Commuters--how do you get that workout in without getting bu

lisaidem
lisaidem Posts: 194 Member
edited October 3 in Motivation and Support
I live and work in the DC area, so my commute is an hour and 15 minutes on a good day. On a federal holiday. Or Christmas at midnight (don't even ask why I was working!).
How do you guys get in that daily workout after a full day of work and a long commute? Do you feel burned out?

When I get home I immediately change into my workout clothes, and start the music pumping. As soon as I am done I go make dinner (because nachos is my husband's idea of making dinner), clean the kitchen. Now it's 9pm and I'm exhausted! And then on the weekends I am running all the errands I don't have time for during the week.

What are your tricks to getting it all done? And goody for you if you can get up at the crack of dawn :tongue:

Replies

  • fakeplastictree
    fakeplastictree Posts: 836 Member
    I feel ya. I work an hour from home and have two kids to make food for a husband to pack lunch for. etc.... I don't get to workout until the kids are in bed at 8pm. Then I have to clean up and workout usually starts around 8:30pm. And YES I am so burned out by the end of the day and everyday. But i just remember that this is the journey there. Once you get to where you want to be, the training doesn't have to be as intense and frequent.
  • rbryntes
    rbryntes Posts: 710 Member
    I live in Virginia and work in DC. I have been leaving earlier to get to work and go to the gym first - I get up and put on my workout clothes and go into DC that way. The commute is much shorter and traffic much easier if you leave earlier. Anyway that's how I do it.
  • Niveous
    Niveous Posts: 294 Member
    I bike commute. Obviously this may not be an option for everyone, but it's a great option for me. It saves me a lot of time and allows me to be done with my exercise by the time I get home.
  • Jw9576
    Jw9576 Posts: 29 Member
    I would try and see about joining a gym close by. Then you can workout and hopefully by the time you are done, the traffic commute will be less and it won't take you as long.
  • FaugHorn
    FaugHorn Posts: 1,060 Member
    Hey! I'm in the DC commute land too (Leesburg to downtown on the commuter bus!) so I know exactly what you're talking about. I leave the house at 6:30am and get home around 6:30pm (yuck!) I try and get working out done right when I get home too but not sure how long I'll be able to keep that up. I'm starting an evening gig as well which I'll have to do after work so I'm thinking about starting to get up at 5am to be able to do a work out...putting it off though ;)
  • macpatti
    macpatti Posts: 4,280 Member
    I have a 45 min drive each way! We only work out 3 times a week, and one of those is Saturday. Makes it a little easier that I only have to motivate myself twice during the work week, but even that can be difficult. Like you said, I still have to fix dinner, help with home work, clean, do laundry, etc. No wonder time flies!
  • cheri0627
    cheri0627 Posts: 369 Member
    I workout at a gym close to my office, so I do that before I go home. (If I didn't, I probably would never make it to the gym.)
  • hefinator
    hefinator Posts: 260
    I'm lucky and have a 24 hour fitness in the same buidling I work in. Traffic is horrible by the time I get off at 4:30pm, so I just head downstairs and work out between 30 minutes and an hour. by the time i'm done, I can skip out on all the traffic, straight shot home, and get home in time to make dinner! When i drive alone, and leave at 4:30, i'm not home until about6:00. when I head to the gym and then get home, i'm home around 6:30. a 30 minutes difference, but i've got my workout for the day finished!
  • Lotte34
    Lotte34 Posts: 429 Member
    I live just outside london! Its quicker for me to walk to the next station down the line then get the train than it is to get the train that extra stop. Thats how i get my work out. I walk about 8 miles a day, as fast as I can
  • shaj316
    shaj316 Posts: 161
    My company is flexible about working from home. I never took advantage of it because I like working in the office, but now that I've started to take my health and fitness seriously, I don't think I could do it any other way. Maybe you can look into that as an option? Even if your employer doesn't allow it now, it might be something you can talk them into? Good luck!

