Everymom: How can you fit fitness in with the mom routine?
I’m not sure if I’m fitter than a fifth-grader, but I think a fifth-grader could fit on my lap. How’s that?
At least I know my five kids can.
So I’m not that out of shape, but I’ve definitely been in better shape. While working on the “Are you fitter than a fifth-grader?” article for this month’s edition of the magazine, I couldn’t help but evaluate my own fitness level.
Yes, it was hard work standing and watching as videographer Amanda Schwengel ran that 1-mile along with the fifth-graders. Schwengel was gracious enough to take on the
challenge, as you’ll see in a video at http://www.mchenrycountymagazine.com/multimedia/?id=76.
As she did those sit-ups, I had to take a water break. And when she attempted that pull-up, whew... I needed to take a breather.
Truth is I used to run regularly. Then I had these five kids. Now I run after them regularly.
You’d think that would be a work-out, but from what I understand, it’s not as much of a work-out as I thought.
A recent study of 58 women with children under the age of 6 showed that only about a third of them got an average of 30 minutes or more a day of moderate or greater intensity physical activity.
Overall, those same mothers thought they were getting all sorts of exercise, at least an hour a day, study author Kelli O’Neill says.
O’Neill, a personal trainer, completed the research while studying at the University of Iowa and presented it to the American College of Sports Medicine. It since has been reported nationwide.
Like most parents of young kids, at the end of the day, I’m usually run ragged.
But that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t actually be running too, according to the study, or doing some sort of other physical activity.
Adults should get at least two hours and 30 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise or one hour and 15 minutes a week of vigorous activity based on federal physical activity guidelines.
It can be tough to fit that in, O’Neill concedes. But she says, “Schedule your workouts just like you do a meeting.”
Can I show up late, just like I tend to do at meetings?
I actually didn’t mind running back in the day, even became somewhat addicted to it, or more to the point, the high it left me with afterwards. And I’d love to get back into it, if only to feel healthier and more energetic for my kids.
You can find all sorts of advice out there on how to get moving — buddy up with other moms or even with your kids, seize the moment, use your lunch break, get up 30 minutes earlier. But I suppose it really comes down to just doing it.
There’s a difference between feeling simply tired, and feeling, oh, I don’t know, blobbish. I guess I’ve been feeling the latter. And I’d never want that to rub off on my children, to harm them with my own insecurities.
So here’s to making more of an effort.
Just don’t expect any pull-ups out of me.
Jami Kunzer is the mother of five, including two sets of twins. She has been a professional journalist for nearly 15 years, and began writing the Everymom column and blog at NWherald.com three years ago after the birth of her oldest set of twins, Anna and Lilly. Her other children include 5-year-old Summer and 1-year-old twins Rowan and Finley.
