fitness

You’re a fitness instructor, now what?

| cheriarmour

So first and foremost, I would be a sucky blogger not to acknowledge the fact that our country has been thrown into turmoil.  And not to get all political on the blog, but suffice it to say that being black in this country over the past few weeks has been really difficult.  Like, my chest-is-tight-what-the-hell-are-we-gonna-do-to-make-sure-this-never-happens-again difficult.  I’m praying.  Hard.

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So in a continuation of yesterday’s post we’re talking today about what happens after you take the plunge and go for a weekend and get your license or your cert in a certain fitness format.

Becoming a fitness instructor
Aw snap, Nike Hoodie Cheri is back….

First things first.  I kind of thought about this after I wrote the post that went live yesterday, however, I didn’t really address the process that goes into becoming a Yoga instructor.

So for starters, I am not certified to teach Yoga.  I love Yoga, and one day, I may become certified, however, I think it’s important to realize that Yoga instructors go through a different, much more intensive process to get certified.  A lot of times it involves a lot of money, some travel, and a lot of continuing education workshops.  If any of you guys are looking to become more proficient in the Yoga arena, I definitely can point you in the right direction, however, this isn’t necessarily the post, or post series for you.

Moving right along…

So we talked about the appropriate steps to go through to become an instructor in your area of choice.  So you’ve done all that stuff, right?  How do you become a working instructor?  How do you continue to deliver safe, effective, and relevant classes?  How do you make sure that you don’t get yourself in legal trouble?

Here we go.

So, for starters, you’ve got your certs and your licenses, right?

  1. Get your CPR stuff updated.  Honestly, it’s not a bad idea to have that stuff done anyways, and a lot of time, your job will offer it, or get it paid for for you.  It seems silly, but you never know when you’re going to need it, and you have to have it to teach at most gyms.
  2. Continue to take classes in the time you’re not teaching. I can’t stress this enough, but you need to be auditing other classes.  What are other instructors doing? What’s hot in the streets?  What’s up with music?  What do the classes seem to respond to?  What doesn’t work, even?
  3. Contact the group fitness director at the club/gym you’d like to teach out.  So, that’s what I do when I’m not running/teaching/writing.  I am the director of a large group of fitness instructor.  My job is to coordinate like a million instructors and make sure our group fitness schedule is diverse, robust, and running effectively.  If this info isn’t clearly listed on the club’s website, call the front desk and ask for the group fitness manager, or the director of group fitness.  Usually, they can at least provide you with an email address. When you contact his person, introduce yourself, clearly outline what classes and formats that you’re comfortable teaching, and ask if you can come in to do a demo.
  4. If your demo is good, it should be pretty easy to get onto the schedule, or at least on the sub list.  If you’re on the sub list, sub often and be available, and you should be a regular instructor in no time.   

As you can see from the tips above, once you get your certs and licenses together, it shouldn’t be too difficult to get on a schedule somewhere, provided you’re a good instructor (a topic we will touch on), and you’re prepped to either teach your one format like a rock star, or you can teach a variety of formats well (seriously, we LOVE that stuff).

This is how you get IN.  Now stay tuned, next week we talk about what makes a good instructor, and what makes a ::shudder:: bad one : )

On becoming a fitness instructor

| cheriarmour

First things – I was supposed to come into work super late, but ended up having to come in early because my email was EXPLODING, so to alleviate the pain and suffering I was dealing with from having to answer 65,000 emails, I bought myself an inappropriately large coffee from Dunkin Donuts, and it’s been sloshing to and fro in my belly.  Wanna know how good it feels to have 18 million gallons of a diuretic sloshing about in your stomach?  Not good at all.

But enough complaining, life is wonderful, and I’m not here to talk about my GI issues.

But I am here to talk about a question I’ve gotten a lot since becoming a fitness instructor in late 2009, after I completed my undergraduate degree.

First and foremost, I can, without a doubt say that becoming a fitness instructor completely changed my life.

I’d been taking Zumba® Fitness classes for a number of years, and had always toyed with the idea of teaching, because I loved the way my instructor made me feel.  After a boyfriend made fun of me so badly that I didn’t want to get certified, I finally got up the nerve and took the plunge a few months after I graduated.  I’m still amazed that my chubby ass got up the gall to to to the licensing weekend, but I went and it changed my life.

