Full-time desk job, young kid at home - tips for squeezing in exercise?

i would try to fit in the exercise with your child. go for a walk together. play with them, if you don't have energy then play for only 5 minutes to start with.

get off one station earlier and walk the last bit home/to work. oops you drive, so can you park farther?

go for a walk at lunch.

Try to get more walking during your work day. I usually go for at least one walk. A short 5 min walk and/or I drive Downtown and go for a longer (15 min or so) walk at lunch. You can try to find things to do with your child (go for walks, ride bikes etc) or do workout videos at home, or wake up and work out in the morning (I know it’s terrible but once you get used to it it’s not bad at all, it becomes your routine and honestly I even enjoy the “me” time all by myself). I work FT and have two kids so I understand. But I don’t have a commute like yours. for that I am so sorry how horrible.

I have 4 kids and 2 grandkids. I was up to 15 stone so I now count calories and since last September I get up Mon-Fri at 6 and exercise to 6:30, then get the kids up. My weight has dropped to just under 12st and my waist has gone from 42" to 32". Its took nearly 12 months but routine has been key.

My kids have activities every evening and at weekends so I have 0 time then. I start work at 8 and am home by 6.

I use T25 or Max 30 video training and also have p90x3 all of which only take up to 30 minutes and you can pick up 2nd hand pretty cheap.

Starting is a real *kitten* and you ache but after 3-4 weeks it fades and gets easier as you go on. Eat properly and the energy levels all come back.

If you put your mind to it you can do it.

Hi there,
I have many tips. I have 3 kids, 7, 5 and 1 year old. I work 3 days a week, desk job and have a hour commute as well. I am a certified group fitness instructor. I try to fit in exercise every day.

When I'm at work my part time/desk job I workout on my lunch hour. I am fortunate to have a gym in my work but my two jobs I had previous it didn't have a gym in it. So I would do lunch time walks. I would eat at my desk either before or after the walk. Walk for 45 mins and then change after. Take to work a bag of gym clothes, wipes and deodorant. If you don't have a shower at work just walk so you don't get super sweaty.

You could also get some home workout dvds. I love dvds. I have tons of them even on vhs! Wake up earlier before your 6 year old wakes up and do a video then or let him watch you. While hes eating breakfast you do a workout. Jillian Michaels are great and super cheap and usually just 20 min. There are also videos on you tube that are free. Pop sugar fitness has great ones.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBINFWq52ShSgUFEoynfSwg

A great website for videos is:
https://www.collagevideo.com/

My coworker who works full time she loves beachbody on demand. Its $8 a month and you get access to all videos.

Or you could also do a dvd after work when you put your 6 year old to bed.

On the weekends make fitness a habit and a priority or do all your workouts on the weekend. I know working is tough and usually the weekends mean grocery shopping, cleaning the house etc. But put yourself first.

My kids know that mommy works out for an hour either when the baby naps in the afternoon or in the morning we take a nice long walk or both! My two older kids ride their bikes and I push the baby in the carriage. most of the time I'm running after them to keep up. We like going to walking paths, the park, or just around our neighborhood.

Most gyms are not super expensive and most health plans reimburse you for the year. Where it gets expensive are the boutique fitness places. But usually a planet fitness, golds gym etc are a low monthly rate. I teach a muscle/tabata class on Tuesday mornings and my kids love to come to the gym daycare there. They have friends they see every week. And after we get to go to a nearby park. Again, we take their bikes and walk/ride first.

Don't think of fitness as an hour long thing you have to do. I say quality over quantity. Make the workout super hard and effective. I love tabata training. you can search some workouts online. Tabata is an HIIT (high intensity interval training) 20 seconds all what you can do with 10 second recovery repeated 8 times. (4 min).

https://www.collagevideo.com/products/cathe-friedrichs-xtrain-tabatacise

https://www.collagevideo.com/products/ace-hiit-series-with-chris-freytag

You also pick up some workout dvds at your local library.

Take walks after dinner. Let the 6 year old ride his bike while you walk.

