What made the difference for me was actually making space in my home to exercise. I belonged to a gym less than a mile from home/work, but after I had a baby and returned to work full-time, I never made time to go to the gym anymore. Making space for a treadmill and small stretching area has made a world of difference to me! It’s easier to get up 30 min early and do a quick stretch and run on the treadmill than get dressed, drive to the gym, park, etc. which can easily take an hour for the same amount of exercise. If you have space in your house, it’s a worthwhile investment (you might be able to find a cheap piece of equipment on Craigslist)!

There’s 24 hours in a day. A helpful thought process for me when I’m feeling like there isn’t enough time to do everything + exercise is: 23.5 hours of my day can be dedicated to “more productive things” and just 30 minutes can be dedicated towards exercise. When you look at it that way, it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal at all!

I definitely agree that you need to think of it as a priority and not feel guilty for taking time for yourself. I am married and work full-time, so want to spend every minute after work with my daughter. After she goes to bed, I want to spend time with my husband. I make it a priority to get up in the mornings to get my workout done before either of them get up for the day. I never regret getting up and getting my workout done, but ALWAYS regret it all day long when I skip.

I don’t feel guilty for taking time for myself. My husband works out every.single.day (it was his goal for the year), so I never do. I think it makes me a better mom and wife too.

Agree with not giving yourself an option. Not saying that when you are exhausted it’s not OK to take a break or a rest day but you should always make it a part of every day even if the smallest things. Before you know it – it will be a MUST have part of your day!

baby sqauts, love! totally have done these while babysitting my nephews.

I also tell myself that exercise is not optional. I have an autoimmune disease so that keeps me motivated because I know that I have to take care of myself. I also tell myself how much better I will feel after I workout. Whenever I’m the busiest or the most stressed I know that is when I need exercise the most!

I got a lot of equipment from yard sales to work out at home. I was heading to the gym after work each evening but it was time consuming. By the time I got to the gym (after fighting 30 minutes of traffic), changed, worked out, changed again and drove home, it was late, I was starving and I didn’t get any time to walk my dogs (I don’t have kids yet but I have 3 dogs that love walks in the evenings). I was guilt ridden, so I stopped working out until my hubs got the idea to start bringing home different equipment for me, things like a punching bag, stability ball, kettle bells, just simple stuff, small stuff. We set up a little area in the spare room. Now I can go home to work out, take a walk afterwards to catch up with the husband/give the dogs a nice walk/get some cardio, eat dinner, clean up and still get to bed at a decent time.

I try to involve my little family in working out with me so I don’t lose out on time with them. Most of the time the hubs works out with me and we are starting a running program soon (couch to 5k) that the dogs will be joining us on. I personally wasn’t a fan of working out in a gym anyways. Make it apart of your daily routine and make it non negotiable. Some people aren’t evening work out people either, do it in the morning and make it a point to go to bed earlier at night. Whatever you do, don’t feel guilty for taking care of yourself!

exercise is the best form of health insurance! I’m sure any job that provides health benefits will end up paying less if their employees are exercising, so really you’re just helping the company save money =)

I don’t have kids (yet) but I did recently move from a home that was walking distance from my downtown job to a home in the ‘burbs that requires an hour commute each way. Losing those two hours per day has made it really hard for me to keep exercise a priority!

For now, I’ve found that making running date or gym date with other people is key – lucky for me, most of my running buddies are people from work. Somehow, going to exercise with other people from my job helps reduce the “I should stay and do more” mentality. It also helps that another person is counting on me, so I HAVE to keep our date…and since we go running right from work, going home and accidentally sitting down on the couch isn’t an option. I usually just say to my husband “I have a running date with so-and-so after work, so will be home a little later.” We’ve both learned that I am much nicer to be around when I get my time to run, so he’s supportive. However, I do fear that I’ll lose this time when we have future kid and have to seriously re-think how to balance this!

When I was still at my law firm almost no one worked out and thought of health is a priority but from day 1, I let it be known that it was a priority to me. Everyone has a thing that keeps them from being the best employee ever (aka a robot) whether it be kids, family, spiritual restrictions or working out. The key is being clear about your priorities and letting everyone know (in a professional manner) that while you are very committed to your work you have another priority for one hour a day at [insert] time. Just being clear about your boundaries will lead people to respect you more anyway.

Personally, I got up early and did my workouts before work. I got into work a little bit later but I also stayed later so it was NBD. This was helpful because I almost always had to stay late for something that “came up” but I almost never was required to come in extra early. I also use lunchtime to take walks. I walk around the neighborhood and generally just stretch my legs. Weekends are also the perfect time for a longer workout.

If you still have a hard time squeezing it in, consider requesting an alternative workstation like a standing one or a treadmill desk or try to motivate your employer and co-workers to be more cognizant of health by organizing a “biggest loser” competition or lunch-time walking and/or yoga groups. It also shows initiative.

I love your point about exercise being a non-negotiable – like brushing your teeth!

For me, doing group exercise classes is a great because then I’m “multi-tasking” in the social aspect. I can’t cut hours out of work, but I can visit with my friends WHILE being active. I have the accountability of “we missed you last Sunday!” and the bonus of getting to spend time with the people I care about (and people that care about the same things).

