How often have you made the excuse that you are too busy or too tired to work out and put fitness on the backburner to your career and other pressing life things yet again?
You deserve better than that!
There is no reason to keep yourself from improving your life when it can be so simple to work out every day, even if you are super busy. Stop letting excuses hold you back.
Incorporating just one of these six strategies will allow you to work out with a busy schedule, ultimately improving your health and getting you on your way to a healthier lifestyle.
1. Reframe Your Mindset Around Working Out
This first one is a big one and might be the best strategy of them all when it comes to your workout excuses… and that’s your mindset.
What do you think of when you tell yourself that you need to work out? Do you imagine going to a gym, spending hours lifting weights, or going on long runs? Do you see yourself spending tons of money and time on expensive classes after work? Are you doing something you hate because you feel like that’s what you should be doing?
If so, that vision may be so overwhelming that it’s no wonder fitting in a workout when you’re busy seems challenging.
How you think about fitness and working out can move you closer or further away from achieving your health goals.
What if instead, you saw working out as simply moving?
Could reframing what you traditionally think of as a workout to getting yourself to move instead help you see working out in a new light that is less overwhelming and time-consuming?
Thinking of your workouts as movement opens doors to all kinds of ways we can move our bodies. This is why it’s important to also…
2. Make Working Out Fun
My guess is that if you’re reading this, you’re a full-time professional, and your job is a huge part of your life. Being a working professional myself, I know for a fact that work is not always fun. There are parts of my job that I have to get through to do more fun things. No job is perfect.
So why should something we have complete control over not be fun!?
Working out is for YIOU and your health. Use this as an opportunity to choose something you love. It’s proven that the more you like something, the more likely you’ll stick to it.
Are you an athlete? Look for sports you can join like a local rec soccer league, post-collegiate lacrosse team, or become a member of a golf club. For more stretching, toning and movement, look for barre, pilates, and yoga classes at a studio nearby. Maybe you enjoy dancing, try classes in person or purchase a Dance with Julianne: Cardio Ballroom DVD to move at home (no joke, I own this haha).
You can easily search for hundreds of traditional exercises or movement workouts on YouTube. Figure out what you like and start choosing to do the workouts you genuinely love doing.
3. Make Working Out Easy By Building the Habit of Working Out
You already have enough on your plate, so let’s not complicate things.
If you roll with the strategy to make your workouts fun, fitting one in will be easier. Working out will also be easier when you make it a habit.
Generally, it takes 66 days to build a habit. Yes, building a habit is tough and takes a ton of momentum, but once you’ve crossed that threshold, the outcome is ten-fold. Forming a habit allows you not to expend so much energy thinking about it, thus making it that much easier to do.
Small actions like laying out your workout gear the night before or scheduling workouts on your calendar ahead of time will make it more likely that you will go through with your plan the following day.
But the number one way to build the habit of working out is to establish a consistent workout routine.
Find an activity that you enjoy, then do that on the same day and same time each week until it’s fully incorporated into your regular routine.
There’s a good reason many experts recommend working out in the morning too.
By working out in the morning, you’ll have the rest of your day free to focus on work and other priorities without worrying about how you’re going to also fit in a workout. Plus, the boost in endorphins and energy you get post-workout will help you focus and make you more productive during the rest of your day. It’s a no brainer 😉
4. Hold Yourself Accountable
Building new habits is tough, so one sure-fire way to stick with working out despite a demanding schedule is to hold yourself accountable.
Find a group of friends to join you or a partner who loves fitness as much as you do, so you’re not alone in this. Or sign up for a paid class offering that activity so that you’re more likely to show up. Make friends with the employees, instructors, and regulars in those classes, so you feel supported every time you go.
Still not enough? Hire a personal trainer.
While this can be costly, it may also be the most effective. You’ll not only be on the hook for showing up, but you’ll also have more efficient workouts with better results.
As a busy professional, I cannot tell you how luxurious it is to have a trainer. You already make so many decisions daily for your job. With a trainer, there are no decisions on what workout you need to do or what equipment you need to set up… all you have to do is show up. That’s it!
At a minimum, I work out for 30 minutes twice a week with a personal trainer. By doing so, I guarantee myself that no matter how busy life gets, I will have completed at least two of my workouts for the week.
Investing financially and socially will help you keep your commitment no matter your schedule. Sure it may suck, but the benefits of exercise, like the endorphins you’ll get immediately afterward, will remind you why you’re worth taking the time for your workouts and your health long-term.
5. Set a Fitness Goal that (sort of) Scares You
One incredibly effective way I’ve found to be consistent is by having a big fitness goal.
As an athlete, I love playing sports and staying in shape. But, being that I’m beyond the days of competitive sports, activities such as cycling or golf pique my interest.
For the last few years, I have chosen cycling. Through a non-profit fundraiser to raise money for cancer research, I set a goal to ride 100 miles (a century ride!).
The goal instilled quite a bit of fear—enough to get me off the couch and either onto a bike or into a spin class regularly to ensure I could reach my goal: finish the ride.
The point is to find a goal that challenges you enough to inspire you to move (not paralyze you with fear). With only so much time in the day, focusing on just one sport or goal that requires you to improve your fitness is helpful.
Then visualize what you’ll be capable of doing if you stick with it long enough to achieve it. Who is the person you see at the end of the goal?
Once you’ve set your goal and have a clear vision in your mind of the outcome you want, then determine what steps and actions you can take to accomplish your goal. Is it running 20 minutes a day? A combination of toning workouts and yoga to clear your mind?
From there, it’s all about sticking to those actions and making small improvements from the last, one by one, until you reach your fitness goal.
You’ll have reasons to incorporate workouts into your daily schedule with this purpose. And each activity you complete towards that goal will give you greater confidence. You’ll be able to expand on your progress and find even more ways to build working out into your busy schedule.
6. Just Do It.
Finally, when all else fails, remember something is better than nothing.
When you’ve had a hectic week, and life has just gotten in the way of it all, it’s OK to choose anything.
If you notice yourself always getting sleepy after lunch on the weekdays around 2 pm, instead of muddling through it, try instead to wake yourself up with a ten-minute walk around your office building, take a five min jog, or do 100 jumping jacks. When you have a lull for even just five minutes, do something spontaneous like dropping to the floor for ten pushups. Long day? Turn on the music right when you get home and dance for 10 minutes. Use your time walking your dog as a chance to do some high knees or jog for part of it.
Life is full of opportunities and challenges, the needs of others, and personal desires, all competing for your time and attention. Your health is not an option. You deserve happiness and a great quality of life. Fitness or movement is a key part of maintaining that.
As the adage goes, we all have 24 hours in the day. Using two and 1/4 hours towards the minimum recommended three 45-minute workouts a week, will never be wasted time.
You got this!
In good health,
Steph
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