THE HILL I AM DYING ON TODAY!

It’s a busy time of year. You’re a busy mom dealing with life, but also trying to work on your health. The holidays are just around the corner. With so much on your plate, you might not feel like you have time to fit everything in.

Maybe you aren’t the type who likes to get up super early to fit a workout in before the hecticness of your day begins – guilty.

Or maybe you ARE the type who likes to get up early, get your workout in, but then the day gets away from you and before you know it you’re munching on Cheetos and a Diet Coke to make it through your afternoon before you get home and realize there’s nothing in your kitchen besides frozen nuggets, mac and cheese, and some applesauce cups.

As a busy mom trying to work on a healthy lifestyle or lose weight, we have this idea that we have to do ALL the things to be effective.

And in some ways, this is true.

BUT!

It’s also possible to make an impact on your health and start the weight loss process without losing your mind trying to get it ALL done.

Three things have the greatest impact on your health journey/weight loss: Nutrition, Toning/Muscle Building, and Cardio.

Nutrition is all about what you’re eating, consuming fewer calories than you burn, and eating more nutrient dense foods (an apple versus a cupcake).

Toning is about increasing your muscle mass or strengthening your muscles. Lean muscle requires more calories to maintain itself.

Cardio is about being more active (getting more movement) and burning additional calories stored as adipose tissue (fat cells) within the body.

And a fourth, if you want to throw it in there, is Sleep. This one is a little more “indirect” as in you are not ACTIVELY doing something (what you’re eating or how you’re moving your body), but it still affects weight loss because of hormones directly related to regulating appetite, metabolism, energy, and also lack of sleep impairs your judgment when it comes to food choices (you’re more likely to throw the frozen pizza in the oven because you’re tired as opposed to chopping vegetables and chicken and cooking a stir-fry).

NOW, as a busy mom who juggles any combination of family, work, household, finances, community, activities, personal issues, it might not be possible for you to optimize all 3 of these factors at once.

So, if you can’t do them all, which one should you choose first?

Nutrition first. I will die on this hill. I have blogged about nutrition before. I will blog about it again, I’m sure (health coach AND nutrition coach). For ALL the studies about nutrition and the benefits and why eating healthy is important, etc., I will say why, for a busy mom, I believe nutrition is the most important place to start.

You are putting food into your mouth EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. The choice of WHICH foods you consume can make the difference between if you are successful with your weight loss or not. It does not have to be 100% healthy eating all the time. Ideally you want to shoot for 80% healthy choices with 20% being able to indulge a little. And if 80% is on the high side for you starting out, then pick a number that works for you. 50%, 60%, etc.

But the science is clear – what you put in your mouth has a far greater impact on weight loss than what exercises you’re doing. (And as a disclaimer, this is not necessarily the case for athletes or extremely active individuals who are burning excessive amounts of calories per day.)

Then oddly enough, the next thing to work on would be Toning.

You can get more toning exercises done in a shorter amount of time, or it’s easier to spread them out throughout your day (10 squats here, 15 lunges there, pushups against the counter, etc.) and get that added benefit of burning calories while you’re sleeping to maintain the new muscle you’re building.

Toning can be done using your own body weight as resistance, or you can use equipment if you would like (weights, resistance bands, kettle bells, etc.). But they can be done anywhere, anytime, and have an important impact on your ability to lose weight.

Lastly, you should work on Cardio. 

NOT because cardio isn’t important. I cannot stress this enough!

It actually is VERY IMPORTANT. You need to MOVE throughout your day. Your body NEEDS it.

“Move it or Lose it” is a very REAL problem, not just a weight loss slogan. It has a serious impact on your health when you don’t move enough (heart, lungs, how your hormones work, blood sugar levels, joints, digestive system, brain function). Cardio, or just movement in general, are very important to your health, well-being, and weight loss.

BUT.

If you’re looking for the easiest and fastest ways to make changes, nutrition and toning are the way to go. They will have the greatest impact in the shortest amount of time, and are an excellent way to get started if you’re overwhelmed with where or how to start a weight loss journey.

Once you get started with nutrition and toning, start adding cardio in ways that work with your schedule and comfort level.

Those are the three most effective ways to get started with weight loss if you’re a busy mom who’s trying to do it all, plus take care of yourself, as well.

And if you need a hand getting started, creating a plan that works with your life, gives you support and helps you stay accountable, and takes all your lifestyle factors into account, reach out to me for a FREE ConsultationCall.