? For ppl who work full time

2

Replies

  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,810 Member
    Different question for those who work full time-and have kids, how do you find the time to work out? I am up at 5 am to get ready home a 530p have dinner, homework and kid stuff, just no time to get much in!!

    It is not the easiest ..... i have started taking my son to cardio kickboxing and boot camp, he has a love/hate relationship with it but oh well. I also have home workouts that I do after he is asleep or early am before I have to get up and get him up and ready. Weekends are more of a challange because all I want to do is rest from such a long week but with a 4yo that is impossible. So we either go to the pool, park, anything outdoors.

    It's not perfect, but we make it work. I get my son to school by 7:30, and am at work by 8ish, then I'm off anywhere between 4 and 5 and I pick him up, head straight to the gym (they have a great children's activity center at my gym), then we go home, eat dinner, and wash up and get ready for bed. Dinner usually doesn't happen until around 8 or 8:30, but I make sure to prep things ahead of time so it doesn't take but 5-10 minutes to get a meal ready. The only exceptions are if my son has t-ball practice or games in the evenings, I suck it up and go to the gym before work and my extremely kind, gracious boyfriend (not my son's biological dad) takes my son to school. It's tough, but fitness is important to our family so we make it work.
  • iuew
    iuew Posts: 624 Member
    i extend workout times so that i can have a bit more to eat.
  • ItsMeRebekah
    ItsMeRebekah Posts: 909 Member
    if you weigh in weekly then weigh in on mondays, then you tend to think abt that weigh in all weekend long =)
  • DaughterOfTheMostHighKing
    DaughterOfTheMostHighKing Posts: 1,436 Member
    schedule your weekend or have meals and sancks prepped already. make sure your ice maker is working and drink lots of iced water!!!
  • DaughterOfTheMostHighKing
    DaughterOfTheMostHighKing Posts: 1,436 Member
    schedule your weekend or have meals and sancks prepped already. make sure your ice maker is working and drink lots of iced water!!!

    oops.... snacks....
  • penrbrown
    penrbrown Posts: 2,685 Member
    I so struggle with weekends too (well, week day. I only have one day off a week).

    My solution has been to keep busy and/or moving. If I'm focused on something and not bored I don't think about food as much. But I think scheduling is key. Make sure you plan what you're going to eat. Don't take a break just because you're on your days off!

    :)
  • Schraudt814
    Schraudt814 Posts: 496 Member
    I'm kind of the opposite...I love the weekends! I do my best workouts on a lazy Sat or Sun afternoon. MY issue is the food...even working out I go over on weekends thanks to vino...:drinker:
  • seebeachrun
    seebeachrun Posts: 221 Member
    Pick one day on the weekend to splurge. One day only. Any time during the week that you want something or have a craving, write it down for the splurge day. When splurge day comes eat whatever you want. No I am not kidding. Whatever you want.

    You will find out two things: 1) most of the cravings are forgotten before you actually get to splurge day; and 2) you can't eat everything on splurge day because you get full faster.

    For example, this weekend I have two baby showers on Saturday. Instead of freaking out and counting calories and worrying about what I eat. I am going to eat whatever I want. But Sunday it's back to my regular diet.

    I'm extra bad because I technically have a half splurge day on Tuesdays for the local Taco special at my favorite restaurant. I make up for it by having a very light lunch that day and eating only 3 tacos really slowly instead of woofing down the 5 I really want.

    At work I keep zero calorie raspberry green tea and earl grey tea in my desk for those days that the cravings are really bad. I've found that eating oatmeal for breakfast and packing a blanced lunch with a snack for the afternoon makes it easier to avoid cravings.

    You just have to tell yourself no when it comes to treats in the office, be they candy on a desk or baked goods in the kitchen. For me I try to avoid the treat locations as much as possible but I know that is easier at some offices.
  • Mamaincali
    Mamaincali Posts: 65 Member
    You have a georgeous little boy!
    Make happy times with him that don't revolve around food. Little ones are only small once -- I say make the most of him. I tell my niece who has a four year old daughter the same thing.

    This. I have a 4 year old daughter and I try to get in physical activity as much as possible with her. Go outside and ride bike with her. Go for a walk to the park. Play in the yard with her. Do yard work with her. Go on walks together. She also loves it when I just sit down and play with her. It may not be active but there is no food involved. I also spend more time cooking on weekends and she loves cooking with me so we make healthy meals together. She also loves doing Zumba dvds with me.
  • OceansForever
    OceansForever Posts: 221 Member
    Different question for those who work full time-and have kids, how do you find the time to work out? I am up at 5 am to get ready home a 530p have dinner, homework and kid stuff, just no time to get much in!!

