It happens every year; we spend months anticipating the arrival of summer, but when it finally gets here it always seems to go by way too fast. Then the madness begins, and we are left scrambling to adjust our lives and our schedules to accommodate the time constraints that come with the school year. It can be easy to leave your health and fitness behind as you try to make time for everything. So here are 8 TOP TIPS to prepare you for a seamless transition from the casual days of summer and back into the crazy days of the school year.
- Practice organizing your time now – Scheduling your daily activities may not have been necessary during the summer, but with all of the activities and extracurricular events that come with the school year it is helpful to know exactly when you can squeeze-in a quick workout, group class or cardio session.
- Keep a packed gym bag in your car – Did your child’s soccer practice get rained out or perhaps your CHEM 245 class gets cancelled? Did you have to work late and now there is no time to run home to get your workout clothes? Keeping a gym bag packed in your car with an extra set of clothes, shoes and accessories can get you to the club for a workout that you may have otherwise missed.
- Stash snacks – Keeping your energy level up is a must, and with all the things that you are doing each day there are seemingly limitless factors that can cause you to miss a meal. By keeping healthy snacks stashed at your office, in your car, in your purse or baby bag—and any other place that you can think of—you can avoid missing meals and becoming lethargic. It also helps to prevent you from over eating when you finally get to sit down for a meal or stopping for fast food due to hunger.
- Be creative and flexible with your exercise – It is important to get into the gym and keep your routine as regular as possible, but when missing a day is inevitable be creative and do something…anything even. If you work in a building with several floors, doing the stairs for 20 minutes before you leave work offers a great leg and butt defining burn. If you have taken the advice from TIP #2 (above) then you already have your gym shoes and a quick change of clothes if you need them. Do you have any creative workouts that you do when you are in a time crunch? Share them with everyone in the comments section.
- Actively participate in your kid’s practices – Do you pop a lawn chair during your kid’s soccer practice? Perhaps you head to the nearest department store while your child is doing drills for basketball or baseball. Why not participate? Not only will you get a great workout, but you get to spend time with your kids while they do something that is important to them. Bonding and exercising…it’s a win/win opportunity.
- Join a league – Don’t forget about yourself when it comes to the fun of organized sports. Joining a league sport is a great way to break a sweat as you run around, make new friends and enjoy the competitive spirit without feeling like you are working out. It also puts a regularly scheduled activity on your calendar. LA Fitness offers organized leagues and tournaments for racquetball, volleyball and basketball if you are interested. For more information CLICK HERE.
- Track your food and calories – Making the right food choices becomes more difficult the busier you get. By tracking your food and calories you might think twice before stopping at that fast food drive through. If you do end up gaining a few pounds during the chaos of your back to school schedule, then having a food log gives you a tool to figure out where things went wrong in your diet. Use your food log in order to combat the issue and get back on track. READ MORE about food logs.
- Create accountability with checks and balances – Have your friend or partner help hold you accountable for your food log and exercise by checking in on you one day a week. Better yet, find a workout and fitness buddy or group. This way when you schedule a workout you are responsible for other people’s successes besides your own. You can also provide each other with inspiring words on those tough days when you’re struggling to find motivation, and you can also share the TOP TIPS that we give you here on LIVING HEALTHY!