balance: busy life and fitness

Another new year is here, and just like in years past, you have big plans to live your best life by finally taking control of your health. But, even with the best intentions to get back into shape, you just have no idea how to make turn your health around in the new year especially while balancing the rest of your many responsibilities.

Good news sisters, online trainer and founder of Get Fit Like That, Sharita Jennings, is sharing some of her tried-and-true advice to help you balance your health and your hustle, no matter how packed your calendar gets. Save this article as a reminder of small changes you can make all year long to stay on top of your health. 

Make an Appointment to Be Active, and Show Up

When it comes to deadlines, appointments, and your kids’ many extracurricular activities, you have no problem marking down important to-dos on your calendar. Yet, when it comes to working out, planning out meals, or other good-for-you activities, you forget that your calendar even exists. The solution here is a simple one: treat your health the same way you treat all the other important things in your life. Make an appointment on your calendar so that nothing else can come up. Try to schedule at least 4 days a week when you can spend at least 30 minutes being active.

The good news is that you don’t need to spend all day working out to be on your way to your fitness goals. A few days of 30-minute workouts is all you need to start to see positive changes in your overall health. If you need some ideas for your next 30-minute workout try one of these out:

• • Interval Cardio
    • Turn on your favorite music and start at a pace you can maintain for 30 minutes. After 1 song ends move as fast as you can for at least 1 minute, then go back to your base pace. Stick to this base for another song, then do a 1-minute sprint again.
• No-Equipment Pyramid Strength Circuit :

• • Do a 5 minute warm up with 10 repetitions of each move for 3 rounds: Jumping jacks, walk out planks, high knees, alternating reverse
  • Start with 4 moves: (1) Squats (2) Alternating Side Lunges  (3 )Up & Down Planks (4) Supermans
  • Do 20 repetitions of each move, then 15, then 10, then 5
  • Start the circuit over and work your way back up: 5 repetitions, then 10, 15, then 20.
  • Cool down and stretch for at least 5 minutes

Can’t Meal Prep? Then Create Your Own Meal Plan

Ok, truth moment: meal prep really does work. The ability to spend a whole Sunday cooking up a week’s worth of meals and snacks ahead of time is really a precious thing. If you can handle meal prep every week, you’ll truly be setting yourself up for success this year. But, not all of us are so lucky as to have to time or the traditional lifestyle to block out hours to make enough healthy food to last a whole week. If this sounds like you, Coach Sharita recommends instead that you try meal planning. Meal planning is basically the first step of meal prep, simply planning out your meals for the week. If you’re always eating on the go, grabbing fast food, or whatever you can find in the office cafe, a meal plan can help prepare you to make the healthiest decision when you’re stomach is grumbling and you’re facing a rack of unhealthy options.

So open up your notes app on your phone, or if you’re old school, a pen and paper. Think about healthy meals you can eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner so that when you’re faced with too many options, you have an idea of what to chow down on.

Try these for easy grab and go meal options:

• Breakfast: 1 cup of greek yogurt topped with 1 cup of fresh berries
• Lunch: Shredded chicken and vegetable wrap and 1 cup roasted red potatoes (whole wheat tortilla, 1 serving of shredded chicken, 1 cup of grilled or fresh vegetables like spinach, peppers, and cucumbers)
• Dinner: Turkey meatballs over zucchini noodles (or you might substitute the noodles for another pasta or rice substitute like cauliflower rice, cabbage, or other vegetables)

Skip the Gym and Sweat it out from Home

You’re busy enough as it is without adding the commute and hassle of going to the gym. You can get in effective workouts without leaving your house, making you much more likely to stick your new year fitness goals.

First, get your home gym in order. You don’t need any serious equipment to break a sweat or build muscle. At a minimum keep an exercise mat, an exercise ball or Bosu ball, a set or two of dumbbells and resistance bands. All of these items are super easy to store and can help you get a total body workout when you’re in a pinch.

Get Help from a Trainer to Get a Plan You Can Follow 

If you’re completely lost when it comes to working out at home or at the gym, you may want to consult a personal trainer to give you an online fitness plan that you can follow. When signing up for a plan, make sure it is made specifically for your fitness level, your goals, and your schedule. Your trainer should be able to create something that easily fits into your weekly routine and suits your hectic lifestyle.

 

The benefit of working with a trainer as opposed to going out on your own is that you don’t have to do any thinking, only sweating. Let someone else list out your exercises from day to day and all you have to worry about is getting the workouts done.

Ditch the Stress

We know your life can get stressful, especially if you wear many hats from caregiver to boss, to socialite and fashionista. We wouldn’t ask you to give any of that up. But, if your goal is to be healthier this year, you’ve got to do whatever it takes to de-stress and do it often.

Try one of these to find your zen at least once a week:

• Meditate for 10 minutes to calm your overactive mind
• Do 20 minutes of yoga
• Book a massage to relieve the physical symptoms of your stress
• Go for a nature walk for a boost of oxygen and a renewed focus
• Talk to a therapist to learn more ways to cope with stress and reduce triggers of anxiety and depression

Your Fitness Goals are In The Bag

The key to making your fitness resolutions stick for good this year is to forget about perfection. Do what you can and celebrate your small wins and don’t harp on your slip-ups. You got this!

🏋🏾‍♀️: Sharita Jennings is the founder of Get Fit Like That, an online fitness platform that is dedicated to helping busy professions balance their health and their hustle. Sharita leads virtual fitness classes, creates customized training programs, and shares tips and workouts with her readers at getfitlikethat.com and make sure to follow her on ig:@getfitlikethat