When You Can't Make it to the Gym

I decided to head to the gym last Wednesday morning for a cardio workout.  So, I packed up my 2 yr old son and off to the Y we went.  Now, Aiden goes to school two mornings a week and I can leave him without a single tear.  I walked into the gym's childcare and all of a sudden Aiden has a complete meltdown.  He is squeezing my neck so hard that when I released my hands he was literally climbing up me.  So after 10 minutes of attempting every Mommy trick in the book we were leaving the Y without my workout.

Frustrating---Absolutely!!!!!  I hate going one day without some kind of workout.  Instead of losing all hope of no workout, I decided to use the things around my house and create my own.  I waited until Aiden napped, turned on my ipod and started working out.  I could even get some things done around the house as I was exercising (added bonus).

Here are some of the things I did, and what I used for equipment.

• Running in Place; I did this in between exercises to keep my Heart Rate up. 
• Running in Place with Overhead press; With backpack filled with books, I would press it up over my head (can be done stationary too)
• Walking Lunges; great for getting from one room to the next (maybe carrying a laundry basket?)
• Crunches; middle and obliques (your sides)
• Push-ups; sometimes on floor or angle out from a wall
• Bicep Curls; With backpack (held onto top loop, worked great)
• Squats; With "hugging" the backpack
• Step-ups; Using a single stair up and down or climb all the stairs several times

I did each of the exercises several times.  My heart was pumping and I sweated.  What a great way to get my workout in!  A lot more can be added to what I did; it just requires a little imagination.  Remember that almost anything you do at the gym you can do at home.  This means...........NO EXCUSES!!!!!

Give a try.