Working moms and working out...when?

JenniferL923

Sooo I have to go back to work next week. Boooo. 

Anyway, I didn't worry about this with DD because when I went back it was summer, we had more daylight, and it wasn't a big deal.

When the heck am I supposed to work out?  I've been thinking through logistics and am disappointed that there aren't more hours in the day.  

I will get up at 5:30 and it will take about an hour-to hour and a half to get myself ready, nurse DS, and get out the door hopefully before 7 am.  It takes anywhere from 40-60 min to get to my office depending on traffic. I get off at four and again, takes 40-60 min to get home. Then I have to deal with dinner and bedtime/bath time routines with two little ones. I know we still need to figure out our evenings, but I guess workout after 8 pm when they are asleep?? So much for relaxing!

So when do you work out? Have any tips for time management?  

  

mrssnflwr

I can't help you with the working part, but I SAH and I can never find time for a workout. I've gotten the Core Fusion DVD's, and I LOVE them. There are five 10 minute workouts (or you can do the whole thing straight through). It doesn't matter how often I do them, I'm still sore the next day. I really like that if I just have 20 or 30 minutes, I can skip to arms, butt, and abs or whatever and feel good.

jml5q

can you work out during lunch? That's what i've been doing since i went back to work a little over a month ago. Although it's not really ideal, because stuff always comes up or i have lunch meetings or something else happens and i can't work out.

I'll probably have to go back to early morning workouts before the kids wake up. But right now that's hard because DS still wakes to eat in the middle of the night and i'm lazy and can't get up earlier when I've gotten up to feed him. I might start trying to get up 30 minutes earlier (so at 5:15am for me) and do a short dvd or something, as opposed to goign to the gym, so i'm still around in case he wakes up and wants to eat.

There's no way I could motivate myself to work out after the kids bedtime, but that's me. I like to relax, watch tv and have some wine!

rssnlvr

Right now, the only thing I can figure out is on the weekend. Weekdays just aren't possible.

cls052909

I work out during my lunch break. Not sure if there is a gym close by...maybe even walking or running in the area?..yeah I know no time for a shower I just bring deoderant and go with it

Slobina

I agree on the short workouts.  When I went back to work initially, I was doing 30 minute workouts a couple mornings before work, and then on the weekends as well.  That was great until our nanny had to go back to school and DD had to start daycare, so now I have even less time.  So now I shoot for 2-3 15 minute workouts per week, and then I do a couple longer ones on the weekend. 

michelleaxo

I found that going directly from work to work out was the best thing for me. If I went home, I got lazy, got tied up with G and just generally did not want to do it anymore. I would work 8-5, go work out from 5:30 - 6:30 and then go home. That meant that, on those nights, I would only get to see G from about 6:45 - 7:30. A big sacrafice, but it was worth it for three nights a week for my health.

katattack615

Lucky for me, the gym at work is downstairs from my office, so when we're not in a busy season, I can schedule it on my calendar and go down and workout.  However, the best bet is always getting up earlier for me and just working out at home, since a meeting inevitably comes up that trumps my workout.  I can never find the energy in the evenings.

brideonjuly8

I don't know how much this helps you since I stay home, but when I was working I LOVED working out on my lunch break.  Yep, I went back to work a little sweaty, but I had my little cubicle, didn't talk to very many people, and didn't have to give up any "me" time when I got home.  I showered at night anyway, so I just showered when I got home from work.

bobcatsteph

I walk/jog while DH bathes DD and puts her in bed. I could see how you might be needed because you have two though. In that case, I would go after they were asleep at 8.

For me, it's either relax and watch TV or work out. It's hard to actually get myself motivated enough to work out, but I feel so much better when I do..and if I go for 45-60 mins, I still have enough time to watch one TV show before showering and going to bed.

When DD was younger, I would work out right after work, before dinner. I'd either push her in the stroller around the neighborhood or have her in the swing/bouncer/exersaucer while I did a workout video or Wii Active.

Abrooks

If I workout, it's at night usually.  Sometimes during the day if my schedule allows. It's really hard to fit in, honestly. Weekends are good b/c I can head out for an hour or so and DH can take care of the girls.  But during the week, if I try, it's usually about a 20 minute DVD or something similar.

luluAXA

I didn't start exercising until DS was about a year.  It took me that long to find any kind of rhythm to my day.  After that I used to exercise at home after DS went to bed.  When he got older and his bed time shifted I joined a gym and went after work and gave DS a snack and dropped him the gym daycare.  We ate dinner after.  With baby #2 on the way I'll have to wait and see how my day goes and how tired I am.  I can already see it's going to be a whole new ball game.

rssnlvr

I do remember that it gets a lot easier as the kiddo gets older. With DD, I was able to get to the point where I knew she'd sleep 'til 7 a.m., so I could get up and go in the morning before she woke up. But with DS still waking at night to eat, that's not an option for us right now. But he'll eventually sttn, right? . . . RIGHT?

libbyann

I WAH, but I *have* to do my workout early if Will isn't going to the gym w/ me. If I do it late, it will never happen. So in your situation, I'd get up at 4am, get to the gym, workout, get home, and continue with your current routine...this is pretty much what I do right now anyway. It sucked at first getting up that early, but I'm used to it now and I love being at the gym at that time - no one is there!

Nessia

1 - It's going to be hard right now because DS is still really young. So give yourself a little bit of a break for now.

2 - Eventually you're gonna have to MAKE the time and ASK your DH for help (not saying he's not now).  This ended up being a big issue between the ex and I. I did everything and never asked him for help, then resented him when he didn't help, and resented him even more when I wasn't working out and gaining weight because I was too exhausted to work out at 9pm. Ask him to either handle morning routine so you can go workout, workout during lunch or go after work and have DH pick up kids and get dinner started. Or go while he bathes and puts them to bed or forget kitchen clean up before baths/bedtime and after the two of you have put the kids to bed go walk while he cleans the kitchen. Even if it's for 30 minutes you are working out.

Ruby44

I put my kids in the stroller and do a 20-30 min walk after I pick them up from day care. I do pushups and situps when I can throughout the day. Sometimes I also take a 1/2 mile walk at lunch... more feasible now that the weather is nicer. I am considering joining a gym so I could do a spin class and maybe some weights a couple of days/week while my kids are in the gym play area. (I'm a single mom and work full-time.)