Lastly, PLAY!!!! run around with your 6 year old, play sports, jump rope, make an obstacle course with sidewalk chalk on the driveway or park https://www.pinterest.com/pin/15833036172206028/?lp=true
or ride a bike together, run after him/her on their bike, play Wii Fit.

The more you workout the more energy you will have. I promise you.
More importantly make sure you are not starving yourself. When I was in my 20s I had headaches all the time and was so tired. I'm 43 and feel better than I did before. I feel like I'm 25!! Everyday I make sure I incorporate fitness into my day.

On Sundays I do yoga. My kids now join me sometimes. My 5 year old loves it that she does cosmic kids on you tube. Its a yoga for kids! later we might take a walk too.

From Monday-Thursdays I lift at the gym and do HIIT workouts. These are lunch hour workouts (except on tues I teach a class)

Fridays: I go for a long walks or do my treadmill in my basement. I made a little gym area in my basement. I have a treadmill and some weights. The other half of the basement has a tv where the kids can do the wii while I workout or they play with toys I have down there.

When school is in I take off with the double carriage after my son gets on the bus early in the morning. I run up the hills in my neighborhood.

Saturdays are my fun day to put an old dvd or vhs in. I do this while the baby naps in the afternoon, but you could totally have your 6 year old do something for an hour while you workout.

You don't have to workout every day. I just feel my best when I do. Its more of a therapy for me. keeps me sane with 3 kids LOL. My husband works 24/7 so I'm always with my kids. If you have someone to watch him/her for an hour then do these workouts alone.


best of luck to you! Sorry this is long winded. But as a mom and fitness instructor I'm passionate about this and want to help. You can fit fitness in!

Don't sleep. Sadly, this is how I fit everything in. I am out of the house 10 hours a day (factoring in my commute) and like most moms, I do 90% of the chores in the house, including almost 100% of the mental load. I work out late at night, sometimes doing Youtube workout videos in my garage. Try to fit in some HIIT videos in the morning. I did a Fitness Blender video last night that was a great workout that burned about 300 calories and it was only 30 minutes long. I love the idea of taking some walks or bike rides with your kids. At this point in the game with your foot issue, you might just have to focus on cutting back the food to lose weight instead of the exercise. Then you can gradually add that in as your son gets older and more independent and your foot heals. Good luck. It's so hard, I get it!

Edit: the above poster's suggestion about doing some activity while your son does sports is a great idea!

I drink a lot of water, so have frequent walks to the bathroom.

When the kids were younger, I would fit in 30 minute workouts by getting up early of after they got into bed. These days, I send them out of the room and do my 30 minute workouts after dinner. (I have Beachbody on Demand for my workouts, but there are free ones on YouTube and there's always workout DVDs at the library.)

I also signed both of them up for karate and realized it would only cost a few extra dollars a month for me to do it with them instead of sitting there playing on my phone during their class. So, we karate 2x a week.

I walk at lunch about 50% of the time. I know that won't work for you now, but maybe it will when summer daycare is over.

Recently, my work allowed anyone who wanted a standing desk to get one. Standing most of the day makes me feel much less sluggish by the end of the day.

Try standing at your desk to step/pace whenever you can.

I have a 5-year-old, a 2-year-old, an 8-5 desk job, and a 40-minute commute each way, so I can relate. I'm also on very limited activity because of pain/upcoming surgery. I wake up at 4:45a M-F and walk 15 minutes on my treadmill or lift weights to get it done before anyone else wakes up!

I usually go for a short walk at lunch with a co-worker or by myself. If it's too hot outside, we will walk through one of our parking garages. And then I just try to be more active throughout the day. Like someone else said, I drink a LOT of water, so I'm getting up frequently. I try to take the stairs whenever available. If I've been sitting too long, I just get up and walk a lap or will take the stairs down a flight and then walk back up.

I try to be more active with my kids, but sometimes it's hard in the evenings! I also try to be really conscious about food/calorie intake because I know I'm not super active right now with lots of opportunities to offset the calories.