Weight Loss

Hey What would you do?

 

I juggle 2 jobs from 7 am to 10 pm. I dont have any breaks to exercise. On the other hand, My eating habits are going down the drain. I get home about 10:30 pm and I am so tired that I eat whatever is quick and fast, which is almost always unhealthy. I am not a morning person so waking up earlier than I have to is out of the question. I really dont know what to do? Can someone spear there thoughts.

 

Thanks.

 

P.S. Any tips on BECOMING a morning person, leave those comments also.

Make a bunch of healthy meals on your day off, portion them out, and freeze them.  Heat them up when you get home from work.

i can't work ot on the morning either, so I have no advice there. Sorry.

If your jobs are reasonably active as opposed to desk-bound then you don't really need to do exercise on top.  But, whatever job you do, you're entitled to some short breaks throughout the day by law.... That's the time to take a quick walk outside.  Short walks, parking further away from your destination, taking the stairs rather than the lift... all helps.   Weekends are another good opportunity to find something more active to do.  At the same time you can also cook some batches of healthy foods that you can freeze and eat during the week when you have less time. 

Another idea.... get a different job.  Money's important but health is arguably moreso.  If you get the opportunity to swap 2 jobs for 1 - take it.

As for becoming a morning person.... I gave birth to a baby 'lark' so I had no choice :-)  But, eight years down the track, starting my day an hour earlier than I did in the past seems very normal.  Set the alarm clock often enough and it soon becomes a habit.  Trick is to swing yourself straight out of bed and into the shower, and not doze through the snooze alarms!  Healthier food and more fluids helps as well..... stops you feeling so sluggish in the mornings. 

Try to plan your day out as best you can, giving healthy food and exercise top priority.  Be imaginative.  'Where there's a will there's a way'... Best of luck.

i know how it can feel trying to juggle everything you already do and then add exercise into the picture! I eat healthy by planning my meals now, as i find that makes me eat a lot less rubbish. I also eat a lot of things that can be thrown together in about 5 mins like stir fry or pasta, fajitas, soups... just things that dont take hours to cook.

As for exercise... take the stairs instead of the lift, get off the bus a stop early, go for walks in your lunch break? use the furthest away bathroom, buy a smaller bottle for your water so that you need to fill it up more often, offer to make the tea/coffee? the best one for me was fiddling, my feet are always tapping away under the desk burning those extra 10 calories here and there!

Also, i bought myself a mini trampoline for at home which is a great way to burn calories whilst watching tv. i grab 10 mins in the morning and ten in the afternoon :)

I also work 2 jobs, Husband & father the whole nine yards, but I am fortunate to have a gym at both locations that I am able to use, normally an hour a day. Here a few thoughts:

• I started buying the Healthy Choice soups for quick meals between jobs. They are quick and good for you ( normally I go for the veggie soup, chicken noodle & chicken and rice)
• Also try and incorporate more fresh fruits - whatever is in season to bring for snacks through out the day. (if you cannot get three healthy meals a day, try grazing throughout the day on healthier food)
• You work hours are similar to mine and if you really want to start exercising then take the suggestion from a previous post and just try setting your alarm clock an hour early for a week and see how it goes. You do not have to get out of bed, but it will give you time to think about getting up and exercising. If you do it once (exercise) you will be surprised how good you will feel about yourself. Trust me on this one. There is nothing better than knowing you have done something for yourself by yourself, its the best.

Good luck and please feel free to ask if you have more questions.

 When you work two jobs balancing the needs in our lives becomes very important, but once you find it you will notice that you can still achieve the goals you have set for yourself.

 

Original Post by nae_18:

Hey What would you do?

 I juggle 2 jobs from 7 am to 10 pm. I dont have any breaks to exercise. On the other hand, My eating habits are going down the drain. I get home about 10:30 pm and I am so tired that I eat whatever is quick and fast, which is almost always unhealthy. I am not a morning person so waking up earlier than I have to is out of the question. I really dont know what to do? Can someone spear there thoughts.

 Thanks.

 P.S. Any tips on BECOMING a morning person, leave those comments also.

i'm going to assume that you're not sitting at a desk at both jobs and suggest that getting enough sleep is more important than finding time for exercise. 

as far as food, try to plan your meals ahead and prepare several at once, freezing meals when you can.  keep lots of whole foods on hand.  fruit, nuts, raw veggies are portable and convenient. 

is your night job a restaurant job?  maybe you can request a healthy meal a day ahead and have it waiting for you when you arrive.

 

I am not a morning person either. I dont sleep well at night, ever, so I feel you about the not getting up earlier, however this week i started getting up just 1/2 hour earlier than normal and doing 30 minutes on the stationary bike and I find it really wakes me up and leaves me feeling more energized throughout the day. Also, I never really had time to make breakfast so at night, once a week Id hardboil about a dozen eggs, then each morning id grab one or two, a peice of carbstyle bread, some fruit and an 8oz glass of skim milk and it took me less than 5 minutes

I have two jobs as well!  I have a "desk job" from 7:45 - 4 (Monday - Friday) and then I work at a restaurant from 5-10 4 nights a week.   I try to exercise at least 4-5 times a week, which is very hard considering how much I work!   I tried the getting up early thing and I couldnt get adjusted...so here is what I do...