Before
As a total side note, I was never obese, but I was eating really poorly, and had put on about 40 pounds when all was said and done in college.

 

So my process for getting licensed and certified in fitness goes like this.

Zumba® Fitness ->Schwinn Cycling Certification->AFAA Group Exercise Certification->Body Pump™ Certification

So for those of you interested in getting certified in group fitness and becoming a fitness instructor, here are a few steps that can get you from the process, to getting the credentials needed to effectively teach a class.

Becoming a fitness instructor

1.  This one seems pretty obvious but go to a lot of classes.  What do you like about your favorite teachers?  Start paying attention to their cueing, their mic level, and how they interact with the class.  My strengths are my dance classes as well as my toning, but it made me a much stronger teacher to see how different groups do different things.

2.  Get the basics.  Before you hop to teaching/getting certified/licensed in something crazy or a specialty like Yoga or Zumba® Fitness, look for a group fitness certification through a program like AFAA.  I DID NOT do this, I did it all backwards, but looking back on it, AFAA was valuable and helped to remind me about some of the safety cues we often forget when we’re getting all hot and heavy in a class.  Like I said, I did this all backwards, but an AFAA cert is really valuable.

3.  Sign up for a training.  Whether’s it’s AFAA, Zumba® Fitness, Pound, or what have you, go ahead and sign up for a training.  Once you sign up (early, cause those things can really sell out), you will be sent some materials.  Definitely look them over, and if it’s a training where you will be presenting for evaluation, definitely study.  ‘Cause you don’t want to be the problem child who has no idea what’s going on.

4.  You’re all signed up for a two-day training!  It’s the night before!  Pack your stuff, pack some snacks, and be prepped to be sore.  I am super active, but the Body Pump™ process had me the most sore that I’ve ever been in my entire life, mostly due to the fact that in the span of 48 hours, we took like 5 classes, and did the Les Mills challenge.

So all of this is how you get to become a fitness instructor…stay tuned for info on how to get to teaching at the gym!

 

 

Fitbit

| cheriarmour

I blogged a few weeks ago about how I was in a little bit of a running slump.  And almost as soon as I wrote those words, I went on a run the next evening that felt like my breakthrough.  A friend and I comfortably ran nearly seven miles and chatted, and I felt a little bit of my old running self coming back.

I’ve also found that sometimes, when I’m in a slump, if I buy myself a new toy, I seem to be able to overcome the slump rather quickly, since I’m focused on whatever new pair of shoes/jacket/shorts/watch, and it kind of kicks my motivation back into gear.

Well I’d been thinking about a Fitbit for a while, and going back and froth on weather the purchase would be a worthy one, since I’m pretty active.  But last week, after a particularly rough day at work where I’d received a ranty email (is ranty even a word!?), I was feeling very sorry for myself, and went and picked up a Fitbit off of my wedding registry at a cool 15% off (yay!) and I got to setting it up.

Fitbit

I think the original reason why I went back and forth on the Fitbit is that I wasn’t sure what it could offer someone like me who’s super active – buuut I will admit, the thing is pretty darn cool.  A few points?

  • It comes in a pretty sleek design, and isn’t super obtrusive, which is one of the main reasons I can’t wear my GPS constantly.  I don’t feel uncomfortable popping it on with my business casual during the day, and it fits in with my workout clothes just fine.  (As a point of reference, it sort of looks like one of those Livestrong bracelets folks were rocking in the early 2000s, and it’s not a whole lot heavier).
  • It was really really easy to set up.  You take it out of the box, put it on, and you just kinda go!  There’s a little dooder so you can sync it with your computer, and there’s a super simple app for your phone.
  • On aforementioned app, you can track your calories that you’ve eaten.  Not that I’m a super-stickler about my caloric intake, but it’s something that I loosely like to keep an eye on, and that tool was invaluable when I was losing some college weight – being able to keep track of everything I put into my mouth.
  • If you’re at all competitive, or like big round numbers, Fitbit sets a goal of 10,000 steps per day for everyone, and it encourages you – even on a day where you’re taking a break – to get up and move.  Just because it’s your day off doesn’t mean sit around for hours and hours, and Fitbit sort of reminds you of this.
  • …But I can see how this amazing little piece of technology can make obsessive folks such as myself, well, a little more obsessive.  If I feel like I haven’t hit my steps, I will move heaven and earth to make sure I hit those steps – I have to watch that in myself.
This is not indicative of my usual - I'd run over 7 miles, taught a class, and worked at the store that day!
This is not indicative of my usual – I’d run over 7 miles, taught a class, and worked at the store that day!

