How to Find Time for Exercise

By eHow Sports & Fitness Editor

Find Time for Exercise

Rate: (8 Ratings)

Exercise is often a low priority and something we just never get around to. To stay healthy, have more energy, and lose or maintain weight, its important to find time for a regular exercise routine. To work it into your schedule, you first must commit to an exercise routine and think of it as something that must be done. Here are ways to make time in your schedule for exercise.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Step1

Experiment with your schedule to find out when you can get some exercise time in. Make it a routine. Once it becomes a priority and a habit, it will be easier to keep up with it.

Step2

Get some exercise while doing errands. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park further away from stores so that you have a longer walk.

Step3

Exercise on your lunch hour. Find a good place to walk or join a nearby gym. If you are home with young children all day, try to find a gym with a babysitting program or classes that the kids can attend while you are working out. Make sure the program is something that the kids will enjoy and look forward to.

Step4

Wake up earlier. Walk or jog outdoors. Or find a room in your home where you won't wake everyone up to do aerobics or a treadmill routine.

Step5

Walk whenever you can. Take a 15 minute break at work and walk. Walk around the field at your kids' games. Walk your children to school or to errands instead of driving.

Step6

Plan fitness activities for your family on evenings and weekends. Go for a walk, ride bikes, swim or play a sport. Join the local YMCA, gym or community center. Take classes together.

Step7

Do yoga, sit-ups, resistance training or stretching while watching television or talking on the phone.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
ETA: Kimberly, here. Yea, we've ALL heard these before but if you have not put exercising as a priority in your life, it doesn't matter how much time you can find, you won't do it. You could have an entire day of nothing to do and you might, just might, take a little walk.

The only way you are going to exercise on a continual and regular basis is to put exercising as either the first or second top priority of your day. Ack, I hear ringings in my ear of excuses that that would be selfish. That's an excuse! You take care of yourself and everything else will be done better, i.e.; having energy to play with your kids, more motivation to do other things necessary in your life, be around for your kids/grandkids. Let go of those totally lame excuses. It doesn't fly with folks who already know better. Only other excuse makers will agree with you.

I consider myself a fairly busy woman. And I use exercising 6 times a week as bragging rights. Yep, I use it to boost my self-esteem because I rarely run into other people who exercise on a regular, consistent basis. They are too loaded with excuses. Oy.

Challenge yourself for just one week; seven days to making exercise a priority. And see how it feels. Don't totally beat yourself up but be totally conscious of how you feel during that week. And, if you don't like how it makes you feel, well, then you are free to go back to your old way of life. But do us exercisers all a favor; tell the truth; you just don't want to exercise.

Are you willing to do what it takes?
Kimberly