How to Balance Fitness with a Busy Lifestyle

It can be difficult to find a healthy balance between your hectic daily life schedule and trying to get fit. Maybe you work 9-5 and have kids at home or maybe you’re just a full-time college student trying to squeeze in workouts on top of your heavy school load. It’s true, balancing the two can be hard, but only if you make it hard! Just like anything else in life – practice makes perfect. With these five tips, you’ll be mastering your busy schedule with workouts like a pro in no time!

Tip 1: Wake up early – Many people use the same excuse of “I don’t have time.” If you don’t have time, make time! After all, haven’t you heard the saying “the early bird gets the worm?” Sometimes it’s as simple as waking up a couple hours earlier. You’ll be surprised by all you can accomplish when you do. Then there are those people who use the excuse of “I’m not a morning person.” Stop telling yourself you aren’t and start telling yourself you are! A simple shift in mindset can make all the difference.

Tip 2: Get your 8 hours - If you plan on waking up early to get your sweat on, you might need to go to bed a little earlier. There’s no need to stay up for 3 hours at night watching mindless television when you can be using those hours for extra ZZZ’s.  Set yourself a bedtime and honor that. You’ll feel so much more refreshed when you have a good night’s sleep of at least 8 hours.

Tip 3: Find an accountability partner – Some days, you just need the extra push to get your workout in. Finding a friend to work out with is a great way to help keep you accountable, especially those days when you are lacking motivation after a long day of work/school/etc. Not to mention, it’s a lot more fun to work out when you have a buddy. Maybe none of your friends are into the fitness thing and that’s okay – try to make a friend by going to a workout class or even just branch out and try to talk to someone you see at the gym. Becoming friends with likeminded people can be truly life changing. Accountability partners are especially great if you struggle to get your workouts done in the morning.

Tip 4: Prepare - Set one day a week aside for prepping and planning. Buying a planner, and taking even 45 minutes out of one of your less busy days to plan out your weekly schedule can work wonders in the long run. Meal prepping weekly lunches and dinners is helpful when you’re on the go but also keeps you on track if you struggle with eating healthy. If you already brought your lunch to work, you’re a lot less likely to go grab fast food for lunch with your coworkers. You can even meal prep your breakfasts with an overnight chia pudding and overnight oat recipe! As important as it is to schedule your workouts and meal prep, it’s also important to set aside time for relationships and friends. If you know your friends want to grab dinner and drink one night, plan to get your workout in early or even on your lunch break. Sometimes all you need is 30 minutes to get a good sweat in!

Tip 5: Eat healthy and drink lots of water – One result of constantly being on the go and busy is sickness and lack of energy. In order to have enough energy and to prevent you from getting sick, it’s key to nourish your body with nutrient dense foods that keep it going and make it feel good! Another thing we’re often guilty of is not drinking enough water. It seems like such a simple reminder but the majority of people forget to hydrate throughout the day!

It’s important to remember that all good things take time. Even if you just start with one of these tips, you’re a step in the right direction.