Simple Things You Can Do to Make Exercise Happen As a Busy Mom

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This post was sponsored by Henry Ford Health System. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Living a healthy lifestyle is kind of a buzz word topic these days. There are all kinds of theories, plans, and healthy living gurus who all have their own spin to put on what it means to be healthy. This is why it’s so important to know the quality of the sources of information you take in about your health. What’s more, finding the time to learn more about healthy living can be difficult, which is why finding a reliable and reputable source matters. It is so important for us all to research and practice healthy living, which includes finding time to exercise and make healthy meals despite being a busy woman and mom.

As a mom to nine children, it’s also important for me to teach my kids what it means to be healthy. As their mom I can provide them with things like healthy meals, a fun learning environment, and a place where they feel emotionally safe. But, it is also important to recognize that as a mom, there is nothing that is more powerful in teaching my kids what healthy means than setting a healthy living example. This includes making sure that the most important piece of me is working at its best – my heart.

While we might not always think of our heart when we think of living a healthy lifestyle, we should. In fact, women are less likely to survive their first heart attack than men. This is largely because the symptoms of a heart attack are harder to detect in women than they are in men. This is why it’s even more important for me as a woman to pay attention to my heart health on a proactive basis.

The good news is, I’m not the only one who sees the importance of taking heart health seriously — the people at Henry Ford Health System do, too. As a lifelong resident of the great state of Michigan, I have long been familiar with the work they do at Henry Ford Health System because they make it their mission to remain on the cutting edge of what it means to provide effective and individualized care.

While people come from all over the world to visit Henry Ford Heart & Vascular Institute, it’s all about each individual patient. The care each patient receives at Henry Ford Heart & Vascular Institute is tailored specifically to their heart needs. Just as we are all individual people, our care should be unique, too. The experts at Henry Ford Heart & Vascular Institute specialize in advanced treatments for heart and vascular disease, which means you’ll always be getting the very best care.

To make your individual care as easy as possible for you, the people at Henry Ford Heart & Vascular Institute have created an interactive Heart Risk Assessment that takes only five minutes to complete. You can do that HERE.

Once you’ve finished, you’ll find out the real age of your heart and also be able to determine your heart risk factors.

While genetics, family history, and environmental factors do play a role in your heart health, there are so many choices that we make every day that do as well — both good and bad.

Exercise is one of the positive things I’ve been doing for my heart health for years, but with a busy life including nine homeschooling kids, a business to run, and more, it’s easy to say I don’t have time to make exercise a regular part of my life.

While it is actually true that I don’t have the time, I’ve made the time for exercise throughout my entire adult life. I’ve learned that if I wait until I have the time, there are always other things that make exercise impossible.

This is why it is important to recognize that exercise as a busy mom is all about making the time.

Here are the things you can to do make exercise happen as a busy mom.

Make the time

Ideally, choose the same time to block out as a time for exercise every day. Create a schedule that includes time for exercise that is as consistent as it can be.

For instance, every morning at 6, every afternoon at 2, or whatever time you can come up with. The more consistent you are with the time, the easier it will be to make it happen.

Have a planned exercise every time

While the exercise I do varies from day to day, I always do the same thing on Mondays, the same thing on Tuesdays, and so on. I know what I am doing every day so that when the time comes, I’m not wasting time figuring out what sort of exercise to do that day.

Exercise with someone else

Exercising with someone else makes it harder for you to not show up. Even if you are doing different things (one of you is running while the other is riding a bike), you are there at an expected time and place to each get your own exercise in.

Joining a class is also a great way to put this tip to use.

Put exercise on your calendar or schedule

It’s not enough to know when you’ll be exercising in your mind. It must be written down. This makes your exercise time as important as any other appointment or event in your life.

You are important, and so is your health.

Think outside the box

I was just talking with a group of women about exercise the other day. A couple of them were talking about how silly they felt to hire a babysitter so they could exercise for an hour, but they did it because this was the only way to make it happen.

Bravo, I say.

And, there are plenty of busy moms who are doing this very thing. If you need to hire a junior high girl from your neighborhood to come over to stay with your kids so you can get out for a walk, head to the gym for a class, or even just go into your bedroom to exercise with a video, do it.

Exercise with your kids

When I had four small kids four and under, getting out of the house by myself for a workout was only a dream.

We couldn’t afford a gym membership or a babysitter. So, I just worked out with my kids.

I got quite a workout while pushing my three kids in the stroller. Other times I did a workout video while they were doing crafts.

Letting your kids exercise alongside of you is also a way to make it happen.

If exercising without your kids truly isn’t possible, then figure out a way to exercise with your kids while you’re still being a mom.

As a busy mom, it’s always so easy to focus on everyone else’s needs rather than my own. However, doing so not only puts my health at risk, it also affects my ability to be a good person, an understanding and loving parent, and the mom I am truly called to be every day.

Doing everything you can do to live a healthy lifestyle, including knowing your true heart health and taking steps to make it the best it can be, is the greatest gift you can give to yourself and your family.

Arm yourself with the knowledge and resources that reputable sources like Henry Ford Heart & Vascular Institute offers, starting today.

This post was sponsored by Henry Ford Health System. All thoughts and opinions are my own.