This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of goodnessknows Snack Squares. All opinions, tips and photos are 100% mine.Â
Motherhood empties us of a lot of things: sleep, money, energy, free time, ourselves in general. When we’re sleep deprived and living through tightly scheduled days, it’s hard to find energy to do much beyond caring for our families.
But we have to find ways to care for ourselves, too. Because emptied out moms have nothing to give back to their families. Fill up your care cup and there will be plenty to pour into others. And exercise is one of those ways that ought not be overlooked.
Now I know, I know–gone are the days when you could just disappear for two hours at that posh gym you loved. Gone is the spare cash for that membership, too. It’s hard to make it to workout classes that help you stay motivated. Who wants to pay for childcare while they exercise anyway? Alternately, who wants to regularly miss out on valuable family time while Dad watches the kids? I know that workouts needs to happen more times a week than I am willing to sacrifice  from my family time bank. Time is a precious commodity for a mom. For every mom.
*Thanks to goodnessknows for being a long-time sponsor of this blog! We devour your bars after each and every workout!*
So I say DON’T make exercise an event. It doesn’t have to be AT a gym or IN a class. Those things are great, but it can be right in your living room. It can be a lifestyle choice. It can be 20 minutes every day or every other day. It can be before the kids wake up, but let’s be more real, it can be when all of you wake up. And it can be this wonderful self-disciplined life habit that you model for your children–something they learn to value for themselves: the care of the body. Because caring for your own self helps you to best care for others.
Now, I know there are a lot of great living room workouts out there, but any time I’ve tried to do “real” exercises, I have kids hanging on my limbs and throwing off my flow completely. If they aren’t INVOLVED, it isn’t happening. If they aren’t having fun, I can forget it. It’s really easy to give up and get out of the routine with the littles around.
So here is my workout that the kids think is just me playing with them, but by the end, I’ve got my heart rate up and broken a sweat. Shout out to my personal trainer big brother who designed this for me! I aim for 20 minutes each morning, but maybe it’s more realistic for each mom to just shoot for a range, maybe 10-20 minutes. Even if it’s just five minutes, it’s better than nothing!
Be sure to stretch before. Flexibility keeps us all young!
Frog Hops
Do a low squat, touch the ground with your hand, jump and don’t forget the RIBBIT! Your kids will do them with you and have a great time. Try doing ten in a row.
Baby Squats
Hold your baby and do deep squats. Mine gets squirmy so I can only do about five before he’s over it.
Piggy Back Lunges
Give your kid(s) piggy back rides. Take two to four steps then squat or lunge. Try 5-10!
SuperMoms
Lying on your stomach with your kids next to you lying on theirs, put your arms straight out over your head and legs straight back, hands and feet off the ground, holding them off the floor for as long as you can pretending you’re flying like superman, superwoman or SUPERMOM!
Airplane Ride Leg Presses
Lay on your back with your legs together in the air with your kid balancing chest down on your feet. You know the old game. Now while you’re making airplane noises drop your knees to your chest (kisses encouraged!) and back up 15 times. Presto. Leg press.
Dance Party
A dance party never fails for a good ending to the workout and it’s great cardio if you get yourself moving. Crank up some good music and dance your face off!
If you got through all of that, GOOD FOR YOU! If you didn’t feel the burn, do another rep! Go as long as your body or your kids allow!
Our After-Workout Treat – goodnessknows!!
After a good workout, my kids and I like to fuel up on goodnessknows snack squares. We just love how we can mix and match the flavors together!! Each bag of goodnessknows comes with four tasty bars! They are the perfect size for an energy fueling snack! And just like the workout, my kids think they’re getting a treat, when really, they’re getting something that’s fun and tasty – with protein and carbs for their bodies!
Every square has real fruit, whole nuts, and dark chocolate. We all have a favorite flavor: peach & cherry for me, cranberry for my big guy and apple for the little peanut. They’re delicious!
And as the folks at goodnessknows say, doing a little good for yourself can go a long way. So take care of you, Mama.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of goodnessknows. The opinions and text are all mine.
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