Busy Mom Bodyweight Workout

I don’t get a lot of dudes over here at Call Her Happy. So, I was pretty excited when Joe of The Unlimited Project said he would write a post for me outlining a workout for a busy mom. This is numero uno on my list of to-dos after baby boy arrives – you know, after I take the Colace (tmi? but it’s such good advice.) and remind Ellen to be gentle 68 times.

You are a busy mom. You have kids to take care of, meals to cook, and clothes to wash. You don’t have a lot of free time.

I know how hard it can be. While I’m certainly not a busy mom (being male and without kids probably rules me out), I have seen an example in my mom. For a large part of her life she has worked 40 hour plus weeks while raising 3 kids, cooking meals, doing laundry, and generally keeping the house from utter disaster. I’m sure you are familiar with the feeling. It’s not easy, and I don’t how how she does it. She’s my superhero.

I know you are busy, but you still want to say in shape. The good news is it’s possible! All you need is 45 minutes, 3 times a week. That’s the equivalent of a little more than 2 hours of TV. I know you have 2 hours during your week.

I know your time and money are valuable, so that’s why I designed this workout as a bodyweight workout. That means no fancy equipment, no expensive weights, and no gym required. You can do this workout anytime, anywhere. It can be done in your kitchen, in your living room, in your bedroom, or even at your kid’s soccer game. All you need is an open space to workout and your own body.

Why This Workout Is Awesome

Bodyweight circuits are extremely awesome for several reasons. First, they use your whole body. Almost every muscle in your body will be worked and moved. Second, they are time efficient, which works perfect in your busy life. You are continually moving from exercise to exercise, so you maximize the work done in the minimal amount of time. Third, it gets your heart pumping and burns calories. With the circuit, your body is always working, which keeps your heart rate up and getting a fantastic cardio workout (one that is much better than a 30 minute jog).

The Workout

This is a simple workout using only your body. Our goal is to complete it 3 times. However, many of you reading this are at different levels of fitness. If you get too tired during the workout, take a quick break. It is better to rest than to do an exercise or movement wrong. Doing an exercise wrong is how you pull a muscle or hurt yourself. And no worries! If you can’t make it through 3 times, now you have a goal to work towards!

Before we start, make sure you warm up! There is nothing worse than getting excited to work out, working hard for a few minutes, getting a good sweat going, and then pulling a hamstring or tweaking a muscle (which will set you back a week minimum and make everyday tasks much harder). Take the time (even a few minutes will do) to get your body warm, whether that be running in place, doing jumping jacks, running up and down your stairs, doing pushups, or chasing your kids around the house. The point isn’t to exhaust you completely, but get your body moving and your heart rate up. If you are worried about time, just know that it’s better to cut your workout short than to skip the warm up. Injuries suck.

To complete this workout, do the following:

• 10 pushups

• 20 squats

• 10 pushups

• 20 lunges (10 each leg)

• 10 dips (you can use a chair, a couch, or a step for this)

• 30 jumping jacks

• 20 second plank/bridge (they are the same thing, people just use different names)

• 10 burpees

• 15 crunches

Like I said above, the goal is to complete this circuit 3 times. After you made it through once, feel free to take a minute rest. But don’t take too long and get back after it! Some tips you should keep in mind:

• Make sure you stretch and warm down after the circuits. This will help your body recover and make you less sore tomorrow.

• If you have a hard time doing normal pushups, feel free to use your knees. There’s another goal! Work up to 10 normal pushups!

• For the squats and lunges, make sure your knees aren’t coming over your toes. You want your legs to be at a 90 degree angle. When your knees start to come over your toes, you are placing excess pressure on your knees, which leads to injury.

• For the squats and lunges, if you are having a hard time doing them properly and balancing, it’s ok to hold onto something for support

Starting out, look to do this circuit 3 times a week, but give yourself a day of rest in between. You also need to make sure you are eating well. This doesn’t mean processed foods full of refined sugar and overloaded with carbs. Look to eat natural whenever possible and focus on lean meats, fruits, nuts, vegetables, and eggs (the Paleo diet).

If this workout was too easy, check this out for a more advanced, killer workout that will definitely give you the body and fitness you want.

Ultimately, I want to help you get fit and live the life you want. It’s not always an easy journey and it doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time and effort, but you can do it.

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Joe Marshall is an athlete, businessman, and life enthusiast who’s on a mission to ensure you break out of self and societal imposed limits and live your best life. Check out how he breaks down how to enjoy each day and workout anytime, anywhere.