Winter…..ugh! I don’t know about you but I always seem to struggle with maintaining my weight in the winter. I am craving comfort food, the cold tends to limit my activities outdoors and I just don’t feel as motivated. I love outdoor winter sports but they are often not realistic during the week for most of us working moms or moms with little ones.
I used to have a gym membership for when it was too windy, wet or cold to be outdoors and guess what I never went. I really enjoy exercise, but my problem is that I have just enough time to fit in some physical activity but no extra time to drive to the gym, I hate waiting for machines, the class times rarely worked for my schedule and I much prefer being outside. I wish that the gym I belonged to was a non-profit because I was basically donating my money each month. Please tell me I am not the only person who has experienced this??
Grab Free 3 day meal planner now!
For all of you that LOVE the gym, way to go! I am glad you have found something that works for you and that you are getting in the exercise you need/want! For everyone else that struggles to get to the gym or doesn’t have a membership, I am going to share a few tricks and resources you can use to stay active this winter, doesn’t require bulky equipment and won’t break the bank.
- Jump Rope – its not for kids anymore! Jump rope is one of the best ways to burn calories and you can do it virtually anywhere (with a tall enough ceiling of course). Jump rope on average burns about 10 calories a minute if you do it repeatedly (no stopping and starting). Just think if you could jump for 10-15 minutes a day(that’s approx. 100-150 calories)? Not only are you torching calories but you are also toning legs, butt, shoulders and arms. Can’t do 10 minutes? Start with a few minutes and work your way up. YouTube, Shape magazine and more all have jump rope workouts to get you started. Want to help your kids to burn off pent up energy? Get them a jump rope and jump together. Pick a song you all love and try to jump the entire time that song is playing or see who can jump the longest.
- Peloton Digital (https://www.onepeloton.com/digital) – ok I am obsessed with this! I cannot afford to own one of their amazing bikes or treadmills so this is the next best thing. Peloton offers a digital option for $19.97/mo. which gives you access to virtual rides and runs (you can use if you own a regular exercise bike or treadmill), includes outdoor programs, boot camp style workouts, yoga/stretching and strength training all from the comfort of your own home. You can share the membership with up to three people, making it even more affordable (think splitting the cost with a friend/family member). I have done a number of their workouts and they are so great, the instructors are motivating and push you in ways you would not push yourself.
- Anywhere Workout – no equipment needed. If you have 15 minutes before starting your day, 15 minutes at lunch or 15 minutes after work you can get in a full body workout. The goal is to use multiple muscle groups in each exercise and keep moving to keep your heart rate up. There are a variety of programs in magazines and on-line but here is what I do a couple times a week. Again, this is something you can do with your husband or kids to keep you all moving while the weather is cold. If you can’t do this full routine, no problem. Do what you can and work your way to a full workout.
- Jog in place for 1 minute to warm up
- 10 Burpees (google for how to perform these correctly if you aren’t sure)
- Squats – regular squats, plie sqauts, single leg squats (10 each)
- 15 jumping jacks
- 10 push-ups
- 25 high knees in place
- 30 second plank
- 20 mountain climbers
- 30 sec wall sit
- 15 Bicycle crunches
- Repeat circuit 2 times. As you get stronger try to do the circuit 3 times
- Boho Beautiful Yoga (https://bohobeautiful.life/) – my sisters turned me on to this a while back. Juliana and her husband Mark provide classes through their website (you can pay for a membership) or you google Boho Beautiful and find many of her sessions for free on YouTube. She has a lot of different options depending on your physical needs and offer varying session lengths. She travels all over the world and does yoga from the spots she visits. Not only is she relaxing to listen to but the views are absolutely incredible. My boys have joined me on a few occasions and find the classes fun and we end up giggling a lot as I definitely cannot bend the way she does 🙂
I hope these ideas get your creativity flowing! You can get movement in every day all it takes is willpower (read willpower post) and prioritizing your self. Yes you are worth it!! I think it is important to take time by yourself so that you can really focus and push yourself, but I also realize for many working moms it is hard to take the extra time from the family. Notice many of the options I mentioned were things you could do as a family (even with little ones) to help alleviate that feeling of guilt at more time away.
Challenge:
- Set a goal this next week to try one of the ideas I mentioned above or use your own fitness idea. Start with 2-3 days. What specific days are you going to strive for, what time of day are you going to do the activity. Being specific increases your chance of success. Hold yourself accountable or email me and share your goal and I will hold you accountable. Small steps can lead to BIG results! You got this, you just have to start!
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