How do you find time to excercise?

I know I need to break a sweat if I ever hope on looking like myself again but I honestly cannot find time to do it! This is the fist time in my life I actually WANT to work out but I don't know how I can. I have maybe 45mins a day that I'm not holding one or both of them (typing while fighting little hands away from the keys right now) and I need all that time just to shower and get ready. What have you guys done to get back into shape? And how do I keep the boys happy?

 

Exercise?? What's that? Just kidding, it is hard to find any time when they are that age. If you can afford to go to a gym that has child care, that's always an option. Otherwise, I always tried to work it in during nap time or whenever my husband or mom could look after them long enough for me to jump on the treadmill.

 

I just joined a gym because I was sick of looking at my post prego body! My MIL comes 2X a week to look after the boys and any other time I just take them to the daycare at the gym. I am thinking about getting up early before DH goes to work and exercise then.

 

When mine were that age, I was mainly going for walks with them. It was a good workout and helped soothe them most of the time. I joined the Y around 7 mos of age for the twins, and left them in the daycare. It was a great getaway. Now I exercise when they go to bed. I have a small rower I use while watching tv. I also play tennis one night a week after they are in bed, and once on the weekend (while DH is in charge). I still go for walks when the weather is nice.

 

Do you have a jogging stroller? I take mine running with me. Well, of course not now, considering it's 18 degrees outside. But when the weather was nice...and it looks like you live someplace nice and warm (I'm jealous!). It gets easier as they get older, not having to worry about their nap schedule as much. And now I'm able to ride my exercise bike while they play with their toys nearby, without too much interruption.

 

Until the twins were 18 months old the only exercise I could get in was an (almost) daily walk. I found that I could walk for 45-60 minutes everyday which helped a lot with my attitude and losing weight. Now that they're older and I don't bf anymore I'm able to fit in a real workout at the gym every day. It was all about routine, in the early days and now. It was just our routine to go out on a walk after breakfast. I hope you find something that works for you!

 

I go to a gym with a nursery - and my husband's company pays for it (they get an insurance break). With both my first and second child, however, I would get up and run at 5 a.m. before anyone else in the house was up - hubby and kid/kids were asleep and I could run and shower before all the chaos. I prefer to do the early a.m. routine, but these twins are not reliable on the sleep deal yet and I hate to leave and have my husband potentially get up to feed them when we has to go to work a few hours later.

As a previous poster mentioned, brisk walks are great as well - and that can be done with babies. I have run fairly extensively over the years and do not enjoy running with a jogging stroller, personally - even a big fancy one.

I have found, too, that all the exercise in the world will not make me thin - it has way more to do with the caloric intake. But I am old - hopefully you're young with a super metabolism!!

 

I was not able to get back into regular exercise schedule until this past summer :blush: My DH and I work out a schedule, taking turns daily to go to the gym. On days I cannot go to the gym, I do a workout on TV (either a video or on demand). Can you take the kids out for a walk to get a start on it. I like the workouts on demand, because they can range from 20 minutes to an hour.

 

I put mine in their bouncers and let them watch me LOL! I could sometimes make faces with them and they would giggle. There were days that I got in a hole 30 minutes! But there were days I was lucking to get 5 or 10 minutes. I figured if nothing else I was getting into the routine and trying to make myself a priority. Just didn't stress to much about it, or I would feel disappointed at the end of the day if I 'failed' to make some self mandated task. Now that they are sleeping through the night and nap times are good. I get up at 5 am, work out, then start the day.

 

When it was warmer out, I would load the girls in the jogging stroller for their morning nap and run with them. Now I use exercise on demand (Jillian Michael's workouts). I find that the girls are mesermized watching me workout in front of them (I think they would be laughing if they realized what I was doing!) Or I wait until they are down for their morning nap and then do it.

 

I do the same! Every other morning right after their morning feeding. I wonder how I'll find the time when I have to go back to work in January...lol

 

I really didnt start exercising regularly until they were closer 15-18 months. I just didnt have the desire in me. But I would take them for long walks or just get outside and go to the park.

 

I am desperate to get back into shape and am right now trying to figure out how I am going to do it. We go for stroller walks every day (at least 45-60 minutes) but I still haven't been able to lose any more weight. I lost half of the 55lbs I gained in the first few weeks after the birth without trying but since then my weight loss has stalled. I am doing my best to eat right but sometimes it's hard when the babies are so demanding. I often grab something quick but not necessarily nutritionally balanced. I know that is probably a big part of it. I also want to get back into kickboxing (it has been over a year since I last did it) because it is a great full body cardio workout but finding the time to get to classes is proving tricky. I am trying to work out a schedule with my MIL and DH so I can go to classes 3x a week. The trouble is that my MIL gets a bit overwhelmed watching both of them by herself so my DH or FIL need to be there at the same time. So it's a dilemma. I hope to get something nailed down in the New Year because I cannot stand the sight of my own naked body and want to get back into some skinny jeans!!!

 

I try and make it a point to go to the gym every day when my DH gets home. Some days I'm so tired that leaving sounds exhausting, but I make myself go and I always feel better for it. A lot of areas have parks and rec type places that offer inexpensive daycare and classes. For me I'm all about the classes because it helps to keep me motivated without having to worry about doing it myself.

Is there someone who can come and stay with them 2x a week for an hour? If you make it part of your schedule you're less likely to "skip" a workout.

For me, going to workout makes me a better mommy! I feel so much better, have way more energy and have a better attitude in general on the days that I go.

 

I used to just go for walks every morning with them once they were about 7 months. Sadly it wasn't enough to help me lose weight or tighten my tummy. It did help with my attitude and patience though! When the boys were almost 2 I was fed up with not being able to lose the weight so I joined the YMCA. I now look forward to working out b/c it means 1-2 hours of not having a monkey climbing on my leg or having a tantrum because I can't pick them up at that exact moment. I'm actually sad when I miss a day!

 

I have been going for physical therapy 3x week for my diastasis but I have not been able to keep up with my exercises at home. I have a few month left over from gym membership so I go to Pilates classes there- the fact that I already paid for the membership is incentive not to let it go to waste. They have a nursery there but my DH and I take turns going to the gym since he is home with me, or he will go when my parents come over. We also take the boys out for a walk every day for about an hour-the boys really love it and they have started sleeping better at night since we do that as a routine.

 

exercise??? what is this exercise you speak of? after having given birth to 7 kids, i'm pretty sure this is shape i'm going to stay

 

Yeah....don't know if I'll ever get regular exercise again! I work full time and by the time I get off work I barely get home in time to spend a little time with the babies before they go to bed. Then, its finish more work I have to do at home, eat some dinner, and spend a little time unwinding with the hubby before collapsing into bed. I cannot imagine getting up any earlier so I think exercise is going to stay sporadic until they start going to bed later or I find a different job. :gah:

 

After reading this thread a few days ago I decided to try exercising while the boys were in their bouncy seats or swings as a few pps mentioned. So I just turned on some music and started dancing my heart out, and they were totally fascinated. lol! It was hilarious. I'm sure my dancing was pretty hilarious too. I don't know how many calories I burned, but I wore myself out and entertained them for twenty minutes, so I think that's a pretty good deal.

Thanks so much for the idea!!