If you haven’t checked out PART 1 yet, go back and read that one first.
Exhaustion as a mom is common but does not have to be your normal. Here’s what you can do about it in 5 simple steps:
1. Replenish your micronutrients ASAP!
Not all supplements are created equal. They need to have the highest quality testing and zero tolerance for contaminates. They also need to combine the best of nature (natural ingredients) with the best of science so that they contain the proper amounts & nutrient combinations (like vitamin C and iron together or calcium, D & magnesium) that dissolve in the right place at the right time in your body. For a personalized assessment, check out my products page. You’ve got to do this step or no amount of working out is going to be helpful- it will cause too much stress to your body and lead to injury, pain, and lots of frustration.
2. Go to a chiropractor
Carrying babies, nursing, bottle feeding, standing in awkward positions over cribs…all that pulls our bodies out of alignment. This leads to pain and discomfort (it’s that feeling of fighting against your own body, hunching, favoring 1 side as the baby hip over the other, etc).
3. Get a movement assessment to begin work on correcting muscle imbalances
When muscles are overused, they shorten and are in a contracted position. When muscles are weak, they are in a lengthened position. The idea is to lengthen tight, overused muscles and strengthen weak, elongated muscles. Much of this happens from the stabilization phase of rewiring the brain to engage the proper muscles and build a solid base through endurance.
4. Swap 1 meal a day
You can swap for an easy and protein-packed meal replacement shake (you can jazz these up with yummy veggies and fruits, healthy fats, and more Bc 150 calories IS NOT a meal). You can find my faves in my add-one section. All my 5 kids, my husband, and I all have a shake every day and we have for the last 9+ years now. It makes life simple and we know we are getting good stuff into our bodies for at least 1 meal a day. Healthy “fast food”!
5. Schedule your workouts
Treat them like an appointment with yourself. Earlier in the day is better, otherwise, it’s hanging over your head all day long. Plus, getting it done in the morning sets your day up for increased energy and altogether feeling better. Bottom line- get it done when it works for YOUR schedule and life.
Additional tips to make it easier to stay consistent- set out your workout clothes (or wear them to bed), have your workout ready to go (check out my products page for options- I’d love to help you do quick, anywhere workouts tailored just for busy moms!), set your alarm on the other side of the room so you have to get up to turn it off and focus on all the benefits you’re going to get by doing the dang workout instead of all the reasons your brain is going to try to tell you every morning why you don’t want to workout.
If you’ve always exercised in the past as a punishment or just to get skinny, it’s time to change your mindset.
Instead, begin to shift your thinking to focus on exercise as a celebration of what your body can do, to increase strength and endurance for the demands of your life, and as a daily habit that you love because of the way you feel after you’ve done it. It’s not just for now; it’s for our future selves, for the ability to get down and play with our grandkids, to hike as many years as we are old no matter how old we are, and so much more!! Our minds are a powerful thing! The key to success is consistency.
You are already making decisions every day that have gotten you the results you have in your life right now. You can absolutely make changes to move your life in the direction you want to go. It’s going to go anyways. So why not make it a path where you feel your best so you can give and do your best? You can make your decisions work FOR you instead of against you, my friend.
Much love,
Chelsey
