Tips on staying consistent with workouts (from a toddler and baby mom who understands the struggle)

I’ve talked to a lot of moms recently and a common thread has been the struggle of making exercise a consistent part of our lives. It’s no wonder, given all that we are juggling, not to mention the constant mixed messages on what our workouts “have” to look like! 

Believe me when I say I know what it’s like to not be able to stick to a workout routine. This is not a blog post written by a fitness buff who has worked out their entire life. I will never forget the stunned silence in the room when I received the PE award in middle school (awarded NOT for my athletic skills but rather my listening skills). Even when I started getting into working out in my late 20’s, I struggled with consistency in my workouts. I was not a morning person and a workaholic on top of it. I belonged to a boutique Barre and Spin studio that I adored, but even the late fee didn’t deter me from skipping my 5pm class when I was tired or took on “just one” last project. As a result, I was always on or off the wagon- one week making it to the studio five times a week and then missing an entire month. 

When the pandemic hit, I started to develop an extremely consistent relationship with exercise thanks to at home workouts, but I struggled to keep up the intensity after returning to work with my first baby. Luckily, I was able to quickly pivot back to consistency using some of the below tips. I definitely go through seasons where I miss a week or two (hands up if your second baby isn’t quite the same sleeper as your first!), but it’s never become a longer break because it’s such a strong habit in my life. I hope some of these tips can help you find a consistent workout routine you love! 

Find something you love doing and break up with workout rules: To me, this is the most important tip of all. I will never forget being told by a well meaning, fit male colleague that Barre workouts were for girls who didn’t need to lose weight and I should concentrate on cardio and lifting weights for weight loss. As a result, I spent many years going to classes I hated or seeking advice solely focused on weight loss. And the sad part is that I lost the joy from working out, because these workouts left me (personally) fatigued and drained rather than energized. But once I stopped viewing working out as a means to “lose weight” and focused on the energy and mental health benefits, I CRAVED my workouts and actually ended up getting MORE muscle from low impact workouts than I ever did lifting weights. 

So if you find yourself doing a workout because someone told you you would lose weight or it’s what to do for your “body type”, but you aren’t LOVING WHAT YOU’RE DOING- ask yourself where did you learn this? Who is this based on? And then, give yourself the freedom to BREAK UP with that rule and find something you enjoy doing. Because consistency will always win when it comes to results. 

Find the right time to workout (and don’t be surprised if it’s not what you think): As a former “non morning person”, I always planned my workouts for the afternoon. But time and again, I wasn’t making it to the studio or even my at home workouts. I had to ask myself- what is holding me back? What are the common themes in my excuses? Every time, it was work and fatigue. So I tried experimenting with other times of the day (leaving work a little earlier or lunch time workouts) and nothing worked. When the pandemic hit, and I had the ability to replace my commute time with my workout, I tried the morning workout and I was hooked. When I just set my alarm a little bit earlier, I felt accomplished first thing in the day, I didn’t have the same excuses around work I always did and I felt MORE energized going into my work day. 

Now that I’m a mom, it’s even more important to me to try to start my day with a workout because I know I show up as the best version of myself, and that makes it easier to set my alarm earlier to get it in. For you, maybe a lunch time or evening workout is more ideal for you- it will be different for everyone. Take an honest inventory of what’s not working with your workout schedule- what’s getting in the way? Prioritize fitting in your workout at a time that’s going to give you the least barriers and most energy. 

But be flexible if the workout can’t happen at your “normal” time. This is something I’ve been learning a lot as a mom of two (especially since my daughter seems to have a few more sleep regressions than I remember with my son!) I’ve had to prioritize sleep many mornings after nights with multiple wakeups, and for a while, I found myself just skipping my workouts because it wasn’t at my ideal time. Then I got brutally honest with myself about the disservice I was doing to my health by clinging onto something that worked best in a previous season. Now, while I still try to get a morning workout in, if I need to prioritize sleep, I make sure to still find a time in my day to prioritize movemeny. That may mean scaling the workout time down, but it’s okay because I know how much better I feel even after 10 minutes of movement. 

Release the all or nothing mindset: Do you find yourself saying it’s only a workout if it’s 30 minutes or more? It’s only a workout if I sweat? These types of ideas keep us from staying consistent with our workout routines because there are going to be days where you don’t have 30 minutes or the workout you enjoy doesn’t break a sweat. As mentioned above, consistency is key! If you’re struggling to get to a workout (or you slept in, the baby’s sleep schedule changed, your work day went a little longer than usual, etc.) just try a 15 minute workout! The momentum you will build by sticking to your routine, no matter the time, will benefit you leaps and bounds above only getting to that 30 minute workout once a week. 

Plan your workouts to reduce decision fatigue: When I’m returning to working out after a break from my routine, I often love to start back with a workout challenge. There’s something about just hitting play and not having to think about what workout is next that gets me back into the groove and I’m usually back to my normal routine by the end of the first week. There are tons of workout apps (like Melissa Wood Health) that also have “easing back into workout” challenges which make it realistic to build the habit back up. If I’m not doing an actual challenge but just want to give myself some accountability and reduce decision fatigue, I will also write my workouts for the week in my planner. 

The hit pause and come back method: One of the key additions I’ve added to help me stay consistent in this season of motherhood is the pause button. One of the reasons I love at home workouts so much is the flexibility they offer as a parent. As any parent knows, kids' sleep can be unpredictable, and I can’t count how many times I’ve been motivated to start my 30 minute workout only to have one of my kids wake up 10 minutes later. So now, I give myself the permission to just hit pause. I can come back to it later in the day, or sometimes I may feel like I got enough of a workout in within that 10 minutes. 

Pair your workout with your energy level and look into cycle syncing workouts: Sometimes what’s holding us back from working out is simply choosing the wrong workout for our energy, current fitness level or even (as women) the week in our cycle. For instance, if you’re just getting back into working out postpartum or after taking months off- intense HIIT, spin, or heavy weights are going to lead to injuries and quick burnout. Start out by easing into your workouts, like body weight exercises, walks or pilates.

Even if you have been working out for a while, paying attention to your energy levels is important for the same reason. I’ve recently started getting back into cycle syncing and I’ve found it to be a game changer. This is where you match your workout intensity to the stage you are in your menstrual cycle (i.e. more low impact/rest days during your menstrual stage, building up to more strength and cardio/high intensity in your follicular and ovulatory stage, slowing down more as you start to get back towards the menstrual stage). You’re essentially listening to your patterns of energy and being kind to your body as you choose your workout. The Pilates program I mainly gravitate towards (the Align App by Bailey Brown) has an entire cycle syncing program that rotates between cardio, strength, reformer and mat pilates. 

And perhaps the most important… get in tune with your own internal motivators: I’ve shared a lot of the tips and tricks that have worked for me (as well as others I have coached) to get into a consistent workout routine, but really it all comes down to having a really strong understanding of what you’re own personal motivators or triggers are. Deeply understand why you are committing to this journey and remind yourself of your why every time you are tempted to miss your workout. The more you show up for movement, even on the hard days, the more it will become something that’s a natural part of your day.