How much effort would you make...
 

To make sure you fit in exercise?

Due to a new baby, I cannot workout out daily at my ideal time, first thing in the morning, like 5am. To workout regularly, I'd have to workout in the afternoon, late morning, or even at night (8pm) after the kids are asleep. I hate working out all over the place, I really stick to it better with a routine time slot, which is just not possible right now. So I'd say I workout 2x a week, and miss about 3-4 workouts simply due to timing. The time presents itself unexpectedly (baby takes long afternoon naps, kids go to bed early like 7:30pm) , and I don't workout because I just can't get moving in the afternoon, or I wasn't planning on the workout. I do much better if I plan/schedule a workout...

I want to hear from those of you that don't have a regular workout time. I'm curious about everyone that fits it in when they can, and because of that their workout is all over the place time wise.

I am lucky in that I have the ability and schedule to work out at the same time everyday. It's just part of my day. But my kids are all grown up now.

But when they weren't I would work out right after lunch at nap time, but even when I couldn't have a set schedule, I figured when I could was better than not at all.

Even if you only get 3 days a week in that's better than nothing until you can get a regular schedule back.

With kids under the age of 5 it's very hard to have a set schedule for yourself. I'm a morning person, I like to wake up by 6 and get all my chores/exercise/work done by noon. Then I like to eat lunch, relax for a bit and then do more work in the afternoon. That doesn't happen anymore, not recognizably. When I first had a baby my schedule was whackadoo! Now it's more regular but I don't have to tell you how hard it is to do chores with a toddler around. Everything gets done, plus he goes out to play everyday plus gets fed all his meals by 1pm but by that time I'm wiped out and the day feels shot.

What I try to do is plug in my workouts in the morning, I take him for a walk everyday and the play ground is about a mile away so I have at least a 2mile walk if nothing else. I do squats while I pick up toys, anything I have to pick up off the floor I do a squat. In the evening I've taken yoga/tai chi/dance classes. When hubby is home on the weekends I go out for a quick bike ride first thing in the morning or for a quick game of tennis. I don't love working out in the evening but I've adjusted. Don't worry, you'll be back to your normal self in no time. I just keep holding on until he's off to school, I'll get my mornings back!

I do whatever it takes.

With two exceptions: i) if I feel ill; ii) my body is just too tired and says "no". Listen to your body.

I have woken up at 4.30am to work out.

And have run at 6pm to fit it in.

You just need to make time.

Oh, and I have twins (2.5 year old boys) and a father-in-law staying with me currently in hospital with heart failure and I have a full time job (aka the bread winner).

It's not easy. But do-able.

I'll be up at 5am tomorrow to go boxing

Strangely, working out is the only "me time" I get. And, at the moment, it's the only thing in my life I can control.

So I'm good with that.

I am not a morning person, so exercise first time in the morning is rarely going to happen. In the evening I generally do it between 7:30-9:00. I sweat, so doing it later in the evening fits with my preference for taking a shower before going to bed. I do exclusively Jillian Michaels. Many of her programs are 25-30min. So, I fit it into my schedule even when under a deadline and stressed (most of the time).I exercise during the day on weekends. I actually like doing it.

When my littlest was younger, earlier this year, she napped at random times and I was having a hard enough time fitting in cooking, let alone working out. So what I did was make everyone dinner, eat my own food, and then leave my husband to finish up with the kids and take that fifteen to twenty minutes to work out in my girls room, since the baby was sleeping in ours and everyone else was downstairs. If the baby woke up, it was hubby's job to grab her so I could finish working out. He was really sweet about this.

That didn't get done every day, but I'd say 4-5 days per week I had success.

These days she's a bit older (almost eight months) but so much is going on, I'm less regular on workouts than I was a few months ago, when I was dealing with more but it was at home (instead of running around like mad). So now my workouts are more sporadic and yeah, I fit them in where I can. Sometimes during naptime, sometimes in the evening while everyone else eats, sometimes when the kids are getting baths. And the last two months I've missed them completely, only just prioritizing them again this past week. Blah!

If you can, take advantage of gyms' babysitting services. It is great! I would use it two/three times a week, but I would take Yoga AND dance, and between those two classes, I lost weight!

I don't work out at night when baby is young - or ever. I value my mental health. I hurdle all the kids into the gym I have in the house at 7am and we work out. Usually I finish. Sometimes, I don't. At night after they go to bed, I cuddle on the couch.

There is no amount of looking good to me, that is worth being a burned out mother without rest. None.

For what it's worth glamourgirl considering the age of your baby, I think 2x a week is pretty darn fantastic :)

Thank you all for your replies. I actually workouted out early this morning! DH was home and I gave him the baby (I was up since 4am with the baby) and it was abot 7am at this time. I did my time and shoered before my 6 year old needed to be on the bus. So I feel good! I think the most ideal time for me to workout time wise is night after the kids go to bed. I do still have to get up with the baby, his night sleeping isnt a sure thing. On a good night, he'll go down at 7;30-8pm and sleep til like 3-4 am, go right back after BFing and sleep tile like 6:30a...but some nights he wakes up at like 11pm, or like 2 am, doesnt go right back to sleep, or like today gets up at 4am and is up for the day. I dont want to be up running late at night only to be up at 4am...But its not like I'd have to workout at night every night. I can still do earlier on days DH is off, so it would be like 2 night to workout. I can do it, I'm just being lazy about it. I guess I need to decide how important it is to me right now and make time if I really want it.



^this. But the time night rolls around, especially on the weekend when my 6 year old is home from school, and I have all 3 of them all day, I'm ready to crash on the couch and watch TV, read or hit the sack early. I will say there are some nights, when they are all in bed but 7:30p and really I could do a quick 30 mins, and still have time to take a peaceful shower and get to bed by 9p. I don't because I treat working out at night like some cardinal sin!


This is a big part of the issue with scheduling right now. My little guy is 3 months old (yesterday) and he naps at random times. And he's still doing those short cap naps, sometimes only going down for 20 mins! I run around trying to clean, prepare meals (I try to use the slow cooker or fix dinner early in the day to be reheated to save on time during the evening when babies and kids are the crankiest!) I have tried putting on my work out clothes right after putting my 6 year old on the bus, so I'm ready to jump on the treadmill as soon as he goes to sleep...but to be honest, as the day goes on, I feel less and less like working out, then there' the shower. Often he wake up after I've done 20 mins, or as I'm finishing up my 30 mins, so now I have a crying baby, and I'm soaked in sweat and wanting to shower! Unfortunately I cannot get a solid 1 hour block regularly right now. I must say my other two kids were not cap nappers, and these multiple short naps all day make it harder to get anything done.

Twins! So you have your hands full, and you move your workout to fit into your day...Yes, it really is as simple as making time. I can honestly say that while I may not have had the time say, 2 months ago with a brand new newborn, my day now, I can pretty much always find at least 30 mins to get on the treadmill, and if not, I can definitely find two 15 mins sessions to add up to the full 30 mins. I would have to prioritize my workouts over cleaning, which is hard for me to do..a messy house makes me crazy, but at this point I could find the time if I were more flexable.

I prefer a morning shower, feels like I'm ready for the day, but that doesnt always happen because of the kids. I will say if I worked out at night, it would pretty much promise I get to shoer right after. The kids go to bed and sleep through the night, for the most part. (My older son does wake at times, but he just goes down stairs and watchs tv) The baby goes down between 6:30-8:00pm. I prefer the later time, because then he's usually down for the night and doesn't wake up until like 4am. If he goes down at 6:30p he might still get up at like 10pm... Anyway, an evening workout would really give me more "me" time that's not so rushed like during the day.