When you have a toddler at home, finding time to get in a workout every day can be a challenge that your friends will never understand. Whether you’re a stay-at-home mom who has toddlers underfoot all day, every day, or a working mom who has to fit in her workout between parenting and job demands, finding time for fitness seems impossible! Thankfully, there are strategies you can use to help break out of your rut and make fitness a priority in your life.
Exercise with your toddler.
For many parents, baby wearing (or toddler wearing) is the best way to get in a workout without feeling as though you’re abandoning your baby. Find a supportive soft structured carrier or learn a wrapping strategy that will keep your baby close against your body while you exercise. Older toddlers will be perfectly comfortable on your back while you walk, do aerobics, or participate in any other exercise routine that doesn’t require you to do a lot of bending. Younger babies can snuggle close against your chest throughout your workout. Ideally, you want baby to be facing in toward you during your workout. It’s easier on both your body and theirs!
Take advantage of the morning hours.
If you’re blessed with a toddler who is able to sleep through the night and who doesn’t wake at the crack of dawn, first thing in the morning is the best time to get in a workout. For the first couple of days, rolling out of bed may seem like an impossible challenge, but once you get into a routine, you’ll discover that it’s one of your favourite parts of the day. The peace and quiet will make it much easier to get through a workout uninterrupted.
Make workout out a regular part of your routine.
No matter what time of day works best for you, from first thing in the morning to after your toddler is down for the night, make your workout part of your regular routine. If you’re erratic about your workouts or just try to cram them in whenever you have the opportunity, you may find that time gets away from you more days than not. Before you know it, it will be bedtime, and you won’t have accomplished your workout. On the other hand, when you know that after lunch every day, you’re going to turn on that workout DVD, you’ll be much more likely to get off the couch and get moving.
Take one day at a time.
As the parent of a busy, active toddler, there will be days when you simply can’t get through your workout. Your little one trips twenty minutes into your thirty-minute cardio session. Your child is inconsolable one morning and won’t settle down to let you have a workout no matter how hard you try. You’re running late getting off work one day and can’t make it to the gym before you have to pick up your child from day-care, and even if the gym offers childcare, you still have to get home and make dinner. You can let all of these small frustrations add up and make you feel like a failure, or you can take a deep breath and let it go. Accept that some days are going to be better than others, and take things one day at a time. If you can’t manage a workout one day, it’s okay! Get yourself back on track tomorrow. Also, count small victories. Even if your goal was thirty minutes of cardio, twenty minutes is better than no time at all.
Staying fit with a little one at home is a challenge, but it’s a challenge that’s well worth the effort you’ll put into it. If you’re looking for more health and fitness tips, contact us for more information. We’ll help you find the fitness strategy you’re searching for.
