Lately I have been too tired to exercise It is hard enough to get up and go to work. My house is a wreck and I am MOODY! I take all of the Atkins supplements so it is not a vitamin deficiency. Any suggestions? I pay $50 a month for the gym and havent been going. I work from 8-6 get home at 6:45, eat dinner and by then it is 8pm. I have enough trouble getting up at 7am for work let alone going to the gym. HELP! Will I still lose if I dont exercise for awhile? I even bought a pilates tape for at home and I am even too tired to do that! Any advice would be appreciated!

Sounds like you're overwhelmed! One of the benefits of exercise is that it will give you MORE energy and another is it will help balance the moodiness you experiencing (exercise releases the same chemicals anti-depressants do... naturally). You may want to commit to a brisk 10 minute walk before work and another in the evening before you start to unwind. The gym and tapes are structured and demand your time... if you already have enough demands in your life (for Godsake, even your house is crying for attention) you'll feel guilty and avoid the offending, needy activity like the plague. Give yourself a goal you can realistically attain... even if it's 5 minutes.

Can you cut back your hours? The less you work, the more you take home, because it will put you in a lower tax bracket.

How much is your quality of life worth to you? You have to weigh it all and figure out where you can cut back to benefit your health.

Just a suggestion

You could try going to the gym after having a snack, then having a late (light) supper. That's what I do. I've also learned that I can do a good workout in just over an hour - do upper and lower body on different nights, not all at once, that helps. Even 45 minutes (15 on the treadmill, 1/2 hr in the weight room) is better than nothing.

we're on opposite sides of the coin here, but ultimately the same outcome. You lack the time to exercise, I lack the motivation (plus a disability, but that's just an excuse ). End result .... complete lack of energy and exhaustion, and stalled-out fat loss efforts.

I flagged a few good, motivational articles at iVillage.com, from Jonny Bowden, Weight Loss Coach (he's very pro-lowcarb). Ways to find little windows of time to squeeze in exercise, and other motivations.

• "Too Busy to Exercise"
  
• "No Time to Exercise"
  
• "The Next Best Thing to a No-Excuse Workout"

Hmm ... guess I'll get up off my big fat chair and get moving!

good luck to you,

Doreen

Unfortunately I cant change my work hours! They are my "required" hours. My boss gets mad when I want to leave at 6pm. She expects me to stay until she leaves which is usually 10 or 11pm. I am sorry, but I have a life! She is very demanding! If I am upstairs, she wants me downstairs and vice versa! Luckily I can use the computer every now and then and vent! This is her business, not mine! I am not required nor should I be expected to work past my scheduled time everyday! I usually leave around 6:15 so I am not running out the door at 6! Ahhhhhhhhhhh, stress is setting in!

Sounds like it's time for a new boss...

Don't they have rules against treating employees like that?

I wondered what you do for you work but what ever it is after reading your posts I think it is time to start looking for a new job. Life is too short to be working like that . I sure hope your pay is fantastic.
I teach grade 3 and it is very demanding. I am on my feet all day and at night it is a real effort to go out and walk. Forget the gym. However how about a treadmilll in front of the TV.
Or set the timer and go like a maniac cleaning one room for 15 or 20 minutes . Now there is some fruitful exercise.
Start out with baby steps and walk at lunch for 10 to 15 minutes.
Keep in touch and let us know how you are doing.
Norma

Your boss sounds like she has a problem- maybe she should get up to date on the way to motivate staff and get the best out of them. But she sounds like a lost cause. What is it that you do?

First of all, thank you for all of the support! I work in a hair salon that does hair replacement. I work on hair pieces and do the office work as well. It is just me and her (my boss) she cant get anyone else to work for her! Gee, I wonder why! She knows how far to go with me, it is like she pushes my buttons so far and then switches up and says, you look nice today! GRRRRRRRRR, she works my nerves! Anyway, I have a vacation coming up Sept. 8-15 paid, so after that I will be looking for a new job. And no the pay actually sucks, $350 a week! No benefits!

i used to be a member of a gym..till i realised i was'nt going so i stopped my membership. I am debating on whether to get an exercise video or not. i found a website which caters to exercise videos.. here is the link Collage Video (i hope this isn't illegal to post )
At any rate...it's the same deal,you have to feel motivated otherwise, you will just get the tape and let it collect dust.

Hi Christine!

Your boss sounds like a pain in the rear end!! Oh well forget about her and lets worry about you! How about after a nice stressed out day at work you go for a little walk at night time and get some fresh air...if your feeling up to it, even quicken your pace and you would be surprised how good a short brisk walk makes you feel!

I decided to run around the house vacuming at 1:00am last night ,,LOL and then wash the kitchen floors... hahaah. Oh well least its done!

Hugs
Shannon

Definitely a new job (and a vacation) sounds good. Could change your whole life.

About fitting exercise into a full day- I totally understand the problem as it is also my problem. I get up half an hour earlier now I am low carbing -6.30 am- in order to cook a proper breakfast for me and my husband. So getting up any earlier is out of the question!Then I get home at 5.30 or 6pm and cook dinner, feed the cat, relax, read this site, answer mail etc. Go to bed at about 10.00pm. I can not see how I can get any aerobic type exercise in on weekdays although I do go for a walk on the beach on Saturday and Sunday.
The only thing I think I could manage is to take a walk in my lunch break. I have to say honestly I haven't started doing this yet- but I am planning to take some sneakers and go out at lunch time and walk for 30 minutes- with my walkman for company as I find walking rather boring. I am lucky that there are hills all around where I work so I can get get in a good up-hill walk if I set my mind to it. So- could you manage to walk in your lunch break too?
PS I did go to the gymn for 2 years and it did make me feel better, more energised (though it didnt make me any slimmer in fact I put weight on and no it wasn't muscle!)-but I went before work and I just haven't got time now.

There are many ways to exercise during the day that don't require too extra much time.

Take the stairs instead of the elevator, park your car a block or two further away, or get off the bus or train one stop early and walk the rest. Same with the way home - get off one stop early.

Walk at lunchtime as you say, eebee, or find a lunch group that walks and join them. If you can't find one - start one! Support is great, and makes you DO IT. And play fast music on your walkman... it makes you walk harder than quiet, Barry Manilow love songs!

If there is a golf course nearby, take a half-hour lesson at lunchtime a few times a week. Great for your arms, and you are doing more exercise than most people realise!

Many gyms have a half-hour lunchtime aerobics session, tho you have to eat your lunch on the run! And a real good trick is to offer an aerobics instructor a half hour session at your workplace - if there is a suitable room or park and enough interested people to share the cost. ($50 would be a good offer, in fact it would be a darn good offer!) These instructors do anything, believe me. Shop around. And a simple stretching or yoga routine won't leave you all sweaty.

If you work at a desk, every half hour or so try sitting with your knees locked together, feet held together just off the floor and your back slightly away from the back of your chair for as long as you can. You'd be surprised what that does for your legs and tummy, and in the long run, your posture! Watch and see how your indurance improves. Oh, and hang up a a post-it note to remind yourself to do it!

And for those tv hours, simply hire an exercise bike, treadmill or rowing machine and do it gently all the way through Law and Order. Even tape the tv aerobics/tai chi show and do that later when you can fit in the half hour. Saves buying those expensive tapes.

Oh and turn down the heat. I'm told you burn more by shivering than sweating but that could be just a myth!

All of these suggestions sound great except for one thing, I dont get a lunch break, or a break of any sort for that matter. I dont watch TV (I dont have time) so I cant workout in front of the TV! I dont know what else to do! I feel like my life is just passing me by!