So overall, I’m loving this little gadget that I’ve thrown into the mix.

Do you have an Fitbit?  An app?  How do you keep track of your activity? 

Running Slump

| cheriarmour

I’ve felt this way once before. Last year, right after my grandmother died, I hit a little running slump.  I was tired, my motivation was low, and when I was running, I felt slow and consumed by anxious thoughts, which really took away from my running.

This time, I think the reasoning for the slump is a little different, but the symptoms are largely the same.

In the span of two months, I got a new job, got married to my love, and we bought a house.  And none of it was planned to all hit at once.

With the job, I got a call in May, interviewed throughout the month of June, and was offered the position in early July.  The wedding had been set for August 23rd for some time, and the home came available, and honestly, the inventory is so low in Raleigh that it would have been silly to have forgone that home.

So we dove in headfirst.  And I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy in my entire life.

And like I do anytime I’m faced with any major life changes, I felt this exhaustion come over me.  It hasn’t affected my work, as I’m still in that phase where I’m killing myself to impress everyone, but it’s definitely affected my running and my motivation.  Rather than constantly being raring to go for those runs, I’ve had to pull out every trick in the book to make sure that I make my workouts.  I invite friends, I try new workouts, I make sure that I am scheduled to take one of my instructors classes, all in the hopes that I don’t fall behind on my workouts.  But motivating myself to go when ALL I want to to is lay around in the bed and watch reruns of Sex & the City is hard, and I’m really trying.

Honestly, the last time I felt like I was in this slump a year ago, I pushed through it, but had a few tricks to help get me through.

  • I went to a lot of hot yoga.  Granted, one of the times I went, a pose we got into tapped right into my emotional side and I finished out the class sobbing for whatever reason, but I sure felt good after.
  • I ran.  And I revamped my runs.  I listened to Motown the Musical, Les Mis, and sometimes, nothing at all, all different from my usual playlists.
  • I read Dean Karnazes books.  Which is really good cause he’s an ultra marathoner.  So it kind of made you feel like your little 26.2 wasn’t that bad.
  • I vomited my way through the Greensboro Marathon.  But the fact I finished convinced me I was a lot stronger than I thought I was, and rekindled my love for running.

So the slump sucks.  I don’t like the way it makes me feel, and it scares me – makes me feel like I will never love to run again.  But slowly and steadily, I will be back to exactly where I was before, maybe even better!

What do you do when you’re in a running slump?

Fitness Gods.

| cheriarmour

The best thing happened to me yesterday morning.

Let me back it up.

******

So I’ve been teaching Zumba® Fitness for almost 5 years – taking for longer than that.  And the entire time I was taking, and the entire time that I was training, I had a total fitness crush on my trainer/original teacher Koh Herlong, and then Tanya Beardsley, with whom I had the pleasure of taking a master class before she retired from the company to do her own thing.  I loved the way they taught, I found myself tearing up when they made a connection to their classes, and I’ve always strove (striven?!) to bring the same to my classes.  I love to teach, and I hope that comes through to my classes.

Yesterday, I was working in my office on the schedule when the kid from the fitness desk downstairs called.

“Yeah, there’s no one here to teach the 4:30 step class.”

Shit.

By the grace of God, I’d already planned to take a cycle class, and was already in workout gear.  I literally jogged downstairs, strapped the mic on, broke the news to the class that I would not be teaching Step, but a Cardio Dance class, and went for it.

“Whew, it’s over,” I thought 45 minutes later!

“The teacher that teacher this class always teaches the toning class after.  You’re teaching toning, right?”

