Hi TBSH friends! Angela here. It’s approaching late August, we here in Houston, Texas have just a few days before the kids go back to school, and the summer Olympics are nearing the end!

I am wondering if I am the only mom out there, despite my best efforts, that put on a few extra pounds over the summer; between vacations, not getting to the gym as much, and not eating as well as I should?? I am betting that I am not alone in this!

So, as I’ve been watching the summer Olympics for the past 2 weeks I’ve had to see all these athletes with “perfect” 0% body fat bodies! Now, I realize that I am no 20 something, or even 30 something anymore, but seeing these athletes in bathing suits and leotards makes me long for a slimmer, trimmer me that I know is under this belly roll somewhere :). Note, I didn’t say “healthier” me, because honestly I eat pretty well. No sweets, except for the occasional small scoop of ice cream, and not much white or wheat products as I am gluten sensitive. I think that mostly, at least for me, and possibly for you, it boils down to calories in, calories out, and exercise. I am not getting my workouts in over the summer with the kids home as much as I should! We must make the time to exercise!!

So, where do we go from here? I’ve enlisted the help of my fabulous, fit friend Valerie Villarreal to help us out. She’s like most of us. Busy! She has 4 beautiful children, a handsome husband, a full time job, and a new addition to the family. They just rescued a chocolate lab! But she makes fitness a priority and manages to stay fit with daily workouts. I follow her on Instagram @ fullhouseofroyals as she posts her daily workouts. They have really been inspiring me to get moving! You should check her out!

So, take it away Valerie… Tell us a little about yourself and what your advice is on staying fit in the midst of our busy lives.

Thanks Angela for the sweet intro and thanks for the invite to guest blog, this is fun and exciting!

As Angela mentioned I am running a full house (hence the insta handle). This year will be particularly interesting…our oldest starts high school, then one in middle school, one starting PreK at the Elementary school and the youngest still in daycare (but potty trained, yay!). I work full time and have an awesome husband that helps run the always chaotic ship.

I have had a love / hate relationship with exercise programs over the years because they were always short sighted. They were never a priority and workouts easily got over looked for something else. Enough so that they just stopped happening all together. Over time (years), I realized the workouts should never have been the priority to begin with but rather the time I made for myself to do them.

Our priorities are our families, however, and we forget sometimes that WE are members of the family too. So, unless we DO something about it, our needs get to the bottom of the list and get pushed to “later”, “tomorrow” or “Monday”. Sound familiar? We really need to make the time because in my house, everyone knows that if mama is happy, EVERYONE is happy. 😉

So how do we do this? Here are a few things that help me in no particular order. Having everyone on a somewhat predictable back to school routine will help too!

1- Schedule it.

That’s right, just like you would a dental appointment or a meet the teacher session in the middle of the day. Find a hole in the calendar and schedule 30 minutes to an hour at least 3 times a week. Take that time to go for a run, walk, do a workout video out at home or pick up those weights sitting in the corner and LIFT them.

2- Find a partner.

Accountability. It is so easy to not “show up” for yourself. But, if your friend is expecting you to be her running buddy or workout partner at 6am, you WILL. SHOW. UP. Can’t leave a sister hanging, can you? Guess what? You’re helping her and at the end of the session, you worked out too! 2 birds, baby.

3- Recruit the family.

I have now turned my fitness goals into a lifestyle habit. My 3 days a week have turned into 6-7 and because of it, my kids and husband expect me to be “working out or something” for a little bit every day. Now, they want to join in with me! So rather than leave the teenagers to Netflix and XBox, I bring them with me on a bike ride, walk/run or the gym. Slowly but surely, it will be their habit too (I’m hoping). The little ones too! They love to go for a ride to the park in the bike trailer and they are always game to jump on your back while you are trying to do pushups or copy your yoga moves. Incorporate them into the workout, they’ll view it as play and guess what? Another 2 birds!

4- Turn everyday things into workout/fitness opportunities.

So you missed your scheduled “appointment”, can’t find a buddy and your kids just aren’t buying into this? If you work away from home, pack a lunch and use your lunch hour for a workout. If you can’t get away and you work at home, lunge across the house with your laundry basket over your head back and forth three times (I have laundry every single day, this could totally happen), lift that baby over your head 15 times for 3 rounds…your arms will be on fire! When you take the kids to the local pool, ride your bike there and then do arm circles in the water, dips on the side of the pool. See where I’m going with this? Opportunity is everywhere, keep a watchful eye and don’t let it pass you by. Where there is a will, there is a way.

5- Set goals.

It doesn’t have to be drastic. It could be weight driven, sure. But that ultimately is temporary and ever fluctuating (i.e. frustrating). Try time, distance or weight goals instead. Walk that mile a little faster each time or try going a little further. How about doing those curls with 5lb weights over the 2? Achieving the smallest of accomplishments is satisfying enough to keep you coming back for more.

6- Find your reason.

Why do you want to have a workout regimen anyway? Remind yourself of YOUR “why” every time you start talking “I’m too busy”. For me, it’s setting a positive example for my family, having the energy and good mood to do all the things I have to do while feeling stronger and healthier.

These are just a few things that helped me get started. Ultimately, you will never regret doing a workout. There is nothing but upside and as I said before you will be happier for it and the whole family will take notice and be happy too.

Hope you all have had an awesome Summer and thanks for reading! If you’re short on motivation or getting that little “umph” to get started, come on by Instagram page @fullhouseofroyals, I’ll do my best to help! J

Valerie

Thanks for the great tips and being such a great example for us busy moms Valerie! And, thanks for keeping me motivated on your Instagram page!

So, are you ready people? Now that the kids are back in school what are you waiting for? What are you going to do to beat the summer slump?

XO – Angela