Working parents who work out regularly… what’s your secret?
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Anonymous
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I envy you, and want to be you, but can’t seem to find time in between a demanding job and wanting to spend the rest of my free time with my young kids.
Even when I get a break (maybe 3-4 hours a week) I collapse in front of the TV or with a book. |
Anonymous
| If you worked out, you wouldn't be so tired. Work out during your lunch hour. |
Anonymous
| I work out at lunch most days. Even if it is just a walk I make sure to do some type of movement. |
Anonymous
| Rower, weights and yoga mat right next to my bed |
Anonymous
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I have to choose to workout during that time I want to collapse and read or watch TV. I didn't use to make that choice, but eventually getting exercise became important enough to me to make it happen.
Also sending your kid to a school walking distance from your home is amazing. If you can do this, do it. Our kids school is a 15 minute walk away, so that's an hour of walking everyday. If I combine with a grocery trip or other errands, even more. |
Anonymous
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There's no secret. You just have to make the time. And don't fall into the trap of believing you must spend 1 hour working out 5 x per week or there's no point. Just start with 30-45 minutes 2-3x per week to get back into a routine.
I am fortunate to only have to go in the office 2-3 days per week and I have workout equipment in my basement (a treadmill and weights). On the days I work from home, I work out for about 45 minutes after doing school drop off. I'm usually done around 9:15. I try not to schedule any calls or meetings before 10am to give myself that time in the morning. I might have to log back in after the kids are in bed or get more done the following day (or spend a few hours on a weekend), but starting my day a bit later hasn't been an issue with my colleagues or my clients. On weekends, we are usually busy doing various things but I also try to get at least one workout or activity in per day. If I didn't have the ability to workout at home, I'd use the gym in my office on the days I go in. Find the discipline to carve out some time. Don't wait for motivation to do it because that may never come. |
Anonymous
| Agree that you just have to do it. When my kids were younger, I worked out at 5 am. |
Anonymous
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Group class, same faces every day, commit to doing it like clockwork. Drive there and walk through the door regardless of how you feel. It DOT NOT MATTER how you feel unless you're stay-home-from-work level sick.
I know at 4:10 Mon/Tues/Thurs/Fri I'm going to drive to the gym, change, and be doing the workout from 4:30 to 5:30. Fake it till you make it. |
Anonymous
| I work out first thing in the morning before the rest of the house wakes up. Every weekday. I take weekends off to sleep in. It would never get done otherwise. |
Anonymous
| several years of kid sleeping through the night and not having regular bouts of sickness … plus WFH. Now that WFH is over I just gut it out and get up at 6:15am. |
Anonymous
How do you manage that with work and kid pickup schedules? |
Anonymous
| Stopped trying to be a hero at work and set some boundaries so I can sustain a healthy lifestyle. |
Anonymous
A ton of people arrive at my office at 6 so they can leave in time to pick up their kids. There are trade offs with basically any time after 5AM - and the trade off for me of getting up that early is occasionally I wake a kid up (my kids are insanely light sleepers) and then we are all miserable. |
Anonymous
| How old are your kids and what your job situation? |
Anonymous
| 5am and go to bed when they go to bed. |