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Time to Exercise

Do you really not have enough time in your day to exercise? Too many times people say, “I need to exercise but I do not have enough time in the day.” Or, when they do have the time they only have the energy to lie down and watch TV. Whether you are on travel working late hours or at home dealing with work, family, and other after school events, the schedule below or some version of it will help you get over the hump.

Exercise is anything other than sleeping or sitting. Even when you are on the floor flat on your back or stomach you can exercise the torso with abdominal exercise or back other torso exercises. The pushup is a great “laying down” exercise and an abdominal crunch is just a little bit harder than sleeping. An hour a day is a nice goal to achieve to increase your fitness level and overall health, but even 10-15 minutes is better than nothing and beneficial too.

Fitting fitness into a day is a challenge we all face. Exercising is tough after long hours of working at home, office or on the road, but Americans still need to workout as we are creating a generation of people who are obese and have other PREVENTABLE health disorders. Many people who struggle to fit fitness into their schedule actually do a better job at getting the job done IF they take 15-20 minutes prior to starting work for the day and 15-20 minutes after work is done for the day. Even if that exercise is a simple walk before breakfast and after dinner, a 15-20 minute walk at each of these times can significantly help you burn calories that only wind up getting stored as fat. In fact, after any meal, a light walk and some calisthenics will help you to be more energized and ready to do whatever.

Here is a busy day schedule I typically do when long days appear:

0600 – early wake up for get 20-30 minutes of some form of cardio done like running, biking, swimming. If on the road, find a pool in a hotel to really wake up for the day.

0700 – Eat Breakfast for energy for the day. (See Lean Down Food Plan)

0800 – Work

1000 – Work – Eat a snack

1230 – Eat lunch

1:15 – Walk a few minutes

1:30 – Work

4:00 – Work – Eat a snack

6:00 – Break for dinner

7:00 – Walk or Lift weights or PT for second wind of the long day

8:00 – Continue work until midnight if needed

Personally, when I have to work 15-18 hour days, I like to get a cardio workout completed the first thing in the morning. This wakes me up fully and I am ready to handle the day ahead. Then, eat a good breakfast full of protein, carbohydrates, and plenty of water. Then pack a snack for about mid morning like an apple, orange, yogurt or a nutrition bar. This will help you from being a ravenous eater at lunch if eating in a restaurant. For lunch have a green leafy salad with some form of lean meat like chicken or fish or boiled eggs. Then, take a 10-15 minute walk to help keep the metabolism going for the afternoon. Afternoon working is much easier if you lay off the breads, simple sugars and focus on eating protein, complex carbohydrates and fiber rich foods.

After working the rest of the day, break for a medium sized dinner and try to squeeze in a short workout of weights, calisthenics or if you do not have those facilities, just walk again. But, I find a lifting session or PT really gives me the second wind I need to keep working or playing with the family.

I hope these tips will be of use to you as they are common issues seen today. Remember something is better than nothing so at least get out and walk a few times a day. See some of the articles for workout ideas in the Article Archive or the Fitness Ebook Store.

Email me at Stew@stewsmith.com if you have a question about fitting fitness into your life..

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