Can you imagine how excited I was when the editors at Bethesda Magazine asked me to write a story about busy, important people who manage to stay in shape despite long hours and irregular schedules? I figured I’d get some great motivational tips and tricks, and I did. The surprise: Their tips and tricks weren’t revolutionary things I’d never thought of, but basic concepts familiar to anyone who’s ever picked up a fitness magazine.
Here’s what makes their tips so effective and mind-blowing: They find ways to apply them to their lives, and their situations, and adhere to those tips like super-glue.
These tips are especially poignant for me this week. I spent the first few days of the weeks at doctor appointments and on insurance phone calls to deal with my torn ACL (dealing with Tricare=far more painful than my actual injury. But I prevailed, and surgery is scheduled for Jan. 28!). Plus, we left Thursday night for a week-long trip to visit family in Colorado. Add the normal demands of deadlines and life and stuff, and I’ve barely been keeping my head above water.
Here are a few of my favorite fit-it-all-in tips, plus how I apply (or plan to apply) their advice to my own life:
- From documentary filmmaker Sean Fine: Just do something. “Maybe you got yourself psyched for that 70- or 80-mile bike ride, but you don’t have to skip it altogether if you only have 30 minutes. It’s about realizing that it’s better to do some push-ups and sit-ups in your hotel room than giving up and not doing anything at all.”
- From Fox 5 weather forecaster Sue Palka: Put yourself first. Palka says she honors her workout time by telling colleagues and others that a lunch meeting won’t work with her schedule. “I just don’t tell them it’s because I exercise from noon to 1,” she says.
- From Bill Marriott (who’s 78!): Find a routine. “Develop a great workout plan that fits into your hectic schedule, and stick to it.”
- From News 4 anchor Doreen Gentzler: Sign up for a big event. It “forces you to make time for your workouts,” she says.
I do a few of my basic core-strengthening/ITB-saving exercises daily, even when I don’t manage a full workout.
Ooh, am I ever bad about this! I promise to be better about honoring my workouts once I schedule them.
Normally, I swim on Mondays, run Tuesdays and Thursdays, and swim again, lift or do other cross-training on Wednesdays and Fridays. Consistency breeds habit, which is always helpful when it comes to exercise. I plan to swim every other day until my ACL can handle other activity.
True. I’ve got the 4.4-mile Great Chesapeake Bay Bridge Swim on June 12 lurking out there, so I know I’ve got to kick my butt into gear in the pool.
Check out the whole story here. What’s your most effective, tried-and-true workout tip?
Amy Reinink 
Ooh, these are good tips. These are especially helpful as I’m coming back – cautiously- from my bulging disc injury. Since I’m only doing every other day, it’s been easy to let an extra day slide by without a workout. I’m going to apply these to help me get back to being more committed and consistent!