Of COURSE!  I found a CD that was like 140 BPMs (a little fitness inside thing) with Miley Cyrus featured, and I WENT FOR IT.  I stepped out of my little Zumba box, dusted off my AFAA certification, and played my role of Fitness Director perfectly.  I had an awesome, awesome time, and after, a few of the chicks in class walked up after, and told me how awesome the toning class was, and how I’d kicked their butt! (Thank you Body Pump™ training!)

Which brings me to this.

******

Body PumpI’m still working through some of my team teaching for Body Pump, and was super nervous to teach with this beautiful goddess, Monica, who introduced me to Body Pump.  She’s a flawless instructor, and radiates a really unique sort of beauty and professionalism in her classes.

This morning, she allowed me to team teach with her, and following the class, she gave me a hug, complimented my connection with the students, and said that I was ready to teach.

I have died and gone to heaven!

Do you have any fitness crushes?  Spill!

 

10 Fitness things I could not live without.

| cheriarmour

I thank goodness that I was born in such an amazing time, with such insane technology, that I can exercise pretty comfortably without injury ::knock on wood::.  HRG blogged on this a few days ago, and I just had to follow suit!  So I present to you, 10 fitness things that I Could not Live Without. 

1.  My iPhone. 

I don’t always listen to music, but I think the combo of the safety factor, music, apps, at the occasional Netflix when I’m stuck on the treadmill in the winter is really nice.  During the infamous Greensboro Marathon of ’13, I was able to call Austin (sobbing, mind you) that I was really sick, and that my finish would be later than predicted.  I thank God for that and that I didn’t have to worry him for hours.

2.  My Garmin.

photo 1Now of course, as soon as I started writing about this, my Garmin started acting really strangely, and at one point I thought it had completely died, but I used it yesterday, and I think it’s going to be okay for the next little bit here.  It needs to be okay because we just bought a house and that means you have to be really really smart with money for a second while you pay for this little thing that crops up, and that little thing that crops up.

3.  Not technically a fitness thing, but pedicures.  So, over the past few months, I’ve definitely dialed back on the pedis for money’s sake, but I went on Monday night to get a mani/pedi, and I forgot how good they are for the feet, and for the soul/sole.  Seriously, I forget that between teaching a LOT of classes a week, and trying to stay up with my running, your feet can use the help of a professional.  And that’s just what I did, especially since we were going to be taking our engagement photos.  It was awesome.

4.  Hydration things.  More specifically, the hydration backpack.  Yes, it looks really silly, and it kinda smells now that it’s been through some times with me, but I would never ever have survived a single North Carolina summer without it.  It’s convenient, it has a LOT of hiding places, and it frees up your hands to do things OTHER THAN grasping a water bottle.

5.  Good running shoes.  Thank God for the opportunity and the education I’ve been given on running shoes, because I think a good pair of running shoes can mean the difference between loving to run, and hating it because everything hurts and feels terrible while you run.  No, running shoes will not inherently make running amazing, but it makes the ride a little more enjoyable.

foam rolling

6.  The foam roller.  I think that there are some folks who still don’t really know what this thing is.  It is the most incredible little piece of equipment.  It’s cheap, and the best thing to do for sore muscles, pressure points, knots, or anything that comes up when you’re really feeling horrid.  And if you’re training for anything right now, you know that will happen.

7.  The treadmill.  Okay, okay, okay, hear me out okay?  Most of us runners refer to the treadmill as the “dreadmill” because of how boring it can be.  But it can be really really useful, especially when it’s really really hot, and really really cold.  (Anyone flashing back to the Polar Vortex of early ’14?)  There would have been no way, a few of those days, that I could have gotten a run in, and I would have gone crazy.  Especially the day when poor Austie was stuck on the road for like 6 hours trying to get home during the snow.  I needed an outlet for sure.

8.  Compression gear.  <-In general.  Compression socks.  Compression tights.  Will save your LIFE.  I started sleeping in compression gear during my first marathon and it heals.  I swear, it heals.

9.  Nuun, and other forms of electrolyte replacement that have  been invented that don’t contain corn syrup and Red 40.  This stuff is great to replace some of the stuff you sweat out, but also kind of great in real life.  You drank too much?  Nuun.  You have the flu and you can’t really eat anything?  Nuun.  You want to spice your water up and make it a little tastier and interesting?  NUUUN.

