5 Ways to Find Time to Exercise (When You Are NOT a Morning Person)

Fitness & Food

This post may include affiliate links. See my full disclosure here.

Are you constantly trying to find time to exercise as a mom, yet feeling like a failure when you can’t rise with the sun? You’re not alone! Check out these 5 tips for finding time to exercise with children underfoot, no alarm clock required.

It seems that every time someone is talking about how they got in shape, they mention early morning exercise. I won’t lie, the handful of times that I’ve been in the position to exercise before 7am have felt fantastic. The early morning sun, cool breeze and quiet streets are amazing for the soul!

BUT, back here in the reality of mom-life, waking up early (and then being able to leave the house without a bunch of little ankle-biters attached to me) is rarely feasible. So, In lieu of that ever-elusive 5am workout session, I’ve included my 5 favorite ways of finding time to exercise later in the day.

Side note: many of these ideas rely on being already dressed in workout clothes and having an exercise routine (or video) in mind ahead of time. I’ve found that planning is key when I only have a few minutes to sneak away!

  1. During a meal: Even though it seems like some days my kids finish their PB&J’s in under 10 seconds, often I can exercise in the other room for 15 or 20 minutes while kids are busy with breakfast or lunch. Bonus: babies and toddlers are usually buckled in a high chair and can’t climb all over me!

  2. During nap time: this is an obvious one and yet some days I miss my opportunity because I’m so wiped out by then that I just lie down on the couch and scroll on my phone for 45 minutes. But if I can cue up a YouTube fitness video before parking it on the sofa, then I can reward myself with some Instagram time afterwards!

  3. During the witching hour (take kids!): If weather allows, that 4-6pm period can be golden for getting out of the house and stretching everyone’s legs. We have a park across the street from us, so sometimes we’ll all run over there with some snacks and let littles play on the playground equipment while I do some pushups or sprints. Bonus: we can avoid the incessant whining that always hits our household at this time of day.

  4. After dinner: When Luke rolls in at dinnertime, the kids are always thrilled to see him. Sometimes, after dinner, I can take advantage of this obsession with dad by leaving him in charge of supervising dish duty or just letting him wrestle with the younger kids while I sneak off to the gym or on a walk. The only downside to this is that immediately after dinner isn’t the best time to be doing intense cardio, so plan accordingly!

  5. After bedtime (with the hubs): I can’t count how many times I’ve suggested to Luke that we get up early to exercise together but we have yet to make it happen (shocker). Instead, we have been fairly successful at fitting in a walk or bike ride later on in the evening after the little kids are in bed. Granted, this requires that you either have big kids who are old enough to stay behind or that you stick super close to home, but even just heading to the backyard to jump on the trampoline together counts as exercise in my book!


    Have any of these ideas worked for you in the past? I hope some of them sparked some inspiration for how you can fit more exercise into your day, even when you can’t get it done in the early morning!

previous article
next article

2 Comments

  • Reply
    FOUND AND LIKED ON THE WEB |
    September 4, 2020 at 7:16 am

    […] 5 Ways to Find Time to Exercise As a Mom of Littles here. […]

  • Reply
    A Beginner's Guide to Triathlons • Bonnie and Blithe
    June 6, 2022 at 9:56 pm

    […] YOU LIKED THIS POST, YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:• 6 WAYS TO FIND TIME TO EXERCISE (WHEN YOU ARE NOT A MORNING PERSON)• THE BEST FITNESS TOOL FOR MOMS• WHY IT’S HARD TO LOSE WEIGHT WHILE […]

  • Leave a Reply

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.