by Alissa
I used to workout ALL. THE. TIME. Recently, I was reading some of my old blog posts about running and I can hardly believe it was me! If I did it then, I can certainly do it again.
Unfortunately, if I thought finding time to workout was hard before having a baby, well, finding that time (and desire) has reached a new level of difficulty that I didn’t even realize existed. It’s even more important for me to workout now because a) I need the energy and b) I want to be in great shape to be able to keep up with my toddler (who is now officially toddling).
When I left my full-time job, I thought I would morph into that mom who works out all the time, is “super in-shape” and just generally has it together. (I have no idea why I thought this considering I haven’t consistently worked out in years and my plans to be that “super in-shape” pregnant lady then to be that “super in-shape” working mom both crashed and burned spectacularly.) Still, I know that the first step to reaching that goal is to actually put in some effort.
- Quarter Marathon in 2012!
My first plan was to start running again.
I actually ran a quarter marathon in 2012 and a half-marathon in 2013, so this isn’t totally crazy. BUT, I haven’t done much since then and therefore I get pretty winded just walking up the stairs at home. The hardest part of “getting back to running” is getting past the initial feeling-like-you’re-going-to-die-in-the-first-two-minutes. Once you push past that, it actually gets easier and before you know it, you’re calling a five mile run, an “easy” day.
Knowing this, I packed up my son, drove to the nearest walking path and proceeded to jog with him. I did this three times actually. Unfortunately, all three times it was 90 degrees outside, it took me about 30 minutes to walk/jog one or two miles, I felt incredibly self-conscious jogging alongside a street where people could drive past and see me, and then incredibly nervous jogging in a park alone with just me and my baby. This last part is what stopped me from going out a fourth time.
- This was a rare but successful run/walk
Remember I said I ran a half-marathon? Well, to train for that, I used to run all over town. THEN I started working in news and local news is basically stories of one “jogger attack” after another. Sure, some were hoaxes or “husband-murderer-coverups” but some were legitimate and happened in my city at a park I used to run at regularly! So, running alone is out of the question.
I did find a running group online and that seems to be the safest option, but the posts were mostly just “meeting at 5am to run 10 miles! Comment if you’re in!” I didn’t see any posts about meeting up around 10:30 or 11 to jog maybe one mile. I guess people don’t find that worth the meetup. I get it.
Maybe I can try to get a group of people together who just want to run a mile or two?
Working out at home seems to be a popular option for some moms.
A friend on Facebook has gotten in fantastic shape after having two adorable kids and she did it by working out at home! When I reached out to her for tips, I realized she was selling Beachbody. Nothing against Beachbody or Les Mills or any other MLM fitness plan. They actually seem to work, but I just can’t pay someone $200 just to have them cheer me on via Facebook. And I definitely don’t want to be roped into trying to get other people to pay $200 for me to cheer them on via Facebook. I had a feeling I would be out $200 and still workout maybe once.
I’ve definitely motivated myself to workout FOR FREE in the past, why not now?
Maybe I can find workout videos on Youtube and do those at home for free?
They say the best fitness plan for you is the one you stick to and I strongly believe that. I just need to find something I can stick to!
Give me all the advice in the comments!
Alissa Henry 
Hi Alissa,
I found working out is always a challenge and changing based on life changes. Single, babies, work-life etc. When my kids were little I’d go to classes at night so my hubby could watch kids. Another stage I’d go to classes in the morning at a community center that had child care. Eventually because things really got crazy video workouts were the way to go. I still do that and add in a yoga class.
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