I was just wondering how many of us are stay at home mom's on this forum, and what you do throughout the day to help keep you on track how does your day go what are your kids ages ect.. just curious!
I have 2 girls a 9 month old and a 3 year old, and right now im just trying to get a plan together i want to get my house and my body in order and am always looking for new ways tips or ideas to get me to my goals!

I am....but may not be for much longer. I've been home for the past five years.
Now that Talia is in grade one, I need to get my butt in gear!

I've lost weigh twice in that time (40 lbs. each time approx. halfway to my goal), and gained the rest.

I really can't say how I did it, because it's like some gung-ho switch goes on, and I don't have any problems saying no to food and it's easy to make good choices. I'm in that mode right now, and I want it to last forever...but I admit I am terrified. The last two time I lost...I knew in my heart that *this was it* and now, after two failures, I'm really scared of this feeling.

I'm so sorry, this doesn't even remotely answer your question!

I'm kind of in a new phase too, because both my kids are now in school all day. Between September and now, I loved to come home and EAT and watch soaps while they were in school....so I guess I need those answers too!!

Looking forward to the answers you get!


Linda

I've been a SAHM for almost 9 years -- I have an 8 year old and a 4 year old (both boys) -- I've learned (unfortunately, just recently ) that it is VERY important for me to keep busy, shut off the TV and stay out of the kitchen!! I also work part-time doing medical transcription, but this is mostly after everyone goes to bed at night. I actually spend a lot of my day just keeping track of my 8-year old's schedule -- I volunteer a lot at school and am a member of the PTO. I, however, think what I do right now could be the most important job I ever have and I try to be the best mom I can. When they were smaller (before school/preschool) I did a lot of play groups with them, library story time, etc. because I also think the disadvantage to the kids of SAHM's is they could possibly lack the social skills daycare kids get. So, I've always tried to keep them involved. For exercise (which is SO hard with little ones), we've taken walks in the woods on trails, play lots of sports outside (thank goodness we have the room!), trips to playgrounds, etc. I want to make sure they don't end up being coach potatoes either!!

Enjoy the girls while they are little, there are definitely disadvantages to staying home as well as all the advantages, but to me it is well worth it!!

After years of working full time I had kiddos and stayed at home for a few years. I think it's hard work!!!! Recently I started working again so right now I'm a part-time SAHM. I work outside of the home on Mondays and Fridays as a lab tech and then am a WAHM the other days. I have 2 dd's also. My oldest just turned 4 in November and my youngest will be 3 in April. When I'm at home my days FLY by. When it's time to make dinner, I'm always amazed at where the day has gone. I try to plan out my food for the day first thing in the morning, and then I input it into FitDay as I have time. T-W-Th mornings always start the same way (unless girls are sick) with getting up and going right to the gym. Then I go home and start working my bookkeeping business. (Oh, yeah and spend way to much time on 3FC!!!!!) Plus doing the household stuff. My DH is super and pitches in around the house when he's home. He's on call a lot though right now, so I feel like I'm alone with the girls so much. Getting them up and putting them to bed and everything inbetween!

I find it very hard to workout at home. But when they have colds or other illnesses that's my only choice. If they're up to it they like to do it with me and that's great, but I'm always having to be careful that I don't step on them! I often tell them I need to exercise first and then put on a kids exercise dvd and they'll do that. My 4 year old is just starting to be involved in helping me. She can unload the dishwasher (usually putting most stuff on the counter!) and put her and her sisters clothes away. Plus clean up toys.

A SAHM mom has a big advantage in that there are no office goodies lying around. No power lunches to deal with. You also have a kitchen right at your fingertips. You can make great healthy breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks. No need to brown bag it.

You need to have the house well stocked with healthy foods, get rid of the junk and YES, have a PLAN in place. Map out your food scheduele for the day/week - whatever. Don't leave your food consumption up in the air. Too risky. Eating healthy does not happen by chance, it must be planned for.

I also think mapping out a time scheduele as to when you can eat might be helpful. Ya know, setting up specific times. That's worked well for me.

Have you tried an online calorie counter such as fitday.com? It's very useful.

It's a good idea to have some thing planned throughout the day to keep you busy for the slow times (although there's probably not too many of those with 2 young kids around). Whether it be straightening up the linen closet, a dresser drawer, some sewing, crocheting or what have you.

Another thing about being at home. You can exercise. There are lots and lots of very good exercise DVDs on the market. One of my favorites that I used to use (I work at a gym now) is Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds.

Good luck to you.

