5 Ways to Fit Exercise Into Your Busy Day

Most people have a tough time fitting daily exercise into their schedules. They’ve got other important priorities such as a job, home, or kids. When life is crazy, exercise tends to creep down to the bottom of the to-do list and often times gets overlooked completely.

After a while, though, it catches up. If you haven’t focused on your health & fitness for a while, you may notice your health decline, your body composition fluctuate, and you may start to feel aches and pains more than ever. This is often the time when you vow to get back to making your health and fitness a priority, but just the thought of it may be overwhelming.

Getting back in shape doesn’t have to be daunting. Here are a few ways to make it easily attainable!

#1 Schedule It

A little bit of planning goes a long way. Decide on the workout routine that you’ll be doing, take a look at your calendar to find out your best time to work out, and make an appointment to do so. Taking a few minutes to schedule your upcoming day or week will save you a great amount of time in the long run. You can even set an alarm or notification alerting you that you’re working time is coming up soon.

By scheduling your workout, you’ll know exactly when you’ll be exercising, which means you won’t have to wonder when or if you’ll be able to do it that day. In addition, the day won’t pass by so fast that before you know it, it’s 10 pm, you haven’t gotten your workout in, and you’re too tired to even think about exercising.

#2 Workout in the Morning

A morning workout is a wonderful way to set the tone for the day.

Exercising not only releases “happy hormones” like endorphins and dopamine into your body, but it also increases oxygen supply to your brain. Working out in the morning will help you to tackle the day ahead by reducing stress and by giving you the physical and emotional energy you need.

You’ll also have less distraction. Your kids will still be asleep, you’re less likely to get phone calls, and you have not yet started your to-do list for the day.

In addition, working out in the morning means it’s done and out of the way for the day. No need to give it another thought!

#3 Exercise at Work

You probably don’t want to get so sweaty that you soak through your work clothes, but you don’t have to! Just stay active. It’s so easy to become sedentary by sitting at a desk all day. Combat this by standing or pacing while on the phone, using a stability ball instead of a chair, or even better, if possible, working at a standing desk or treadmill desk.

If you want to raise your heart rate enough to reap the cardiovascular benefits or do enough strength training to reap the muscular benefit, try going for a power walk on your break, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or doing some squats at your desk. You could even bring some dumbbells to work and do some bicep curls, shoulder presses, or other upper body exercises throughout the day.

#4 Workout While Watching T.V.

You don’t have to choose between watching your favorite show or getting your workout in. You can do both at the same time. If you have stationary equipment like a treadmill or elliptical, set it up in front of your TV so you can exercise while watching. Or, you could do your strength training moves such as lunges or squats to overhead presses. Alternatively, you could simply get some steps in. Do some high-knees, march in place, or do some stair-step-ups at the bottom step of your stairs while watching TV. The possibilities are endless.

#5 Split Your Workout Session Into 2 or 3

Let’s say you want to get a 30-minute workout in, but your schedule is packed. It’s completely okay to break it down into three, 10-minute sessions. Or, make it two sessions. 10-minutes in the morning, and 20-minutes in the afternoon. Whatever works best for you! It all counts!

If you’re looking to ease back into exercise, but don’t want to do a full 30 or 60-minute workout all at once, try these quick guided YouTube workout videos!