10.  Rundies.  Runderwear.  Banish them pantylines and they’re wicking.  You don’t have to go commando in your tights any longer folks.  Rundies are the way to go.  They’re expensive – but SO worth it.  I actually have started wearing them with regular things because of the lack of pantylines that is involved with them.  What a wonderful, wonderful invention.

What’s on your fitness must-have list?

Body Pump™ Cert Part 2

| cheriarmour

So….obviously, I haven’t been around for a few days which was probably really truly concern to all of you because ya girl can talk. But between starting my brand new job, which I will talk about in another post, getting myself married, and passing my certification in Body Pump™ it has been really hard to brush my teeth, let alone sit down in one spot, get to a computer and pour out out.

So let me pour.

So the last you heard of me, I was just finished up after my first day at the Les Mills Body Pump™ training process, but I didn’t get too deeply into it cause I wanted to keep you on the edge of your seat until today, so I hope that it worked.

Body Pump™!

So like I told you the other night, I drove down to Wilmington on Friday night, and I wasn’t really sure what to expect.  I’ve been to a lot of different fitness trainings, but right off the bat, this one seemed different because it spanned over two days, and Les Mills had actually sent us music, a live class video, and choreography notes, as well as two of the songs that we were told to prepare for a presentation.

When I got to the student recreation center at UNCW, the training began promptly.  I was really surprised, rather than there being a room packed out, the group was intimate, and every single one of the folks there was incredibly in shape.  A lot of the trainings that I’d gone to had a whole smorgasbord of folks, from the ultra fit to the beginners, so it was interesting to be in a room full of folks who, for the most part, had either been taking classes for a long time, or had been teaching other formats for some time.

Body Pump Team
Suze is the little atomic bomb down in the front. But check out all of these folks, how awesome do they look?

So the training started promptly, and we started with some business, and moved right into our first class of the release, and of the weekend.  Our trainer, Susan was this teeny ball of energy, and she taught an awesome class with a sparkle in her eye, and immediately, the hooting and hollering started from the group.  We were already hurting, but we already were feeling so together, that we were whooping up a storm.  It was awesome.

Again, we went into business – Susan broke down some choreography and choreo notes for us, and we quickly ducked out for a lunch break.  After lunch, we started “studying” the tracks we were going to present to the class, and toward the end of that first day, we took the class a second time, each of us taking turns to teach our tracks, and supporting each other.  The skills that all of us came to the training with were really impressive – though all of us left that day with feedback given to us that we needed to work on, we all started from a really solid foundation.

After Susan let us go for the evening, I found some food at a burrito barn, and chilled with a beer and with ‘The Fault in Our Stars’.  My feet were killing from doing the equivalent of two 60-minute Body Pump classes, so I decided to head to the beach to walk on the sand so that I could get a little circulation into the nooks and crannies and my poor feet.  Fun fact: I hit Flaming Amy’s again after day two, because it was the only place I had the energy to really hunt out.  Plus it was reallllly cheap.

Flaming Amys
I did a vegetarian burrito and a $1.25 beer. Perfect way to end the day.
Beach Photo
The beach. I was really missing my husband-to-be at this part.

Day 2

Day 2, we immediately started by taking the class again – and again, each of us presented our tracks.  Where there were certainly areas to improve on that first day, it was clear that all of us had absorbed some of the feedback that Susan had given us the day before, and there was vast, vast improvement on the day before.

The Body Pump™ Challenge.

I’m going to keep a lot of these details to myself because the challenge was so incredible, so so incredible, that I will let you guys that want to go off and get your Body Pump™ cert see for yourself what it was about.  I will say this.  I actually got a little choked up once we finished the challenge, and I had such an incredible sense of accomplishment, one that rivaled the sense I got when I finished both marathons.

Finally, after some more business, we took our fourth and final class, which we all took turns teaching our last track.

And sooner than I would have liked, we were done.  Susan called us out one by one to let us know if we passed or not (I passed!) and we all gave each other hugs and promised that we would keep in touch.  The way the process goes is that I am currently doing a lot of team teaching, and within 60 days, I have to send Les Mills a vid of me teaching, and being competent.

