Most people have great intentions about working out, eating healthier and living a balanced life.
So where do they go wrong?
Mary is a married, working mom, with two kids. Her youngest daughter is 6 and her boy is nine. Both kids are involved with athletics, her husband travels and she works part time as a real estate agent.
Now that the kids are both in school, she has decided to get back in the gym, lose some weight and create some better habits in her life. She joined a local gym, hired a personal trainer and is excited about changing her ways.
Sound familiar?
Most of us lead busy lives, juggling work, family and other commitments. Unfortunately, its usually our health that takes a back seat to our other responsibilities, but that doesn’t need to be the case.
After 6 weeks, Mary was making some progress, but was still struggling with her eating, missing workouts and a little frustrated with her progress. Her work had slowed down, her kids started soccer and she was being stressed out and felt like there wasn’t enough time to get everything done. From the moment she woke up, until bed time, she was on the go, reacting to every phone call, email and text message that came her way.
How can she make time for the gym?
Maybe she should quit…..
Mary’s situation is nothing new. The difference between successful people and the average person is taking the time to plan effectively. Mary’s hectic schedule is just an excuse for missing the gym and living with the same unhealthy habits she’s always had. Instead of proactively planning her meals, her workouts, work schedule, meetings and kids’ activities, she is just reacting to them last minute.
After about 3 months, Mary was exhausted and needed to change her ways. The stress was affecting every aspect of her life and she was not the same person.
She decided to sit down and plan out her week more effectively.
1. Decided to shop for their food every Monday
2. Cooked several meals ahead of time, instead of reacting last minute, when she and the kids were hungry.
3. Scheduled workout time at the beginning of the day,
4. Scheduled work time everyday
5. She did phone calls in the car
6. Checked her email only 2 times per day at 10 am and 4pm.
7. She created a car pool plan with other parents, so she didn’t have to drive thee kids around everyday to practice.
Mary’s life was still busy, but sitting down and planning out her week helped her relax, be more productive, much more successful at work and in the gym. Since changing her ways and navigating through her week, she is losing weight, eating healthier and her family is benefiting from it too!