Before the week begins, I look over my schedule for the following week and decide which nights I will work out... normally I have 3 nights off a week that I can definately work out...so two of those nights I pack a bag with my workout clothes and take them with me when I leave for my second job..when I get off, I go straight to gym and do about an hour workout.  When I get home, I take a shower and make sure to actually fix my hair, blow dry it, straighten it, etc.  So then, in the morning I can just wake up and go... that works pretty well for me.  I am not sure how many days off you might have in a week, but just make sure to workout on those days and add in one or two workouts in the night.  As for having enough energy,  I always feel dead tired after getting off at 10 (sometimes 11) but the second I get inside the gym, get in my workout clothes, and put on my running shoes, I get excited about doing something good for my body which gives me the energy I need to get through the workout. 

 

I know its not really well known, but I am having a lot of success training with Russian Kettlebells.   A russian kettlebell is a metal ball with a bell shaped handle.   It was a 'whats hot' exercise routine a year or so ago and is still gaining a lot of popularity.   The idea is that you do various exercises (swings, cleans, presses, squats, etc) that give you a strength AND cardio workout all in one.  There are a lot of instructional videos ranging from beginner to advanced.  Hundreds of youtube videos on how to do various exercises.  And when you really get going you can burn up to 20 calories per minute.   The bells range from 8 pounds all the way up to 88 pounds.   There are certified instructors all over the country to help you get started.  The best thing is that you can do all the exercises at home.  A 45 minute workout will really kick your butt, burn over 500 calories, and not require that you go to a gym.  It's really a complete body workout.

So I'd recommend doing a google search for russian kettlebells or take a look at some of the kettlebell youtube vids for an idea of the various exercises.  Women use them as much as men do.

Whatever you decide, good luck to you! :)

i have two jobs also, plus some ocassional freelancing jobs on the side. i do not go to a gym, but try to walk to jobs, run errands, walk during beaks, work standing up and so on. so far i have lost 65 pounds, so i believe one can lose weight even when he or she is a busy person:)

1. Create an emergency stash.  Stuff like Clif Bars, Instant Oatmeal, canned soup, popcorn in your desk(s) so that you don't have to run to vending machine for a snack.
2. Get one of those insulated bags.  Cut up fruits and veggies to take with you.
3. Cook on the weekends.  Make your own "frozen dinners" so that you have good things to eat during the rest of the week. 
   
4. Maybe something like this is for you - http://www.seattlesutton.com/
5. Try to find opportunities for activity.  Use the bathroom furthest from your work area.  Park at the back of the lot everywhere.  Start a break time game of hoops, hockey, soccer, etc. with your coworkers.  
6. Do some desk exercises.  There's a million videos on YouTube or there are these - http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/feature s/exercise-at-your-desk
   

Wear ankle weights. Put a exercise grip on your desk and use it. Stand and pace while talking on the phone. Do the occassional set of dips in your chair. If you watch any TV during your 9 hours of life per day outside of work, it should be from the comfort of your exer-bike that you get at goodwill or jogging in place. At least during commercials. Better yet, don't watch TV and take an evening constitutional while you are waiting for that 10:30 dinner to digest a bit.

As someone mentioned above, there are labor laws that would mandate breaks. Skip the smoke break and take a walk.

Get out of bed a half hour earlier and just start exercising. You'll suddenly realize you're awake and exercising about 15 minutes in.

Working 15 hours a day, 7 days a week is not a sustainable schedule. You may think about adjusting that for your health.

Luckily they now make a magic pill that makes it so you won't have to:

A) Plan ahead for healthy meals ready to go after work

B) Plan to have healthy, no-refrigeration required snacks waiting in your car such as whole grain bars or no salt-no candy trail mix

C) and lastly with this new pill you won't have to acknowlege that real, lasting weightloss is going to take a heck of a lot of sacrifice, determination, and dedication whether that be taking the time to reheat some baked chicken rather than grabbing the Doritos or be it dragging your butt out of bed 1 hour earlier.

The point is - there is no pill.  You have to ask yourself at this point if you really want to get in shape, or just want company to complain about how hard weight loss is.  I haven't had ice cream after dinner (my favorite) for 2 weeks.  The first 4 days I got mad at my husband and felt like crying.  Over ice cream!  But now, I don't really even mind.  It doesn't take long to start healthy habbits, but you DO have to start...

exercise does not have to be a defined amount of time set aside where you're doing set moves, routines, or whatever.

if you could take a short 5 minute walk every hour or so then in 6 hours of work you would have 30 minutes of walking! which is a lot more exercise than none.