Daily Planning for Women: Fitting Exercise into Your Day
As a woman, I’m sure you already feel the time crunch every day. From the moment we get out of bed, we’re constantly on the move. On some days, fitting in an actual workout is a lot easier than others. What a lot of women find helpful is creating a daily plan. While most of us have a routine, it can quickly and easily change at the drop of a hat; but a change in schedule doesn’t have to mean eliminating your workout altogether.
Creating a Daily Plan
It’s one thing to have a monthly or weekly schedule or calendar but sometimes you have to take each day on its own and make sure you have a strong plan. While we’re most often advocates of including fitness in your schedule, usually at the same time per day, the reality is that we’ll take our workouts whenever we can get them. Sit down in the evening and look at the things you have scheduled for the following day. When can you realistically fit in your workout? Does your normal time of day work or will you need to make an adjustment?
Once you’ve settled on an adjustment, make a plan and make that a part of your schedule for the following day. Do you need to set your alarm a half hour earlier than normal in the morning? Do you need to skip a formal exercise class and workout in your home gym instead to save time? Can you exercise on your lunch break? Before or after dinner? Find the time and claim it as yours.
Don’t Give Up
Ok, so something went wrong and your day didn’t go as planned – at all. You are now on a time-crunch. You’re running late and the workout you planned isn’t going to happen or will be drastically reduced in duration. What are you going to do?
You’re going to do squats in the kitchen while you’re cooking dinner. You’re going to hop on the bike or treadmill (or favorite home gym piece) while you’re watching your favorite TV show. You’re going to drop and do crunches during commercial breaks. You’re going to do 10 push-ups every single time your kid complains about his math homework. You’re going to get creative, and you’re not going to make any excuses.
And that’s just it. It’s really easy to make excuses on a daily basis. But a day can easily turn into two days; then a week; then two weeks. Before you know it, you haven’t had a decent workout in a month. If someone asked you why, would you have a good answer?