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Sonia Nelson of Philadelphia asks:
When do you all find the time to work out? I am a mother (kids ages 5 & 8) and wife with a full time job. I am not overweight, but I am flabby and my goal is to look good in my bathing suit this summer. I have a rowing machine and weight bench at home and have been getting up before work to work out. The problem is that only leaves me about 30 minutes and I don't know if this is enough time to make a difference. How do you fit working out into your life? Also what kind of routine should I have? Row 3 times a week, use weights 2 times a week?
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Thanks for your question, Sonia. Girlfriends and readers, what advice can you offer?
APRIL: This is such a tough question, and one I face every day. When schedules vary and I get tired, I can end up working out at all different times. I try to set aside an hour every day, typically in the morning sometime. By 5 p.m. I just don't enjoy running. On days when I just don't have an hour to give up, I try to do half an hour of non-aerobic weight training or situps in th evening, so at least I can say I did something. A couple of weights and an exercise mat really mean you can work out anytime, even before bed.
LAURIE: Sonia asks if 30 minutes makes a difference. I do believe anything makes a difference, if you keep doing it! One great help to me is that I have the gym here at work and yoga class here at work. It is much easier to do stuff when it's right there. Also, I used to use exercise videos a lot because I knew exactly how much time they'd take, and they would guide me from exercise to cool down and stretch, so I would not cut that stuff short. Kathy Smith did good ones, I recall. Any other video suggestions, anybody?
YVONNE W: I'm an early morning person, so I hit the gym at 5:30 a.m. I only have half an hour so I usually do cardio. I am a calorie counter so I try to use the equipment that burns the most calories in a short amount of time. Generally that is the ellipitical machine. I can burn 300 calories in 25 minutes.
It also depends on what you're trying to achieve. I want to lose weight so I want to burn as many calories as I can. Lately I also go to the gym when I finish work and swim or take a step class.
There are many ways to exercise at home, if that's more convenient. Using tapes is a great way to get your workout in and to control the amount of time that you spend exercising. I have a 12-minute stomach crunch tape, a Tae Bo tape, numerous step tapes, my favorites are my Pilates tapes (they're very relaxing).
There's just so many things that are available today that weren't around 30 years ago. Remember, people make time for the things that are important to them. Good luck!!
THERESA: If you just do weights 30 minutes three times a week you'll notice a big change in your muscle tone. I'd recommend weights three times a week and doing a cardio workout twice a week if you can fit that in. I know that when my kids were little, those were the most difficult years to make time for myself. When they got a little older, we all joined the Y together so I could take aerobics classes while they shot baskets or went swimming. I remember how I ran in our neighborhood back in those days with the dog on a leash and both kids tagging along on their bikes-- one of them still with training wheels! Not the most relaxing way to find a nice, even pace, but hey, we were all getting some exercise, at least.
One other tip, for those of you who have excercise facilities at work (Sonia says she doesn't): I never travel to work without a loaded gym bag. I may think to myself in the morning, there's no way I'm making it to the gym today, but if I have my stuff and end up feeling motivated after work, I'm set!
Hi Sonia. I suspect your kids require most of your time. So I suggest instead of wondering when you can get away to your rowing machine, you include the kids in your workout. Cut out some sample exercises from Shape, Self, Mens Health, the web or where ever and do them on the floor. Let the kids count to 8 or 10 for you and let them tell you if you look the the model in the picture. They probably will love stretching with you and can probably stay focused for 15-20 minutes. What good can you do in 15-20? Plenty. Push-ups till you drop are so effective. Ab exercises also can be done to failure (till you can't do anymore) in 1 or 2 minutes. Same thing for pull-ups if you have a place to do them. I also encourage you to hit some areas that are easy to forget -- shoulders, back, tris. Shoulders can be worked to exhaustion in no time. Sorry for the long answer. Hope this helps.
Posted by: yvonne on January 19, 2004 12:02 PMAlso remember, you entire workouts don't have to be done all at once. Breaking it up into 2 or 3 20 min sessions throughout the day can help too. I currently do a 30 min cardio workout in the morning (Aeorbic tapes, walking, tae-bo, etc) 4 days a week. Then use 30 mins of my lunch hour to hit the weights at my company's gym 4 days a week and then spend another 30-45 mins doing Yoga in the evening almost every night. If one has to missed unexpectedly, I have 2 more workouts to make up for it, and better yet.. I have 3 more days out of the week to fit it in.
Posted by: Mary on January 19, 2004 01:13 PMThank you all so much. I decided to begin working out at night for a while to see how that fits into my schedule. I realized I am just not a morning person. I really, really hate to wake up early. So instead of sitting in front of the television after a dinner that is usually too big, I will eat a smaller portion and work out after the kids go to bed. All of your advice was very helpful, especially knowing I'm not alone. My kids would love to work out with me, but (as selfish as it is) I look forward to having some time just to myself where I can crank up the music I like and zone out. Although it makes sense, and deep down I knew it, it is reassuring to hear that any exercise, for any length of time, is good. So here is my plan (based on your advice): Weights three days a week (1 hour), cardio two days a week (30 mins), abs/pushups to failure daily. I will measure myself tonight, continue this exercise program for a month, and remeasure at the end of the month. I'm so excited I want to go home right now and start exercising!
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