more than time allows in life. It does have to be a priority. Wow having a gym at work is fantastic!
    I tried many things and had to switch to home workouts and now I can't imagine the time to get to a gym. I'm not a "morning person" by nature, but its Up, workout, get ready for work. Start before I'm awake enough to know what hits me. LOL Bonus, no getting dressed 'nice' and no driving someplace in the cold.

    Welcome back and good luck!

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