Do you feel like you have no time to workout with kids at home? The key is to make a stay-at-home mom workout schedule and stick to it.
Finding time to do anything for yourself as a stay-at-home mom feels impossible. Your entire day surrounds your kids and making sure everyone is fed and happy. However, your physical and mental health is vital and leads to feelings of happiness and well-being.
I felt the same way. I knew that I needed to work out regularly, but I struggled to find the time needed.
Then, my friend suggested that I put working out on my daily stay-at-home mom schedule. It turns out that was the perfect solution. No, I work out regularly after forcing it to become a regular part of my schedule.
How Do Stay At Home Moms Exercise?
When you’re a stay-at-home mom balancing all of the tasks that need to be completed every day, it feels exhausting to find time to exercise. You know that exercising is important to your health, physical and mental, but how do stay at home moms make time to exercise?
The secret is learning how to get on a schedule as a stay-at-home mom and building exercise routines into your schedule as a task that needs to be completed each day. It should be right alongside cleaning the bathrooms and feeding your babies.
Exercising is vital for your health; it helps to reduce depression and anxiety. It also improves your mood, and if you exercise in the morning, it will set the tone for the entire day.
Build It Into Your Schedule
When you make your stay-at-home mom schedule, make sure you build in time to workout at least five days a week. Take off the weekend or two days throughout the week that might be too difficult to work out due to other commitments regularly.
Try to make it at the same time every day. Our bodies get used to routines and making something a habit takes 28 days at least. Set yourself up for success and make it a consistent part of your day.
Stick To Your Schedule
Once you make a stay-at-home mom workout schedule, stick to it! It’s the hardest part. When you’re busy and often tired because your baby doesn’t sleep all night, working out consistently is hard.
The longer you stick to your schedule, the easier it becomes. Eventually, you won’t dread working out as you dread going to the dentist. It will become second nature, and you might start to enjoy it.
Set Goals
One of the easiest ways to ensure you stick to something is by setting goals you want to crush. It’s part of our human nature to be motivated to meet our goals, so write out your goals and keep them somewhere that you’ll remember.
If it’s in your budget, consider working with a personal trainer who helps you learn how to exercise properly. Get a calendar and start marking your progress, keeping track of how well you met your goals.
A few examples of goals you might set include:
- Run a 5k or 10k race
- Lower your body fat percentage
- Drop 10 pounds
- Make exercising part of your daily stay-at-home mom schedule.
Have Accountability
Ask your best friend or partner to keep you accountable. If you know that someone will check on your progress consistently, you’re less likely to slack off. No one likes to try to explain why they slacked off or didn’t meet their goals.
10 Ways To Find Time To Exercise With A Baby
Are you struggling to find the time to exercise with a baby at home? Here are some strategies to help you find time to exercise even if you have little kids.
1. Exercise In The Morning
The best time to exercise for a mom is in the morning. If you get up before your children, you’ll have time to focus on working out and having a big glass of water (or coffee, who are we kidding?) before the kids are up for the day.
Doing this sets the mood for the entire day. You’ll find that you’re more energetic and in a better mood oval than if you don’t work out in the morning.
2. Exercise After Bedtime
Sometimes, working up before your kids isn’t possible, especially when you have an infant that doesn’t sleep through the night or a nursling. In those cases, working out after bedtime is your best bet.
Try focusing on yoga, pilates, and walking. High-intensity workouts might be too much to do before bed, but evening yoga workouts are perfect.
3. Go For Walks And Hikes
Walking is one of the best exercises, and it’s easy if you have a baby. Put your baby in a front carrier and take a 20-minute walk around your block. If your baby is six months old, put him in a jogging stroller and take a faster-paced walk around your neighborhood.
If you love hiking, it’s possible to hike with a baby as well. It’s easier and safer once you can wear your baby on your back in a carrier. Hiking is enjoyable for everyone.
4. Have Your Partner Watch The Baby
One of the best tips is to have your partner watch the baby for 30 minutes to an hour, depending on whether you have to leave your house or not. There is nothing wrong with asking for help; your partner wants you to be happy and at your best, and working out is one way to get there.