I’ve also just started doing hovers at lunch with two of my co-workers. It’s currently 3 minutes (and hopefully eventually 5) of our 30, but it’s great for our cores and gets the blood flowing to reboost the day.

I’m doing the whole grad school/work thing…so for me that’s my current mega full time job! For me, it helps to have a lot of options. I have a gym membership at home, on days when I have long breaks in classes I try to pop over to the school rec for a quick swim, workout DVDs/Pinterest workouts are great for those days when leaving the house to workout seems like the worst thing in the world, and then there’s always bundling up (at least during this time of year!) for a run outside! If I don’t have variety, I lose motivation quickly.

I love these tips, Caitlin! It’s the type of thing we all know but need to be reminded of now and then.

I’m in the same boat as far as working from home and having a flexible schedule – and having perviously worked a busy, in-office job prior to this, I learned one key thing from the switch: if it’s not a priority when it’s tough, it’s not going to be a priority when it’s easy, either.

What I mean by that is, it’s easy to tell yourself “If only I had a more flexible schedule,” or “If only I could work part time and/or from home,” thinking your current situation is to blame for your lack of commitment to exercise. I’d go on a limb and say for most of us, it just isn’t. For me, working from home didn’t magically make fitness a higher priority, which was quite humbling to realize: it wasn’t my situation, it was ME that got in the way. I’d encourage anybody who wants to make fitness a priority to be brutally honest with themselves about what’s really standing in the way – external factors, or internal factors?

I’m not sure if this is relevant specifically to your reader who asked the question, but I have written a couple posts on the work-life balance I struggle with, being a full-time working mama with a baby, Graduate student, runner, etc.

http://onwardinward.blogspot.com/2013/05/on-taking-responsibility-for-my.html

http://onwardinward.blogspot.com/2013/02/selfishlessness.html

In terms of finding the balance between work and exercise, I think you’re right – it’s a matter of priorities and being honest with yourself. The last couple months have been a struggle for me at work because, on the one hand, I’ve been super busy and putting in overtime would help me get caught up and make me look really good. But on the other hand, I’m training for a marathon. Though everyone tells me I “should” work more on my career, because the money and the status are important, to me personally my fitness goals are more important for a variety of reasons. So, I have cut back at work and been putting in only the required 40 hours/week while I focus on running. And I feel amazing.

If your reader is feeling really guilty about not getting enough exercise, maybe her mind and body are telling her that she’d be happier if exercise were higher up on her priority list. In that case, it might mean finding a buddy and getting out for a run on her lunch break, or never scheduling a meeting before 8am so she can get in a morning run (it sucks, but it’s possible – I get up at 5:30, run 5 miles, shower, get my daughter up and off to daycare, and have myself at my desk by 8am!)

There is always, ALWAYS a way.

I am so lucky — we have a small gym in our work building, and we are allowed to take an hour during the work day to exercise! Of course, there are days where there is just too much to be done, so I don’t make it there, but in general, if I’m on top of my work, I can workout guilt free!

I’m a teacher and the mom of an 18 month old. When he was 9 months old, I realized I hadn’t regularly been to the gym in over 10 months (I had lost 130lbs from diet and working out 3 years before I got pregnant). I weighed as much as I did the day I delivered my son. I felt so guilty every time I went to the gym. I didn’t get any “me” time. I didn’t deserve it because I worked full time, and therefore didn’t deserve any other time by myself. I loved him, but I hated myself. I started going to the gym at 5:30am and leaving morning drop offs for my husband. I told everyone I knew that it was because “I had to leave too early for work anyways, so I never saw him to begin with.” I justified my hour to everyone I could. And you know what? No one ever questioned it. No one ever even asked why I wasn’t dropping my son off at his sitter. No one thought I was a bad mom because my husband did it. And then I started dropping weight. And being happier. And fitting into my clothes. And it was ok. I was less anxious because I was planning better- I had to. Sure I was more tired getting up at 4:50am, but then I could dedicate my afternoon/evening to him. I don’t get my haircut often, or my nails done weekly, or anything like that. But I do go to the gym. And that’s ok. What is with this guilt that women have- that if we do what we really want and need for ourselves once in a while, that we are failing somewhere else? If being fit and healthy is a priority, you have to make it one in your life. And not feel bad about it. Find the time. Go in the early mornings or the late evenings. Or go at 5pm and do work afterwards. Find what works for you and don’t apologize. I love my son so much, and I love spending Saturday mornings with him eating pancakes and just hanging. But I shouldn’t have to jam everything I want or need to do in the 2 hours of his nap. So I make working out a priority on Saturday morning. And I don’t feel bad about it anymore. And I don’t tell my husband I’m sorry. And I don’t look at my son and feel like a bad mom. I’m a better mother, wife, teacher and friend because I take 1 hour a day for myself, and in that hour, I choose to go to the gym. I may not be meeting friends regularly for drinks, or going out to dinner often, but that’s ok because I know if I want to be happy, I have to spend my “me” time at the gym, and my other time with my son.