We live in a fast-paced digital age of too much to do and too little time to do it. Fitting any kind of fitness/movement plan during the week is challenging, especially if you’re working full time, long hours, are a parent, or… you know… in the middle of a pandemic and therefore have less accessibility for gym usage. Thankfully, there is still a multitude of ways you can fit in some healthy practices into your work week; the secret is making a plan, and taking it one baby step at a time.
STEP 1: ASSESS
Take inventory of the tools you have at home to get in some kind of movement. Do you have a treadmill? A yoga mat? Outdoor/indoor bicycle? Scooter? Dumbbells? A few soup cans? A few empty gallon jugs you can fill with water to create some weights? A toddler who would love to climb all over you for kid-friendly yoga? A hula hoop or jump rope? Some chalk to mark the driveway for sprints and agility work? Get creative here – the sky is the limit. At the end of the day, you don’t need any equipment other than your body and gravity to get in some serious movement; but sometimes a few handy tools used consistently will help.
Also: assess your eating habits. Write a journal of everything you eat or drink for two weeks, and also write down your energy levels, how well you sleep, how regular your digestion is, whether you have acid reflux or other symptoms because of your eating, how addicted to caffeine you are and any headache related symptoms because of it, your posture in your work environment and whether it relates to any body pain, etc. Once you begin to realize what your habits are with eating and movement, that can pave the way to implementing lasting change for the better.
STEP 2: WRITE GOALS
These goals need to be realistic based on what little free time you have, how early you are willing to get up to work out or how late in the day you’re willing to work out, how willing you are to change your eating habits… be honest with yourself about what you think you can accomplish as a first step. These goals could range tremendously. It might look like: “I want to stretch three times per week.” It may be, “I want to enjoy my grandma’s Christmas cookies without any guilt over the holidays, and move a little extra to keep me feeling ok about maintaining my current fitness level without going off the cookie deep end.” It may look like, “I want to improve on my strength and endurance PRs.” If your goal is to lose pounds, that could be useful especially if you are at the beginning of your fitness journey; but keep in mind that performance and movement based goals are more sustainable in the long run, and when you make performance/movement based goals, the pounds goals will always follow. So please consider instead of saying, “I want to lose 10 pounds in the next 3 months”, instead to say: “I want to move my body at least four times per week in some way, and I want to eat one big, loaded salad each day.” If you focus on your habits, it is likely that the pounds goals will speak for themselves.
STEP 3: MAKE A PLAN
You’ve heard it before: a goal without a plan is just a wish. Likely you have been wishing for a while, but weren’t clear on how to make a plan to realize your goal. This is where the golden rule of baby steps comes in. Many seek out a new workout program, and they adopt an ‘all or nothing’ mentality where if they’re not putting in crazy hours of effort each week, then somehow they’re failing. That’s not how this works! Little steps done in a consistent way lead to lasting habits and results, and don’t crush your spirit in the process. Also – unless your eating is 100% perfect (read: none of us eat ‘perfectly’, whatever that means), you will likely need to make some food/hydration adjustments as well as movement adjustments in order to reach goals that will last. Each complement the other; one can’t ignore one and focus on the other for long.
It is sometimes easier to set movement goals than food goals, because one can quickly get moving with little to no prep in advance if they’re motivated. However, food / beverage prep requires more forethought and preparation because you need to get the groceries and ingredients you need in order to eat well. Don’t skip the time needed to do this. It can often feel overwhelming at first; but all you need to start is to look at your groceries in your cart next time you’re at the store, and make some swaps in some of your food choices to steer yourself in the right direction. Prep protein and veggies in advance to make easy grab-and-go solutions for yourself. Take the time and be mindful about your plan, and it will go a long way.
STEP 4: SCHEDULE IT
This is another area to be honest with yourself. If you have children who are early risers (like me), it may seem impossible to wake up before them. One of the best things I ever did for myself was train myself to be an early riser, so that I could get a little ‘me’ time in the morning before my daughter wakes up. Sometimes I use that morning time to do a hardcore workout; other mornings I do some stretches and make a super nourishing meal for myself to practice some self-care.
Another option: movement during the work day. Regardless of whether you’re working at home during the pandemic, or at work, it should be doable to at least get in a 10 minute walk into your day. This not only does wonders for your mobility and metabolism, but it is a crucial method to clear the mind during the frenzied work environment and reset your mind to be more productive afterwards. Walking may seem simple, but it is a completely underrated and excellent form of activity that nearly all can fit into their day.
