Fit Mama Friday: The best advice for getting your fitness on track

To finish up the year of Fit Mama Friday, I’ve rounded up the best piece of advice from each of my fit mamas – that means I’ve got 40 tips to share with you on getting fit, finding time to exercise and how to stay fit and motivated!

ENJOY!

“I make sure to plan my workouts ahead of time…if I wasn’t planning in advance it would be nearly impossible to sneak in a workout on the fly!” – Elli

“Putting a workout in my calendar and sticking to the schedule is the only way to make it happen.” –  Tammy

“I’m not going to lie here, it’s the coffee with friends after class! The latter is a huge motivational push for me to don my Lululemon pants and not-so-sexy sports bra for that delicious cappuccino reward at the end of a grueling class.” – Johanna

“I think what contributed to my weight loss is that we rarely eat out any more (thank you, Fresh Direct!) and we cook healthy meals using primarily organic ingredients, mostly vegetables. I also eat about 3 pieces of fruit a day. Cutting out processed foods has made such a difference with weight loss.” – Margaret

“I have to workout in the mornings, or I am less likely to work out at all.” – Tamara

“I have to exercise in the morning. It is the only time I can honestly fit it in and if I don’t get it done first thing, I won’t do it later.” – Estrella

“Pre-natal yoga…was amazing and really helped me during labor, both with my breathing and my mental state in dealing with the muscles working and the intense pain.” – Emily T.

“Keep exercising! Unless your doctor recommends otherwise, exercise is SO important during pregnancy. Whether it’s weight training, body weight exercise, yoga, or even simply walking, it will benefit you physically and mentally. Everyone is happier when mom is in a good mood!” – Amanda

“My fridge is stacked to the brim with containers of grilled chicken, grilled salmon, salads, fruit, sweet potatoes – it’s just all there ready to go, so once I have that prep morning once a week out of the way, I never have to think about what I’m going to eat again. Planning is what makes it easy.” – Jasmin

“Once I was able to get going again, I went on daily, long walks with my son and our dog. Now, I really think that walking the dog was my saving grace post-partum, with both kids. He’s a big dog that needs to get out for long walks everyday, so I got exercise and some fresh air.” – Christine

“In terms of the way I eat now, it’s not about trying to lose weight or manage my weight. Now I eat to fuel my body for working out and day to day life.” – Emily W.

“I’m an achy-painy person. If it’s not my hip, its my shoulder; if it’s not my shoulder, it’s my neck. I actually had occupational scoliosis, which was when I first discovered the power of therapeutic exercise for these aches and pains. I take a lot less Advil now!” – Sally

“I have better months and worse and while I continue to experiment with diet, medications, and alternative therapies, I truly believe that running has done more to reduce the frequency and pain of my migraines than anything else I have done over the last three years.” – Emily K

“I do almost all my workouts early in the morning, before work, before the kids wake up – it’s the only way I can fit them into my life. I also find that the list of excuses you can come up with for why not to go to the gym at 5:30 am is a lot shorter than the list at 7:30pm.” – Tracy

“I find that having a set time that I have to go and work out means that my kids just take it as part of the routine and I don’t have to feel bad about leaving them.” – Saskia

“I don’t want to feel selfish about taking the time to get fitness into my day, but I also know that it’s important for me to do so. It’s a benefit to everyone.” – Lucinda

“My problems don’t seem so problematic when I run. And when I come back, I am a better parent, a better wife, a better friend, a better boss and employee. I breathe easier. My anxiety is at bay for one more day. And I tell myself that even if I sit on the couch for the rest of the day doing nothing, I have been outside, I have moved my body, I have cleared my head. I have given myself a gift.” – Aimee

“Just by starting to feel real happiness again I ate less and moved more.  And the more I moved the better I felt.  The better I felt the happier I was.  It was a blissful cause and effect.” – Amy

“The world disappears when I dance. I am fully in the moment. No worries. No thoughts. If I’m worrying about anything while I dance, it means I’m not working hard enough. There’s only one way to finish a ballet class, and that’s drenched in sweat. I also get a great emotional release when I dance.” – Zoe

“Keeping a workout log can help you recognize patterns and habits, which in turn can help you tweak your regimen to make your time and efforts more effective. Also, it’s a fun way to hold yourself accountable– you can use it to deliver reminders to work out, you can use its mapping function to figure out just how long that neighborhood stroll is, and you can keep little notes about each of the activities you log – including photos!” – Sarah

