to sk for advice on fitting in exercise?

[DrSeuss]

Posting here for traffic.
I need to lose weight and have been trying hard to do so with some success and a few wagons fallen off. That bit I have in hand. However, I also need to get a lot fitter.
My problem is, my daily schedule. I am not making excuses, really I'm not. I struggle to fit exercise in.
6.30 Wake up. Always knackered due to insomnia
8.00 Leave house, having first done some house work and got self and kids ready
8.15 At work
3.20 Finish work. Sometimes I get a fifteen minute morning break, sometimes I don't. (I'm a TA. That's just how it goes.) once a week I have a break duty. Lunch is 45 minutes in theory but I rarely get all of that. Twice a week I have a dinner duty, so only 20 minutes for lunch.
From work, I go to pick the kids up and then they have activities every night till at least six. Sometimes I can take a walk while they do their thing. Some activities require me to stick around just in case.

6-6.30 - Home, cook, homework, reading, spellings etc
Sometime between 7 and eight or even later, husband comes home from work.
Weekends are kids' activities and housework and just trying to have an actual life!

We have no family to help out. It's nearly all up to me. We can't afford endless babysitters or a cleaner.
So, how can I fit more exercise in?

But you don't need to do it everyday, if DH is home at 7 twice in week then go out for 20/30 mins. You could download C25K app (mixture of walking and running to build you up and then go out once of a weekend. You will see a massive difference just doing 20/30 mins 3 times a week. A bit of rain doesn't matter either - just wear a cap to keep it out your face.

Infact how old are your DC's? They could go out and do the C25K with you, that wa you don't even have to wait for your DH to come home.

Just seen your kids ages. I'd do the shred at 7pm when they've finished all their homework etc.

Salix, the No Petting thing used to confuse the heck out of me. I only knew the word pet in relation to an animal and could make no link between the cartoon and the words!

Agree with others - the activities sound incredibly wearing. I think you need to cut back on them a bit, and claw back a bit of time for yourself.

In the meantime, take your running kit to the kids' activities that you don't have to stick around for and go for a jog while they do whatever it is they do. I also recommend the Shred or suchlike for days when you can't jog, it's really good but you do need to stick to it - if you let it slide just once you're doomed!

My day is similar-ish. I don't get home until 6-7 after collecting youngest from nursery (my older child is 11 and is already home).
I will get supper for youngest then while she's eating I'll supervise homework for eldest and prep some of the adult dinner if it's my turn to cook (11 year old has a snack tea after school and then eats a smaller version of our dinner with us later).
Then around 7.30 I bath youngest and get into my gym kit while she's splashing, then stories cuddles and bed for her. Then immediately crack on with a workout. I love the Joe wicks HIIT ones on you tube - you work really hard but they are only about 20 mins long do its possible to do every day. I do them in front of bedroom telly so I can catch up with my soaps at same time as the HIIT video is playing on my tablet (chav).
Then dash back downstairs to finish dinner (or if husband cooking I'll do a longer workout) while eldest has his bath.
So we sit down to eat between 8.30 and 9 which I know is too late for a lot of people but works for us. Husband doesn't usually get home until at least 8 anyway.
Even if I've not managed to fit in a workout I will do 10 mins ab work before bed.
Weekends I work out first thing on Saturday while children are breakfasting. Again I do it at home in 20 mins (I used to run on Saturdays but have a knee injury at the moment).
Sunday morning I have a "pink pass" to do a circuit training class at gym while husband deals with children (he gets reciprocal time off to do something else).
The hardest bit is to focus on grabbing the small window to exercise when it's open ... or its gone. I seem to wear gym kit nearly all the time at home for this reason!
We also have cleaner/ironing lady etc do housework during week is a bare minimum (cooking, laundry, tidying etc) which we share.
I can't recommend Joe wicks enough!! If you find his voice annoying you can turn the sound off haha.

I used to be up at 5:40, commute into London, get back home at 7:30, change immediately, go for a run for 30 mins, come back, make a stir fry in 5mins and head for bed at 10. Did this 3x per week and was a size 8.

Its doable

I regularly jog around my neighbourhood and with it being quite hilly I don't feel bad if I'm not running for too long a time as the hills are hard work! I was against running in the rain but as long as you have decent trainers and thin layers the rain is really refreshing once you get going. I actully prefer rain to glaring sunshine on a run. It's made a massive difference to me on a mental side not just physical.

