Finding Time for Workouts

When you have one or two full-time jobs and you have to take care of kids you probably don’t feel like exercising often. When you have some downtime you’d rather sleep then go for a row. Am I right?

Before you convince yourself that you have no time for exercise, think again. Exercising doesn’t drain you of personal energy, it boosts it and this is exactly what you need when you’re being drained in other areas of your life – whether that’s your job, your kids, running the household… or all of the above.

If you created a workout plan you’d be more likely to follow it. When you have a plan you’ll know exactly what you could do given a certain amount of time. A plan will have a set a time-frame and a motivating goal to work towards, that gets you out of bed in the morning.

So let’s create an exercise plan you’ll find hard to resist:

Step 1: Understanding why exercise is important to you…

Like anything new you embark upon its important to question and understand the path you are going on. The clearer it is in your head the more motivated you will be and the higher the success rate you will have on achieving those goals.

Here are the questions I start with every new client:

1. Why is exercise important to you? Is it to stay fit? Lose the baby weight? Stay healthy so you can keep up with the kids? These are all key questions in understanding the importance exercise plays in your life.
2. How does exercising make you feel? You love that feeling afterward and although you’re tired you’re also more energised. So when you need a bit of motivation, think of how strong you feel afterward. Find that vision that will light a spark within you and get you moving.
3. What will be your end result? Forget the ideal weight you want and focus on how good you want to feel. Perhaps you want to be able to carry more groceries at one or be able to run as fast as your toddler. When you don’t feel like putting on your trainers, think of your vision to help you lace up.

Step 2: Plan your work and work your plan.

Only having limited time for workouts isn’t ideal, however if we have a goal then the best place to start is with something that makes you feel awesome and something that is achievable. Just like food, there are some great options available to us if we plan ahead and insure we know what we have to do in the time we have. Oh and on that note, buy a calendar just to mark your progress, you don’t have to fill it with gold stars to track your fitness training but it will be there as a written something for you to look at every day and feel like a superstar!

Here are some of the types of fitness goals you can aim for:
To do 25 push-ups
Row a 5km (with friends for an added bonus)
Work on that core musculature
Figure out how to make exercise part of your daily routine so it just becomes a habit

Step 3: Don’t be (too) hard on yourself.

If you or your child is sick, or you simply had a rough day at the office, it’s all right to miss one day of exercise. Your goal is to have the time and energy to exercise on a regular basis. Don’t fault yourself if you have to skip a day as long as you stay dedicated to your goal(s). Remember it’s all about taking care of yourself.

Photo by Samantha Gades on Unsplash