How Busy Moms Can Stay Healthy

Do you feel like a mama whose to-do list is longer than your life expectancy? You need this cheat sheet on how busy moms can stay healthy!

Healthy Living Tips for Busy Mamas

You know the saying, “If Mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy”? Well, I don’t know about you, but THIS Mama has a hard time being happy when she’s not well. In order to be there for our families, in all the ways they NEED us, we need to prioritize our own health. But it’s hard to imagine how busy moms can stay healthy when there are only 24 hours a day. And each day has at least 48 hours’ worth of stuff that needs doing.

Sound familiar, Busy Mama?

Unfortunately, this is another lesson I’ve learned the hard way. And some of it is cyclical; some seasons of the year and of life are easier than others to navigate.

For example, as I type this, I’m getting ready to leave on a much-needed vacation. Only burning the candle at both ends has me feeling as if a cold is coming on.

So do as I say, and not as I’ve been doing this past week. No, these aren’t overnight fixes, and they’re best thought of as goals to work toward, one small step at a time. Think of this as your how-to-stay-healthy cheat sheet or checklist. Cover these bases, and you’ll be well on your way toward a healthy-mama lifestyle.

 

This is a collaboration post. However, please know I stand behind everything written here, and only include links to products/services/resources I’m willing to recommend personally.

Eat Right

You already know the basics: lots of fruits and veggies, quality protein, whole grains, healthy fats in moderation, avoid processed foods. But it’s worth saying anyway, because I know how easy it is to slip off the wagon with these things.

Some things to consider:

  • Go back to the MyPlate basics. (Note: this is a great way to teach your kids about healthy eating, too!) And try to cook from scratch more, eat processed foods less.
Both slow cookers and instant pots make tasty homemade-from-scratch meals a lot easier to cook!
  • Become a label reader, if you’re not already. Watch your portions, and be aware of the sugars and sodium in the foods you’re consuming.
  • Shop locally when possible. Support local farm stands and farmers’ markets; the latter often also have stands with locally-sourced, more ethically-raised meats and dairy products as well as veggies.
  • If you’re considering a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, make sure you’re still getting appropriate amounts of quality healthy protein. And don’t just swap a lot of processed foods into your diet, to replace homemade dishes that might contain animal protein. (A personal favorite of mine when eating in vegetarian mode is quinoa, a South American grain that contains all the amino acids of complete protein.)
  • Join a local CSA for regular access to locally-grown organic vegetables at an affordable price.
  • Or grow your own veggies and herbs. Gardening is a great way to make eating healthily a family project, and get your kids more interested in vegetables. Read this post for how we made our own herb “tasting garden” that the girls “snack” on. Or see this site for healthy eating/living tips, including gardening tips.
Our tasting garden last spring, after the herbs were in and before the hyacinths had gone by.

RELATED POST: CSA And You: Save Money, Eat Better. and Get Your Kids To Love Veggies

RELATED POST: Why Your Kids Will Love A Tasting Garden

Stay in Shape

I know, easier said than done, right? But exercise can do soooo much to help you function better as a mama. Not only will it keep your body healthy and help you maintain a healthy weight, but the endorphins it releases will boost your mood. And getting regular exercise will also give you energy to power through your day.

Here are some hacks to get you started:

  • If you don’t already have one, get yourself a smart watch/fitness tracker. I LOVE my Fitbit, and use those little hourly reminders-to-move to get a much-needed break from my computer work.
Every little bit adds up!
  • Coordinate with your co-parent or another relative to attend your favorite fitness class a few times a week. Unless I’m sick or out of town, my yoga class time is sacred.
  • Or find a gym that includes free child care for all its members.
  • Or take a mommy-and-me yoga or water class with your little one(s).
  • Part of the stroller set? Find (or start!) a group of like-minded mamas for a stroller fitness class.
Strollercize warmup laps
  • Work at home? See if you can build a short walk into your morning or errand-time. If we’re low on milk, I try to walk to our nearest convenience store (1 mile round-trip) to grab some more.
  • Work away from home? Can you commute on foot or by bike? (My husband bikes to his teaching job most days, weather permitting.) Can you park a little farther away from the building? Take the stairs instead of the elevator? Ask a co-worker a quick question in person versus over email?
  • Too busy shuttling the kids around to get in a workout? Walk around the building or pace the sidelines while they’re at sports practice or other activities.
  • Still having a hard time squeezing in exercise around all your family obligations? Then make your family a part of your fitness goals.

RELATED POST: The Secret of Realistic Fitness Goals

Clear Your Mind

Regular exercise is just one way you can improve your mental health. It’s like the oxygen mask instructions on the plane: if you don’t take care of yourself first, how can you help the rest of your family?