    btw...I do it only 2-3 times a week. Even one day would be huge.
  • JamieSK
    JamieSK Posts: 266 Member
    When I lived in Chicago I'd get up early and workout before work that way I know I've got it in and I have more energy throughout the day. It also feels good knowing the workout is done and in for the day.
  • hazysusan
    hazysusan Posts: 7
    I have to get up before everyone else and get in a run while it is still dark out. I am NOT motivated to work out unless I do it first thing in the morning. In your situation, though, I would definitely find a gym near work and go that route.
  • tomomatic
    tomomatic Posts: 1,794 Member
    I feel your pain. I've done that commute for years. Here's what I do:

    - I set up a stationary bike in front of a TV next to the kid's play area. I watch at least 60% of my TV in front of the bike. I've even hooked up a laptop to the TV so that I can stream things from Hulu and Netflix.
    - My wife and I have an unofficial schedule worked out on when who works out.
    - I have designated nights of the week when I can work late and made it very clear to my team. This is not negotiable as Daycares are not flexible on pick up times.
    - Walking lunch. I used to walk to food trucks and sometimes they'd be pretty far away.
  • PatasDeGallina
    PatasDeGallina Posts: 155 Member
    I agree with fakeplastictree (nice name, btw), it doesn't have to be intense or frequent. You can try little things in your day that will make big changes in the long run. If you can, try parking far away when you get to work (you can do this running errands also). Take the stairs as much as you can.

    You can count calories burned walking to the car, taking the stairs, cleaning the kitchen... Although really you can get your husband to help with this also. This will give you more time to shower and get to bed earlier. Adequate sleep is important right now.

    Make a trade of: you cooked, he picks up the dishes and loads the dishwasher. If he doesn't care for that, then he can help cook.

    Teaching him to eat cook square healthy meals will help you in your journey to be healthier also. Tell him to put three things on the table, protein, veggie, grain, and then he can add dairy and fruit if he wants to. Get some of those microwave in the bag veggies.

    Just remember, most important, you are trying. Pat yourself on the back for being here and doing your best. :smile:
  • lolomichelle13
    lolomichelle13 Posts: 56 Member
    I have about a 40 minute commute.. but luckily my work has a gym. I will get a workout in during my lunch, then usually a walk or a shorter workout in at home. If I didn't have the gym at work, I'd find it very hard to get up and go back out for a long workout once I got home.
  • innerfashionista
    innerfashionista Posts: 451 Member
    I have a 45-50 minute commute each way...I feel your pain.

    I've always worked out at night. I get home around 5 and usually don't start working out until about 5:45...it's when I have the most time. There are nights where it's the LAST THING I want to do, but it gets to be habit. I know how my body feels if I don't work out, and that's what keeps me going.

    I think I'm one of 3 people who prefers night workouts...I know how much I have to burn to stay in my calories.
  • Mombie13187
    Mombie13187 Posts: 23 Member
    I'm with ya 100% on this. My husband and I only have 1 car. I work in old town Gaithersburg (an hour commute) and he works in Silver Spring and works 70 hours a week. I work a part time job as well (gotta pay those bills) luckily it's in Frederick. We get up at 5:30 AM he's gotta get ready, I have to get ready, and we have to get our 1 year old son ready. Then were out of the house at 6:15 AM and drop our son off at daycare at 6:30 AM. Then the hour long commute to work. I don't get off work until 5 PM and then the hour long commute home (luckily I have 2 great co-workers I can car pool with). I pick my son up from daycare at 6:15 PM. Then home by 6:30 PM. I make dinner and my son and I at usually between 7 PM and 7:30 PM. Then it's a little bit of play time and then bath time and then he is in bed between 8 PM and 8:30 PM. Then I change and get ready for work (yes my 2nd job). Then I clean up from dinner and make lunches and get the bags packed for the next day, clothes picked out, etc. Then My husband gets home from work at 9 PM and I'm out the door at 9 PM with enough time to give him a kiss good bye and tell him his dinner is in the microwave. I have to be at 2nd job at 9:30 PM and then I work until 2 AM. Get home at 2:30 AM... get about 3 hours of sleep and then I'm up at 5:30 AM to do it all over again. Then on weekends my husband works Saturday 7 AM to 5 PM so he has to leave by 6 AM and isn't home until 6 PM. Then I work Saturday nights from 6:30 PM to 2 AM and I work usually 8 hours on Sunday and have a little bit of family time in there in between and time to get ready for the next work week. Some where in between all of this is time to do laundry, clean the house, be with my son, and be with my husband and you can forget me time. So I don't know how in the heck to juggle it all.
  • Kany
    Kany Posts: 336
    I live and work in the same city but it takes me 2 freeways to get to work and return home. So my daily commute is an hour roundtrip (trust me, I'm not a slow driver either). I work 8+ hours sitting at the desk. The moment I get into my car, I'd bump the music really loud and start dancing and singing like an idiot (but who cares). I'm getting pumped up for the gym. I head home to change and pick up my husband. Here's the crucial part. Once I step into my house, I do not sit or even get close to my computer. Once I sit, it's over for me and there's no way I would go to the gym then. I'll just quickly change into my gym clothes and hit the gym for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