    I get up at 5.30 am do my 40-50 min workout. By the time I am done with my shower, my kid gets up, get her ready and I take her to preschool. Heading to work right after, work 8-9 hrs (no lunch since I show up late), leave at 6 pm, go home and either cook something quick or defrost what I have cooked ahead (do that a LOT), get kid ready to go to bed and then prepare for the morning.

    Hubby does a lot of cleaning up after us and I try to help where I can but since I got the kid to get ready, that works out perfectly.


    It's a lot of planning ahead but that's the only way I can make it work and of course with lots and lots of help of hubby who rather does house work if he knows I can work out.
  • msjta
    msjta Posts: 51
    I don't have a problem with children. My daughter is 22 yrs old. Yet, as soon as I get home i must prepare to workout in the base ment. . i have recently ben doing some 10 min workouts from you tube. they are fun and short. I try to get in at least 3 of them and ride the bike for 20 inutes or the elipical for 10...working on that machine kills me. But my goal is 30 minutes by the summer
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,228 Member
    I'm like you... I walk on my breaks too. But the weekends can be a challenge. My kids are older so they sleep a bit late. I usually take the dog for a walk early or play some Wii before the kids wake up.
  • Mamaincali
    Mamaincali Posts: 65 Member
    if you weigh in weekly then weigh in on mondays, then you tend to think abt that weigh in all weekend long =)

    This is good too.
  • Emancipated_Tai
    Emancipated_Tai Posts: 751 Member
    I have the same schedule.. plus go to school full time 5 days a week.. its hard! I am so foucused at work, but the weekends do slack off.

    Saturday is my "cheat day". I do indulge in a little more than norm, but on Sunday I just act as if I'm at work. I make all my food the night before, as I would during the week and eat them on the schedule I woudl at work.. This is the best option for me.
  • cortneymau
    cortneymau Posts: 33
    I find it very difficult to stay on track on the weekends. But the 2 things I have found that work the best are to exercise asap in the morning before everyone gets up and I moved my weigh in day to Sunday morning or Monday morning to ensure I would eat healthy the whole weekend. Then I couldn't do the excuse of well I can eat badly on the weekends and then weigh in 5 days.

    Good luck!
  • kao1114
    kao1114 Posts: 51
    I workout in the morning - if I don't, I won't. Weekends are "house cleaning" days so to burn some extra calories, I have 1 lb ankle weights to strap on which will give me a few more calories to play with if I need them. Fortunately, my husband is also on MFP & we have successfully banished all evil foods from the house so we aren't tempted on the weekends! The kids aren't so happy about that but they are still surviving! When we do go out, we do a little research first to see what will fit into our "calorie budget" and plan the rest of the day's meals around that. It takes some effort but it's do-able. Best of luck!
  • Pedalpush
    Pedalpush Posts: 246 Member
    My one-year-old and four-year-old keep me on track for now. They're not old enough to have events and birthday parties to attend so they just wake up, eat breakfast, play (while I do the housework and play some), small snack, play, break for lunch, nap (while I run around like a madwoman) play, eat dinner, get ready for bed, sleep. That's my basic weekend day. My husband runs a small company so he's always working during that time... The one thing I consistently forget to do is drink my water.
  • Agefyter
    Agefyter Posts: 105 Member
    Hard for me as well.
    Good: In the winter my husband and I go to the gym, (nice with no rush), get the chores done, then I make healthy menus for the week, grocery shop, and on Sunday make healthy lunches for the whole week.

    Bad: We make the BEST Bloody Marys! So hard to resist on the weekends! Also love to cook and drink wine. This is what makes me put on the lbs again when I reach my goal. Kills me every time!
  • adamb83
    adamb83 Posts: 719 Member
    How do you stay on track on the weekend? I am finding this sooo hard!! I work 5 days a week 40 hours and when Im at work its so easy for me to stay on track with my walking (I walk on both my 15min breaks and than for 30mins on my hour lunch break) and pretty easy to stay on track with food (except those dreaded birthday parties lol) Its the weekend that is getting me ugh any suggestions?

    Hmmm... I work full time Mon-Fri as well, and it's actually the weekends that are easier for me. I often do a double workout on one weekend day. You could always make one of your weekend days a "Rest" day and not worry about specific exercise activity (mine is Fridays, because I hate coming home at the end of the week with a workout on my mind!).

