Mum’s the word! Mothers are natural project managers; we can all see this when dads always tell the children to go “ask mum.”
Despite the secret power of always knowing where our shirts are at any given time, managing never-ending tasks on a daily basis would make any mum feel drained all the time.
In the middle of your daily turmoil, it’s important to not forget to take care of yourself, no matter how troublesome it may be to plan for it.
It might seem impossible for you to schedule some time to work out. Mothers around the world can find this a struggle—especially when first failing at trying to integrate a healthy lifestyle— and may eventually decide to give up altogether.
“It’s easy to go for a quick jog, you are just being lazy.” A lot of mothers hear that from their friends. No, it’s not easy to manage a work–family–healthy lifestyle.
For starters, preparing things for a family on a daily basis is a never-ending itinerary. Most mums resort to forsaking the idea altogether. However, it’s very important to have a reconstructive physical routine. Since you are the core of the family, we don’t want you to go through any health problems because of a sedentary lifestyle. Simply because you are the vessel that gives, and not being well means everything will start to be not well, and then you won’t be able to give your best to your best people in the world: your family.
How to schedule for a workout as a mother?
First of all, you need to know how your normal day goes. For workouts, you just need 5 minutes. I know it may seem that sometimes you don’t have these 5 minutes. Yet if you pan out how your day goes, you can come up with those 5 minutes at least.
Now, try to figure out what you need to do. Do you need to lose weight? Do you need to strengthen your core muscles? Do you need to relieve back pain? Now that you got the when and what, it should be more simple to figure out the how.
Knee-to-chest Stretches
This exercise is excellent to relieve the stress on your lower back and glutes’ muscles.
While you are lying flat on your back, start by pulling one knee tightly to your chest. Hold your leg in this position for 10 seconds and then release. Repeat the same process with your second leg. In a minute, you should have already finished 3 repetitions of the exercise.
A more intense variation would be to hold both legs close to your chest and release after 10 seconds.
Pelvic Tilt
This exercise is a way to re-stimulate your core muscles and it’s also one of the best exercises recommended to start strengthening your core. Simply, start by laying flat on your back and bending your knees so that your feet are flat on the ground.
Then, contract your abdominal muscles and push your lower back to touch the floor gently. Think of it as if pushing your belly button to the ground.
Bridge
The bridge exercise focuses on the lower back, hip, and glutes muscles. Basically, it helps improve your standing up posture. And as a mother, you are always standing up so, consider adding it to your routine.
Start by lying on your back just like in the pelvic tilt exercise, with both your arms on your sides next to you. Then, raise your hips from the floor, while maintaining your upper back and shoulders on the ground. Remain suspended for 10 seconds and then return to the initial position. Repeat up to 15 times resting for 30 seconds between repetitions.
Superman Planks
Superman plank is a great exercise to stretch back muscles and improve posture. Its major difference compared to normal planks is the focus on the lower back rather than shoulder muscles.
You can perform Superman planks by simply lying on the floor, face down, and stretch your arms forward, like Superman, for 10 seconds and then release. Repeat as much as you want for better results.
Knee Push-Ups
If you want to jumpstart your metabolism, you can begin your morning with some activities that enhance your circulation and allow your body to burn fats faster. One of these morning activities is knee push-ups. Simply lie on the floor and extend your arms as if you are starting to do a push-up and keep them extended, then twist your knees to your chest in running motion. You can repeat the exercise as much as you like; a minute per day is a good refresher for your body to start your day actively.
Jumping Rope
It’s argued that jumping rope exercising is one of the best cardio activities to perform. In terms of numbers, if you jump rope for an hour, you burn an average of 1000 calories, compared to the average 300 calories in an hour jog or run. It’s surely better in terms of preparation and effort needed—and let’s be honest, it would be more fun than spinning around in circles, right?
How to improve your exercise?
You can follow any famous workout plan—usually revolving around combinations of these exercises—or create your own program, which we recommend. Track your own pace and see how much you develop physically even by extra 2 seconds for a stretch. As long as you carry on, you are doing well.
A one-minute jogging in your place is better than a zero-minute jog. And don’t forget to have fun, because feeling that this is just another chore can drive you away from continuing with it. Most importantly, learn to take care of yourself.