WHAT?
What time do you go to bed? Do you go back to bed? Sleep is a good thing too! My kids wake me up 2-3 times a night as it is...believe me I'm not thinking about exercise then!!

I am a SAHM full-time and I run a daycare M-Th. I've recently given notice to the parents that I will continue to do daycare until the end of February. I will only be keeping my wednesday kids after that. I was exhausted and TIRED to the bone...chasing after my kids (who are all boys - 3 1/2 years old) and 2 two year olds and 2 four year olds.

After lots of discussion, hubby and I decided that for my health - that I absolutely need more time...time to be healthy, time to be exercise, time to plan, enough time to actually cook real meals. Before I was just running around like a chicken with my head cut-off!!! Just barely keeping on top of the day to day household stuff...not good for me, not good for my children. And I would just EAT the day away with stress.

I agree with a poster above. SAHM's don't have the outside temptations, if it's not in the house, you can't eat it. BUT you can still eat too much of the good stuff if the bad stuff is not here, and that's not good either. I'm a binge eater...and I could eat anything healthy in outrageous proportions. Not good.

I feel really lucky to be a SAHM AND a WAHM. My job allows me to telecommute, and it takes some doing to make it all work, but it's what keeps me sane. My kids are 9, 10, and the oldest is in college. My DH is a merchant marine so he is away a lot, and if I couldn't work from home, we'd be on the childcare merry-go-round. I feel lucky we've never had to deal with that. We trade off, some years he is a SAHD and I work from the office, and other years, I telecommute, and he is away, but they have almost always had one or the other of us at home. What makes it all work as far as food goes is planning. I plan out my menus for the week before I go grocery shopping. On Sunday, I cook a pot of soup and prepare meals ahead as much as I can, as well as healthy snacks. Then I can go on autopilot during the week and not think about it.

I am! My kids are DD 12yrs, DD 7yrs, DS 2.5yrs, and DS 1.5yrs. I think in a lot of ways it is an advantage to be able to stay home(Not just for the kids, but me too)

I get to set the sched. (Mostly! Even though the 2 year old thinks he should!!) I do the grocery shopping, and the menu and cook it. Somethings I keep really simple. We have times that we are always running around. I eat the samething for bfast, snack and lunch. All of it very simple and fast. Cereal in the morning, chunky chicken noodle for lunch and yogurt for snacks. Dinner is usually different week to week. I am always trying new things for dinner.

Having a plan that works for your family and getting all the junk out is absolutely the key for success!! We all know being a SAHM can be unpredictable at times so keeping it simple helps. Good for you easy to make foods help me the most!

The only way for me to exercise is at home when the youngest ones are sleeping! I run on a treadmil (started with walking) I go outside 2 days a week when my DH is home. The same goes for exercise as it does for eating. You need a plan that works within your family! I started running, cuz it is faster than walking! I only have about 1.5 hours that the boys nap and in that time I need to exercise, eat lunch and have a little "me time". Running helps me burn the same calories in less time!

I have been doing this for over a year now. I am always tweeking things. What I do is very specific to how my family lives. I think that is why works. You have to find out what your priorities are and what your road blocks are, then start working around them and with them.

Jelly

It is hard with little ones sometimes, isn't it? I have a rule that I do not break: I do not eat the kids' leftovers...they go straight to the trash. After my second, I realized that since they were eating like birds, I was finishing up mac and cheese, peanut butter sandwiches, etc, to not "waste" anything. Once I realized what I was doing and had a "rule," it was much easier for me to throw and not add that to my hips. Also, someone told me (concerning leftover Halloween candy) that if you don't waste it by throwing it in the trash can, you'll waste it on your body.

Also, I am very cognizant of the fact that, with two young girls, I do not want them to hear me or see me obsessing about my weight. I want them to have a positive and healthy view of weight, so when they ask why I am having a salad for lunch, I tell them that I am eating healthier now. They are tuned into "healthy" foods and are wanting to eat them, too, so we all dive into the veggies together.

Another thing that I do is to exercise on our stationary bike while the girls play games. I think it is important for them to see us incorporating exercise into our daily routine (although it doesn't always happen here, that's for sure!).

Good luck, and just look at your dieting as numerous "teachable moments" strewn throughout your day, by which you can educate your children and equip them with the tools to maintain healthy weights and active lifestyles from the beginning!

Blessings,
Sara

good point sarah i too don't want my girls to be obsessing about their weight or the numbers on the scale so i realize now is my chance to straighten up my act so to speak I need to set a better example for my girls future!