    I agree with some other commentors, though - as much as it pained me to force myself to get up earlier in the morning and get my workouts out of the way, that's what I realized I had to do. If I start doing other things during the day, I almost always get too "Busy" or too "Distracted" to get back to my workout as planned. Plus, I always feel great after a workout, so when I get it done in the morning - I feel good all day long!
  • ScarletFyre
    ScarletFyre Posts: 754 Member
    I actually find it easier on the weekends - at work i only have a few minutes here and there to try and inhale my healty food - at home at least i have the leasure of grabbing some carrots or apples etc, whenever i want.

    also i can stop and just work out any time instead of forcing myself to the gym after being drained from the work day.
  • russeljames
    russeljames Posts: 103 Member
    I do a long run on Saturday so that gives me some extra calories to play with. :) I also will eat out a lot but I just try to look up all nutrition information before I leave so I know what to order and what to stay away from.

    I think it's okay to give yourself a day off every now and then and eat what you want (within reason) and then get back on track the next day.

    i do this too, i go hard on the weekend with my exercise and my food...
  • Dayna154
    Dayna154 Posts: 910 Member
    I use weekends as a time to shake up the routine and do things that I don't normally have time for during the week. That might be trying a new recipe or workout DVD, or even going for long hike.

    THIS
  • tlinval
    tlinval Posts: 175 Member
    My weekends are Sunday/Monday. The first part of Sunday is filled with church, so that's easy, nothing there to tempt me! :wink: I plan plan PLAN my weekend food. I weigh in on Tuesdays, I do this on purpose so I "can't" goof around on the weekends. We try to do something fun with the kids on Sunday evening, go for a walk or sliding or whatever the weather allows. Mondays after I get my son off to Kindergarten, my 2 year old and I will either go for a walk or do a "walk away the pounds" video. I think I'm also going to start walking on the treadmill while she's napping. I guess my saving grace is planning and writing everything down.

    Someone asked about how parents work exercise into their day. I wish I could get up early and work out, but since my kids are awake by 5:30am that's a very unattractive option for me! :grumble: :noway: I walk on my lunch breaks at work, and I also use my treadmill/go outside after they go to bed. My husband works in construction and I have an office job, so we usually split up in the evenings and do our own things (he's tired and I'm rarin' to go!), which is ok since it's my only ME time. I think you just have to make the commitment and "make time". Every little bit helps, 10 minutes here 15 minutes there.
  • JeanetteDee
    JeanetteDee Posts: 53 Member
    I just take those two days off. They are my rest days from exercise and I'm not strict about watching my calories. I don't go completely crazy but I don't stress if we go out to a restaurant.

    this
  • dayhadley
    dayhadley Posts: 46
    Work all week and have my step-kiddies on weekends. My hubby and I have been on MFP for only 3 weeks and I've lost 7 and he's lost about 8-9 lb's already. We found planning and being knowledgable works, even on weekends. We've (everyone) become(s) more knowledgable about the food we're eating due to MFP's nutritional facts on our diary's, so we're familiar with the food we eat and buy. We buy a lot of snack's for the kids, but even they like the 90-calorie brownies and Whonu (new fave!) chocolate chip cookies.

    We've also substituted whole eggs for egg whites - this was hard for me at first since Sat/Sun are the only days I make my delicious eggs, but I found if you make a scramble or omelet w/ veggies and low-fat cheese, it is still quite delish. We just make sure the fridge and pantry are stocked w/our low-cal favorites and stick to them. Also, try new recipes to keep it interesting. My favorite is delish.com - they usually list nutritional facts.

    I see you have little ones, so maybe invest in a bike with the trailer/stroller that you can tow along behind you for exercise. We have a 9 and 10 year old, so we trudge out to the mountains or desert for hiking and exploring and go biking every chance we get.

    I hope this helps! We could all use a few tips and a lot of encouragement in this battle ;o) GOOD LUCK!
  • Tiff1124
    Tiff1124 Posts: 261 Member
    I get all of my workouts done during the week, so I can have the weekends off. Saturday is my "fun" day :)
  • NovemberJune
    NovemberJune Posts: 2,525 Member
    Mondays are my rest days and I exercise every other day, so I exercise on weekends. And I plan out my food diary ahead of time every day. If I eat out, it's almost always Subway.

    ETA I exercise after my kids go to bed, Tuesday through Sunday :)
  • mesicali_chica
    mesicali_chica Posts: 71 Member
    I plan my weekends the same way I do my weekdays. I work out in the morining before my weekend schedule and at least do a 1 hour work out. I plan my meals ahead of time so I stick to my calorie allowance. Its a lifestyle change so my weekends should fall in line with the weekday routine.
  • purplegoboom
    purplegoboom Posts: 400 Member
    Find a workout class you would be interested in that's held on the weekends, like karate or kickboxing.
  • MrsKosal
    MrsKosal Posts: 415 Member
    I have my husband on board with me, so he makes sure I don't cheat and don't miss my workouts. He is a great motivator, especially since he's in the military and is very fit and healthy too. I used to struggle the most on weekends. I just try to keep the junk out of the house so I'm not tempted by it too.
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