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As a busy working mom, I found it very difficult to create a workout pattern that worked for me, my family and my schedule. It took me years of struggling to find gym time, prioritize my health, giving up and then getting back at it again.
Below are some golden nuggets that I learned over years and that have helped me to maintain a healthy gym schedule for the last 3 years. Hoping they bring some motivation for you as well!
Disclosure: Please talk to your healthcare professional before
For my workouts, I do a combination of Gym days and home gym workouts. My gym workout equipment is listed below in products along with some links to help you find some of my favorite products.
- Gym Workout
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- Spinning Class over Weekend
- Yoga on Monday
- Home Gym
- 3 days in the week, where I strength train Upper Body, Lower Body, Abs after a little bit of cardio on Elliptical.
- I follow some of my trainers on Instagram (Eternally grateful for their free workout posts) and have saved some workouts to help me strength train. I did some gym strength bootcamps in the beginning to help me get familiar with some weights and find my stamina. I will list some of my favorite Instagram trainers in the resources below.
- Make a workout schedule for the week over weekend as you are making meal plans and syncing your families schedule. This will help you pen down the days and times of the day when you can hit the gym easily.
- Although you have a plan, make sure you have a flexible mindset and not fall into the trap of all or nothing. What I mean to say is, no matter how much we plan, life happens and does not always respect our plan. On such days, change your schedule as needed and time commitment as needed. Even if you can do a 20 min workout instead of 40 min, it still counts.
- Don’t be afraid to prioritize yourself or ask your spouse to take over kids duty if you see a gym class that you love and motivates you. Pen this in your schedule and communicate to your partner ahead of time. This is called self love!
- If possible, don’t skip gym over weekend, that’s easy 2 days of the week that can be crossed off.
- Lay your gym clothes the night before or even on the weekend. If planning to go before or after work, pack a gym bag over weekend or the night before. This saves you from last minute hassle and frustration and eventually skipping the gym day.
- Find a schedule that gives you a variety of cardio, strength and that makes it somewhat fun for you. Most of the gyms including YMCAs have a variety of classes to offer, make sure to check those out and enroll. These classes are an easy way to burn some calories and the group gives you good motivation. If you like dancing, enroll in Zumba, if you like to strength train ensure to check out strength boot camps.
- If you are not a gym person or prefer to save time on driving to the gym and prefer home workouts, look into stacking some gym equipment at home that can be stacked and stored away when not needed.
- For anyone preferring home gym, you can also sign up for online classes like Apple Fitness or Peloton. They have variety of classes by professionals that can be taken at any time of the day.
- If you like a full blown home gym, make sure to check out some of these recommendations for home gym or even consider professional help. It will be a good investment in your health.
- When you are taking kids to classes, if opportunity presents use the time you are waiting to incorporate some workout. E.g. While waiting for my son’s soccer practice, I take my dog along and we walk for an hour. That is the perfect way to sneak in a workout while exploring nature and get some fresh air.