Incredible Mag

5 Tips For Busy Parents To Stay Fit and Healthy

morning run with family

<p>Parenting can be energy-draining and exhausting on physical as well as emotional levels&period; But this cannot possibly be the reason to allow your health and wellbeing to take a backseat&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Parents of newborns&comma; toddlers or teenagers all find themselves pressed for time&period; School pickups and drop-offs&comma; activity classes&comma; housework&comma; kids&rsquo&semi; homework and an array of child-related chores keep them occupied throughout the day&period;&nbsp&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Amidst all this one can forget to prioritize their needs&comma; and exercise and workouts do not even make it to the to-do list&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Without mindful and goal-oriented efforts&comma; you will find it hard to get your workout routine back on track&period; Remember that having kids need not jeopardize your fitness&period; There are ways in which you can incorporate invigorating physical activity between diaper changes and rushing to activity classes&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Here are a few tips for parents to stay healthy and fit&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><strong>1&period; Stay Fit Because You Have To<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Remember that there are far too many reasons for a parent &lpar;mom or dad&rpar; to stay fit&period; Firstly&comma; if you let things go now&comma; it will get increasingly difficult to snap back to being fit later on&period; With age and increasingly busy lifestyles&comma; you will find it hard to shed the pounds you have gained and will prefer to sink into the couch rather than go for a jog around the neighborhood&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>As responsibilities pile up&comma; you may struggle to include physical activity into your lifestyle&period; Your kids see you as a role model&comma; but they do not get the opportunity to learn the value of regular exercise from you&period; Also&comma; you want to enjoy your kids&rsquo&semi; growing up years and go biking and trekking with them&period; How will that be possible if you have become overweight and unfit&quest;&nbsp&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>You want to be fit and healthy in old age so that you can live independently and enjoy your golden years&period; That will not be easy if you continue to neglect your fitness now&period; There are plenty of reasons to get active&semi; find yours as soon as possible&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><strong>2&period; Be Mindful of Your Daily Routine<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Walk to the bus stop to drop off your little one&comma; park your car at least a stop away from your office and walk the remaining distance&comma; do push-ups&comma; squats or lunges as your baby naps&comma; and take a brisk walk in the open air whenever time permits&period; Once you make physical activity a habit&comma; you will notice that it is far easier to break into a sweat than you ever thought&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Analyze your daily schedule and make a mental note of the times you are less likely to be busy&period; Ensure that you set aside these intervals as &lsquo&semi;me time&period;&rsquo&semi; Do crunches to strengthen your core&comma; pack in some yoga&comma; do an energetic dance routine&comma; or practice a few runs up and down the stairs to do get your body in the active mode&period; A well-planned and regular workout routine is all that you need to prevent those calories from piling on&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><strong>3&period; Make Fitness a Priority for Your Family<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>In most cases&comma; this is easier said than done&period; After a long and hard day at work&comma; most of us like to wind down over dinner or watching our favorite sitcom&period; But that can breed unhealthy eating and lifestyle habits in your kids and add to your waistline&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Ensure you have meals as a family and use the time to talk to each other to know the happenings of the day&period; Set a good example for your little ones and enjoy your veggies and salads&period; Whenever possible&comma; try to cook at home and avoid making processed foods a part of your daily diet&period; Plenty of nutritious and free health products like juices and protein powders available online can make your meals even healthier&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The eating habits you follow and encourage at home set the foundation of your children&rsquo&semi;s future health&period; You also need to ensure that you encourage timely meals at home and avoid erratic eating&period; Do not skip meals however rushed you are&comma; because this will encourage your kids to do the same&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Do not make weight loss a point of conversation because it will take the focus away from fitness&period; Your children should be encouraged to have a positive body image&period; Make healthy eating all about developing a strong and athletic body&period; Health should be associated with a fit body and good stamina&comma; and not with the &lsquo&semi;perfect body image&rsquo&semi; that is often projected in the media&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><strong>4&period; Take Professional Help<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>One way to keep yourself motivated is to join an exercise class like Pilates&comma; aerobics or Zumba&period; Kickboxing&comma; barre and Tabata classes also help in burning calories&period; If you are regular enough&comma; results will be visible in a few months&comma; motivating you to keep going&period;&nbsp&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>After you have shed those excess pounds&comma; you can continue with the routine at home&comma; or cut down on the number of classes and workout at home&period;&nbsp&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Enlist help of personal trainers in the beginning to maximize time spent at the gym&period; You will learn the best workouts for your fitness goals and will be able to independently manage them later on&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Investing in professional classes or training sessions will help you stay focused and determined in your pursuit for a fit body&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><strong>5&period; Track Your Progress<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>It is also important to monitor and track your progress&period; Studies have shown that slim people weigh themselves regularly and try to keep an eye on how they are faring&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Ensure you maintain a health journal in which you jot down your daily exercise routine and diet&period; Also&comma; weigh yourself at least once a week to track your progress and know what you are doing right&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Staying aware and mindful of your fitness routine will help you achieve your health goals faster and in a sustainable manner&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><strong>Conclusion<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Parents often find it difficult to maintain a healthy workout routine&period; They also find it hard to prioritize their needs and end up making unnecessary compromises&period; But&comma; if you tweak your daily routine and bring in a few improvements&comma; it will prove to be easy to maintain a lean and fit body&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; left"><em>&lpar;Featured Image Source&rpar;<&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;

Exit mobile version