In my first couple weeks of being a Dad, I am finding that my normal schedule is most definitely being ‘adjusted’. Sleep schedules, feedings, diaper changes, & just wanting to put the world on hold to spend time with my new little man are all variables that didn’t exist in my daily “24 hours” a month ago. Like with any new ‘life situation’, if something new is introduced, the things that were already scheduled out have to get rearranged, tapered down, or eliminated all together.
As someone who has lost 80 pounds, and now a health/fitness Coach to others, my workouts are a vital part of my daily routine. Not only to maintain my fitness level, but I find mentally and emotionally I am a better husband, worker, friend, encourager…and now father on the days I invest in doing some kind of workout. The closer the day came to Asher being born, I had heard stories about how much my life would change and that there just ‘isn’t any time’ to workout that first month. Well I was bound and determined to find a way to both be there for my wife & new baby…AND make sure I invested in ‘me time’ to be the best I could be for both of them.
Perhaps you aren’t a new parent, or even have kids at all, but TIME is still the bug-a-boo that stands between wanting to live a healthier life and actually putting that into action. So I thought I would put a few tips together on Fitting In Fitness:
1. Take Inventory of your current schedule
When I started my fitness journey, I was 245 pounds, taking a full semester of college classes and working 2 jobs. If anyone didn’t have extra time it was me. However, once I decided I wanted to change it was amazing where I found wasted hours. TV, Internet, Video Games, Happy Hours were areas where hidden time just waited to be put into productive action!
2. Early Bird Gets the Worm
I had always considered myself a ‘night owl’. I thought that it was just how my body clock operated and I was a slave to it. So initially I tried doing my workouts later in the day, but I quickly found out any curve ball life threw me during the day- my workout was the first thing to get sacrificed. So I had to change my body clock and do my workouts first thing in the morning. That way I knew, regardless of what unpredictable variable popped up in my day, my workout was already done guaranteeing me a productive day!
3. 1 hour of Food Prep a Week
So we all fall victim to this scenario. You haven’t eaten in hours and find yourself starving, yet the fast options at your disposal are less than ideal to keep your waistline in check. So we grab what is easy and undo a day of good intentions. Something that helped me combat this was using my weekends to prep for the week ahead. A family pack of chicken breasts, six sweet potatoes and veggies could be thrown in the oven to cook while I watched my Sunday afternoon football.
4. Take out the guess work
Ultimately what works, is going to be the program you will DO! That means it fits into your lifestyle. Many people struggle to find time to pack a bag, drive to the gym only to fiddle around for 30 minutes, not see results and get discouraged. My saving grace was finding an in home program I would do in my jammies with bedhead, but that got me immediate results. Beachbody has some great programs with minimal time commitment like Tony Horton’s Ten Minute Trainer, or Chalene Johnson’s Turbo Jam. Both take the guess work out of what to do, they keep you motivated & come with meal plans to ensure your success.
5. On the go Meal Replacement
In this Go, Go, Go world we live in sometimes I still find myself out and about when huger pains strike. I know it is important for me to eat every 3-4 hours to keep my metabolism running. So I try to always have on-the-go options with me in my bag or car at all times. Options like: apples, almonds, or baby carrots. If there is no time for a whole food source there are bars & shakes that can be effective as well. But make sure you do your homework on getting a quality meal replacement. Some I like: Lara Bars, P90X Protein Bars, or my favorite on the go goodness Shakeology.
Again, it’s finding what you like & what you will utilize that ultimately will determine if you are successful. It doesn’t require a complete overhaul of your busy schedule. If you can find one or two ways to make better choices today than you did yesterday, those little choices over time can produce huge results!