If you have a breastfed baby, try leaving right after you finish breastfeeding or pump a bottle. Plan the time that you leave around when your baby eats to avoid feeling like your breasts will explode.
5. Use YouTube Videos And Basic Equipment At Home
Nowadays, all you need is some basic equipment and a TV or tablet to stream YouTube. There are thousands of easy workout videos on YouTube for free, and they work.
Check for yoga videos, easy arm workouts, glute workouts, and easy cardio routines. You’ll be amazed at the variety available, and most only need you to have some basic hand weights, resistance bands for your thighs, and yoga equipment. The investment is small, but you’ll see results.
6. Form A Group Of Mom Friends Who Walk Together
Finding a few moms who want to walk together throughout the week combines getting out of the house and hanging with friends with exercising. It’s a win-win for everyone.
Post in your local mom’s group to see if anyone is interested in walking together. Some weeks, you might hit up the local track or walk through a local cemetery. In the winter, walking around the mall or indoor tracks is a popular choice.
7. Look For Postpartum Exercise Classes
Some gyms or yoga studios offer postpartum exercise classes. Many of these encourage you to bring your baby with you, so you get fit without having to leave your baby. These classes are a great option and cater to parents; they understand that moms aren’t always able to leave their babies, but health and wellness are a huge deal.
8. Join A Fitness Club With Childcare
Be careful with fitness clubs that offer childcare. Make sure they are certified and sanitize well. Ask about their procedures and the training of the staff.
If the fitness club meets your requirements, this is an excellent option, but be aware that you might pay extra for this service. It often increases the gym membership price, but if you have to pay for babysitters to work out, it might be cheaper.
9. Get A Treadmill For Home
Treadmills are expensive, but many people post them for sale on local marketplaces throughout the year. Take advantage of this and grab one for cheaper.
Having a treadmill at home is a great option. Set your baby in a playpen near the treadmill, and start walking. You’ll have your eyes on your baby, so if they need you, you’re right there. Otherwise, try to walk a mile at a decent pace and burn some calories.
10. Swap Babysitting With Friends
If you have a few mom friends, consider swapping babysitting services so that you can work out. This might only work once or twice per week, but it’s one way to ensure you get a daily workout throughout the week.
Easy Stay At Home Exercises For Moms
1. One-Mile Walk Or Jog
A one-mile walk or jog is a great place to start. Customize it as you want and need. As you become stronger, increase your pace and jog faster. Start slow, walking 2.5-3.0 mph, and gradually increase your pace.
Set weekly goals. Perhaps, by the end of the week, you beat your previous time that it took you to walk or jog one mile. You’ll eventually start to increase the distance.
2. 10-Minute Arm Workout
Every week, I work through a 10-minute arm workout. I needed something that used minimal equipment because I don’t want to invest in too much. I love this 10-Minute Arm Workout; the workout is quick, easy to follow, and you feel the burn after!
3. 20-Minute Yoga Workout
Yoga is my favorite workout. Your body feels great afterward, and it leads to better flexibility when you work out other parts of your body. There are thousands of yoga videos; some focus on anxiety, and some focus on weight-loss.
My favorite is this 20-Minute Full Body Stretch Yoga. After I complete this video, my entire body feels loose and relaxed.
4. 15-Minute Cardio Workout
Cardio is the one workout that I enjoyed the least. Nothing interested me until I tried different cardio workouts on YouTube. I love dance videos or just general cardio workouts.
To be honest, I want to get it done with, so I picked this easy 15-Minute Cardio Workout for Beginners. It gets the job done and doesn’t add in too many extras.
5. 10-Minute Booty Workout
I recently bought resistance bands to work on my glutes, and they’re awesome. I work muscles I never knew that I had. Try this easy, 10-Minute Resistance Band Booty Workout video. Resistance bands are inexpensive, and they make exercises like squats more effective.
Start Working Out Now!
If you want to know how to be a successful stay-at-home mom, don’t let being a mom stand in your way of working out and getting healthier. Make a stay-at-home mom workout schedule and stick to it regularly. The results will show in your physical, mental, and emotional health.