ME TOO! I'm very careful with my words. And actions. I have a hx of binge eating (by binge I mean 2000-3000 calories at a time or 2 fast food drive-throughs in a row) and it's VERY important to me that my girls do not "learn" this behavior from me. They may have it in their "nature" later on, but I sure do not want to teach them this behavior.

I am a SAHM, to DD 5.5 and DS 4. They are both very aware of exercise, I do it all the time and they do it with me! Even when I am not exercising, I leave out the exercise ball and step, and while they watch TV they are always flipping over the ball, doing cartwheels over the step...and now DD has started doing step aerobics of her own while she watches. They also love to do walk away the pounds videos with me...and about anything I do on Exercise TV on demand they try to do with me. I started out just telling them it's mommy's time to exercise and whenever they would ask me to stop and do something I simply told them they would have to wait. It wasn't long before they started joining in.

DD is in kindergarten this year and DS is in preschool until noon...so that is my time to clean, get a healthy breakfast and lunch, and exercise...but when they were not in school I would do it while they napped or simply while they watched and mimicked me. At first they laughed and thought I was just hilarious, but they are used to it now.

As for the kids being healthy, we have completely eliminated sugar from the house..and they do not miss it. They love veggies and fruit and tear through SF NF yogurt. There are things sent in from MIL sometimes and I let them have a little then I toss it out. Now that hubby is diagnosed diabetic she should stop that and it'll be even easier now :clap:

My kids also are very active. DD takes tumbling and cheerleading right now, she did a ballet/tap class and gymnastics last year. DD takes a preschool gymnastics class and is about to start basketball at the Y. I take them to a local park where there is a big field around the play equipment, and I walk while they play. They even have been asking now to go to the walking track and they run around it while I walk.

Kids will follow your lead...you're the role model! You have to live the healthier liefestlye and they will adapt and follow along...and be happier for it. I never believed my kids would go for having no sugary stuff in the house, but they don't even ask for it now because it was replaced with equally good stuff. They are not so much into video games and stuff their friends like, but my daughter is way into cheerleading and loves practicing her tumbling, and she's getting better and better at these physical things every day. Son is already into sports and can't wait to play football..these are the things I want them to be into , not the games sitting on their butts!

Kimberly--
I am so glad you asked that question. I just recently started staying home with my 11 month old and have been struggling with how to make this work! I do agree that in some respects it is easier because I work (I still work one day a week) with a bunch of women and there is ALWAYS chocolate around. There is no chocolate here but, as someone else mentioned, I can do a lot of damage with some healthy foods as well. I think I have discovered that the only way I am going to make this work is to preplan everything and make my food the night before as if I was going to work. That way I have healthy choices ready for me. I also don't give myself the option of going out to eat-- it helps that we use Quicken to track spending-- my husband would know I did it
I currently exercise after the baby goes to sleep but I am trying to incorporate floor exercises into our day as well. As you know, we spend a lot of time on the floor so it should be fairly easy to incorporate, so say I without trying it yet!
I also purchased a book called Lean Mommy: Bond with Your Baby and Get Fit with the Stroller Strides(R) Program. It has some good ideas in it but will be easier to do once the weather warms up.
I don't think I added much to the discussion but I am very happy to hear input from others! Thanks again for the question, it will help me tremendously as well.

Hi Kimberly. I'm not technically a SAHM. Like Schmoodle, I telecommute from home for my employer. My DDs are 8 and 11 and are in school each day. I do have to deal with the constant temptation of the refrigerator and with not wanting to leave the house to workout. (that would mean getting dressed in something other than PJs!)

Planning ahead is the #1 major key to success for me. My house is my safe zone. No cookies, chips, candy, etc. Don't tell yourself that you keep that stuff in the house for the kids. The reality is that they don't need this junk every day. These should be occasional snacks. If the junk isnt in the house, you can't eat it. At first, my daughter's weren't happy. But, they quickly adjusted to the changes in our eating. Children are so much more resilient than we sometimes realize. Also, I usually have my menu planned ahead for the day. This takes the guesswork out of my eating and I have less of a tendency to stand in front of the refrigerator looking for inspiration. Also, the kids will benefit greatly from seeing you work out. They will be learning great habits at such an early age. I love Leslie Sansone's Walk-Away-The-Pounds CDs. Also, I've heard a lot of positive things about resistance bands for muscle tone.

You can do this! As you've seen from the responses to your post, there are a lot of SAHMs here who have succeeded at losing weight. If they can do it, you can too!