7 Fitness Tips for Busy Parents

Being a parent often means that every moment of your day is occupied with kids, worrying about the kids, thinking about activities to do with the kids, and wishing you could just have a few minutes away from the kids to take a nap. It's exhausting. The sad part is that you're too tired to get in a good workout.

Don't be one of the parents that are just too tired and busy to get in your workout. Accept no excuses, and let the tips below help you to fit in that workout.

1. Get Your Workout Over With

Having a hard time getting your workout in? Go to bed ready to workout in the morning--you can even try sleeping in your workout clothes--and jump out of bed in the morning ready for a quick workout before the little one is fully awake. You can even convince your partner to dress and feed the baby in the morning, or get the school kids ready. Get that workout in first thing, and it will be one less thing to cause stress in the morning.

2. Get Out of the House
Need to make it a bit easier on yourself to do a workout? Don't spend your day sitting with the baby in front of the TV, but make it a point to spend at least four or five hours of your day out of the house. Once you're done with shopping, go for a walk or run in the park. Take the sport stroller for a jog, or bring your light weights to do some exercise while the little one is running around.

3. Play with the Kids

One of the best ways to get exercise in is to play with your kids. Whether you're playing a game of backyard soccer or football, a game of basketball in the driveway, or tag in the park, you'll spend more time running and moving around. It may not be the awesome workout you want, but it will help to make up for the fact that you can only spend a small amount of time doing a focused workout.

4. Prepare Your Workouts

If you know you have a few moments in the day when you can work out--such as when baby is asleep or the older children have just been packed off to school--make sure to prepare your workouts beforehand. Have the weights ready to go, the DVD in the player, and your workout clothes already on. Make it a point to always be prepared to get in that workout, and organize your schedule around those workouts.

5. Trim the Workouts

Don't expect that you'll be able to fit an hour or so of exercise into the busy day of a parent, or you'll be in for a real disappointment. Instead, make sure that your workouts are no longer than 10 to 20 minutes, but make them count. Go for high-intensity exercises that combine cardio with muscle building, and you'll see the results in far less time.

6. Make them the Weights
Have you ever tried to jog while pushing a double stroller up a hill? It's incredibly intense exercise, and you'll be able to get in great shape if you make your children the weights. There are dozens of fun exercises you can do using your children as the weights, and it can keep them entertained as well. Whether you carry baby around for an hour or go for a hike with the little one on your back, it's a great workout!

7. Make it a Priority

Sometimes, you're going to have to be okay with sitting the kids in front of the TV just so you can get in that 20-minute workout, or serving them a quick meal instead of making an elaborate one. Be a bit more selfish with your workouts, and you won't regret it.

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