A third option is movement after work. This one is hard for me, because most of my energy is at its peak in the morning, and by the end of the day, I’m exhausted and ready to curl up on the couch. If you feel this way as well, but you can’t foresee getting up early, at least try to get in some stretching as a first baby step. You might surprise yourself and want to move a little bit more once you start stretching after work.
Another option is to schedule a block of time during a lunch hour at work. This, of course, is tricky and depends on your work situation, and how long of a lunch break you have. However: you don’t have to run to a gym and then speed back to the office to get in a legitimate workout midday. You can simply go outside or book an empty room for yourself to do a few pushups, situps, running in place, yoga, or whatever else you feel like doing.
In order for your plan to work, it needs to make sense with your current goals, abilities, and time. And you need to commit to your plan. Schedule it into your Outlook calendar to create meetings with yourself so that you are held accountable – and so that your colleagues don’t schedule meetings during that time to sabotage your ‘you’ time. Find a consistent time each day to get some sort of movement in. Remember: any effort is better than no effort. 10 minutes of something is better than 0 minutes of something. Just start small and you will get there! Above all; don’t kid yourself into thinking that you don’t have enough time at all to take care of yourself. We always make time for the priorities we have; everyone has the same 24 hours in a day, and it is up to you to cultivate a lifestyle where you are empowered and can take charge of your health.
STEP 5: SEEK ACCOUNTABILITY
This is a big one. Often we are too sheepish to tell others about our goals and plans. We don’t want to impose on people. We don’t want our employers to look down on us for taking a lunch break for our health and fitness. However, the more you open up to others about your goals and desires, the more you will be surprised at how accommodating and supportive others can be.
For example: I was in the middle of a workout when my daughter woke up and came downstairs, ravenous for breakfast. The mom guilt immediately set in because I felt like I had to instantly stop my workout in order to take care of her. Instead, I greeted her, and asked her whether she could brush her teeth and get dressed for the day by herself like a big girl, so that I could finish my workout. She replied, “OK Mama! Good job with your pushups!” I then remembered that I am modeling healthy habits for her, and the mom guilt subsided.
Another example: I started sharing more openly about my exercise routine with colleagues at work. After learning that I’m a certified personal trainer and passionate about yoga and rehabilitative movement, a few colleagues suggested I should lead a Friday yoga session for 30 minutes before work with colleagues. So that’s exactly what I did; and it was so nice to come together with others who had a desire to move a bit each week!
Another example: I love to listen to loud music when I work out and lift heavy things. My husband is a light sleeper who is not a fan of this when I want to work out at 5am. So: we decided I would invest in some nice ear bud headphones so that I could rock out to my music, and we got some yoga mats that would soften the ‘thud’ of my dumbbells as I set them down on the floor after a lift so that the sound would be more muffled so he could get some more rest in the morning.
Find others who share and support your goals and desires. Ask them to hold you accountable. Schedule zoom video workout dates with others if you can’t/don’t want to meet in person. Join Kobukai Jiu Jitsu’s weekly Warrior Workout, on Wednesdays at 7pm over zoom, to get an awesome weekly sweat session in. Working out with others will increase your energy and motivation for movement, and will make it a lot more fun and sustainable in the long run.
ICING ON THE CAKE: Treat Yourself
Many of us set aside time to perhaps get a haircut, or nails done, or even get a massage once in a while, as methods of treating ourselves. However, the same can be said for treating yourself at the beginning of the process. I knew that I didn’t have the room for a million dumbbells and a rack in my house, because I work out in my modest sized living room. Therefore, I treated myself to adjustable dumbbells and a heavy sandbag so that they could take up less space, but I could still lift heavy. When I was rehabilitating half of my body from a bad car accident and lifting dumbbells was hard, I treated myself to a TRX band, which has become a staple tool for my workouts ever since, and which takes up no storage space at all. I wanted a way to get some cardio in while cooped up in my house during the pandemic, so I got an indoor exercise bike that would work up a sweat without pounding on my joints, as well as a heavy punching bag for some kickboxing to alleviate stress. Treat yourself with the tools you need (and want!) to get the job done, and you will always have them when you want them in the future. Fitness and health tools such as these are investments in your long term well being; they’re 100% worth it.
If you find that you are stuck on any of these steps, please feel free to reach out, and we will point you in the right direction!
Train hard; love harder.
Sara Wilhelm (Little Dragon)
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