For those who are mothers, one way to celebrate yourself is to take care of your health – mind, body, and spirit.
We all know that can be difficult with the laundry to fold, dishes to wash, children to transport, and other work. As mothers, we often put our health on the backburner.
However, creating time for yourself is crucial to ensure you are not pouring from an empty cup and are setting an example of wellness for your children.
A great way to ensure you have the energy needed for motherhood is to keep physically fit.
Keep reading for ten tips on staying fit as a mom!
1. Get in Touch With Your Why
A fitness routine rarely lasts long when you are just trying to keep up through sheer motivation. There must be a deeper reason behind keeping fit when the going gets tough. Explore why you want to be healthy and use that as fuel to discipline yourself toward your goals.
2. Identify a SMART Goal
“I want to be fit” is too vague of a goal. When setting goals, remember the acronym SMART. Keep your plan specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. With this in mind, “I want to be fit” transforms into “I will walk for a half-hour three days a week.” As you achieve each goal, your successes can build upon each other as you work toward higher aims.
3. Plan Ahead
Make the decision that you will work out, and then plan the steps necessary for that to happen. If you are planning to go for a run or walk in the morning, lay out your clothes and breakfast the night before and be sure to set your alarm so that when the time comes you have no excuse. Incorporate your workouts into your daily planner and routine as you would any other appointment, and don’t cancel on yourself!
4. Ask for Help
You don’t have to do it all yourself. Ask your spouse or loved one if they have a weekly time to watch the kids while you get in your workout. If that is not feasible, the Butler YMCA and Rose E. Schneider Family YMCA both have childcare available for a small fee while you work out at our facility for up to two hours. It can be challenging to ask for help, but when you gather the courage, you will find that people are more than happy to give support.
5. Try to Get it Done Early
Even with the most well-planned routine, sometimes unexpected setbacks pop up during our day. The longer you wait to work out, the more likely you will be able to find an excuse for why you need to push it back until tomorrow. Setting your workout as one of the first parts of your day can set you up mentally for success and also limit the possibility of a skipped session.
6. Break Up Your Workout
Workouts do not have to take a lot of time or happen all at once to be effective. If you genuinely do not have a chunk of time to dedicate to a workout, even doing some exercises for 10 minutes will add up during the day.
7. Get Enough Sleep
This may sound crazy to tell a parent, especially of a young baby. Still, the truth is that if you are not able to give your body the proper recovery that it needs, a more intense workout will not be appropriate. If you are in that season of your life as a mom, then fitness may mean pelvic floor strengthening, walking, or something low impact that will not break your body down too much. Extend yourself grace until you are in a place you can meet your basic rest needs, and then you can begin to build and set higher goals.
8. Include Your Kids
If you can’t get childcare or time away from your kids, have them join in with you as you work out! Do a stroller workout, use a smaller child as your weight, have a child count your reps for you, or have them do some of the exercises right alongside you. At our Rose E. Schneider Family YMCA, we offer a Tough Mothers mommy and me group exercise class. There may be more distractions by including your kids in your workout. However, the movement still gets done, and you can start instilling a healthy attitude about how fun exercise can be at a young age.
9. Flex Your Creativity Muscle
Getting in movement does not have to mean traditional weightlifting or cardio. Are you doing laundry? Carry the bushel of clothes up and down the stairs a few extra times. Are you watching TV? Get on the floor and stretch. Are you reading emails? After you read one email, do five burpees. As mentioned in tip #6, breaking movement up like this can still make a difference in the long run.
10. Remain Flexible
No matter how well planned out your routine is, being a mom means having to learn the skill of pivoting. Your child may get unexpectedly sick, there may be extra practice for a sports team, or you may get slammed with additional work. While our physical health is significant, our mental and spiritual health and children are just as important. You will be a mom forever, but different seasons will bring different needs. Choosing a fit lifestyle does not mean perfection every second of every day. Even small choices add up over time.
Choosing to be fit as a mom is a great way to practice self-care, celebrate our amazing bodies, and have the energy to live a long life with your kids!
