Sometimes you have to look yourself square in the eye and admit your failure. That was me in the bathroom mirror a few days ago as yet another attempt to hit the gym before work died a dishonorable death when I hit the snooze button.
You, Madison, I said to myself, simply cannot get your workout act together.
And it’s true. I can’t. Between responsibilities and temptations alike, I just am not finding the time to get (let alone stay!) in shape. A new approach is needed so I’m taking one. Instead of exercising all at once in a place I have to get to, I’m doing it here and there wherever I am.
Call it bite-sized exercise, a way to build it in throughout my day in ways like these:
- If I’m walking to grab lunch or meet a friend, I make it a power walk that pushes me a little.
- When I’m stumped by something and need a quick break, I do a few jumping jacks or sit-ups to get my muscles moving.
- I clench hard whenever I’m online. Butt cheeks, my core, even my arms. Supermarket, bank, wherever. No one’s ever the wiser.
- Never the elevator. Always the stairs!
- I dance (hard!) to music when I clean. (Just need to find more time for housekeeping!)
- I jog in place or when I’m on the phone. No sitting allowed.
- New rule: nothing comes out of the fridge without 10 push-ups first.
- I found this guide to desktop yoga poses I use at work.
- I get off the bus a few stops before or after the one I’m really aiming for and walk the rest of the way.
- I’ve set a phone alert to remind me to move hard for at least a minute every hour.
I’m still aiming for some gym time, but until I get there little ways like these are keeping me from turning into a complete lump of couch dough. They’re not quite the same as 30 minutes on the Stairmaster, but they’re a lot better than nothing. And at this point, that’s a win I’ll take.