Here are some practical pointers to put this into practice:

  • Keep those exercise commitments you made to yourself in the previous step! I LOVE my long bike rides in warmer weather for working out whatever is on my mind. Walking, running, and even gardening are all good for this, too.
Me in my happy place, on the road.
  • Take a new exercise class that you haven’t tried before. Something unfamiliar will require enough concentration to keep you mentally sharp, and take your mind off whatever is stressing you out. (And if you’ve never tried yoga or meditation – both of which are classes at my local gym – then these have other added relaxation benefits, too.)
  • Can’t get to a class? Check your app store for a meditation or relaxation app. Or use the one on your smart device. Ever since I started doing the Fitbit 5-minute Relax mode as soon as I crawl into bed each night, I go right to sleep.
  • Get up a half-hour earlier and take some “me” time for yourself at the start of the day. Journal, relax with your morning coffee, do Bible study/journaling, meditate, draw up your to-do list, or whatever will help you clear your mind and start the day fresh.
  • Set aside a half-hour at the end of the day to do the same. Read a good book, journal, sip a cup of tea, have some quiet time, plan out the next day, whatever will help get your morning off to a better start.
  • For those times when you’re in crisis mode, see this basic list I drew up a few years ago of managing life when it sends us on a roller-coaster.

RELATED POST: How To Hack Your Morning Routine

RELATED POST: What To Do When Life Throws You For A Loop

Catch Those Elusive Zzzs

If you’ve got an infant under one, let me tell you upfront: it gets better. I promise. Don’t beat yourself up over this section. Just do the best you can while you wait out that first year, which is definitely the hardest.

For the rest of us: Longtime readers know that better sleep is an obsession of mine. So rather than go overboard repeating what I’ve already said elsewhere, I’ll just go over the highlights here, with links to more resources:

RELATED POSTS:

Plan Ahead

If the present-day isn’t enough to motivate you to take care of your health, think about the consequences down the road of NOT doing so: shortened lifespan, lower quality of life, fewer active years, etc. Three-quarters of my grandparents died before I was even born, of illnesses that different health choices might have prevented. I don’t know about you, but I want to be around to meet my grandkids!

And yet with medical advances helping so many people live longer, it’s important to consider what this might mean for your family. Anyone who’s had to take care of an aging parent during their final illness (raises hand) knows how important this is. You need to think about stuff like in-home care, diet plans, and any treatments your aging parents (and someday, YOU) might need for long-term illness.

And keep in mind, not everyone who finds themselves needing rehab or in-home help is “old”…

So…

  • Use those healthy-living goals as incentives to get your backside to the gym, get your daily walks in, eat your fruits and veggies, and get enough shut-eye.

But don’t neglect planning for the future, whether it’s

Keep these excellent health hacks in mind, and you’ll be a happier (and better-functioning) Mama before you know it!

If you enjoyed this post on how busy moms can stay healthy, why not share it with others by pinning this image?

  

NOTE: This site contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission from any purchases made through affiliate links, at no additional cost to you. For more information, please read the full disclosure/privacy policy.

 

 

20 thoughts on “How Busy Moms Can Stay Healthy”

  1. It can feel impossible at times but busy mamas need to make time for
    their health and happiness. I find that if I schedule it into my calendar, it’s easier to follow through with a workout plan.

  2. After having to take care of my parents for the last few weeks I can see this would be good. I think I am going to write a checklist for things to get done and ways to keep healthy. It would help a lot.

    1. Ooh, yeah, taking care of aging parents is just about as challenging as parenting – put the two together, and you REALLY need to focus on self-care at that point!

  3. Melanie williams

    No matter how pushed you are for time, it is super important to keep both the mind and body healthy. Yoga is a fab one to do xx

  4. I’m not a mom, but I can surely take these tips and add them into my everyday routine! Sometimes I forget to eat right because of stress, but everyday is a new day right? A chance to start over. 🙂 Taking care of myself feels selfish, but I know I have to take care of myself before I can take care of anyone else! 🙂

  5. Making time to work out is so important to me and my mental state. I think moms especially have to make the time!

  6. It’s so hard sometimes! I wake up with all intentions of getting a workout in then it doesn’t happen. Our weather is finally warming up enough to start riding bikes to school again, now my son just needs to practice more without his training wheels on so we can go every day.

    1. Super Mom Hacks

      Oh that’s right, you and your boys can bike to school! So lucky! We’re only a mile (on foot) or two (on road) to our kids’ school, but the path on foot is much safer for them right now than biking. Maybe we’ll try it someday…

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Exit mobile version