“When I get tempted to eat junk, I give in by buying a small handful of jelly beans from the bulk section of the grocery store. I get to have my cheat, but in a small controlled portion!” – Leighann

“I saw a quote the other day that said “Food is the most widely used anti-anxiety drug in America, and exercise is the most potent and underutilized antidepressant.”  This really rings true for me.  I know myself well enough now to know that it is all a cumulative effect of good choices I need to make every day.  When I eat better I feel better, when I feel better I have more energy, when I have more energy I am a more active mom, when I am a more active mom, I am more present in the moment, when I am more present in the moment I am happier!” – Natalie

“I am far from perfect and still have moments of over indulgences which lead to negative thoughts about my body, but I don’t dwell on them long. I always pick myself up and start over with healthy choices the next time.” – Maria

“[It’s more important for me] to deadlift my son into his crib without straining my back because my core was finally strong again, rather than hitting a ‘target weight’.” – Michelle

“When I take a moment to express gratitude at the beginning of each workout, not a minute goes by with me loving, smiling, and sweating hard. I never look at the clock. I literally love working out because it reminds me I’m alive and that I have a good life.” – Jackie

“When I was with other moms, who were in the same shoes, in that Strollercise class, it made a huge difference…I don’t sugarcoat anything – motherhood is one of the hardest things ever. So finding that group, and taking those fitness classes, that was really helpful for me…It’s having that camaraderie of being in a group of women who are all going through the same things, and we can all help each other.” – Chana

“I feel guilt in many areas of my life for lots of reasons but I rarely feel guilty for working out!!!  Partly because I try to get it done early so it doesn’t affect anyone else’s day but even if I work out after the boys are up I know that the example I’m setting for them far outweighs the time it takes away from them.” – Kim

“I think that the more I take care of myself, the better a role model I am for my daughter.  She may not notice now, but I know she will in year two or three.  Being active is so important, particularly in today’s culture.  And I firmly believe that happy kids have happy parents, and we all owe it to our children to value and work on ourselves.  So I suppose the primary way that being fit has benefitted me as a mom is ensuring that I am a happy, healthy person who projects those values for my child.” – Emma

“I have made exercise a priority in my day…I definitely feel guilty when I skip a workout, but if I plan my weeks out properly, I have time to do what I want.  I benefit from a routine – once I get started, I want to keep the routine going.” – Sarah V.

“Hold yourself accountable by sharing your progress with friends or family. When I shared my progress with my Facebook friends, I got such an overwhelming amount of support.” – Wendy

“The only time I can really work out effectively is at 4:45 a.m. in the morning and it works for me.  I enjoy getting up at that time being able to have that hour of  me and the gym. I love how strong I feel after a workout, the feeling of pride that I was able to accomplish those exercises.” – Casey

“The only way to workout consistently is to make it a priority in your life.  If working out isn’t one of the top items on your list, you’ll never find time for it.” – Kelly

“I find that when I take time to look after myself and I can balance my week with work and home duties, I really feel more rounded and more able to deal with the pressures of having a young family. I like to set a good example for my children too. I think making exercise a regular occurrence and not something special normalises it as part of daily life, and something we just ‘do’.” – Mara-Mon

“The biggest challenge is that it’s often hard to dedicate time to workout. There are so many days I just want to skip a workout and take a nap instead. I’m fortunate to have many friends I work out with that will message me and see if I’m coming. Having that support system with my workout friends has been huge.” – Jenica

“Like everyone else out there, I have been on the roller coaster of workouts, you know the ‘on a roll’ and then off.  Yeah, that is not fun.  So just REALLY making it a priority each day is key.  We have 24 hours in a day, and if we have time to facebook, etc, we have time to workout!” – Lynda

“I try to push through my tiredness and work out even if I don’t always feel like it because I know how good it feels to get a sweat on.” – Heidi

“Finding cures is a strong motivating force for participating in any kind of physical event. It’s more important to me to exercise now because of how it makes me feel – here’s to good health – versus aesthetics.” – Beth

“You don’t have to be fast [as a runner], we are all on a journey, its about reaching your own goals, not another person’s goals.” – Taylor

“I plan all of my workouts the way you would plan a doctors appointment. If you don’t schedule it in, it will  never happen.” – Jen

“I think the most positive effect my fitness is having is that I have a routine that I continue to follow. As you know, it’s hard to start a fitness program if you’ve been out of the game for awhile, especially when you’re pregnant. So, having made it part of my life has definitely made it easier to continue now.” – Angi

What would YOUR best piece of fitness advice be?

What’s your favorite time to workout?