Juggling family priorities and making the time to exercise

I was thoroughly tested on my committment to making the time to workout and exercise this week.  After a nice long relaxing summer, it is back to the busy days of after school activities and multiple demands on my free time.  My family's schedule is jam packed from Monday through Friday with activities and time is scarce!  Monday evenings are my daughter's art lessons, Tuesday evenings are my son's guitar lessons, and Thursday evenings are my youngest daughter's violin lessons.  The youth league basketball season has not even started yet.  In other words, our family is running from morning until night almost every day of the week.

I decided that my evening workouts would be too difficult and I would have to make the time in the morning to make it to the gym by 6 AM.  I will miss the hour I usually spend watching the news and drinking coffee with my husband before work.  I also know that I must make the time to exercise because of how much better I feel when I stay fit.  I plan to hit the gym on Monday through Wednesday at 6 AM each morning.  On Thursday and Friday mornings I enjoy attending the Zumba class at the gym.  On Sunday mornings I go to a class which is 20 minutes each of weight training, step aerobics, and high impact aerobics.  How do you make the time to workout when your schedule is very busy?

Here are some suggestions on how to schedule the time to workout-

Make a list of all your family's committments, appointments, and activities for the week.

Schedule a time that is convenient for you to exercise or make it to the gym and stick with it.

Enlist the help and support of friends and family members who know how important this is to you.

If you have the time while your child is at a sports practice or activity, take a walk or run.

If you are watching TV with your family, try doing some strength training exercises such as push  ups,  squats, or crunches during commercial breaks.

If time is so limited that you can't make a full hour at any point during the day, try working out in 15 to 20 minute short bursts.

Reward yourself for sticking to your exercise regimen and when you have attained some of your fitness goals.