Short on Time for Exercise?

Is lack of time an issue for you? I think I hear a resounding, "YES!!!" Especially when it comes to exercise...when the hour glass of time is almost running out in our day, it's exercise that gets canned.

But in essence, exercise is one of the more important things we need to make sure we carve time for on a daily basis! It increases our strength, improves our health, keeps our weight in check, clears our mind, and actually gives us energy! We run around serving everyone else all day, and end up neglecting our own nutrition needs and fitness goals. So when we get up the next morning to repeat our crazy schedules, we're even more depleted and less fit than the day before, and so the cycle goes. We end up cutting our noses to spite our faces. NOT exercising, so we have more time to serve our loved ones, only leaves us less able to serve them to the best of our ability. Not to mention shorting ourselves on our health!

For me, my goal is to exercise in hour segments. I know, that sounds like a lot. And it is when you look at all the things you have to fit into your 16 waking hours. When I was 30 pounds heavier, I knew it was going to take an extra measure of effort to change my metabolism and lose that much - so I committed to an hour. It worked. However, there are many times when I can only carve a half-hour chunk of time - so I don't beat myself up...I do the half hour and am happy. When I wake up at 5:45 a.m., get school lunches made, get five children and myself dressed and ready for school and work, get the last child on the bus at 8:10 a.m., leave for work at 8:11 a.m., rush home at 2:30 p.m., do homework and make dinner, run a child to gymnastics at 4:15 p.m, come home and feed who's left at home, leave again to take another child to dance at 5:30 p.m., stay with her until 7:00 p.m., rush home to pick up another child for swimming at 7:30 p.m., pick up the gymastics child at 8:00 and bring her home, then run back out at 9:00 to pick up the child from swimming, then I haven't really been home to exercise, have I?

Here's where getting creative and COMMITTED comes in. I will do one of two things. First, I will change into exercise clothes before I leave to run kids to their activities so I eliminate excuses....then I either walk or jog near the place where my daughter is at dance (since I have an hour in town to kill) or I will come home at 9:30 p.m. and force myself to go on my elliptical after I get everyone to bed. The key is - I don't give myself the option to flop on the couch and tell myself I'm too tired. I won't do an hour if it's that late at night - but I definitely do the half hour. I've made a rule for myself: A half hour of exercise is my minimum - it's a MUST daily.

I know, you're feeling like you're going to have to rob Peter to pay Paul in order to even fit in a half hour. Well, if it seems insurmountable to fit in a half-hour chunk of exercise, don't lose hope! There's an alternative. Go to this site titled: Fast Track Your Fat Loss! 10 minute workouts that slim you down and tone all your trouble spots. http://health.msn.com/fitness/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100183101&page=1

It's a suggestion on how to work in three 10 minute segments of exercise into your day to meet your 30 minutes of exercise. Think about that...does it seem more feasible for you to split it up over your entire day instead of one large chunk? If so, go for it. What works for one person may not work for another. I need at least a half hour of exercise to make me feel an energy boost, to sweat a bit, to clear my brain, and to feel that cardio intensity. But you have to do what works for YOU. The key is to find what works personally so that you STICK to it. Only consistency and permanent lifestyle changes result in lasting improvements.

How do you overcome the time obstacle for exercise? We're all busy women - you're no different than me! What has worked for you? What hasn't worked? Your suggestions might be just what someone else needs to hear!