Finding Time to Exercise When You're Barely Hanging On

A common struggle I hear about {and experience myself, even} is how to squeeze it all in.  How do you make time to grow your relationship with Christ, meet the needs of your family and the demands of keeping a home AND exercise?  Seriously, there are only so many hours in a day and not all of them find you with boundless energy.  The key is to prioritize.  And then take a fresh look at your schedule.

I function best when I rise early and seek the Lord first.  If I hurry past that, my day just seems off and difficult to get back on track.  That is my number one priority and I guard the time carefully.  One of the things I do in my quiet time is to keep a prayer journal.  In it, I record prayer requests for others as well as my own family.  This is a wonderful way to be diligent about intercessory prayer but also "organized" about my own prayer needs.  And you can bet I have plenty of scribblings in there asking for guidance to find balance in my very busy days.  I jot down any ideas He inspires me with for making the best use of my time.

Housework doesn't take a huge part of my day because my children have been trained to pitch in and help.  This frees me to spend more time simply being with my kids.  And it also allows for a bit of flexibility to get some physical activity in.  Some days are filled with yard work, which is both cardiovascular and strengthening.  Other days find us at the park where a few laps add up to several miles of walking.  Throw in that double jogger I push (and some of the hills over there) and I've got myself an excellent workout while enjoying the fresh air and my family.

I think sometimes we get hung up on the idea that we have to be stuck in some room sweating it out in misery.  I have a few workout DVD series that I love (you can find some here) and don't mind sweating away to.  But other times my exercise is simply intentional movement. 

Don't get me wrong, on those days when you can fit in 30 minutes or an hour for a run or a DVD, plan it and DO IT!  But if your days are so packed simply trying to keep your head above water, don't be discouraged out of doing anything at all.  Look for creative ways to squeeze it in.  Challenge the kids to a push-up contest and drop down and pump out as many as you can before they lose interest.  Let your husband know you're pretty sure your abs can take more crunches than his can and see if he doesn't take the bait!

Make a fitness plan and be determined to stick with it.  But on those days when you're ready to wave the white flag of surrender, dare to look at exercise a little differently.  And defy defeat by finding a way to get your heart pumping!