With school out and the kids home, it can be hard to find time for yourself.  Our team myHMB moms share their fit tips and tricks to help you stay on track.

Carissa Johnson shares 4 creative ways to fit workouts into your chaotic day…

  1. HIIT workouts with combo weightlifting and cardio burn. 
  2. Make it a point to do 3 sets of burn out ab exercise sets and push ups every other day while watching tv, first thing in the morning or right before bed. 
  3. Hold a bodyweight squat while blow drying your hair. 
  4. Have your kids workout with you. Try pushups with toddlers on your back, or with baby under you. Squats or lunges with toddler on shoulders. Baby shoulder or bench press – self-explanatory. Pull-ups/chin-ups (normal or negative reps) with baby carrier.

As a mom of 3 girls, Tate Fisher knows the struggle of making yourself a priority…

“It has been a long time since I was a mom of little ones, but even teenagers keep you insanely busy. I often find that I am my last priority, and I fill my days with work, coaching, running my younger kids where they need to be, and taking care of my adult duties. But every time I neglect myself, I realize that I’m actually sending a message to my children that I don’t want to send. I want to teach them that it is important to first fill your own cup before pouring into others, and that it’s not selfish to take care of the bodies God gave us. When I am working out consistently and making my health a priority, I not only look and feel better, I’m a better mom. 

I’ve been a single mom for 10 years, ever since my girls were 3, 5 & 7, so I know what the busy mom life is like at many different ages. When they were young, I found my fitness in long walks/jogs with the stroller or workouts in the park where they could play while I did body-weight movements intermittently. I even remember making a little group one time with the moms on the sidelines of my youngest daughter’s soccer practice. They counted on me each week for a 30-minute mini workout on the lawn next to the soccer field, and we had a blast doing it! Some years have included consistent weekly workouts at my CrossFit gym, and some years it’s been all about what’s at home. If you’re fortunate enough to have a set-up in your garage or basement, you can do what I did for two solid years…I used to pick up the kids from school, get them a snack and started on homework, start my workout, then stop to run them to the dance studio or sport of choice, come home start dinner, then finish my workout, then run to pick them all up, and then come home to finish dinner. It was nuts! But I also got a rush from being able to juggle it all and still get my workout in. 

It may not be ideal, and some weeks may be more consistent than others, but remember these five things: 

1. It doesn’t have to be an hour at the gym to be a workout. 20 minutes does a lot if you put your full effort into it. Click here for some ideas.

2. 80% of your fitness starts in the kitchen, so make good food choices and don’t “diet”!! Find a regime that works and make it a lifestyle.

3. MOVE. Just move. Even if you can’t get in an actual workout, move whenever you can…stretch, play with the kids, park further away so you have to walk more, etc.

4. Workout because you LOVE your body, not because you hate it! The rest will follow, but you have to have the right mindset to start.

5. Remember that your children love you and want you to love yourself and make time for yourself. And they are watching you, so form healthy habits that they can emulate. “

Danyelle Mastarone shares her favorite ways to stay fit with the kiddos…

  • Find a gym with in-house childcare. Use every second of that allotted two hours.
  • Make play time fit time. Playing tag is just running suicides in disguise!
  • Put those kiddos on your back or shoulders and use them to do weighted pushups, squats and lunges. They will think you’re playing horsey, so it’s another win-win.
  • Reward your kids with a short television program while you do abs and stretches on the floor.
  • 10 minutes is still more than zero minutes. If that’s what you have time for, make it count. Invest in a resistance band for upper body and a booty band for lower body. Alternative upper and lower body moves, maximizing your time with little to not rest periods. Because of the speed and intensity, you will be elevating your heart rate, and thus burning more calories and fat!
  • Congratulate yourself on not just staying fit but teaching your children a fit and active lifestyle. And remember, the best moms are happy women! Take the time for you and the rewards will be ten-fold for your whole family.

Jada Kelly shares how to let go of being the ‘perfect’ mom…

“My tip is to let go of “perfect”!! I used to get down on myself when I couldn’t get a perfect 60 min workout in, cook 3 perfect meals a day for my family, be the perfect wife and mother, have the perfect plan for everything. I’m sure you can fill in the blank with all the things you expect yourself to “perfectly” do! As soon as I let “perfect” go and starting focusing on giving my best, I was able to be more successful all around! Each day looks different and your best will change from day to day. I like to start the morning with a plan, but as needs and priorities shift (and they do quite often), I adjust while still giving my best. For example, my plan was to get up at 6am to get a full workout in before my kids wake up. The reality was that I was up half the night with my son and decided to sleep in an extra 45 min to get the rest that I needed. I adjusted my workout from 60 minutes to a 30 minutes, but increased the intensity and gave it my all! Freedom from perfect pushes me to give the best I have! This perspective allows me to feel great about my workouts, my body, my effort and my family. I still have tough days (we all do right?) but I don’t stay discouraged. Keep your head up mamas! Perfect doesn’t exist. Your BEST is enough!”

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