    Upon my return home, I'll eat grilled chicken breast or maybe just drink my protein shake (my husband doesn't really care if I cook or not and I don't have kids to worry about feeding). I'll walk the dogs for a bit then return to wash the dishes and clean up a little while watching the TV. After that it's study time. It's a long day but it makes the week go by so fast. Sometimes if I sleep early enough I'll try to get up before 5 to go to the gym early morning.
  • Rolynthunder
    Rolynthunder Posts: 30 Member
    I have a 45-60 minute commute each way to work, and I usually work about 10-11 hour days. When I get home and I'm too tired to go to the gym, I pop in a Jillian Michael's DVD and push as hard as I can for the 28 minutes of the workout and burn usually around 230 calories. On Weekends I try to go to the gym or go for a long walk. My finance and I also go for 30-45mins walk around our neighborhood at night to spend some time moving and also get to talk.
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    My worst commute was 2 hours each way to the other side of London. The only way I could get exercise in was to join a gym that had a branch near work and workout there at lunchtime. Now it takes about an hour, so I take my kit to work so I can go straight to the gym without walking in the door and sitting on the sofa! When I know I'm just not going to get a workout it, I take a 40-minute power walk at lunchtime.
  • Gay11nell
    Gay11nell Posts: 166 Member
    The Life of A Real Women! lol lol lol lol

    Honestly, I allowed myself to be okay with the fact something may not get done.

    Secondly, delegate if possible and fight for it! Husband and kids are resistance to help because at the end of the day, they know we will end up doing it if they don't. Especially if they don't do it right!

    I catch the park and ride- so parking as far away from the bus ramp really helps! If possible take your breaks and lunches to squeeze in exercise-This really helps with the stress that comes with work and I don't feel as worn out and sluggish after work. Weight lifting at your desk: it seem a little weird at first, but it work.

    Several 10min workouts through out the day have gotten me thru really busy times, go to this website (www.healthnews.ediet.com/fitness-exercise/4-fat-burning-cardio-routines.html)
    My favorite- Stairs: first two trips are warm ups, next two pick up the pace going up-go down moderate pace, next two take every other step-go down fast, trip 7&8: go up fast as you can-puming are vigorously, then walking down slowly, last two perform quick steps on the bottom step as in "step glass".

    Sometimes I drive to work and run errands on my breaks/lunches.
  • marianne_s
    marianne_s Posts: 983 Member
    It's usually an hour 15 minutes after leaving work, commuting from the City (London) to the suburbs, before I get home - that includes picking up my 6 year old daughter from creche.
    Once home, we sit down & do her spelling homework & reading. Afterwards I make her a snack (as she's already eaten a hot meal at creche), then I get my workout gear on & workout for an hour - by this time it's usually 7 or 7:30pm.

    Once done, I get my daughter ready for bed @ 8/8:30.... and have my dinner... then shower.... usually finished around 9:30pm....

    Whew.... that sounds like lot, but it gets easier.... in fact, I don't find it stressful to do...
  • 6566tess
    6566tess Posts: 39 Member
    BUMP
  • tabbydog
    tabbydog Posts: 4,925 Member
    My commute is anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half. In the summer I get up at 4:30 to run before work before it gets to hot out. The rest of the time I run on my lunch hour. We have lockerrooms at the office. Is there a gym near your work so you can work out at lunch?
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