Yikes, I am cringing reading some of these, but good for you ladies! Your dedication is amazing.

LisaMarie, I was going to be an English teacher but I realized I could never stand dealing with teenagers all day, so I commend you!

I'm one of those people who has to have a lot of down time, alone... no kids, not married, not living with partner, etc... I'm a night owl, so I don't always get as much sleep as I'd like. My typical day goes like this:

7 a.m. Wake up (this is way too late but I can't drag myself out before this)
8 a.m. Leave for work (this is also too late, I am trying to leave 10 minutes earlier because it usually takes 40 mins to get to work, but sometimes I'm lucky)
8:30-5:30: work
5:30- communte (40 min or so)
6:30- eat dinner, then bs around and digest
8-9:15- gym
9:30-12ish- downtime!

Current dilemna - join gym -or jog/walk for free

Over the last 17 years that I have been married - the days my life on my own really began. I have taken moments in my life to walk every day - then stopped- joined gym after gym - then stopped - and i'm right now back onto losing weight - i'm at an all time high that i never thought in a million years that i would ever weigh - but don't tell me something is not possible because when it comes to gaining weight - I am now a firm believer in anythhing is possible.

Now lets see if I can trick my brain into looking at losing weight as my new 'thing to beat'.

Today at lunch I'm touring a new gym in my area - for 2 hopes that i'll see people who are in shape and loving it & will make me want to go even more & get to know different people in my area to expand my work & business partners with my workout partners.

I'm scared because I have joined so many gyms in the past - and i weight more now - that i have to join in secret -so for now i'm debating it strongly - do i have the guts to see it through. This gym is very close to my home & work - I can workout at lunch and maybe in the summer when i'm working the family is away on vacation i'll be able to go in the morning too - i want to get into this workout-lose weight scenario full time so that i really do achieve my goal of 130 lbs. it use to be 120 lbs but if i lost instead of gained - at this point - i would be happy.

I completely agree with Wyllenn. You have to make healthful eating and exercise a priority, otherwise it doesn’t work. I know because I’ve been there, when I didn’t’ make them a priority it all fell apart on me.

But I also know where RidicouslyAddicted and Walking2lose are coming from. I also feel at times as if I have no time for anything I want to do. Wyllenn hit it home for me when she says she felt like she was doing the same thing over and over, but if that’s what it takes, then that’s what I’m going to have to do and accept it.

I’ve always tried to “do it all”, but I know now that I have to set more realistic expectations out of life in general. I can’t do it all and I’ll have to make sacrifices to make the important things work.

I've definitely made exercise and health a priority in my life. At the moment I have lots of time for exercising but I didn't always have that option. At one time I had little kids and DH would leave the house by 7AM, I was at the gym from 5am to 6:30am 5 days/week. When I went back to work full time, this is what I did also... I'd exercise on the weekend too when hubby was home with the kids. We were a tag team I'd arrive and he'd leave to do his thing, he likes to walk and bike... If there's a will there's a way!

I think at times like that you have to examine what you want to do and figure out how to do it more healthfully.

IE: If I want to relax, a nice walk in the park works as well as soaking in the tub. I take some peanuts, put the baby in the stroller, and we feed the squirrels, play on the swing. By the time we do all that, I'm more primed for exercising and I'll take off on a jog for awhile then walk it back off a bit afterward.

If I want to watch a movie, I watch it marching in place instead of sitting in place. If I want to go shopping, I park as far from the doors as possible and get in as much walking as I can while shopping. I take my carts back. I even play games with the baby and run with him in the buggy to get him giggling. People point and stare at the lady running in the parking lot like something's chasing her, but oh well.

If all else fails, trying exercising during the work/school day. Look for reasons to use the stairs. Hand deliver messages instead of intercomming. Do ab and hip exercises in your chair. Switch your chair for a body ball...that's exercise just to sit on one and balance all day. Look for a reason to walk to work/school. If it's way too far, just park a few blocks away when you drive in and walk the rest of the way in.

Just try and find a way to incorporate the exercise into something you gotta do, or something you wanna do.

Previously I would have said that I hadn't got time to fit in a 30 minute walk, but instead of getting the bus I walk to work. It hasn't taken much alteration to my morning, I just leave home a bit earlier. To get fit is now a major priority for me.

We all tend to naturally put our husbands and kids first. We've always got time to dash round doing things for them but we also need to do things for ourselves too And making time to improve our health is our gift to ourselves.

One thing I did was hire someone to clean my house. They come once every two weeks and it costs me $85 per visit. It's so worth it. Now I don't have to waste time in the evenings or weekends cleaning, other than doing dishes and laundry.

For cooking, anything I make for dinner has to feed us for at least two nights. That way I don't have to cook every night. I have some recipes that feed us for three or four nights (I usually end up freezing some of these, so that we aren't eating the same thing four nights in a row). My SO is on his own for breakfast and lunch, so I only worry about myself for those meals.

I also try to be productive while watching TV in the evenings. I go through my mail, the paper, magazines, and pay bills.

I am lucky though that I work from home, so I don't have any commute and I don't have to waste time showering, getting dressed, etc. in the morning (although I do try to shower every few days). It also allows me to work out during the day.

I still haven't figured out how to fit hobbies in. I have a lot of unfinished projects.

Thanks for all of your responses! They made me tired! Just kidding... kind of.

I am fitting in hour-long workouts 5 days a week, and could probably fit them in on the weekend, too, quite honestly. I just told myself that my goal was 5 days a week so I don't push it beyond that. Silly, I know.

I feel like I've made time for exercise. But my relationships, hobbies, and cleaning have suffered. KWIM? The relationships and hobbies thing really bugs me...

Hobbies? I think my workouts have become my hobbies, I'm not complaining I really enjoy exercising more than anything else I do...