This photo is not only a depiction of what my life often LOOKS like, but also a depiction of what my life FEELS like every.single.day. It’s a little bit of a circus, a little bit piece-milled together and DEFINITELY fun. And hard. And often makes me feel like there is no more steam in the ol’ engine.
Mostly, between the hours of 2:30p-7:00p (or later) I am a chauffeur. Or more like a really really great Uber driver who provides snacks on the ride. Except my work is all pro bono. So, there’s that. The other parts of my early days are trying to run an in-person business full of personal connections to people-trying to get them results in their body and provide them some encouraging workouts and antics. And the rest is getting my on-line business going and keeping steam with that. Oh, and being a good wife. And cooking. Not cleaning tho. EW.
Working with women every day for the past 15 years has taught me that each stage we are in is equally challenging and exhausting. As we adjust, the stage changes on us. We often cannot tell if we are back in the stage that preceded this one, or if it is time to move on. “Time moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”- Ferris Bueller.
Right, right. Don’t MISS it. Got it! Only problem is, sometimes in the midst of the ca-ray-zays, we forget to take care of ourselves. ANNND the bigger problem that lurks beneath it how can I factor my health choices in when I can’t even logistically get every kid where they need to be?
One thing I teach in my Fit & FREE Course, actually, it is in Lesson #1, where I teach women to “Own & Accept Their Current Stage In Life” and then begin to make a plan AROUND that. So, let me break that down-
When I had my first two kids, I was a STAY AT HOME MOM. Like, I stayed home-home. I did baby things. My oldest two are 19 months apart, so my days literally revolved around waking, cooking, snacking and napping. It was a tiresome time. But during that time, I made elaborate breakfasts (because I LOVE elaborate breakfasts) and made all my own homemade baby food. It was what I did.
When my third was born, I had a 7-year old who played in 2 different basketball leagues, baseball and football and a 5-year old in dance and gymnastics. Listen, I breastfed, but did not pump. Formula was on hand as needed. There were no naps and poor thing-homemade baby food gave way to Football games and easy, squeezy pouches of food in the car. Even baby food progressed sooooo far in 5 years!
You see how things changed? Was the second babyhood worse than the other 2? No. BUT it was the reality of my life. If I would have stayed home and made every baby food, pumped and cooked elaborately, I would probably have to miss out on some stuff.
Now, let’s look at this from a health perspective for you. If your life looks anything like mine-it is not realistic to think you will be cooking 3, super-clean meals a day. And your workouts may not be 90 minutes any more. Maybe gym time is a time suck and you have to find an alternative. We have GOT to learn to own our current stages in life and adjust our health goals AROUND that and not the other way around. Other “pros” might disagree with me, but I stand firm in that school of thought So, how do you do this? I have 5 ways to help you get results even when life is crazy!
- Own It. Own where you are now. One thing I find interesting about women is that we have a hard time admitting to current situations. We like things to stay the same, but most of the time-they don’t. We find ourselves working full-time again. Or divorced. Or in the car all day. And it’s hard for us to own it. It’s hard for us to make a pivot and move on. The first step to scheduling your health into your life is owning where you are now {and get ready…it will change again…LOL}. Look at where you are and what needs to change, and then look at what can change REALISTICALLY!
- Make some SMALL, REALISTIC adjustments. If you are feeling frustrated with your body & need to make some changes, the WORST thing to do is try to overhaul EVERYthing at once. You know me, my motto is small changes=BIG results. If you are in the car most of the afternoon-maybe planning evening workouts is not logical. But also don’t plan to get up at 5a every day either. Try to schedule 1-2 early morning workouts. If going to a gym adds too much time, try rolling out of bed and working out at home. I have some awesome FREE WORKOUTS that you can do that require absolutely zero equipment. Squeeze in a walk after dinner once a week. You need just as many things to de-stress you as you do to “get in shape”. Try planning to cook 1-2 dinners per week. I find that if I can look forward to cooking at least twice a week, I feel satisfied with my mommy role. Even though we might have to eat out several times a week-the one or two we eat at home is wonderful.
- Plan ahead. Look at your calendar on Sunday and plan your meals for the week (even if that is eating out) & grocery shop for the 1 or 2 when you eat at home. Knowing in advance what you are doing will always help make better choices. Additionally, write out your workouts. Remember, working out twice a week is something. #ActionOverPerfection
- Get smarter at eating out. Late nights, unpreparedness and hungry kids are inevitable. It’s best to not get caught off-guard, BUT you can also eat smarter when you go out to eat. I always say-look for something high in protein and TRY TRY TRY your best to get some veggies in too! EVEN if that means a fast food salad with dressing. IMO, it is better to have the veggies with a little dressing then have none at all. If you have trouble eating out, I created THIS GUIDE for you. Sure makes it a little easier.
- Get 1-2 Daily Non-Negiotiables. In Fit & FREE I also teach the idea of Daily Non-Negotiables-which are one or two big nutritional things you can do that will make a big impact. This is MUCH easier to adhere to than making drastic nutritional changes like “never eat sugar” or a major diet like Whole 30. I hate all restriction diets, so you know me, but I suggest a simpler, proactive-only, approach like “eat 30g of protein at every breakfast”, or “eat veggies with every single lunch and dinner” or “drink 100 oz of water every day” as opposed to making everything super complicated and restrictive. Daily Non-Negotiables are actually a pretty big game changer. If you can identify a couple of your own-it puts you in your power over food. It’s a great tool to have in your belt. If you like this idea, I highly encourage you to join me for my Fit & FREE course in January. You can get on the waiting list here.
Life is crazy. But it is mostly crazy good. It’s hard to adjust, but I really think making a few adjustments can still get you some pretty good results! And this picture was actually us entering into the “3 Kids with Activities” zone…which is insane…in a good way!