The weekend was a beautiful, painful, sweaty, hardcore weekend of fitness magic, and I am so grateful to have done it.  Seriously, if anyone is thinking about doing this training, you HAVE to do it, and please please, send me questions if you have any about the training!

Pump Legs
I cannot believe these legs pumped out so much weight! Go me!

What did you do over the weekend?  

I need your help!

| cheriarmour

Okay, so I will keep reminding you day in and day out.  But something really exciting happened to me.

So I found out last weekend, and I wasn’t really allowed to tell anyone until about 1 am.

Women’s Running Magazine is hosting a contest for their next cover model.  Me and about two thousand women entered, and GUESS WHAT?! I am a finalist!  One of nine exquisitely beautiful women.

Screen Shot 2014-06-17 at 7.37.24 AMSo I stuck a new link to the right.  I will remind you all over the place.  But please, please, pretty please, vote for me daily to see your FAVORITE blogger on the cover of Women’s Running Magazine.

Click here to vote.  Voting closes July 2nd at 12pm so be prepped for me to harass you until then.  And then I’ll be getting married right after that so things are fixin’ to get real innerstin on the blog!

Staying Fit With a Full-Time Job (and a Baby)

| cheriarmour
This is a guest post, kind of stemming off of a post I wrote last week about making time to stay fit.  I was not comfortable speaking to staying fit while you’re a mom, because honestly, I’m not a mom, and I feel like I’m not necessarily in a position to judge.
Over the past year or so, Chelsie, a good friend, and an AMAZING bridesmaid, has made the transition from being a hard-working wife, to a hard-working wife and mommy, and she’s managed to, in my opinion, find herself in even better shape than she was prior to becoming a mommy, all the while baking, working full-time, and making sure that Evie gets fed too!
So from mommy to mommy, here some tips to staying fit with a job, husband, and baby!
If you know me in real life or if you follow me on Instagram (http://instagram.com/cchlykens) then you know that I bake often.  This fact frequently leads to the question, “But why aren’t you huge!?” When Cheri, who is basically a fitness goddess, asked me to share how I work full time and stay fit I was honored that she wanted my take on things.  I am in no way a professional when it comes to nutrition or fitness.  However, I do know what is working for me.  My daughter, Evie, is nearly 17 months old and I find myself in better physical shape than I have been in, in years.  That is not to say I left the hospital in non-maternity clothing.  I gained the recommended 35 pounds while I was pregnant and it took about 8 months to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight.  I have since continued the journey with the only goal in mind being to be as healthy as I can for my daughter.  I think my methods break down into three categories that hopefully even persons who are not parents can take tips from.