I bought a running machine on eBay. It is ridiculous and fills a whole bloody room (you can get smaller ones!) but dh and I use it every day.

I use a channel on YouTube called fitness blender. They have a lot of Pilates based routines which are great for toning and strength. They also have some that build in calorie burning activities too. Length vary from ten minutes to one hour. I try to do 3-4 times a week (short ones) and maybe a longer one at weekend.

Great advice, thanks. I will look into all your suggestions. But there will be no cleaner/ironing lady.

Oops sorry just seen you said cleaner not an option.

Exercise DVDs are your friend. I used to do them in the evening when the kids went to sleep. Rent them from your library to experiment and find ones you really like - there's something for all tastes/abilities.
The other thing I do when I have no time to exercise is push ups. It exercises the whole body and you can do them in small batches when waiting for the kettle to boil or every time you put a wash on. You don't need any kit.
Also, put the radio on and dance with the kids. We do this just for fun but a couple of songs soon gets your heart rate up and keeps you moving.

Good luck OP. It sounds like you have a lot on your plate and you're super busy but it is important to find time for you and your health, even if it's just carving out ten minutes for a dance DVD and some push ups.

I am hugely overweight but have finally started doing exercise and have lost 21lbs so far. No kids but I work full time and long hours with a long drive.

I split my exercise into two parts - I get up half an hour earlier than I used to and walk. I do the same after 9 in the evening - I have wet weather gear because here in Ireland it rains a fair bit.....

Splitting the exercise into two really works for me and I do sleep better as well as feeling fitter.

If you're a TA is there a lunchtime sports club you could help join in with?
I really struggled to fit exercise in (partly because I was unconfident and unmotivated). The only thing that worked was finding two classes a week and making them non-negotiable with DH, kids and self.

Squats is another exercise you can fit in anywhere. Do a few while brushing teeth, cooking etc.

When mine were younger I got up at 5.30 to go for a run although if you have insomnia this may not be a possiblity! On the other hand it may help your insomnia as you will be knackered from the exercise!!

Although I'm injured at the moment i usually get up at 4.45am to get to gym for 5 and get an hour in there before walking dogs and gettting ready for work. It does make you antisocial in the evenings though - i'm usually in bed about 9.30 and need 6.5 hours sleep minimum!

Walk to school? Have a mile route you can walk some lunchtimes also. Take a friend.

While kids are doing activities, walk some more.

Do an hour Saturday and Sunday

You know what's the only thing you have to do - prioritise yourself for a few hours per week. Every afternoon is full of kids activities, every weekend as well - what about you? Choose a few hours, either morning, during the activities you don't have to be there for, or after husband is home, and reserve them for yourself. If you only do exercise when you have time left over, you'll never do any, as there are always other things to fill your time with.

Try a great online PT course like Mutu. Sounds perfect for what you want! Comes with food guidelines. Doable at 15 min a day and then 23 min 2/3 x a week. 12 week course but you have life access/can go at your own pace.
Not expensive but keep your eye open as often a sale in march!

Running in the rain is amazing :)

I'd plan to run/walk 2 nights a week, say a tues & thurs. Ask husband to try and get home as early as poss those nights. Go out, regardless of weather. You will feel awesome!

I get up at 5.45 am 2-3 times a week and go to the gym while everyone is asleep, shower there then come home for 7-7.15am get dressed and go to work. I also go to classes some evenings

Single mum work full time. Teenage children

Start off with the 30 day plank challenge. Just do week 1 over and over for a month, and it will take less than five minutes each time, so it'll be easy to incorporate into your day.

After that, maybe you'll be in the habit of grabbing five minutes and you can extend it long enough for the Shred.

I would suggest you download My Fitness Pal and concentrate on sticking to a moderate allowance of 1500 kcals a day.

Exercise is great if you have time, but it doesn't really shift excess fat unless you do more of it than you seem to have time to do at the moment.

I am lucky enough to see a personal trainer for an hour three times a week, and I run twice a week on top of that. Each session only burns off about 200-400 kcals, which I can easily use up in an extra slice of toast at breakfast, and a Kit Kat in the afternoon (although it does speed up my metabolism - but not so much that I can eat what I want). Watching what you eat is absolutely central to losing fat.

If you just want to shift a few inches, sticking STRICTLY to 1500 kcals a day and getting in whatever extra walking you can manage while the kids are doing their activities for six months or so will probably do the job.

Slow and steady :-)

And I second what pp said about the the C25K thing. It's what I used to get me running. Highly recommended!