If you are one of those people struggling to maintain a proper workout and weight loss regimen while having to balance a tight schedule as well, join the club. The average working class citizen just cannot afford to spend all their time on working out, staying fit, and going on long runs skipping through the forest in complete bliss like they do in the movies. Losing weight isn't impossible even when you are on a busy schedule, though, as long as you do everything right. Here are some ways for you to balance the two and keep the pounds off.
Fit your workouts into your schedule
Writing everything you do down is the best way to get started doing this. Get yourself a daily planner if you want to, or use your phone/tablet to record your daily activities. In addition to freeing up time for your workout sessions, it also allows you to lead a more organized life overall. Take note of everything from social gatherings, work, and school to your grocery visits and projects. Every Sunday, take some time to arrange your schedule in a nice way for the week ahead. Being able to look at everything written down makes it a lot easier to rearrange without feeling panicked, overwhelmed or rushed.
Keep your workouts short and sweet
You don't need a 2-hour long workout to lose weight. There are many people who spend hours at the gym every day, doing the usual routines, working out on the normal machines.
This isn't the only way to get a grueling workout in. There are shorter, more intense routines out there; you can find them everywhere.
These are called high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts. They make use of extremely short rest times and fast sets to burn the fat in your body in less than half an hour per workout. It is far easier to fit half an hour into your schedule than two. Likewise planking is great for your core if you want reap maximum benefits
Exercise in the mornings
Evenings are the worst time a working individual can schedule a workout. There is always something bound to pop up at work. It could be a meeting, an after-work meetup with your peers, and a whole host of other unforeseeable activities that could very well interfere with your scheduled workout. Change your exercise time to the early morning instead. Working out in the morning doesn’t leave you exhausted all day – it gives you increased circulation and brain function, making you perform better at work, remain positive all day, and even get more focused!
Keep track of your calorie intake
There are many of you who, every once in a while, avoid eating a chocolate bar because it has too many calories. This isn't what is meant by keeping track of your calorie intake. For weight loss to be effective, you have to eat fewer calories than you burn, but not by a large margin. Taking in too few calories leads to exhaustion, dizziness, and other health problems in the workplace. Too many and you're working against your weight loss goals. Keep track, using a planner, of how many calories in total you take in each day through food and drinks. Like a budget, keep track of how many you lose each day through working out, daily activities and more. Fine tune your intake to be just less than your consumption for the best results!
Try to get a full workout in on the weekend
While a high intensity training regimen works wonders for your weight loss, you don' want to end up scrawnier than Olive Oyl. On the weekend, don't just laze around. Make use of your free Saturday or Sunday to go to the gym and get a muscle building workout in. This only needs to take an hour of your time in the morning to be effective.
By following these guidelines and, above all else, eating healthy food instead of fast food, you can actually shed those pounds even if you do have the busiest schedule in the world! By sticking to this schedule of yours, you will also be able to keep them off for as long as you need to.