1. Breastfeed

Ok, so this one sounds mom-specific, but hear me out.  We’ve all heard “breast is best” and there are endless studies that show breastfeeding is excellent for babies and their mothers (for more on that HERE http://thecultureofbreastfeeding.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/the-benefits-of-breastfeeding.png?w=640 ).  This, however, is not that post.  When you are pregnant you are supposed to eat 300 extra calories a day to provide your developing baby with enough nourishment. When you are nursing you are supposed to eat 500 extra calories a day. Breastfeeding burns 500 calories, y’all.  FIVE HUNDRED for snuggling with a cute squishy baby (or a cute wriggling toddler who may or may not be pulling your hair and presently has one foot on your throat, or still yet 500 calories for spending some QT with that pump you love, but hate).
toddler
So, you don’t have a baby? You’re just busy and you want to be healthier.  Still a very likely, very valid scenario.  My suggestion here is to take a cue from breastfeeding mothers and limit your alcohol and caffeine.  I love coffee, and in what sometimes seems like another life, I loved bourbon.  I will not begrudge you that morning cup of joe or occasional glass of wine (though I did give up alcohol and caffeine for my entire pregnancy… except for what caffeine is found in chocolate- I have my limits.), but it is something to think about when you are considering calories.  It is extremely easy to drink extra calories without even batting an eyelash and that goes for cocktails and coffee drinks alike.  The same goes for sodas, teas… you know what your vice is.
2. Eat Like A Toddler (or how you would want your toddler to eat in a perfect world)
EvieStrawberries
When introducing solids to Evie we chose to go with a modified version of baby led weaning, which basically means no baby cereal and no jarred foods or purees.  The short answer as to why we went that route is that the nutritional value in cereal is artificially added (it’s “fortified”) and I would rather she get nutrients from a rainbow of foods, not enhanced rice.  She eats what we eat, only in a more baby friendly version, which means our meals have to include things that are baby friendly.  We started her out on single ingredient foods that were naturally the right texture for somebody who only has gums to work with – think avocado, banana, steel cut oats.  As often as possible she ate (and still eats) fresh fruits and vegetables (strawberries created the crime scene above) with no added sugar and no added salt.  When I’m cooking dinner for a discerning toddler (now almost 17 months and quite the foodie)  I can’t throw her just any old junk in good conscience.  Having a child makes you a better person, and in the case of my husband and I, it has made us better eaters.  Before you put something in your mouth ask yourself if you would feed it to a toddler.  I’m not asking you to eat mush, but I think you get the point.  It takes a little planning – you have to buy whole foods if you want to eat whole foods- but it’s so incredibly worth it.  Instead of handing her a pop-tart, I can just as easily (with less than 15 minutes of prep on a prior evening) hand my daughter a hard boiled egg for breakfast.  Grab some fruit or half an avocado and you’re set in minutes!  If you’re just getting started with cooking, simple is best.  Less than 5 ingredients is perfect, raw is absolutely acceptable (carrot sticks as a side? Yes, please!), and seasonings are your friend. I’m pretty sure apples are the original convenience food.  We have excellent resources here in Nashville in our various farmers markets.  The main market is open 363 days a year and we have neighborhood markets nearly every single day in the summer that spring up all over town where we can buy locally grown produce as well as grass fed meats and dairy.  Look around a little, I’m sure these things are available in your area too (Tip: you can sometimes source local free range chicken eggs via Craigslist). Odds are good you’ll be able to support local agriculture and it’ll be easier on your wallet than a health food store.
Like I mentioned earlier, I am a baker.  Another one of my food related tricks is that I have kind of an unwritten rule where I make my own junk food. This allows me to eliminate preservatives for the most part and ingredients I can’t pronounce. The added bonus here is that because I went to the trouble to make it from scratch and use quality ingredients I tend to savor it as a treat a little more. I eat a piece (or two), and ultimately take the rest to work to share.
cake
The same goes for bread as it does for cake.  I make most of our sandwich bread. I don’t find myself chowing down on toast because while simple to make, bread takes time, and time is not something I have a lot of these days.
bread
Side note: My toddler loves curry.  Who would’ve thought?!
3. Rethink Your “Workout”
Just because you don’t have time to fight traffic on your way from the office to the gym, change clothes, kick your own booty in a high impact cardio class for an hour and a half, then swim some laps before heading home doesn’t mean you don’t have time to work out.  I can not block out hours at a time to workout inside or outside a gym.  The number of hours in a day do not exist and I do not have the childcare that this requires.  My husband and I have been on ONE real date since sweet Evie was born and sometimes I feel like I hardly have time to shower.  However, I do have time to take a brisk walk at lunch or after dinner.  I do have time to do 20 pushups or hold a plank until my eyeballs pop out while on the floor playing with Evie (babies think planking is HILARIOUS).  It’s an added bonus when she climbs on top of me to add an extra 27 pounds to my pelvic tilts (if you can’t tell, I’m all about rebuilding my core post-partum) and the same goes for squats.  She has a good time, we get to play, and mama gets in a little extra strength training.  Next time you’re catching up on your Twitter feed do some simple barre exercises (tendu, anyone?).  Netflix has eliminated the commercials for many of us, but if you’re watching regular tv, do something, ANYTHING during the commercial break.  5 minutes here, 10 minutes there adds up, and 5 minutes is better than no minutes.
It’s not perfect, and I don’t think I’ll be writing a best selling fitness book anytime soon, but I hope I’ve provided some insight into what works for me.
How do you stay fit with a full time job?
ChelsieEvie