I know this has got to be a rare post

Can you coach their sports?

I have a feeling single moms may have some insight on this "rare" condition....

Good for you for doing all you do

Can you get a work out in when they are off at their sports? Doing alot of the household things is a work out in its self, so dont beat yourself up to much I find it amazing that you are a single dad and kicking *kitten* at it. Good for you

What about getting up early to get your workout in? Or perhaps you can hire someone to come in and clean to free up some of that time for you???

How about if you participated in practicing with them? Take them to the park and play their sport for fun with them, then you are getting a workout and spending time with them. That is what we have to do. Ours are little, so it's a little easier, but they go with us and we play outside with them and get exercise that way.

Most Mom's do this every day. You have some options, but a lot depends on how old the kiddies are.

1) Get up early and workout before they get up for school
2) Workout at lunch
3) Workout while they are at practice - run around their field, gym, etc.
4) Workout while they are doing homework
5) Workout after they go to bed

Give them chores too - if they are in school, there is no reason they can't dust, run the sweeper, do the dishes, etc.....

Well, I walk while my oldest has soccer practice. You could try doing that if you are not assisting with coaching.

Otherwise, do a DVD at home. If you want to run, let them ride bikes with you while you run.

If you are trying to get to a gym for weights, I would recommend buy the basics and do it at home.

There are never enough hours in the day. It's tough (and I'm not a single mom) but, when my husband has to go out of town for work, I play that role. Make time for it. If they don't want to participate, at least you are setting the example for a healthy lifestyle.

As for the food, mine don't eat what I do either but I do make them try it each time.

your problem translates to all parents especially when multiple kids are in the mix... i use my lunch at work and i run laps during the boys baseball practices... i pull out a little time for myself at somepoint on Saturdays and Sundays.. But i also do what i call hurricaine cleaning at home, which means i run my butt off cleaning house on Saturdays as fast as i can.. deep cleaning sweeping mopping laundry. cleaning under furniture. i have hard woods so they have to be mopped every week by hand or they get nasty. i work up a sweat and yes it is at least a low impact workout... you can find ways to work it in.. stay motivated you are not alone.

Im a single mother and know the feel all too well. Do you have a support system? I have negotiated with family and friends to watch my son while I work out and I do favors for them in return by either watching their kids or letting them borrow my truck to haul stuff around or something like that. I’m also a member of a gym that has free daycare so when I have to, I drag him to the gym with me. I’m not sure how young your kids are but jogging strollers and bike trailers do me wonders. I also purchased the p90X DVD's and do the workouts when he naps or when he is occupied. Sometimes he joins me and its fun to watch him try to moves. I also do little things like take the stairs when I can; I work on the 7th floor of my building and workout on my lunch break when I dont need to worry about finding sitters. Every little bit helps! I hope that helps!

It sounds like a small home gym might be the way to go. You can do a quick full body routine in about 45 minutes after they go to bed. A pull up bar, maybe some kettlebells, resistance bands and a flat bench. The work around the house is keeping you active though so at least you are getting a workout in.

Most Mom's do this every day. You have some options, but a lot depends on how old the kiddies are.

1) Get up early and workout before they get up for school
2) Workout at lunch
3) Workout while they are at practice - run around their field, gym, etc.
4) Workout while they are doing homework
5) Workout after they go to bed

Give them chores too - if they are in school, there is no reason they can't dust, run the sweeper, do the dishes, etc.....

I agree with this ^^^ I cant' even get my boyfirend to do chores....most days....:laugh:

Single Mom here....and my solution.: WAKING UP AT THE CRACK OF DAWN TO DO MY WORKOUTS. lol

I'm not typically a morning person, and I love my kid, but he gets in the way when I am trying to push it during my workout. Like you, I've tried getting him involved, etc. but he's three and still kind of at that age where he wants attention etc.

I used to workout after he went to bed at around 8PM but I often found myself slacking on my workouts or debating with myself throughout the day on whether I feel like working out or not lol. Also, if I had the time and my home/gym was closer I would try exercising at lunch.

Take advantage of your weekends!! I save all the 'household chores' for Saturday and Sunday. Of course, I pick up around myself during the week, but everything else is saved for the weekends (are they old enough to help with chores?). Also, Sundays I do all my prepping for my cooking and map out my meal plans for the week. That way each day I don't have to spend as much time on the cooking. This is also where they can get involved (if they are old enough).

Overall, single dad you got the right mentality. There are a ton of small things you can do to get more organized but all in all, do the best you can. If it means you have to break your workouts into smaller routines (30 min in the AM and 30 min at night, etc.) then do what you gotta do!

Hope I've helped!

To say what most are saying. How old are the kids? I wake up at 5AM sometimes to go jogging before everyone is awake. And I do my strength training stuff at night after they go to bed. Its tough but if it's what I want to do that's what I have to work with.

Use your kids as weights. Perfect for arm curls. Do bench presses with your kids on top of you. Or have them sit on your back while you do pushups. Get a pull up bar and let your kids "hang out" while you're doing pull ups. My dad use to do these things to my brother and I and we got a "kick" out of it (I had to LOL at myself for the pun). Then we grew too old and heavy. Like others have said, incorporating your kids into your exercising is an easy option (like with the team sports). My dad was also my baseball coach so I learned from those experiences. He was very involved with our physical development because he wanted us to grow up into top athletes.

An in home gym really helps, and it does not have to be extravagant. Just the basics for general conditioning and maintenance. A pull up bar, a flat bench with the back extension, maybe some free weights. There are SO many things you can do with just a bench alone. You can look into body weight exercises too. This sounds silly but I like to do pushups while I'm grilling chicken....

I'm a single mom of 6 year old twins. I get home at 6pm as well. Cook dinner, do laundry (yes daily if I can manage), do homework, bathe kids, read books, pack up their lunch for school the next day & my breakfast for work the next day, pick out everyone's clothes for the next day, get them to bed at 8pm and I workout from 9pm-1030ish... sometimes later. I also workout during my lunch break if I feel I need a smidge more. It's possible. Of course, I sacrifice a lot. I don't stay online chatting all night like I'd like to. I don't go out with friends (even if I had a babysitter, I would just go to a workout class) and I no longer watch television or movies. That's just how it is for me.